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Title: M. Ellwood Smith Papers, 1913-1961

Predominant Dates: 1913-1949

ID: MSS SmithME

Primary Creator: Smith, Mahlon Ellwood (1884-)

Extent: 0.15 . More info below.

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

The M. Ellwood Smith Papers consist of publications and reports written by Smith, a list of his publications, and a small quantity of correspondence. Smith was an English Professor, Dean of Basic Arts and Sciences, and Dean of the Lower Division for Oregon Agricultural College from 1919 until his retirement in 1949.

The M. Ellwood Smith Papers consist of publications and reports written by Smith, a list of his publications, and a small quantity of correspondence. The publications include reprints of papers published in scholarly journals of English literature. Of particular note is The Old Familiar Faces or Crumbs from Forgotten Banquets, a compilation of poems, odes, and other recollections written by Smith and read at many faculty events between 1919 and 1949, including dinners of the Faculty Men's Club and the Order of the Spoon. Subjects of these poems include William Jasper Kerr, George W. Peavy, G.V. Copson, F.A. Gilfillan, Kate W. Jameson and many other faculty and administrators.

English Professor and Dean of the Lower Division M. Ellwood Smith came to Oregon Agricultural College in 1919 to be Dean of Basic Arts and Sciences. After the reorganization of Oregon higher education in 1932, he served as Dean of the Lower Division until his retirement in 1949. Smith earned his B.A. degree from Syracuse University in 1906 and his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University in 1909 and 1912. He returned to Syracuse University as a faculty member after completing his graduate degrees and remained there until 1919.

Throughout his administrative career at Oregon State College and for several years after his retirement (until 1953), Smith continued to teach courses in Shakespeare, Tennyson, Browning, and the Great Books. He was an authority on the English fable and published extensively in philological and educational journals.

Author: Elizabeth Nielsen

More Extent Information: 1 box

Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.

Acquisition Note: These materials were originally acquired by the University Archives as part of the Faculty Author Collection and were separated to form the M. Ellwood Smith Papers in 2000.

Related Materials: Additional biographical information about Smith is available in the OSU Memorabilia Collection (MSS MC) and the biographical files of the News and Communication Services Records (RG 203). The Lower Division Records (RG 119) include materials pertaining to the establishment of the Lower Division under Smith. The Special Collections and Archives Reearch Center holdings include the Faculty Men's Club Records (MSS FacultyMens) and the Order of the Spoon Records (MSS OrderSpoon).

Preferred Citation: M. Ellwood Smith Papers (MSS SmithME), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Smith, Mahlon Ellwood (1884-)

Copson, G. V. (Godfrey Vernon), 1884-
Fables, English--History and criticism.
Gilfillan, F. A. (Francois Archibald), 1893-1983
Jameson, Kate W.
Kerr, William Jasper, 1863-1947
Old familiar faces
Oregon State College. Lower Division
Oregon State System of Higher Education
Peavy, George Wilcox, 1869-1951
Smith, Mahlon Ellwood, 1884-