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Harriette Eliza Cushman papers, 1887-1978

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Cushman, Harriette Eliza, 1890-1978; Cushman, John M.
Title
Harriette Eliza Cushman papers
Dates
1887-1978 (inclusive)
Quantity
7.5 linear feet, (24 boxes)
Collection Number
1253
Summary
Cushman was the Montana State College Extension poultry specialist from 1922 to 1955, and a statewide leader in poultry husbandry. In retirement, she was a 4-H leader, advocate for Indian youth, and supporter of the MSU Library and Museum of the Rockies. The Harriette Eliza Cushman papers document her personal life in Montana and the Northwest, as well as information concerning topics in which she was interested: Montana agriculture and poultry husbandry, politics, environmental issues, Bozeman social and cultural life, Native Americans, Montana history, Lewis and Clark Caverns (Morrison Cave), Montana State University, Verne Dusenberry, Pete Karst, and Branson Stevenson.
Repository
Montana State University Library, Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections
Montana State University-Bozeman Library
Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections
P.O. Box 173320
Bozeman, MT
59717-3320
Telephone: 4069944242
Fax: 4069942851
Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research.

Languages
Collection materials are in English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities
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Biographical Note

Harriette Eliza Cushman was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on December 6, 1890. She grew up in New York, attended Mt. Holyoke College, and obtained her degree in chemistry and bacteriology from Cornell University in 1914. She later earned a special certificate in poultry husbandry from Rutgers University.

Cushman worked as a bio-chemist but eventually began to work in the poultry industry. She worked in Idaho and later at the University of California. In 1922, she accepted a position at Montana State College. She worked as Extension Poultry Specialist until 1955. Cushman was one of the first women in her field. She led the formation of Montana's cooperative turkey marketing pools, worked to spread poultry production on the Indian reservations, and helped upgrade state poultry flocks and improve egg marketing. Along with other awards and recognition, Cushman was given the honorary degree of Doctor of Agriculture from Montana State University in 1963.

During her retirement, Harriette worked with 4-H, the Montana Institute of the Arts, the MSU Friends of the Library, the Museum of the Rockies, assisted Indian youth through Montana State University, and worked to benefit Montana's natural resources. She died in 1978.

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Content Description

The Harriette Eliza Cushman papers document her personal life in Montana and the Northwest, as well as information concerning topics in which she was interested. Personal correspondence between Cushman and her parents, Marguerite Emma Taylor Cushman and John M. Cushman of Jamestown, New York, make up the bulk of the first series, along with letters from friends and other relatives. Topical files include information on the Native American Studies program at Montana State University, Lewis and Clark Caverns (then Morrison Cave), Verne Dusenberry, Pete Karst, James Willard Schultz, Branson Stevenson, and the Crow Fair near Hardin, Montana. The extensive photographs encompass all aspects of her life and work, including vacation snapshots of Yellowstone National Park and Glacier National Park. There are also early family photographs taken by her father, John M. Cushman. Subjects documented in the papers include: Montana agriculture and poultry husbandry, politics, environmental issues, Bozeman social and cultural life, Native Americans, Montana history, Montana tourism, Montana State University, and Montana anthropologists, artists, authors, and pioneers.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

[Creator Name], [Date of Creation], [Brief Description of Object], Folder [#], Box [#], [Collection Name], [Collection #], Montana State University (MSU) Library, Bozeman, MT

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Series 1 Personal Correspondence, 1893-1975 Series 2 Topical Files, 1895-1978 Series 3 Photographs, 1887-1970s Series 4 Artifacts, 1905-1977

Acquisition Information

Letters, memorabilia, and photographs created or collected by Harriette Cushman were donated to Special Collections in several different accessions starting in 1975. The bulk of the materials came from her estate in 1978, which includes the personal correspondence that had formerly been placed in the University Archives.

Processing Note

This collection was processed 2011 June 3. The accession numbers that were consolidated in this collection are: 1240, 1241, 1246, 1247, 1276, 1277, 2468 and University Archives accession 79030. Some materials were removed from University Archives accession 79013. The materials remaining in accession 79013 consisted of Cushman's professional papers which relate directly to her work with the Extension Service, and these were incorporated into University Archive accession 75040 in June 2011. The artifact series was previously described, but not added to the finding aid until 2023.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and Subjects

Subject Terms

  • Agriculture
  • Agriculture--Montana
  • Crow Indians--Photographs
  • Environmentalism--Montana
  • Indians of North America
  • Indians of North America--Study and teaching--Montana--Bozeman
  • Poultry scientists--Montana--Bozeman
  • Poultry--Breeding--Montana
  • Social life and customs
  • Women
  • Women college teachers--Montana--Bozeman

Personal Names

  • Dusenberry, Verne, 1906-1966
  • Karst, Peter, 1875-1966
  • Schultz, James Willard, 1859-1947
  • Stevenson, Branson Graves, 1901-1989

Corporate Names

  • Crow Fair
  • Montana State University--Bozeman

Family Names

  • Cushman family--Correspondence

Geographical Names

  • Bozeman (Mont.)
  • Bozeman (Mont.)--Intellectual life
  • Bozeman (Mont.)--Social life and customs
  • Glacier National Park (Mont.)--Photographs
  • Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park (Mont.)
  • Montana
  • Montana--History
  • Montana--Politics and government
  • Yellowstone National Park--Photographs

Form or Genre Terms

  • Autochromes (photographs)
  • Personal papers--Montana--Bozeman
  • Photographs
  • Photographs

Kim Allen Scott, 2011; revised by Jodi Allison-Bunnell, 2023, and Anne Foster, 2025
2025

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

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