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William Evans Lawrence Papers, 1893-1945

Collection Overview

Title: William Evans Lawrence Papers, 1893-1945

ID: MSS Lawrence

Primary Creator: Lawrence, William E. (William Evans) (1883-1947)

Extent: 1.2 cubic feet. More info below.

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

Abstract

The William Evans Lawrence Papers consist of materials generated by Lawrence, an OAC Botany professor, including research data, photographs and radio scripts related to Lawrence's work plant physiology, Oregon trees and other topics concerning the horticulture of, primarily, the Pacific Northwest.

Scope and Content Notes

The first addition to the Lawrence Papers consisted solely of "Studies in Plant Ecology," a mimeographed text prepared by Lawrence in 1942 for use in botany classes at Oregon State College.

A later addition to the collection (Accession 2015:20) consisted of materials generated by Lawrence including article reprints, a certificate, conference papers, Extension bulletins, notebooks, photographs, radio scripts, a student paper, and textbooks. Lawrence's published research in the articles and bulletins document a number of topics, including: stock-poisoning plants, Oregon tree studies, the teaching of plant physiology, and the phylogeny of green algae. One of the bulletins features a poem by Lawrence titled "Forest Trees." The scripts reflect radio broadcasts for KOAC in which Lawrence spoke on various plant topics and accounts from a visit to Mexico. The three notebooks reflect notes from a botany class taken by Lawrence as a student, birds observed in the field, and a bibliography of references cited from literature about plant ecology and range/pasture botany.

Numbering 631 images in total, the photographs are made up of glass plate negatives (530), lantern slide positives (56), and film negatives (45). Primarily depicting trees and vegetation in range and mountain environments in Oregon, Illinois, Indiana, Washington, and Massachusetts (Wood's Hole area) some of the photographs portray specimens of plants prepared for "plant physiology lab" studies. Most of the photographs were taken in Oregon. There are also portrait and group shots of family members and friends at home and on trips to the Oregon coast, Marys Peak, and at Mount Rainier.

Biographical / Historical Notes

William Evans Lawrence was born April 15, 1883 in Randolph County, Indiana. He earned a B.S. from Earlham College (Indiana) in 1904 and did graduate work at the University of Chicago. Prior to coming to Oregon Agricultural College in 1910 as a botany instructor, he taught at Michigan State College in 1906 and Oklahoma A&M from 1907-1909. Lawrence was an associate professor of plant ecology at the time of his death. He was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and held membership in the Botanical and Ecological Societies of America, the American Association of University Professors, and the Sigma Xi honor society.

Administrative Information

More Extent Information: 631 photographs

Related Materials: Other materials pertaining to Lawrence are in the Botany and Plant Pathology Department Records (RG 054) and Harriet's Photograph Collection (P HC).

Preferred Citation: William Evans Lawrence Papers (MSS Lawrence), Oregon State Univeristy Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Creators

Lawrence, William E. (William Evans) (1883-1947)

People, Places, and Topics

Botany--Study and teaching (Higher)--Oregon--Corvallis.
History of Science
Lawrence, William E. (William Evans), 1883-1947
Natural Resources
Oregon State College. Department of Botany
University History


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