Douglas C. Strain was the founder, chairman, and CEO of Electro Scientific Industries (ESI) and was instrumental in the establishment of the high-technology and electronics industry in Oregon. After working as a design engineer for several southern California electronic and instrument companies, he founded Electro Measurements with his father, Clayton Strain, and several Cal Tech classmates in 1953. Strain retired as CEO in 1980, but continued as chairman, and later vice chairman, of the board until his full retirement in 1999.
Strain was active in a variety of professional, civic, and philanthropic organizations and received numerous honors and awards. He actively supported numerous higher education projects in Oregon, including building campaigns at Oregon State University and Portland State University, and was a member of the Pacific University Board of Trustees.
Douglas Campbell Strain was born in Spokane, Washington, in 1919 and lived in Idaho and California as a child. He graduated from Pasadena Junior College in 1941 and from California Institute of Technology in 1948. He died in Portland, Oregon, in 2008.
Douglas' parents, Clayton Preston Strain and Edith Crockatt Strain, both attended Agricultural College and earned BS degrees in 1915. His father, Clayton Strain, also earned an MS in Dairy Manufacturing in 1917. Clayton Strain and Edith Crockatt were married in 1918.
From the guide to the Douglas C. Strain Papers, 1914-2007, 1970-2000, (Oregon State University Libraries)
