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President E.G. Peterson Papers, 1912-1953

Overview of the Collection

Title
President E.G. Peterson Papers
Dates
1912-1953 (inclusive)
Quantity
211 boxes, (100.25 linear ft.)
Collection Number
UUS_3.1/6
Summary
President E.G. Peterson papers document Utah State University history between 1916 to 1946, recording a transitional period for the Agricultural College.
Repository
Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections and Archives Division
Special Collections & Archives
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
Logan, UT
84322-3000
Telephone: 4357978248
Fax: 4357972880
scweb@usu.edu
Access Restrictions

No restrictions on use, except: not available through interlibrary loan.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant, 2007-2008
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Biographical Note

Overview

Elmer George (E.G) Peterson served as the sixth president of USU between 1916 and 1946, during a transitional period of the University. Peterson was known for his involvement in the NSS program, various agricultural developments, and for leading the university during both the World Wars and the Great Depression.

Early/Personal Life

Peterson was born on August 26, 1882 in Plain City, Utah to Augustus Peter Hansen Peterson and Agnes Steward Geddes Peterson. He married Phebe Almira Nebeker from Laketown, Utah sometime around 1910.

Professional Life

Peterson studied at the University of Chicago and Cornell. After graduating from Cornell in 1910, he was offered a position in bacteriology by Cornell president at the time William J. Kerr. Two years later Peterson joined the Agricultural College of Utah (ACU) which is now known as USU, as the Director of Extensions.

After four years as Director of Extension, Peterson was elected University president in a landmark decision becoming first graduate of the college to become president, and at age 34, the youngest chief executive at a land grant college in the U.S.

Soon after being appointed President, the U.S. entered the First World War and Peterson immediately volunteered the services of the college as a military training center. This led Peterson to proposed that brick buildings be built instead of the customary wooden structures to house military trainees to the State Legislature and to Governor Simon Bamberger. After the war, the buildings would later be used by Peterson to double the size of the campus.

By 1925 the enrollment at the college had soared to 2,149, a 50% increase over the pre-war figures. With more than adequate facilities to accommodate additional students, Peterson set about to recapture some of the curricular ground lost during the 1905 consolidation controversy. In 1921 he successfully petitioned the legislature to restore pedagogy and the 1927 Peters Bill, reinstated all course work except law and medicine. At the close of World War II, he resigned his post, and became President Emeritus.

Later Life

Peterson remained unwaveringly loyal to the college, even returning as interim president from 1953 and 1954. In 1958, at the age of 76, E.G. passed away, after giving over 50 years of service to the State of Utah and to the College he helped establish. He is buried in the Logan Cemetary next to USU.

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Content Description

President E.G. Peterson papers document Utah State University (USU) history between 1916 to 1946, encompassing both World Wars and the Great Depression and recording a transitional period for the Agricultural College. Peterson functioned without additional administrative officers and was involved in almost all University affairs including, recruitment, hiring, budget, student affairs, buildings and grounds, as well as being the primary spokesperson for the College.

President E.G. Peterson Papers mostly include correspondence with various people and organizations related to the function of the university including, outside organizations, the Directors of the Utah Agricultural Experiment Station and Utah Cooperative Extension Service, faculty members, departments, and the College's Board of Trustees.

Also Included in this collection are materials documenting the National Summer School (NSS) program which was Peterson's attempt to broaden the educational scope of the College and to circumvent legislative mandates that had restricted the College from offering certain curricula. Another highlight of this collection are the documents of the College's experience during World War I and World War II.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material from the President E.G. Peterson Papers must be obtained from the University Archivist and/or the Special Collections Department Head.

Preferred Citation

Initial Citation: 3.1/6; President E.G. Peterson Papers; University Archives Collections Special Collections and Archives. Utah State University Merrill-Cazier Library. Logan, Utah.

Following Citations:3.1/6, USUSC.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The arrangement of this collection reflects an intellectual order of Peterson's activities as President. The physical order and numbering of items is second to the intellectual ordering of this collection. Within each series, files are ordered alphabetically and chronologically.

This collection is arranged into 13 series and some sub and sub-sub series.

I Assorted Correspondence and Office Files: Includes correspondence in chronological and alphabetical order and has the three subseries, Correspondence Study, Alumni correspondence, and Secretary correspondence.

II. University Affairs: Includes materials related to the function of the university. The four sub-series in this series are Registration and registrar, Student Affairs, Commencement, and Circular Letters.

III. National Summer School: Launched in 1924, the NSS materials contains correspondence with educators, teachers and practitioners in the U.S.

IV. Agricultural Experiment Station: Founded with the University in 1888, the Experiment Station functioned as the research arm of the College. Included in this series is correspondence with directors, reports and council and committees.

V. Articles and Speeches: Includes speeches given and collected by E.G. Peterson.

VI. Outside Associations and Organizations

VII. University Councils, Committees, and boards: Includes the Board of Trustees.

VIII. Budget: Includes the correspondence and reports of Secretary/Treasurer John L. Coburn (1916-1922), and Russell E. Bernston (1922-1945.) Coburn and Bernston served dual positions as both Secretary to the Board of Trustees and as Treasurer.

IX. Extension Services: The Extension Service was founded in 1914, and served as a means of propagating College research for the benefit of Utah's population. Peterson served as the first Director of Extension, prior to his appointment as President. This series Includes correspondence with the directors of the Extension service.

X. Faculty and Departments: Contains correspondence with staff and departments, including the Athletics and the Military Science and Tactics departments.

XI. Government Agencies: Includes both federal and state agencies and personnel.

XII. Railroads

XIII. World I and II: Includes detailed information on the College's experience during World War I and World War II. While some of the chronological correspondence in Series I contains throughout the collection also addresses these experiences, this series is specific to the topic.

The original order, or the physical arrangement, of the collection is thought to be the original filing order of E.G.'s Secretary Vera Carlson. The original filing order is retained through the box and folder numbers of this collection.

Box numbers 72-73, 79-81, and 156 were skipped.

Acquisition Information

Originally filed in the President's Office and later accessioned into University Archives

Processing Note

Processed in 2008; Reprocessed in 2024

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Colleges and Universities
  • USU--Accreditation.
  • USU--Administration.
  • USU--Alumni.
  • USU--Athletics (Intercollegiate)
  • USU--Awards and honors.
  • USU--Budgets.
  • USU--Buildings and grounds.
  • USU--Business affairs.
  • USU--Commencement.
  • USU--Councils and committees.
  • USU--Development.
  • USU--Diversity.
  • USU--Enrollment--Statistics.
  • USU--Faculty and staff.
  • USU--Finance.
  • USU--Goals and objectives.
  • USU--Graduation.
  • USU--History (President's Office)
  • USU--Memoranda.
  • USU--Policies and procedures.
  • USU--Presidents.
  • USU--Program development.
  • USU--Research.
  • USU--Statistics.
  • USU--Strategic planning.
  • USU--Student activities.
  • USU--Student affairs.
  • USU--Town and gown.
  • USU--Tuition.
  • Universities and colleges--Utah--Logan--Archives.
  • World War, 1914-1918--War Work--Utah
  • World War, 1939-1945--War Work--Schools--Utah

Personal Names

  • Peterson, Elmer George--Archives.
  • Utah State University. Office of the President.

Corporate Names

  • Snow College (Ephraim, Utah)--History--Sources.
  • Southern Utah University--History--Sources.
  • Utah State University--History--Sources.
  • Utah State University. Office of the President--Archives.

Geographical Names

  • College presidents--Utah--Logan--Archives.

Finding aid/Register created by Special Collections and Archives, Abbie Chesley, & Kelly Rovegno
2008; 2024

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

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