Blanchard Family Papers, circa 1835-circa 2000

Start Over Collection Blanchard Family Papers, circa 1835-circa 2000 Date range Unknown

1 collection found

49.5 linear feet (in 50 boxes) — 1400 glass photographic plates (in 10 boxes)

The Blanchard family papers document the lives and careers of several members of the Blanchard, Cobb, and Proctor families from the mid-nineteenth century through the late twentieth century. Includes visual materials, publications, personal writings, and extensive correspondence files.

The Blanchard Family Papers document the professional achievements and personal lives of several generations of a scientifically minded and artistically gifted family. The papers focus heavily upon the eminent plant pathologist and nematologist Nathan A. Cobb, his wife Alice Vara Cobb, their daughter, biologist Frieda Cobb Blanchard, and her husband, herpetologist Frank Nelson Blanchard (the latter two of whom were professors at the University of Michigan). In addition to the photographs, drawings, correspondence, journals, and writings of these four individuals, the collection is rich in family correspondence, diaries, and personal papers from other members of the Cobb and Blanchard families (and their forebears and branches, including the Bigelow, Proctor, Ross, White, and Randall families). The Blanchard Family Papers will be of value to researchers interested in a variety of topics: scientific endeavors and methodologies (and in particular those related to agronomy, nematology, botany, and herpetology); the visual arts and the development of photography in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries; colonial and provincial life in Australia and Hawaii (respectively); and the daily affairs of American (and Michigan) families throughout the twentieth century. The Blanchard Family Papers consist of seven series: Nathan A. Cobb, Alice Vara Cobb, Frieda Cobb Blanchard, Frank Nelson Blanchard, Blanchard and Cobb Family Letters, Other Family Members, and Isaac G. Blanchard.

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Nathan A. Cobb

The Nathan A. Cobb series documents Cobb's ground-breaking work in plant pathology and nematology and includes an extensive assortment of visual materials related to his personal and professional activities. The series is comprised of six major sections: Personal, Professional, Publications, Inventions and Patents, Clippings, and Visual Materials. "Personal" content provides biographical information about Cobb and includes educational materials (through his doctoral studies at the University of Jena) as well as correspondence with friends, family, and various scientific figures in the United States and Australia (including Alexander Graham Bell, William Farrer, and H. C. L. Anderson). The "Professional" section documents Cobb's various endeavors and consists of correspondence and materials related to his work as an instructor (at the Williston Seminary in Easthampton, MA), analytical chemist, advertiser (for the American importer Chipman in Australia), and research scientist (in Australia and the United States). "Publications" include collections of works self-published by Cobb and members of his family as well as content that appeared in various journals and conference proceedings. The sketches, drawings, and lithographic prints that illustrate these works are noteworthy for their detail and clarity (the Yearbooks from 1884-1898 are especially rich in this regard). "Inventions and Patents" contain drawings, explanations, correspondence, and (where applicable) official patents in the United States and abroad related to Cobb's innovations and improvements on cameras, microscopes, and other implements. "Clippings" include material from newspapers and magazines (predominantly from the United States and Australia, although other countries are also represented) that relates to Cobb's personal and professional endeavors. Finally, the "Visual Materials" section contains images in various formats related to Cobb's research and publications and also reveals his ability to capture exquisite photographs of both daily life and scientific phenomena. These photographic images include albums of snapshots from the United States, Europe, Algeria, and Australia as well as a large number of plate glass negatives and positive images. Subject matter includes agricultural practices, varied flora and fauna, members of the Cobb family, and street scenes from a variety of locales (including San Francisco prior to the 1906 earthquake).