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Washington State University Libraries Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections Pullman, WA 99164-5610 USA (509) 335-6691 Inquiries

Archives 20
Agricultural Research Center
Office Files, 1901-1948

The records of the Agricultural Research Center were deposited in the Washington State University Library prior to 1970 by the College of Agriculture (UA 76-12). The records of the Agricultural Research Center were separated (UA 78-7) from the records of the College of Agriculture and processed by Craig Holstine and James O'Neill between June, 1977 and May, 1978.

HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE WASHINGTON AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION

The Washington Agricultural Experiment Station began as an element of the Washington Agricultural College, Experiment Station, and School of Science, now Washington State University, in 1892. Located near Pullman on a farm donated to the state, the station became the site of agricultural instruction and experimental work conducted by the staff of the station and the faculty of the College of Agriculture.

Since the station was founded, the Western Washington Research and Extension Center (WWREC) near Puyallup and numerous branch stations located across the state have been established to facilitate a variety of agricultural experimentation. Subordinate to the Pullman station director, the system Of branch stations over the years has included:

   Waterville Branch Station
   Winthrop Branch Station
   Dry Land Research Unit (Adams Branch Station) near Lind
   Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center (Irrigation Branch Station) near Prosser
   Tree Fruit Research Center (Tree Fruit Branch Station) near Wenatchee
   Coastal Washington Research and Extension Unit (Cranberry-Blueberry Laboratory) near Long Beach
   Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Unit (Northwest Seed and Truck Crop Laboratory) near Mount Vernon
   Southwestern Washington Research Unit (Clark County Experimental Farm) near Vancouver

While the director of the WWREC serves as vice-director of the experiment station system, the Puyallup station is not a branch station and is not subordinate to the Pullman station director.

In 1946, the Washington Agricultural Experiment Stations were made a part of the Institute of Agricultural Sciences, which included the W.S.U. College of Agriculture, the College of Veterinary Medicine, and the Agricultural Extension Service. Formed to coordinate agricultural work and research at the College, the experiment stations, and throughout the state, the Institute existed until 1965 when a revised version of the previous organization was adopted. At this time the station was integrated into the newly-organized Agricultural Research Center of the College of Agriculture.

Directors of the Washington Agricultural Experiment Station:
   *George Lilley, 1891-1892
   *J.W. Heston, 1892-1893
   *E.A. Bryan, 1893-1907
   R.W. Thatcher, 1907-1913
   I.D. Cardiff, 1913-1917
   George Severance, 1917-1918
   E.C. Johnson, 1919-1945
   M.T. Buchanan, 1945-1966
   *Served as director while President of W.S.U. The directorship was separated from the presidency in 1907.

Directors of the Institute of Agricultural Sciences:
   J.C. Knott, 1946-1955
   L.L. Madsen, 1955-1965

DESCRIPTION OF THE COLLECTION

The records of the Washington Agricultural Experiment Station consist of approximately 40,000 items of correspondence and administrative materials, including requests for information, reports, bulletins, photographs and financial and budget materials. Materials relating to the various branch stations can be found in the records as well. The collection spans the years 1901 to 1948, with the bulk dating from the period 1901 to 1924.

The correspondence series spans the years 1901 to 1924 and consists of both letterbooks and office files. The thirty-six letterbooks contain primarily correspondence, including mailing lists and a great many brief replies to requests for information and bulletins published by the Station. The remainder of the series consists of the office files of several members of the Station staff, principally station directors. Although most of the correspondence is of an official nature, one container of Ira D. Cardiff's personal files is also included in the series. Photographs of E.C. Johnson, station personnel and farm equipment can be found in the folder labeled "Prosser Experiment Station, 1918-1920" in container 52.

Materials encompassing a variety of subjects spanning the years 1902 to 1948 are contained in a series immediately following the correspondence series. Of particular interest to the researcher investigating the history of the station is the folder entitled "History of the Experiment Station" in container 62.

The final series is composed of budgets and budget materials of the Pullman Station and the branch stations. Included in the series are reports, expenditures, receipts, and proposed, working, annual, and biennial budgets.

ARRANGEMENT

The collection is arranged in three series. The correspondence series is divided into two subseries: letterbooks and office files. Arranged chronologically, the letterbooks containing mainly letters and some reports precede those containing mailing lists and brief replies to requests for station bulletins. The office files are arranged chronologically by individual Station staff member. Materials comprising the subject file are arranged alphabetically. The budgets and budget materials are arranged chronologically.

                                                       BOXES
Series 1: Correspondence, 1901-1924                     1-58
  Subseries 1.1: Letterbooks, 1901-1916
  Subseries 1.2: Office Files, 1906-1924
Series 2: Subjects, 1902-1948                          59-66
Series 3: Budgets and Budget Materials, 1908-1946      67-73

CONTAINER LIST