The Schoth Papers document research in cover crops (vetches and clovers), forage crops, and turf and other grasses conducted by Schoth as an agronomist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture at Oregon State College.
Scope and Content Notes
The collection includes correspondence with other agronomists and seed companies, subject information files and research reports pertaining to Schoth's research interests and field notebooks documenting field trials at the college's various research farms around Corvallis. Most of the photographs depict grasses and cover crops.
Biographical / Historical Notes
Schoth was born in Hannah, Wyoming on May 24, 1891. He came to Oregon Agricultural College as a student in 1909, and received the B.S. in 1914 and the M.S. in 1917. Schoth worked as a Fellow at OAC from 1914-1916 and became an instructor (courtesy) in Farm Crops in 1924. He went to work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1917 as a Scientific Assistant. During his USDA career he was an Assistant Agronomist in Forage Crop Investigations, Associate Agronomist and Senior Agronomist. Schoth retired from the USDA in 1961.
In 1926 he worked with Shifting Sand Dune Control for the U.S. Navy. In 1962 Schoth received the Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Service to Agriculture from the Oregon Farm Bureau for developing nearly 50 commercially-improved varieties of legumes and grasses, which contributed to the state's burgeoning seed industry. He also received an award from the American Grasslands Council and the USDA's Superior Service Award. Schoth died on July 31, 1975.
Arrangement
Papers are organized into 8 series: I. Correspondence; II. Research & Information; III. Dated Material; IV. Publications; V. Bulletin of the Green Section of the U.S. Golf Association; VI. Field Notebooks; VII. Maps, Plans and Charts; and VIII. Photographs. Series 1 and 2 are arranged alphabetically by correspondent and by subject; series 3 and 5 are arranged chronologically; and series 6 is loosely arranged by subject.
