Earl Junior Larrison papers, 1915-1987

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Earl Junior Larrison, 1919-1987
Title
Earl Junior Larrison papers
Dates
1915-1987 (inclusive)
Quantity
10 cubic feet
Collection Number
MG 233, MG233 (collection)
Summary
Journals, notebooks, research material, and typescripts of books and articles reflecting Larrison's zoological activities; his collecting of literary materials, particularly those relating to Sir Walter Scott; family papers, including photographs which belonged to his mother; and photographs, slides, and motion picture films of birds, animals, and wildlfowers.
Repository
University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Special Collections and Archives
University of Idaho Library
875 Perimeter Drive
MS 2350
Moscow, ID
83844-2350
Telephone: 2088850845
libspec@uidaho.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Earl Junior Larrison was born in Mabton, Washington on Mother's Day, May 11, 1919. He was the son of banker Earl and Anna Marie (Kuble) Larrison. During his public school years in Seattle he was active in scouting, achieving the rank of Eagle Scout, and as a result he developed a keen interest in natural science and the outdoors. Following his graduation from Lincoln High School in 1936 he attended the University of Washington, earning a bachelor's degree, cum laude, in 1941. During the early years of World War II he was employed at Boeing as a chemist, and then returned to the University of Washington where he earned a master's degree in zoology in 1946. His thesis was on the chipmunks of the central Cascade Mountains of Washington. In 1946 he accepted a fellowship in the Laboratory of Vertebrate Biology at the University of Michigan to work under Dr. Lee R. Dice. He continued work toward a doctorate in zoology at the university until February 1949 when he accepted a position at the University of Idaho.

An animal researcher and author, Larrison taught biology, zoology, mammalogy, and ornithology at the university for over 30 years. During his tenure at the school he established the skeletal and pelt museum and the Audubon Room for bird studies at his own expense. He developed the Animal Research Library, with over 12,000 volumes, including many original prints. He was also instrumental in establishing the Idaho Academy of Science. He was the first person to catalog the animals and plants of the Owyhee Mountains near Boise, a project he undertook from 1949 to 1950.

In addition to his writing and research he was a professional photographer, with a vast collection of movies, prints, and slides of his natural science research. He was frequently a visiting science teacher in public schools in Idaho and Washington as well as a recurring speaker at student and civic groups in the Palouse region.

He was an accomplished organist and was proficient in German, French, and Latin. He wrote poetry and short stories and became an authority on Sir Walter Scott. His interest in Scott developed when a friend loaned him a life of Scott to read during a summer spent at the forest lookout on Mount Pilchuck, near Everett, Washington. By 1962, when he donated his collection to the University of Idaho Library, he had accumulated more than 500 volumes by and about the author.

He was editor of the University Press of Idaho from 1982 to 1984. Following his retirement from the university in 1984 he moved to his cabin near Newport, Washington, where he died of a heart attack on October 21, 1987.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The papers of Earl J. Larrison span the years 1915 to 1985, although family papers in his possession which are included in this collection date to the 1880s. Included are typescripts of several books and articles, journals, notebooks and other research materials reflecting to his zoological activities. Also included are literary materials, particularly those relating to Sir Walter Scott, family papers, including photographs, which belonged to his mother, and other photographs, slides, and movie film which reflect his interest in birds and animals.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

Photographer, "Title," date. Collection name, object ID. University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives, Moscow, ID.

Author, Description or "Title" of item, date. Collection name, collection number, box, folder. University of Idaho Library Special Collections and Archives, Moscow, ID.

Alternative Forms Available

Some of the materials in this collection were digitzed and added to the digital Idaho Forestry Research Collection.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

The papers of Earl J. Larrison were in no discernible order when received. Therefore a series order was imposed during processing.

The first series reflects Larrison's zoological interests and includes typescripts of several of his books which had earlier been donated to Special Collections plus typescripts of other books articles, notes from several field trips, and correspondence, much of it with Harry W. Higman with whom he wrote a book on the animals of Mount Pilchuck in the Washington Cascades.

The second series concerns Larrison's interest in the writer Sir Walter Scott and contains copies of student papers on Scott from a variety of colleges and universities, and articles about his collection of Scott's books. There are also programs and cassette tapes of a Scott Colloquium held at the University of Florida in 1979, and a chronological bibliography of Scott's works.

The third series comprises personal and family papers. Included are Larrison's baby book, his diplomas and certificates, clippings about him, his appointment books, and items relating to his parents and other relatives.

The final series contains a large collection of photographs, slides and movie film. There are many unidentified photographs which belonged to Larrison's mother Marie Kuble. Some are of her friends, others of the Kuble and Miller families. Later pictures in this group show Earl as a small child. Some of these are taken by professional photographers, others are snapshots. These have not been arranged in any way. Some of the snapshots Larrison had copied so they exist in three forms, original photograph, copy negative, and copy print, each type is located in a separate folder. There are also some old picture postcards, probably purchased on a family vacation along the Columbia River Highway in Oregon. The remaining photographs were taken by Larrison in connection with his research. Some envelopes containing prints and negatives were numbered; the prints were placed in archival envelopes and identified by the roll number, the negatives were placed in archival negative storage pages and also identified by roll number. There is a photo log in the collection but it does not cover the majority of these numbered rolls. The remaining prints were identified by broad subject, e.g. habitats/life zones, birds, mammals. Prints and negatives which were together were kept together in folders, other negatives were placed at the end of the subject file, no attempt being made to match them with prints.

The slides which were originally in metal slide storage cases were placed in archival slide storage pages. Larrison's identifications were retained throughout. Included are pictures of Larrison's trip to Nairobi, Kenya, visits to various museums, many scenes of Idaho, and illustrative plates from books. Some of the slides are commercially produced.

Where more than two typescripts, including galley proofs, for a single book existed only the earliest and latest were retained. Duplicate photographs, when easily identified, were discarded. This, coupled with the removing of slides from their original storage cases, reduced the bulk of this collection by 1.5 cubic feet.

Acquisition Information

The papers of Earl J. Larrison were donated to the University of Idaho Library between August 1988 and March 1990 by Don Johnson, who sorted them following Larrison's death. Other typescripts were transferred from previous holdings in the Special Collections Department. These materials were then combined. Brian and Don Johnson donated an additional scrapbook in March of 2015. It was passed along to Dean Lynn Baird.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

I:  Zoology Material, 1915-1985Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/1-2
"Field guide to the birds of Washington," by Earl J. Larrison and Edward N. Francq. First preliminary draft
1 item
1962
1/3
"Field guide to the birds of Washington state." Final typescript, bound
1 item
1962
1/4
Field guide to the birds of Washington state, revision questionnaire
1 item
undated
1/5
"Guide to Idaho birds," by Earl J. Larrison, Jerry L. Tucker, and Malcolm T. Jollie. Typescript, bound
1 item
1967
1/6
"Guide to Idaho Mammals," by Earl J. Larrison. Typescript, bound
1 item
1967
1/7
"Owyhee: the life of a northern desert," by Earl J. Larrison. Typescript, bound
1 item
1957
1/8
"Washington birds," first handwritten draft
1 item
undated
1/9
"Washington birds; their location and identification" by Earl J. Larrison and Klaus G. Sonnenberg. Final typescript, bound
1 item
1968
1/10-11
"Washington birds," page dummy
1 item
1968
2/12
"Washington mammals; their habitats, identification, and distribution," by Earl J. Larrison. First typewritten draft
1 item
1970
2/13
"Washington mammals...," Page dummy
1 item
1970
2/14-15
"The shadow of the hills," by Harry W. Higman and Earl J. Larrison. Carbon typescript
1 item
undated
2/16-17
"An ecological and taxonomic survey of the chipmunks (genus Eutamias) occurring in a transect through the central Cascade Mountains of Washington," by Earl J. Larrison. A thesis submitted for the degree Master of Science, University of Washington
1 item
1946
2/18
Correspondence concerning chipmunk thesis
7 items
1943-1944
2/19
Chipmunk variation papers
10 items
undated
2/20
"Mount Pilchuck, the life of a mountain," by Earl J. Larrison and Harry W. Higman. Carbon typescript
1 item
ca. 1949
2/21
Mount Pilchuck journal
1 item
1943
2/22
Mount Pilchuck book, notes
37 items
1947-1948
2/23
Mount Pilchuck book, correspondence, etc.
44 items
1949-1950
2/24
Coypu study
26 items
1942
2/25
Field guide to birds of the Seattle area, incomplete typescript
1 item
undated
2/26
Green Lake waterfowl study, field notes and typescript article
3 items
1943-1944
2/27-28
James Hepburn research notes, including typed copies of James Hepburn's ornithological notebooks
19 items
1932-1947
2/29
Mountain animals of the Pacific Northwest, notes and outlines
24 items
1984-1985
2/30
"Vegetation as a factor influencing the distribution of the native land mammals of Washington," carbon typescript of article, and notes
13 items
1946
2/31
Reprints of articles by Earl J. Larrison
4 items
1940-1947
2/32
Correspondence
173 items
1945-1985
2/33
Correspondence, postcards
10 items
1915-1969
2/34
Correspondence with Michael Corry
3 items
1969
2/35
American Society of Mammalogists, annual meeting program
3 items
1948
2/36
Articles not by Larrison
10 items
1936-1946
2/37
Articles by Joseph Wood Krutch
2 items
1963
2/38
Bird watching Records
3 items
1939-1970
2/39
Field notes, Gold Basin
8 items
1946
2/40
Field notes, Hanson Lake
6 items
1946
2/41
Safari Journal
1 item
1975

II:  Literary Material, 1951-1979Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
3/42-44
Scott papers
25 items
undated
3/45
Articles about Larrison's Scott collection
11 items
1962
3/46
Articles about Sir Walter Scott
19 items
1960-1971
3/47
Bibliography of Sir Walter Scott
1 item
undated
3/48-49
Sir Walter Scott Colloquium, University of Florida, program and tapes
11 items
1979
3/50
Notes on Thoreau
7 items
1951-1966

III:  Personal and Family Papers, 1883-1987Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
3/51
Earl Junior Larrison. Baby book
1 item
1919
3/52
Certificates and diplomas
8 items
1936-1984
3/53
Clippings about Earl Larrison
10 items
1949-1981
3/54
Correspondence
2 items
1927
3/55
Larrison family book
1 item
1983
3/56
Library Associates Keepsakes
2 items
1971-1973
3/57-63
Appointment diaries
7 items
1960-1987
3/64
Memorial book for Earl Larrison, Sr.
1 item
1976
4/65
Marie Kuble's game book
1 item
1913
4/66
Other personal and family papers
45 items
1883-1949

IV:  Photographs and Slides, ca. 1880-1987Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
A: Photographs
ca. 1880-1980
Box/Folder
4/67
Copies of family photographs
269 items
undated
4/68-73
Old family photographs
565 items
ca. 1880-ca. 1940
4/74-75
Marie Kuble's photograph albums
2 items
1909-1913
4/76
Negatives for family photographs
400 items
ca. 1880-ca. 1940
4/77
Picture postcards, mostly of the Columbia River Highway, Oregon
67 items
undated
4/78
Photo log
1 item
undated
4/79-80
Numbered rolls, 20-45
420 items
4/81
Numbered rolls, negatives
17 items
undated
5/82-83
Birds
234 items
undated
5/84
Field trips and field work
171 items
1959-1968
5/85
Pend Oreille County, Washington, workshop
7 items
undated
5/86-92
Life zones/habitats
904 items
1940-1968
5/93
Mammals
84 items
undated
5/94
"Mammals of Idaho," illustrations; mammal skull enlargements
38 items
ca. 1980
5/95
People
3 items
undated
5/96
University of Idaho and the Palouse region
131 items
undated
5/97
Wildflowers
64 items
undated
5/98
Zoology classes and activities
50 items
1955
5/99
Other photographs
214 items
1942-1959
5/100
Drawings by Bonnie Lustig
7 items
1970
5/101
Photograph album
1 item
1958-1968
5/102
Photographs of Earl Larrison and other personal photos
70 items
1952-1976
B: Slides
1949-1987
Box/Folder
5/103
Copies of illustrations from books (South American animals, Pheasants of the world, Primitive man)
130 items
1971
5/104
Illustrations for an unidentified article
23 items
undated
5/105
Illustrations from Birds of Mexico, by Davis
56 items
1976
6/106
Alaska
100 items
1958-1965
6/107
Alaskan Animals (commercial)
35 items
undated
6/108
Alta, Utah, Regional Audubon conference
80 items
1972
6/109
Animal geography - Plate tectonics (illustrations)
29 items
1974
6/110
Animal tracks in winter
56 items
1958-1964
6/111-112
Arizona trip
150 items
1980
6/113
Bird distribution graphics (illustrations)
32 items
1982
6/114
Bird photographs, Eastern Washington
20 items
1976
6/115
Birds, Aquatic
90 items
1964-1980
6/116-117
Bird prints (illustrations)
207 items
1973-1982
6/118
Chipmunk photographs
8 items
undated
6/119
Columbia River Gorge
17 items
1974
6/120
Craters of the Moon area
57 items
1964-1968
6/121
Eclipse of the sun
5 items
1970
6/122
Ecology field trip, summer
35 items
1971
6/123
Glacier Park
140 items
1979
6/124-126
Great Britain
342 items
1978
7/127
Great Britain
144 items
1978
7/128-129
Habitats
198 items
1959-1966
7/130
Idaho Biotic areas
119 items
undated
7/131
Idaho helicopter trip
38 items
1979
7/132-137
Idaho scenes
505 items
1950-1987
7/138-140
Southern Idaho scenes
375 items
1949-1952
8/141-144
Southern Idaho scenes
357 items
1958-1977
8/145
Juniper forest
16 items
1975
8/146
Kaslo, B.C.
40 items
1960-1963
8/147
Kootenai, Glacier Park, and the Selkirks
20 items
1961
8/148
Kootenai Pass, B.C. and bird sanctuary
53 items
1978
8/149
Lake Itasca Museum
24 items
1975
8/150-152
Mammal prints and drawings (illustrations)
320 items
1975
8/153
Mammals
63 items
1958-1980
8/154
Moscow, Idaho in winter
20 items
1975
8/155
Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens (commercial)
20 items
198-
8/156
Mt. Hood and Tillamook, Oregon
17 items
undated
8/157
Mt. Rainier, Audubon field trip
18 items
1970
8/158
Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier
11 items
1987
8/159
Mountain scenes
59 items
undated
8/160
Museum field trip
100 items
1971
8/161
Museum field trips, Vancouver, B.C., museum
62 items
1973-1980
8/162
Museum field trips, Seattle
70 items
1976-1979
8/163
Museum in Florida
69 items
1979
9/164-166
Nairobi National Park
357 items
1975
9/167
Nairobi Museum
34 items
1975
9/168
New Mexico, Taos
37 items
1983
9/169
Olympic National Park (commercial)
40 items
undated
9/170
Oregon chipmunk trip
38 items
1964
9/171
Owyhee photos
20 items
undated
9/172
Pittock Bird Sanctuary, Oregon
32 items
1969
9/173
Prehistoric animals (commercial)
24 items
undated
9/174
Priest Lake
104 items
1986
9/175
Project gopher
17 items
1973
9/176
Raft River
8 items
1960
9/177
Reptiles
6 items
undated
9/178
Scenery
40 items
1970
9/179
Selway workshop
120 items
1973
9/180
Slides for caribou picture
7 items
1978
9/181
University of Idaho campus
4 items
undated
9/182
University of Idaho museum
26 items
1973
9/183
Variations in birds and mammals
20 items
undated
9/184
Victoria, B.C. Butchart Gardens
5 items
1965
9/185-186
Wemas (Audubon Society annual field trip)
236 items
1970-1986
10/187-188
Wildflowers
158 items
1953-1973
10/189
Wilderness workshop
120 items
1973
10/190
Woodland Park Zoo
20 items
1963-1966
10/191
Wyoming, Jackson Hole
16 items
1983
10/192-195
Yellowstone Park
292 items
1978-1980
10/196
Zoo scenes, Mt. Spokane
17 items
1965
10/197
Zoology 2 (commercial)
100 items
undated
10/198-199
Family and other slides
32 items
1965-1975
C: Movie films
undated
Folder
200
Scientific animal art (15mm)
1 item
undated
201
Panhandle mammal study (15mm)
1 item
undated
202-203
Mexico (8mm)
2 items
undated
204
Bears (8mm)
1 item
undated

V:  ScrapbookReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
11
Scrapbook
1984

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Zoologists--Idaho--Moscow--Records and correspondence

Occupations

  • Earl Junior Larrison (1919-1987) was animal researcher and professor of biology, University of Idaho, 1946-1982, and editor of the University of Idaho Press, 1982-1984.

Other Creators

  • Personal Names
    • Larrison, Earl Junior, 1919- --Archives.
    • Scott, Walter, Sir, 1771-1832