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University of Chicago Library

Guide to the Paul D. Voth Papers 1884-1989

© 2017 University of Chicago Library

Descriptive Summary

Title:

Voth, Paul D. Papers

Dates:

1884-1989

Size:

35 linear feet (56 boxes)

Repository:

Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center
University of Chicago Library
1100 East 57th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60637 U.S.A.

Abstract:

Paul Dirks Voth was a University of Chicago alumni (S.M. 1930, Ph.D. 1933) and faculty member of the Department of Botany. This collection represents Voth's work as a botanist, educator, horticulturist, and historian of the University of Chicago's Department of Botany. Included in this collection is laboratory data, lecture notes, drafts, publications, teaching materials and student work, administrative and personal correspondence, photographs, and films.

Information on Use

Access

Series VIII, Boxes 54-56, are restricted for 80 years from date of record creation. These boxes contain student recommendation letters, grades and transcripts.

The remainder of the collection is open for research, with no restrictions

Restrictions on Use

Series VII contains 16-millimeter filmstrips, microfilms, and film negative rolls. Researchers will need to consult with staff before requesting these items.

Citation

When quoting material from this collection, the preferred citation is: Voth, Paul D. Papers, [Box #, Folder #], Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library.

Biographical Note

Paul Dirks Voth was a University of Chicago alumni (S.M. 1930, Ph.D. 1933) and faculty member of the Department of Botany. Born in Gotebo, Oklahoma, on June 12, 1905, Voth was raised in Mennonite communities. He graduated from Bethel College in 1929, and studied at the Rocky Mountain Biological Station in Crested Butte, Colorado, pursuing graduate study in botany at University of Chicago.

Voth was known for his research on the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha, working with his students to determine requirements for nutrition and cultivation of this species. He was also particularly interested in lichens and Hemerocallis (daylilies). He traveled widely for both teaching and research purposes: In 1938, his family traveled to Barro Colorado Island in the Panama Canal Zone, where he conducted an intensive study of tropical vegetation. In 1951, he traveled to the Arctic Research Laboratory in Point Barrow, Alaska, where he researched plants growing in permanently frozen substrate.

Teaching was an important part of Voth's academic career. In 1940, he was awarded the Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching. He served on university committees to develop undergraduate programs in the biological sciences, as well as teacher education programs. He developed textbooks, films, and laboratory material for high school teaching, and taught summer biology institutes for gifted high school students.

In addition to his faculty and administrative duties in the Department of Botany, Voth had a keen interest in the department's history, particularly the activities of early faculty such as Henry C. Cowles, Charles J. Chamberlain and Ezra J. Kraus.

Outside the university, Voth served as associate editor of Botanical Gazette from 1960-1974, and was a botanical consultant for encyclopedia publishers and educational film producers. He belonged to numerous professional organizations, serving as Secretary-Treasurer of the American Bryological Society (1939-1941) and Chairman of the Teaching Section of the Botanical Society of America (1950), as well as administrative positions with the Illinois State Academy of Science. Voth was active in community gardening and neighborhood beautification programs, an avid daylily breeder, and speaker at meetings of garden clubs and other organizations.

After retiring from the faculty of University of Chicago, Voth continued to teach at Northern Illinois University in the 1970s. Voth died in 1992, survived by his wife Selma ("Sally") J. Graber, two children, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Scope Note

This collection represents Voth's work as a botanist, educator, horticulturist, and historian of the University of Chicago's Department of Botany. Included in this collection is laboratory data, lecture notes, drafts, publications, teaching materials and student work, administrative and personal correspondence, photographs, and films. Voth's organization of his papers is strongly conditioned by his interest in documenting teaching and research in the Department of Botany; his own secondary notes and analyses of the collection are found throughout the collection.

Series I: Correspondence, contains incoming and outgoing letters and memoranda, including both professional and personal material. Related reports, notes, publications and publicity material are often included with correspondence.

Correspondence spans the years 1953-1972 and is arranged alphabetically.

Series II: Education, includes material from Paul Voth's study in college and graduate school, as well as some of his continuing education activities. Subseries 1: Bethel College, contains lab books, notes and other material from courses Voth took during college. Subseries 2: University of Chicago, contains syllabi, reading lists, lecture notes, lab books, term papers, and other material from Voth's graduate education, as well as some material from lectures he attended for later professional development. Voth continued to collect material from the same or similar courses after he himself had completed the course, so later material is often found alongside his own coursework.

Series III: Teaching, documents Voth's teaching activities at the university level, as well as his work as an educator for high school and community groups. Subseries 1: University of Chicago, contains material from botany and biology courses that Voth taught from the 1930s-1960s. Voth also collected material from related courses taught by other faculty members, and often filed these along with material from his own courses. Dissertations and theses that Voth supervised are also included. Subseries 2: Northern Illinois University, contains material for biology classes Voth taught in the 1970s. Subseries 3: High School Programs, contains material that Voth used for teaching in special programs for gifted high school students.

Series IV: Research and Writing, represents Voth's wide range of research interests. Subseries 1: Scientific, contains laboratory notebooks, experiment data, drafts of papers, publications, notes, correspondence and photographs documenting Voth's scientific research. Subseries 2: Historical, contains Voth's research on the history of science, and most notably the history of the Department of Botany at the University of Chicago. This subseries contains extensive original material that Voth collected, as well as his secondary writing and research material. Of particular interest are his collections of biographical information about faculty and students. Subseries 3: Educational, includes drafts and notes for textbooks, filmstrip scripts, encyclopedia articles, and other material related to research and writing in college, high school and community education.

Series V: University Administration, documents Voth's participation on university committees and governing bodies, as well as day-to-day administrative activities. Subseries 1: University of Chicago, contains correspondence, reports, meeting minutes, and publicity material spanning the years 1940-1970. Contained in this subseries is Voth's file on campus protests in the 1960s, including broadsides, statements, and publications from student groups and administration in the wake of the 1969 Marlene Dixon sit-in. Subseries 2: Northern Illinois University, contains a small amount of material related to laboratory management and reporting of professional activities.

Series VI: Personal, contains manuscripts, correspondence and other material documenting Voth's hobbyist activities and personal life. Included here are materials related to garden clubs and other community organizations; his memoirs of childhood and student experiences; and copies of his curriculum vitae, career summaries, and other biographical documents.

Series VII: Artifacts, Oversize and Audio-Visual Material, contains a variety of formats, much of it documenting Voth's research and travel. Subseries 1: Artifacts and Oversize Material, contains diagrams, architectural records, supply samples, and other material transferred from Series III, IV and V. Subseries 2: 16-Millimeter Films, contains a copy of an educational film in which Voth was involved, in addition to eight reels of film taken during Voth's research in Alaska.

Subseries 3: Photographs, includes prints, negatives and transparencies from the 1930s-1960s, including images of research and travel. Subseries 4: Slides, includes several individually organized slide files from the 1930s-1960s.

Series VIII, Restricted, contains student recommendation letters, grades and transcripts. Materials in this series are restricted for 80 years from date of record creation.

Related Resources

The following related resources are located in the Department of Special Collections:

Coulter, John Merle. Papers

Cowles, Henry Chandler. Papers

Noé, Adolf Carl. Papers

Olmsted, Charles E. Papers

University of Chicago. Department of Botany. Records

Subject Headings

INVENTORY

Series I: Correspondence

This series contains professional and personal correspondence of Paul D. Voth, including letters and memoranda generated through his research, administrative activities, teaching, and personal interests. His correspondents included students, colleagues at University of Chicago and other institutions, university administrators, and personal friends. Related reports, notes, publications and publicity material are often included with correspondence.

This series contains incoming and outgoing correspondence spanning the years 1937-1978. The alphabetical headings typically correspond to either correspondent names or subjects. Unsorted correspondence is found at the end of the subseries.

While Voth maintained this material specifically as a correspondence file, letters and memoranda are also found alongside other material elsewhere in the collection, particularly Series III, IV, V and VI.

Box 1   Folder 1

A, 1944-1951

Box 1   Folder 2

American Institute of Biological Sciences, 1960-1961

Box 1   Folder 3-4

B, 1939-1969

Box 1   Folder 5

Book reviews, 1960-1968

Box 1   Folder 6

Botanical Gazette, 1965-1971

Box 1   Folder 7-8

Botany Club, 1955-1972

Box 1   Folder 9-10

C, 1943-1973

Box 1   Folder 11

Chapman, J. David, 1979

Box 2   Folder 1

Chicago, University of, Collegiate Division of Biology, 1965-1971

Box 2   Folder 2

Chicago, University of, Committee on Undergraduate Education, 1959-1965

Box 2   Folder 3

Chicago, University of, Council of the University Senate, 1957-1970

Box 2   Folder 4

Chicago, University of, Department of Biology, 1969

Box 2   Folder 5

Chicago, University of, Department of Biology, M.A. in Teaching, 1959-1969

Box 2   Folder 6

Chicago, University of, Planning and Executive Committee of the Graduate School of Education, 1969

Box 2   Folder 7

Conant, George H., 1944-1951

Box 2   Folder 7

Drozd, Mary Jane, 1979

Box 2   Folder 9

E, 1949-1969

Box 2   Folder 10

Electron microscopy, circa 1960s-1970s

Box 2   Folder 11-13

F-L, 1944-1973

Box 2   Folder 14

Greenhouses, 1972-1975

Box 2   Folder 15

H, 1965-1975

Box 3   Folder 1

Hemerocallis, 1958-1968

Box 3   Folder 2

I, 1964-1975

Box 3   Folder 3

Illinois Dunesland Preservation Society, 1954-1969

Box 3   Folder 4

Indiana Dunes, 1964-1971

Box 3   Folder 5

J, 1955-1969

Box 3   Folder 6

Jones, Regnal, 1966

Box 3   Folder 7-8

K-L, 1946-1975

Box 3   Folder 9

Larson, Paul, 1953-1959

Box 3   Folder 10

M, 1947-1975

Box 4   Folder 1

Manuscript reviews, 1941-1980

Box 4   Folder 2

Mc, 1954-1973

Box 4   Folder 3

N, 1944-1975

Box 4   Folder 4

National Science Foundation, 1963-1966

Box 4   Folder 5-7

O-P, 1942-1973

Box 4   Folder 8

Publications, 1955-1969

Box 4   Folder 9

Publications, comments on reprints, 1965-1969

Box 4   Folder 10

Publishers, 1937-1944

Box 4   Folder 11

R, 1956-1969

Box 4   Folder 12

Rouffa, Albert S., 1978

Box 4   Folder 13

S, 1943-1973

Box 5   Folder 1

Studhalter, R., 1932-1936

Box 5   Folder 2-3

T-Z, 1955-1969

Box 5   Folder 4

Yung, Chi-Tung, 1944-1971

Box 6   Folder 1-11

Unsorted, 1932-1974

Series II: Education

The material in this series documents Paul Voth's education in college and graduate school, as well as some of his continuing education activities.

Subseries 1: Bethel College, contains lab books, notes and other material from courses Voth took during college.

Subseries 2: University of Chicago, contains syllabi, reading lists, lecture notes, lab books, term papers, and other material from Voth's graduate education, as well as some material from lectures he attended for later professional development. It is notable that Voth continued to collect material from the same or similar courses after he himself had completed the course - in some cases, material from biology classes taught in the 1950s is found along with Voth's own coursework from the 1930s. This subseries is organized by course number, with copies of Voth's master's and doctoral theses at the end. Names of courses and instructors are included when identified.

Subseries 1: Bethel College

Box 7   Folder 1-2

Biology courses, circa 1928

Box 7   Folder 3-4

Ornithology courses, 1928

Subseries 2: University of Chicago

Box 7   Folder 5

Botany 201, Plant Anatomy, Herbert E. Hayward, 1930

Box 7   Folder 6-7

Botany 212, Elementary Plant Physiology, Charles A. Shull, 1929

Box 8   Folder 1-3

Botany 237, Applied Ecology, Henry C. Cowles, 1932

Box 8   Folder 4-5

Botany 240, General Plant Pathology, 1930-1941

Box 8   Folder 6

Botany 250, General Plant Genetics, Merle C. Coulter, 1933

Box 9   Folder 1

Botany 310, Morphology of Algae, John M. Beal, 1932-1938

Box 9   Folder 2-3

Botany 312, Special Morphology of Bryophytes, William J. G. Land, 1929

Box 9   Folder 4

Botany 313, Morphology of Pteridophytes, William J.G. Land, 1929

Box 9   Folder 5

Botany 314, Morphology of Gymnosperms, Ezra J. Kraus, 1931

Box 9   Folder 6

Botany 315, Morphology of Angiosperms, Ezra J. Kraus, 1930-1943

Box 10   Folder 1-2

Botany 317-318, Cytology, John M. Beal, 1933-1951

Box 10   Folder 3-5

Botany 321-322, General Plant Physiology, Scott V. Eaton, 1930

Box 10   Folder 6-7

Botany 333, Geographical Botany (Hawaiian Islands), Henry C. Cowles, 1929

Box 11   Folder 1-2

Botany 335, Forest Ecology, George D. Fuller, 1931

Box 11   Folder 3

Botany 339, Bioecology, John Philips, 1937

Box 11   Folder 4-5

Botany 340, Plant Pathology, George K.K. Link, 1932

Box 11   Folder 6

Botany 401, Structure of Economic Plants, Ezra J. Kraus, 1933

Box 11   Folder 7

Botany 427, Plant Nutrition, Charles A. Shull, 1933

Box 12   Folder 1

Botany 430, Experimental Ecology, Paul Houdek, circa 1930s

Box 12   Folder 2

New Factors in Plant Physiology, lecture series, F.W. Went, 1948

Box 12   Folder 3-4

A Study of the Juvenile Stages of Pteris Longifolia, M.S. dissertation, 1930

Box 12   Folder 5

A Study of the Vegetative States of Ephedra, Ph.D. dissertation, 1933

Series III: Teaching

This series documents Voth's teaching activities at the university level, as well as his work as an educator for high school and community groups.

Subseries 1: University of Chicago, contains syllabi, exams, assignments, lecture notes, publications, reading lists, research data, and other material from botany and biology courses that Voth taught from the 1930s-1960s. Voth also collected material from related courses taught by other faculty members, and often filed these along with material from his own courses. Material is arranged according to course number; dissertations and theses that Voth supervised are collected at the end of the subseries. Names and numbers of courses are given when identified.

Subseries 2: Northern Illinois University, contains teaching material for biology classes Voth taught in the 1970s, as well as course evaluations and organizational material for class trips.

Subseries 3: High School Programs, contains material that Voth used for teaching in special programs for gifted high school students. Other material related to high school programs and education research is found in Series IV: Subseries 3 and Series V: Subseries 1.

Oversize material from this series has been transferred to Series VII.

Subseries 1: University of Chicago

Box 12   Folder 6

Botany, Second-Year College Sequence, 1934

Box 12   Folder 7-11

Botany 101, 1916-circa 1950s

Box 13   Folder 1-10

Botany 202, 1948-1967

Box 14   Folder 1-7

Botany 204, 1921-circa 1960s

Box 14   Folder 8-9

Botany 206, Systematic Botany, 1915-1950

Box 14   Folder 10

Botany 214, circa 1960s

Box 14   Folder 11-12

Botany 299, circa 1960s

Box 14   Folder 13-15

Botany 310, Algae, 1948-1967

Box 15   Folder 1-9

Botany 310, Algae, 1956-1967

Box 15   Folder 10

Botany 312, Morphology of Bryophytes, 1936-1948

Box 16   Folder 1-10

Botany 312, Morphology of Bryophytes, 1937-1968

Box 17   Folder 1-6

Botany 312, Morphology of Bryophytes, 1949-1966

Box 17   Folder 7-12

Botany 313, 1940-1968

Box 17   Folder 13

Botany 314, 1942-1969

Box 17   Folder 14

Botany 330, 1960

Box 17   Folder 15

Biology I, 1966

Box 17   Folder 16

Biology 105, Elementary Botany, 1967

Box 18   Folder 1

Biology 199, 1969

Box 18   Folder 2-8

Biology 201, Plant Biology, 1947-1966

Box 19   Folder 1-4

Biology 201, Plant Biology, 1963-1966

Box 19   Folder 5

Biology 210, 1961

Box 19   Folder 6

Biology 211, 1963-1971

Box 19   Folder 7-8

Biology 272, 1969-1970

Box 20   Folder 1

Biology 313B, 1953-1969

Box 20   Folder 2-3

Biology 329, 1969

Box 20   Folder 4

Biology 428, 1970

Box 20   Folder 5-9

Dissertations and theses, 1952-1970

Box 21   Folder 1-4

Dissertations, 1940-1967

Box 22   Folder 1

Dissertations, 1940-1967

Subseries 2: Northern Illinois University

Box 23   Folder 1-9

Lecture notes, teaching material and student research, 1946-1966

Subseries 3: High School Programs

Box 24   Folder 1

Biology 211, 1973

Box 24   Folder 2

Biology 689, 1966-1973

Box 24   Folder 3

Course evaluations, circa 1968-1970

Box 24   Folder 4

Class trips to Field Museum, 1972-1974

Box 24   Folder 5-7

National Science Foundation, Summer Institute of Modern and Field Biology, 1963-1966

Box 24   Folder 8

University of Chicago, Program for Teachers and Gifted Students from Outstanding High Schools, 1963-1966

Series IV: Research and Writing

Material in this series represents Voth's wide range of research interests, which was not limited to botany or the biological sciences.

Subseries 1: Scientific, is organized by subject, with headings corresponding to either botanical subjects or locations in which Voth conducted his research. To locate all material related to a given subject, it is necessary to check both types of headings (for example, research on Marchantia polymorpha is also found under the heading "Alaska," where Voth conducted research on this species). Material in this subseries includes laboratory notebooks, experiment data, drafts of papers, publications, notes, and related correspondence and photographs.

Unsorted material is included at the end of the subseries.

Subseries 2: Historical, contains Voth's research on the history of science, and most notably the history of the Department of Botany at the University of Chicago. This subseries contains extensive original material that Voth collected, as well as his secondary writing and research material. Voth formed biographical files on individual faculty members, in which he collected correspondence from subjects and their colleagues, personal papers, publications, and biographical writings. He compiled lists and directories of students in the department, along with related correspondence, publications and student work. This subseries also includes material related to the administrative history of the department, including correspondence of faculty and staff; historically significant reports, memoranda, and publications. Voth's observations and analyses are found throughout.

Subseries 3: Educational, includes drafts and notes for textbooks, filmstrip scripts, encyclopedia articles, and other material related to research and writing in college, high school and community education. This subseries includes material related to high school programs and teacher training programs in which Voth was involved, as well as drafts of lectures and speeches to garden clubs and other lay botanical organizations. Material related to teaching and administration of high school science programs is also found in Series III: Subseries 3, and Series V: Subseries 1. Material related to garden clubs is also found in Series VI.

Other material documenting Voth's research is found in Series I and VII. Oversize material from this series has been transferred to Series VII.

Subseries 1: Scientific

Box 25   Folder 1-13

Alaska research, 1948-1956

Box 25   Folder 14-15

Alaska research, administration, 1950-1952

Box 26   Folder 1-4

Alaska research, administration, 1951-1967

Box 26   Folder 5-10

Alaska research, equipment and instrumentation, 1951-1955

Box 26   Folder 11

Alaska research, methodology, circa 1952

Box 26   Folder 12

Alaska research, "Biology of Marchantia Polymorpha and Associated Plants in the Alaskan Arctic," reports, 1951

Box 26   Folder 13

Alaska, preparations for speech, 1951

Box 26   Folder 14

Alaska, Newsletter on Microenvironment, 1957

Box 26   Folder 15

Alaska, photographs of laboratory personnel, circa 1951

Box 26   Folder 16-17

Barro Colorado Island research, 1938-1959

Box 27   Folder 1

Barro Colorado Island research, "Conduction of Rainfall by Plant Stems in a Tropical Rain Forest," 1939

Box 27   Folder 2

Barro Colorado Island, index of herbarium, 1938

Box 27   Folder 3-6

Bryophytes, 1944-1962

Box 27   Folder 7-8

Bryophytes, bryological and lichenological forays, 1949-1975

Box 27   Folder 9

Bryophytes of Illinois bibliography, 1939-1947

Box 27   Folder 10

Guadalcanal, analysis of captured Japanese food, 1942

Box 27   Folder 11-16

Hemerocallis, circa 1920s-1968

Box 28   Folder 1-15

Hemerocallis, 1954-1970

Box 28   Folder 16

Hemerocallis, Robert A. Griesbach, "The Nature of Dormancy Seed Germination in Hemerocallis," dissertation, 1955

Box 29   Folder 1

Hemerocallis, exposure of seeds to stratosphere in air balloon flight, 1950-1952

Box 29   Folder 2

Hemerocallis, genetics, 1948-1952

Box 29   Folder 3

Hemerocallis, Botany Garden, 1963-1970

Box 29   Folder 4

Hemerocallis, Ellis Avenue Garden, 1962-1967

Box 29   Folder 5

Hemerocallis, Wychwood, 1950-1951

Box 29   Folder 6-13

Lichens, 1931-1971

Box 30   Folder 1-6

Lichens, circa 1971-1972

Box 30   Folder 7

Lichens, substances, circa 1971

Box 30   Folder 8

Lichens and animals, 1971

Box 30   Folder 9

Lichens, antibiotic uses, 1971

Box 30   Folder 10

Lichens, chemistry, 1972

Box 30   Folder 11

Lichens, deleterious effects, 1971

Box 30   Folder 12

Lichens, economic uses, circa 1971

Box 30   Folder 13

Lichens, global value, circa 1971

Box 30   Folder 14

Lichens, haustoria, circa 1971

Box 30   Folder 15

Lichens on Mars, circa 1970s

Box 30   Folder 16

Lichens as fodder, circa 1970s

Box 30   Folder 17

Lichens, physiology, circa 1971

Box 30   Folder 18

Lichens, bibliographic summation, circa 1971

Box 31A   Folder 1-17

Marchantia, 1937-1960

Box 31   Folder 1-7

Marchantia, circa 1937-1960

Box 31   Folder 8

Marchantia, "Effect of Temperature Fluctuations on Substrates in the Greenhouse," 1954

Box 31   Folder 9

Marchantia, "Voth-Gentile Experiment on Effect of Boron and Potassium Permanganate on Leaf Area and Dry Weight of Marchantia Polymorpha," 1954

Box 31   Folder 10

Marchantia, "Environmental and Other Factors Controlling Vegetative Reproduction in Marchantia," 1960

Box 31   Folder 11-12

Marchantia, burning of peat soils, 1929-1947

Box 31   Folder 13

Marchantia, statistics, 1947-1951

Box 32   Folder 1

Marchantia, ammonia experiment, circa 1950s

Box 32   Folder 2

Marchantia, fungus infestation, 1947

Box 32   Folder 3

Marchantia, National Science Foundation proposal, 1955-1956

Box 32   Folder 4

Marchantia, photographs, circa 1970

Box 32   Folder 5

Marsilia, 1952

Box 32   Folder 6

Mimosa, 1967

Box 32   Folder 7-9

Pteridophytes, 1939-1956

Box 32   Folder 10

Zamiaceae, 1989

Box 32   Folder 11-21

Unsorted material, 1911-circa 1980s

Box 33   Folder 1-3

Unsorted material, circa 1950s-1970s

Subseries 2: Historical

Box 33   Folder 4-12

Department of Botany, 1926-1981

Box 34   Folder 1-8

Department of Botany, 1952-1983

Box 34   Folder 9-11

Department of Botany faculty, 1929-1981

Box 34   Folder 12

Department of Botany, biographical files, 1900-1970

Box 35   Folder 1-4

Department of Botany faculty, reprints, 1884-circa 1960s

Box 35   Folder 5-11

Department of Botany faculty, biographical files, circa 1900-1970

  • John M. Beal
  • Charles J. Chamberlain
  • Merle C. Coulter
  • Henry C. Cowles
  • George D. Fuller
  • Ezra J. Kraus
Box 36   Folder 1-9

Department of Botany faculty, biographical files, circa 1900-1970

  • Ezra J. Kraus
  • William J.G. Land
  • Adolf C. Noé
  • Charles E. Olmsted
Box 37   Folder 1-7

Department of Botany faculty, biographical files, circa 1900-1970

  • Charles E. Olmsted
  • Charles A. Shull
Box 37   Folder 8

Department of Botany, women Ph.D.s, circa 1970s

Box 37   Folder 9

Department of Botany, Chinese graduates, circa 1982

Box 37   Folder 10-14

Department of Botany, graduates and Ph.D.s, circa 1960s-1980s

Box 38   Folder 1-2

Department of Botany, student achievements, circa 1960s-1970s

Box 38   Folder 3-6

Department of Botany, Shigeo Yamanouchi, 1908-1965

Box 38   Folder 7

Department of Botany, Sir Eric Ashby, 1969

Box 38   Folder 8

Department of Botany, J.E. House, 1937-1978

Box 38   Folder 9

Department of Botany, newsletters, 1940-1953

Box 38   Folder 10

Department of Botany, qualifying exams, circa 1960s

Box 38   Folder 11

Botany Garden, 1969

Box 38   Folder 12

Department of Biology, newsletter, 1978

Box 38   Folder 13

Bird Haven, 1951-1968

Box 38   Folder 14

Mackwoods Gardens, 1956-1964

Box 38   Folder 15

Wychwood, 1940-1969

Subseries 3: Educational

Box 38   Folder 16-17

National Science Foundation, Programs for Education in the Sciences, 1962-1963

Box 39   Folder 1-3

High School Biology, circa 1963-1966

Box 39   Folder 4

Laboratory Exercises in Plant Biology, 1971-1972

Box 39   Folder 5

World Book Encyclopedia, 1970

Box 39   Folder 6-7

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1957-1961

Box 39   Folder 8-9

Britannica Films, 1955-1961

Box 39   Folder 10

International Film Bureau, 1973-1979

Box 39   Folder 11

Coronet Films, 1969

Box 39   Folder 12-13

Television appearances, 1952-1957

Box 40   Folder 1

"Green Organisms," 1966

Box 40   Folder 2-3

"Photosynthesis," circa 1966

Box 40   Folder 4-5

"Reproduction," circa 1964

Box 40   Folder 6

"Original Research as a Component of an Undergraduate Course in Botany," 1963

Box 40   Folder 7

"Demonstrating Mineral-Nutrient Deficiencies with Regnellidium Diphyllum," 1956

Box 40   Folder 8

Morton Arboretum, 1946-1972

Box 40   Folder 9

"Control of Reproduction in a Lower Green Plant," 1967

Box 40   Folder 10

Plant enumeration, 1944

Box 40   Folder 11-12

Garden clubs, 1947-1951

Box 40   Folder 13-16

Unsorted material, 1938-circa 1970s

Series V: University Administration

This series documents Voth's participation on university committees and governing bodies, as well as day-to-day administrative activities.

Subseries 1: University of Chicago, contains correspondence, reports, meeting minutes, and publicity material spanning the years 1940-1970. Contained in this subseries is Voth's file on campus protests in the 1960s, including broadsides, statements, and publications from student groups and administration in the wake of the 1969 Marlene Dixon sit-in. This subseries is organized chronologically, with unsorted material found at the end.

Subseries 2: Northern Illinois University, contains a small amount of material related to laboratory management and reporting of professional activities.

Administrative correspondence and related documents are also found in Series I. Oversize material from this series has been transferred to Series VII.

Subseries 1: University of Chicago

Box 41   Folder 1

College programs, 1940-1941

Box 41   Folder 2

Fiberglas equipment purchasing and analysis, 1941-1942

Box 41   Folder 3

University re-organization, 1944

Box 41   Folder 4

Academic freedom, 1944

Box 41   Folder 5

Microscope replacement, 1957-1961

Box 41   Folder 6

Undergraduate curriculum, 1958-1963

Box 41   Folder 7

Botanist career education, 1958-1966

Box 41   Folder 8

College faculty meetings, 1959

Box 41   Folder 9

Committee on the B.A. in Biology, 1960-1961

Box 41   Folder 10

Classroom and space needs, 1962

Box 41   Folder 11

Teaching assistants, 1963-1965

Box 41   Folder 12

Joseph D. Novak, 1964

Box 41   Folder 13

Biology Collegiate Division, Curriculum Committee, 1967-1970

Box 42   Folder 1-5

Graduate School of Education, M.A. in Teaching program and Michigan State University Training of Teacher Trainers Program, 1967-1969

Box 42   Folder 6-10

Administration Building sit-in and disciplinary actions, 1969

Box 43   Folder 1

University Record, 1968-1969

Box 43   Folder 2

Biology Collegiate Division, 1970-1971

Box 43   Folder 3-5

Unsorted material, 1938-1979

Subseries 2: Northern Illinois University

Box 43   Folder 6

Laboratory equipment, circa 1950s-1970s

Box 43   Folder 7

Professional activities, circa 1970s

Box 43   Folder 8

Lectures and speeches, circa 1970s

Series VI: Personal

This series contains manuscripts, correspondence and other material documenting Voth's hobbyist activities and personal life. Included here are materials related to garden clubs and other community organizations; his memoirs of childhood and student experiences; and copies of his curriculum vitae, career summaries, and other biographical documents.

Box 43   Folder 9

Selma Voth, 1933

Box 43   Folder 10

Positions offered and sought, 1933-1963

Box 43   Folder 11-14

Garden clubs, 1941-1977

Box 43   Folder 15

Alaska travel, 1951-1953

Box 43   Folder 16

Wychwood, 1958

Box 43   Folder 17

Crank letters, 1960-1984

Box 44   Folder 1-2

DeKalb, Illinois, community activities, 1974

Box 44   Folder 3

Childhood memoirs, 1977

Box 44   Folder 4

University of Chicago memoirs, 1977

Box 44   Folder 5

Alaskan ecology, 1979

Box 45   Folder 1-5

Biographical statements and c.v.s, circa 1960s-1980s

Series VII: Artifacts, Oversize, and Audio-Visual Material

This series contains oversize material, artifacts, and audio-visual material in a variety of formats. Much of this material documents Voth's research and travel.

Subseries 1: Artifacts and Oversize Material, contains diagrams, architectural records, supply samples, and other material transferred from Series III, IV and V.

Subseries 2: 16-Millimeter Films, contains a copy of an educational film in which Voth was involved, in addition to eight reels of film taken during Voth's research in Alaska. The films have not been reviewed and their accessibility is not known.

Subseries 3: Photographs, includes prints, negatives and transparencies from the 1930s-1960s. Most of the photographs are of experiments and other research; however, Voth also collected many photographs of his travel in Alaska around 1951, including images of landscapes and indigenous communities. Voth organized many of the Alaskan photographs into distinct sets of images, while other photographs are sorted only by subject. A formal portrait of Voth is also included in this subseries.

Subseries 4: Slides, includes several individually organized slide files from the 1930s-1960s. Most of the slide files are organized by location, and many images of Alaska are again included.

Subseries 1: Artifacts and Oversize Material

Box 46   Folder 1

Research and writing, scientific, Marchantia, samples of Fiberglas cloth, 1939

Box 46   Folder 2

Teaching, University of Chicago, Botany 313, 1917-1942

Box 46   Folder 3

Teaching, unidentified diagrams, undated

Box 46   Folder 4

Administration, University of Chicago, Botany Building, 1963

Box 46   Folder 5

Administration, University of Chicago, Gates-Blake Hall basement rehabilitation

Subseries 2: 16-Millimeter Films

Box 47

Alaska research, eight film reels, circa 1951

Box 47

Plant Nutrients and Growth, Coronet Films, 1969

Subseries 3: Photographs

Box 47   Folder 1

Identified and unidentified, circa 1930s-1960s

  • Microfilm and 35-millimeter negative reels, two boxes, circa 1940s-1960s
Box 48   Folder 1-9

Alaska, sets 1-9, 1951

Box 48   Folder 10-11

Alaska, 1951

Box 49   Folder 1-4

Alaska, Point Barrow, 1951

Box 49   Folder 5

Thermistors, circa 1954

Box 49   Folder 6

Hemerocallis, circa 1950s

Box 49   Folder 7

Regnellidium, circa 1954

Box 49   Folder 8

Barro Colorado Island, circa 1938

Box 49   Folder 9

Wychwood, 1946-1949

Box 49   Folder 10

Paul D. Voth, portrait, 1952

Box 49   Folder 11-13

Marchantia, 1947-1952

Subseries 4: Slides

Box 50

Alaska, five slide files, circa 1951

Box 50

Wychwood, two slide files, circa 1946-1948

Box 51

Marchantia, slide file, circa 1940

Box 51

Bethel College lecture, slide file, 1986

Box 51

Chicago, conservation of trees, circa slide file, 1950

Box 51

Indiana Dunes, circa slide file, 1954

Box 51

Holland, Michigan, circa slide file, 1941

Box 51

Regnellidium, hemerocallis and other subjects, slide file, circa 1950s-1960

Box 52

Alaska, slide file, circa 1951

Box 52

Alaska, unsorted slides, circa 1951

Box 52

Chicago, slide file, circa 1949-1959

Box 52

Native flora, circa 1950s

Box 53

Point Barrow, Alaska, lantern slides, circa 1951

Box 53

Barro Colorado Island, lantern slides, circa 1938

Box 53

Texas, lantern slides, undated

Box 53

2,4-D soil, lantern slides, undated

Series VIII: Restricted

Box 54   Folder 1-6

Letters of Recommendation, 1953-1972

Box 55   Folder 1-7

Student Papers, 1944-1961

Box 56   Folder 1-12

Student Papers, 1961-1975