Samuel H. Graf Collection, 1903-1964
The Samuel H. Graf Collection includes letters to family members, a 1909 text co-written by Graf, and a scrapbook of notes and letters sent by Graf's former students and colleagues on the occasion of his retirement in 1954. Graf earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering from Oregon Agricultural College in 1907-1909 and was a faculty member in engineering at Oregon State from 1909 until 1954.
ID: MSS Graf
Extent: 0.65 cubic feet
Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.
Preferred Citation: Samuel H. Graf Collection (MSS Graf), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.
Container List
- Series 1: Family Letters, 1903-1920 Add to Shelf
- The Family Letters consist of letters that Graf wrote to his family between 1903 and 1918 while a student at Oregon Agricultural College (OAC) and later a faculty member. The letters provide a detailed account of student life at OAC. Graf discusses faculty members; his classes; fellow students; athletics; and costs, such as his cadet uniform and room and board. They also provide insight into OAC faculty life in the 1910s. The series also includes an invitation to Graf's 1920 marriage to Blanche Edlefsen. The letters are arranged chronologically.
- Box-Folder 1.1: Transcripts of letters Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.2: Original letters, 1903-1904 Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.3: Original letters, 1905-1907 Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.4: Original letters, 1908-1909 Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.5: Original letters and Wedding invitation, 1910-1918, 1920 Add to Shelf
- Series 2: A Course in Mechanical Drawing, 1909 Add to Shelf
- Series II is a text and supplemental drawings written by Graf and fellow faculty member M. Clyde Phillips in 1909.
- Box-Folder 1.6: Text and drawings Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.7: Texts only Add to Shelf
- Extent: 2 copies
- Series 3: Typescript, 50 Years of Mechanical Engineering at O.S.C., circa 1945 Add to Shelf
- Series III consists of a summary of the development of mechanical engineering at Oregon State prepared by Graf in the mid 1940s. It describes department facilities, faculty, curriculum, and degrees awarded.
- Extent: 2 copies
- Box-Folder 1.8: Typescript, circa 1945 Add to Shelf
- Series 4: Ephemera, 1933-1961 Add to Shelf
- Series IV consists of a reprint from the January 1933 issue of The Architect and Engineer about the Graf's recently completed residence in Corvallis that includes exterior and interior photographs and an award certificate from the American Society for Testing Materials.
- Box-Folder 1.9: Graf home, 1933 Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.10: Award Certificate, American Society for Testing Materials, June 28, 1961 Add to Shelf
- Series 5: Scrapbook, 1954-1964 Add to Shelf
- The scrapbook consists predominantly of notes and letters from former students and colleagues presented to Graf at the banquet given in his honor by the Oregon Section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in 1954 at the time of Graf's retirement. The scrapbook also includes clippings, brochures, and memorabilia from the dinner as well several items from the late 1950s and early 1960s. These later materials include clippings, correspondence, and photographs pertaining to Linfield College's award of an honorary degree to Graf in 1959.
- Box-Folder 1.11: Loose materials removed from scrapbook Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 1.12: Photographs of Linfield College honorary degree, 1959 Add to Shelf
- Box-Folder 2.1: Scrapbook Add to Shelf