The Correspondence series (boxes 1-8) are especially complete for the years 1890 to 1920, the period of Reighard's greatest professional accomplishment. Thereafter the correspondence dwindles to a few folders. The letters are rich in discussion of the development of zoology as a profession, in Reighard's studies of Great Lakes fish biology, in his administration of the University's zoological Laboratory, its biological station at Douglas Lake, and the Museum of Zoology in Ann Arbor. Reighard was teacher and colleague to America's most important zoologists, whose papers are represented in these correspondence files. H.S. Jennings, noted for his work in animal behavior and genetics at Johns Hopkins University, worked closely with Reighard at the University and at Douglas Lake. Dean C. Worcester, member of the first U.S. Philippine Commission, wrote long and extensive letters describing his life in the Far East. A more complete listing of Reighard's correspondents is included with this finding aid.
Largely a zoological collection, the Reighard correspondence also describes such subject areas as the impact of the First World War on the University of Michigan, the dispute among faculty members over an allegedly pro-German teacher (Walter Kcelz), the attempt to legislate the fur seal trade (April 1913), the development of underwater photography (letter from Francis N. Balch, July 1, 1910), and the problems and adjustments of Reighard as a hearing-impaired individual.
