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Microbiology Department Records, 1893-1998

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Oregon State University. Dept. of Microbiology.
Title
Microbiology Department Records
Dates
1893-1998 (inclusive)
1937-1966 (bulk)
Quantity
3.5 cubic feet
Collection Number
RG 191
Summary
The Microbiology Department Records document the teaching, research, and service functions of the department and include correspondence, research records, and information about faculty.
Repository
Oregon State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives Research Center
Special Collections and Archives Research Center
121 The Valley Library
Oregon State University
Corvallis OR
97331-4501
Telephone: 5417372075
Fax: 5417378674
scarc@oregonstate.edu
Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Historical Note

Bacteriology was first offered as a separate course at OSU during the 1899-1900 academic year under Emile Pernot. Bacteriological research was conducted in the Experiment Station's bacteriology lab. Beginning in 1909, the department was housed for many years in Agriculture Hall. In 1970 the department moved to new facilities in Nash Hall designed specifically for microbiology. The department has had several names: Bacteriology; Bacteriology and Hygiene (1946-1961), Microbiology and Hygiene (1961-1968) and Microbiology (1968-).

Department chairs have included Pernot (1899-1911), Theodore D. Beckwith (1912-1918), Godfrey V. Copson (1921-1949), Joseph E. Simmons (1949-1951), Paul R. Elliker (1953-1976), John Fryer (1976-1996), Jo-Ann Leong (1996-2001), and Dennis E. Hruby (2001-). The Microbiology Department is jointly administered by the College of Science and the College of Agricultural Sciences.

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Content Description

Series I consists primarily of correspondence of department chair Paul Elliker with prospective students, colleagues at other universities, governmental agencies, professional and industry organizations, and companies such as Kraft, Borden, and Klenzade Products, a manufacturer of sanitizing chemicals, during the 1950s-1960s. The correspondence also documents budgets and activities within the Schools of Science and Agriculture in the 1950s-1970s and construction of the Bioscience Building (Nash Hall). Series II includes biographical information pertaining to department faculty and staff; the retirement scrapbook for K. Stephen Pilcher includes letters of appreciation written to him by colleagues and students. Series III pertains to undergraduate and graduate courses and includes a list of graduate thesis titles for 1913-1996. Series IV and V document departmental research pertaining to dairy processing and sanitation, soil microbiology, irradiation, and fish diseases. Series VI includes selected annual and biennial reports as well as a departmental self-study, graduate program review, and long-range planning documents. The Reports of Service to the Institution and Grade Distribution Reports document courses taught, by whom, number of students enrolled, and faculty activities in addition to teaching.

Series VII consists primarily of requests for and reports of testing done in the mid-1930s by the department of dairy products, water, and other materials for homeowners, schools, farmers, and dairy producers throughout Oregon. The correspondence and reports document water quality and dairy production and sanitation issues and concerns. This series also includes records of free water testing done in conjunction with the Oregon State Board of Health and county health officials following the December 1964 floods. Series VIII includes a Microbiology Club constitution and meeting announcements. Series IX consists of materials assembled in preparation for the department's 100th anniversary celebration in 1998, which included publication of a departmental history written by Jim Fisher. The scrapbook in this series consists primarily of clippings and includes b/w snapshot photographs of a 1963 departmental event (perhaps a staff member's retirement), and holiday letters to department alumni and friends.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Microbiology Department Records (RG 191), Oregon State University Archives, Corvallis, Oregon.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Organized into 9 series: I. Correspondence; II. Staff and Faculty; III. Teaching and Curriculum; IV. Departmental Research (non Experiment Station); V. Experiment Station; VI. Reports; VII. Tests and Inspections; VIII. Microbiology Club; and IX. 100th Anniversary.

Related Materials

The Archives' holdings include the papers of several Microbiology Department faculty: Arthur W. Anderson; Paul R. Elliker; John L. Fryer; Richard Y. Morita; and William E. Sandine. The Microbiology Department Photographs (P 117) include images of department faculty, staff, and students, laboratory research, and facilities used in the 100th anniversary publication. Motion picture films of the construction of the Bioscience Building (Nash Hall) and the department's move from Strand Agriculture Hall are available in the Microbiology Department Motion Picture Films (P 117).

The Emile Pernot Photographs (P 230) include images of campus buildings, classrooms, faculty, and students as well as photomicrographs of bacteriological subjects. Other photographs by Pernot are available in the Pernot Family Photographs (P 220).

Oral histories of Walter B. Bollen and Mabel Pernot, daughter of Emile Pernot, are also available in the Archives.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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Subject Terms

  • Agricultural microbiology--Oregon.
  • Bacteriology, Agricultural.
  • Dairy microbiology--Oregon.
  • Dairy plants--Sanitation.
  • Dairy products--Analysis--Oregon.
  • Drinking water--Testing--Oregon.
  • Fishes--Microbiology.
  • Irradiation.
  • Microbiology--Research--Oregon.
  • Milk--Microbiology--Oregon.
  • Soil microbiology--Oregon.

Personal Names

  • Bollen, Walter Beno, 1896-
  • Pernot, E. F. (Emile Francis), b. 1859

Corporate Names

  • Oregon State University. Dept. of Microbiology.
  • Oregon State College. Dept. of Bacteriology and Hygiene.
  • Oregon State College. Dept. of Bacteriology.

Form or Genre Terms

  • Photographs.
  • Scrapbooks.

Other Creators

  • Personal Names

    • Copson, G. V. (Godfrey Vernon), 1884- (creator)
    • Elliker, P. R. (Paul Reuben), 1911- (creator)
    • Fisher, Jim. (creator)
    • Fryer, John L. (creator)

    Corporate Names

    • Oregon. Milk Control Board. (creator)


2002

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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