Henry J. Oosting papers, 1919-1968

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Summary

Creator:
Oosting, Henry J. (Henry John), 1903-1968
Abstract:
Correspondence, field notes, writings,photographs and other subject files of Henry J. Oosting, Professor of Botany and Chairman of the Department of Botany at Duke University from 1931 to 1962. Major subjects include the ecology of virgin forests, vegetation on bare rocks, maritime vegetation in the Southeastern United States, North Carolina vegetation, the 1937 Louise A. Boyd expedition to Greenland with the American Geographical Society, the Victory Garden project in Durham, N.C., the Ecological Society of America, and the serial Ecological Monographs.
Extent:
7 Linear Feet
Language:
Material in English
Collection ID:
UA.29.02.0021
University Archives Record Group:
29 -- Papers of Faculty, Staff, and Associates
29 -- Papers of Faculty, Staff, and Associates > 02 -- Individuals

Background

Scope and content:

The papers include correspondence, field notes, and other research notes of Henry J. Oosting. The collection is representative of Oosting's research in forest ecology, vegetation on bare rocks, and plants of North Carolina. The papers also document his participation in the 1937 Louise A. Boyd Expedition to Greenland, his participation in the governance and research of the Highlands Biological Station (Highlands, N.C.), and his participation in the Ecological Society of America. Much of the correspondence is between Oosting and colleagues at Duke University, including H. L. Blomquist and Lewis R. Anderson; colleagues throughout the United States; and former graduate students. Other files include family correspondence, as well as reports and correspondence from the Duke University Research Council, 1949-1963.

In June 2007, accession UA2007-0019 was added to the collection. This accession includes photographs from the 1937 Louise A. Boyd Expedition to Greenland. Subjects featured are glaciers; Kjerulf Fjord; Tromso, Norway; Jan Mayen Island; Cape Alfred; Clavering Isle; landscape; and native plants. In addition to the individual photos there are also six annotated photo posters. Photos are by Louise A. Boyd. Also included is Oosting's diary. The diary includes his reactions and observations about his travel to Eastern Greenland and return through England during the summer of 1937 on the Louise A. Boyd Expedition.

Nitrate negatives have been scanned and are available online. The original nitrate negatives are not available for use in the reading room.

Biographical / historical:

Henry John Oosting, Professor of Botany and Chairman of the Department of Botany, worked at Duke University from 1931 to 1962. He was born March 12, 1903 in Holland, Michigan to John H. and Minna Oosting. He earned an A.B. from Hope College in 1925, an M.S. from Michigan State College in 1927, and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1931. Oosting joined the faculty of the Department of Botany at Duke University in 1931, and later served as Chairman of the Department. His research interests included the ecology of virgin forests, vegetation on bare rocks, maritime vegetation in the Southeastern United States, and North Carolina vegetation. In 1937, he served as ecologist for the Louise A. Boyd expedition to Greenland with the American Geographical Society, and he directed the Victory Garden project in Durham, N.C. in 1943. Oosting actively participated in the Ecological Society of America and edited the serial Ecological Monographs. Oosting retired from Duke University around 1962; he died on October 30, 1968.

Acquisition information:
Received from Department of Botany, May 26, 1994. Accession UA2007-0019 was received in June 2007 from former professor Dwight Billings. The diary was gifted in 1993.
Processing information:

Processed by Jill Katte, June 2002, Fully processed by KimberlySims, April 2014

Encoded by Jill Katte, December 2002

Updated by Sherrie Bowser, June 2007

Updated by Kim Sims, September 2011, April 2014

Updated with accession UA2017.0052 by Tracy M. Jackson, October 2017.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Subjects

Click on terms below to find related finding aids on this site. For other related materials in the Duke University Libraries, search for these terms in the Catalog.

Subjects:
Plants -- North Carolina
Names:
Oosting, Henry J. (Henry John), 1903-1968

Contents

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Restrictions:

Nitrate negatives are restricted and cannot be accessed without prior approval of the University Archivist. Most images have corresponding prints in the collection and all have been digitized. Please contact Research Services for more information.

Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.

Stored off-site; 48 hours advance notice is required for use.

Terms of access:

Copyright for official University records is held by Duke University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Henry J. Oosting Papers, Duke University Archives, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.