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C. William Nelson Papers, 1958-1990

By Clare Sobotka, Roxanne Edgar, and Elizabeth Nielsen

Collection Overview

Title: C. William Nelson Papers, 1958-1990

Predominant Dates: 1958-1975

ID: MSS NelsonCW

Primary Creator: Nelson, C. William

Extent: 0.1 cubic feet. More info below.

Languages of Materials: English [eng]

Abstract

The C. William Nelson Papers document Nelson’s field collecting and research study of insects, especially moths and butterflies, in Oregon and Washington.  C. William Nelson was an avocational entomologist and insect collector who lived in the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area.

Scope and Content Notes

The C. Williams Nelson Papers document Nelson’s field collecting and research study of insects, especially moths and butterflies, in Oregon and Washington.  The core of the collection is a research notebook (box 1, folder 3) documenting a study conducted by Nelson in 1958-1959 on Hemihyalea edwardsii (Edward’s Glassy-Wing moths) from egg-laying, through pupation, and into the adult stage with a focus on changes in the numbers of individuals with each instar.  The notebook includes daily notes and observations from Dec 1958 to June 1959 and a striking graphic illustration of the percentage of remaining individuals in each instar versus the days elapsed in the study.  The notebook includes references to Dr. Lee Brown.

The collection also includes field logs (box 1, folder 4) created by Nelson from 1962 to 1966 documenting the location, day/time, type and number of specimens, and conditions when insect specimens were collected.  A field notebook with notes created by B.C. Brungard in 1977-1990 is also part of the collection.

The remainder of the papers consist of field trip schedules and the newsletter (“Mush Rumors”) of the Oregon Mycological Society for 1967-1972 (box 1, folder 1); various issues of the Bulletin of the Oregon Entomological Society for 1972-1975; and correspondence with other collectors and associated collection notes.

Biographical / Historical Notes

C.  William Nelson appears to have been an avocational entomologist and insect collector who lived in the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area.  There is no record that he attended Oregon State University; however he did correspond with Oregon State Professor Ernst J. Dornfeld in the 1960s and 1970s regarding his insect collection.  Other limited information that is available about Nelson:  He lived at a minimum of 3 different addresses in Beaverton and Portland, Oregon  in the 1960s-1970s; he was working at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in 1973.  C. William Nelson is acknowledged in the 2007 publication Butterfiies and Moths of Pacific Northwest Forests and Woodlands as part of the “legacy of past collectors” and as a “notable contributor to information about species lists, distributions, and flight periods" for macromoths of the Pacific Northwest.

Author: Elizabeth Nielsen

Administrative Information

More Extent Information: 1 box

Statement on Access: Collection is open for research.

Acquisition Note: These materials were received by the University Archives prior to 2004 as part of the Entomology Department Records.  In 2004, they were separated from the Entomology Department Records to form this collection.

Related Materials: The Special Collections and Archives Research Center's holdings include the Entomology Department Records (RG 027) and the research papers of many entomology faculty and researchers.  Of special note are the papers of others who studied or collected butterflies and moths: Ernst J. Dornfeld; Paul W. Handy; and Jon Shepard.

Preferred Citation: C. William Nelson Papers (MSS NelsonCW), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

Finding Aid Revision History: This finding aid supersedes information about the collection that was placed online in 2013.

Creators

Nelson, C. William

People, Places, and Topics

Entomology--Research--Oregon.
History of Science
Lepidopterology.
Natural Resources
Oregon Entomological Society


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