By Tiah Edmunson-Morton
Title: Hops Research Reports, 1931-1995
ID: RG 262
Primary Creator: United States. Department of Agriculture
Extent: 3.0 cubic feet. More info below.
Arrangement: The Hops Research Reports collection is arranged into two series: Research Reports, 1956-1995, and Entomology Department Library, 1931-1963.
Date Acquired: 00/00/2016
Languages of Materials: English [eng]
Efforts at Oregon State University to improve hop production scientifically started in the 1890s, but were largely abandoned with the beginning of Prohibition. Oregon State University and the United States Department of Agriculture formed a partnership in 1930 to establish a research program dedicated to developing new hop varieties suited for growing in the Pacific Northwest, determining best practices for processing and packaging, and combatting pests and disease problems that were plaguing the industry.
These annual progress reports document the research of the hop investigations; the collection also includes reports from programs in other countries. They were generated or collected by Oregon State University research faculty and the United States Department of Agriculture and pertain mainly to projects carried out by OSU and the USDA.
Reports for the years 1930-1969 can be found in the Agricultural Experiment Station Records (RG 025). Hops Research Reports (1930-1995) have been digitized, but those in Series 2 from the Entomology Department Library have not.
These annual progress reports document the research of the hop investigations; the collection also includes reports from programs in other countries. They were generated or collected by Oregon State University research faculty and the United States Department of Agriculture and pertain mainly to projects carried out by OSU and the USDA.
Reports for the years 1930-1969 can be found in the Agricultural Experiment Station Records (RG 025). Hops Research Reports (1930-1995) have been digitized, but those in Series 2 from the Entomology Department Library have not.
Series 1, Hops Research Reports, 1956-1995, is a collection of annual reports and progress reports related to hops research. They primarily focus on hop breeding, genetics, chemistry, and pathology. Specific topics include in hop production and brewing statistics; breeding experiments for yield, disease resistance, quality; germplasm evaluation; hop chemistry; USDA research reports and planning in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho; news article reprints; research data; the evaluation of fungicides, insecticides, and weed control measures; budget proposals; development of lab techniques; and increasing and maintaining yield. They contain detailed information on the methods and results of the research, as well as original photographs and data. Of special note is the 1956 “Annual Report of Hop Investigations,” which is the year the Cascade hop was bred; it was released in 1972.
These reports were sponsored and conducted by OSU, the USDA, the United States Brewers Association, and the Oregon and Washington Agricultural Experiment Stations, but many departments were involved in the research, including Farm Crops, Botany and Plant Pathology, Agricultural Chemistry, and the Tobacco and Specialty Crops Section, and Crops Research Division of the Agricultural Research Service at the USDA. Most were written by Alfred Haunold, Gail Nickerson, Sam Likens, and Charles Horner.
There are also reports in this collection that are not from the USDA program, but they were collected by scientists at Oregon State University. These reports include studies from the Institute of Hop Research in Zalec, Yugoslavia and the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry at the State University of Ghent, Belgium.
Series 2, the Entomology Department Library, 1931-1963, consists of materials created and collected by Hugh Morrison, which were bound by the Entomology Department for their faculty's use. Of special note are Morrison's hand-written notes and annotations. Specific topics include hop pest control and investigation, insecticide studies, hop production, breeding, disease management, worker poisoning, chemical and pesticide residue in beer, and quality control. The series includes reports, data, photographs, notes, correspondence, project proposals, research project outlines for various departments, short-term project reports, research articles, annotated reports, promotional materials from chemical companies, and literature reviews.
Many of these research studies were collaborative projects with departments such as Agricultural Engineering, Bacteriology, Plant Pathology, Food Technology, Farm Crops, Experiment Stations, and Horticulture, as well as the United States Brewers Association and United States Brewers Foundation.
Efforts at Oregon State University to improve hop production scientifically started in the 1890s, but were largely abandoned with the beginning of Prohibition. Following repeal of Prohibition, the hop industry quickly recovered, only to be threatened again by the invasion of downy mildew. At that time, most American hops were the Clusters variety, which was extremely susceptible to the downy mildew pathogen. Further, most American hops were grown in Oregon's Willamette Valley, a high-rainfall area ideally suited to downy mildew infections.
U.S. government support for hop research started at Oregon State University in 1930, a time when the majority of American hops were grown in Oregon. Initial research efforts focused on breeding new varieties with a genetic resistance to downy mildew and that were suited for growing in the Pacific Northwest, as well as developing chemical control measures to combat the pest and disease problems that were plaguing the industry. In later years, work expanded to include agronomic, physiological, pathology, chemical investigations, and processing and packaging. Research also expanded to Washington and Idaho.
Over the years many Oregon State University departments and researchers have participated in the program. Departments represented in the reports in this collection include Farm Crops, Botany and Plant Pathology, Agricultural Chemistry, Weed Science, and Entomology. The Agricultural Experiment Stations of California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington are also represented in the reports. Departments from Washington State University that participated in the program for these years include the Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center, the College of Agriculture, and Home Economics. Research divisions at the Agricultural Research Service and U.S. Department of Agriculture include the Tobacco and Specialty Crops Section, Crops Research Division; the Oilseed and Industrial Crops Research Branch; and the Plant Science Research Division.
Other notable related organizations include the Oregon and Washington hops commissions, Hop Growers of America, Hop Research Council, U.S. Hop Administration Committee, U.S. Brewers Association, American Society of Brewing Chemists, and Miller Brewing Company.
Hugh E. Morrison, who created and collected the reports in Series 2, was a research entomologist with the Oregon State University Agricultural Experiment Station from 1937 until his death in 1967. Morrison's research focused on hop pests; life, habits, and control of symphylans; injurious soil arthropods; and development of soil insecticides for control of pests affecting crops such as potatoes, corn, carrots, and mint.
Since the program began there have been many people who participated in the research. Oregon State University researchers involved in the work included in this collection include Stanley Brooks (Research Agronomist), Chester Horner (Agent Plant Pathologist), Sam Likens (Chemist), WD Loomis, LC Terriere, U Kiigemagi, Gail Nickerson (Agricultural Chemistry), JF Anderson, Charles Zimmerman, AP Appleby (Weed Science), RE Berry (Entomology), Ulrich Gampert (Research Assistant), Peggy Whitney (Research Assistant), Donna Kling (Research Assistant). Researchers from Washington State University include CE Nelson, WW Cone, RE Klein, RG Evans, R Parker, RG Stevens, and Steve Kenny. Researchers for the USDA include Alfred Haunold (Genetics USDA-ARS), Richard Hampton (Pathology USDA-ARS), and RH Converse (USDA-SEA Virology).
More Extent Information: 3 boxes
Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.
Acquisition Note: These reports were donated to the Special Collections and Archives Research Center by Dr. Shaun Townsend, Crop and Soil Science Department, in 2016. The materials in Series 2 were donated by the Oregon Integrated Pest Management Center in 2023.
Related Materials:
The Hops Research Reports collection is complemented by several other collections.
Of special note are the Hugh E. Morrison Papers, Agricultural Experiment Station Records (RG 025); Crop Science Department Records (RG 095); Entomology Department Records (RG 027); Extension Service Records (RG 111); Botany and Plant Pathology Department Records (RG 054); the Hops Research Council Records (MSS HRC); Oregon Hop Growers Association Records (MSS OHGA); the Hop Press Newsletters (PUB 487); and the Brewing and Fermentation Research Collection (MSS BFRC).
There are also many pictures included in photographic collections such as the Extension and Experiment Station Communications Photograph Collection (P 120); the Extension Bulletin Illustrations Photograph Collection (P 020); the Agriculture Photograph Collection (P 040); and the Gerald W. Williams Collection (MSS WilliamsG).
Additional materials related Oregon State University research and manuscript collections are detailed on the Oregon Hops and Brewing Archives library research guide. More information pertaining to the history of hop growing and brewing in Oregon can be found on the Oregon Hops and Brewing Archives website.
The Oregon Hops and Brewing Archives Oral History Collection (OH 35) includes interviews with Oregon State University and USDA researchers, as well as other related to agriculture and brewing in the Pacific Northwest. All oral histories are available online.
Preferred Citation: Hops Research Reports (RG 262), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.
United States. Department of Agriculture
Oregon State University. Department of Crop and Soil Science
Oregon State University. Department of Entomology
Agriculture--California.
Agriculture--Oregon.
Hops--Diseases and pests--Oregon.
Hops--Oregon.
Hops and Brewing
Hops industry--Oregon.
Photographic prints.