Finding Aid to the Cooper Ornithological Society Records, 1874-1994, 1874-1994
Finding aid written by Juliet Demeter and Josh Schneider
The Bancroft Library
© 2006
The Bancroft Library
University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000
bancref@library.berkeley.edu
Contributing Institution:
The Bancroft Library
Title: Cooper Ornithological Society records
Creator:
Cooper Ornithological Society
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 74/144 c
Physical Description:
19 linear feet
(13 cartons, 1 oversize box, 2 boxes, and 8 volumes)
Date (inclusive): 1874-1994
Date (inclusive): 1874-1994
Abstract: The Cooper Ornithological Society Records, 1874-1994, document the organization's history from its origins as a small association
of naturalists to its current status as a renowned scientific society with extensive international membership. The bulk of
the collection consists of correspondence and administrative records produced by the Board of Directors and COS Officers.
Also prevalent are committee minutes, annual meeting materials, and individual member correspondence and field notes. Materials
relating to the official publications of the society, including
The Condor and
Studies in Avian Biology, are also included.
Physical Location: Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information
on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Language of Material:
English
, English
, English
.
Access
Collection is open for research.
Accruals
No accruals are expected.
Acquisition Information
The Cooper Ornithological Society Records were given to The Bancroft Library by Lois Stone on March 12, 1973. Additions were
made in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1987, 1988, and 1994. 2017 additions were given to The Bancroft Library
by John C Ralph.
Alternate Forms Available
Digital reproductions of selected items are available.
Organizational History
The Cooper Ornithological Club (COC), the forerunner of the present Cooper Ornithological Society, was formed on June 22,
1893 in San Jose by four active birders and oologists in order to provide a forum in which to study and discuss birds with
like-minded, well-informed enthusiasts. In December 1934 the Club became incorporated, and in May 1952, the Club changed its
name to the Cooper Ornithological Society, with the principal intent of better conveying the club's academic and scientific
orientation. The Society currently numbers over 3000 professional and amateur ornithologists from around the world. The primary
goal of the Society, as expressed through its meetings, sponsorship of symposia, and publications, is to advance the scientific
study of birds and their habitats, and support their conservation.
The original founding members of the COC included Chester Barlow, Wilford H. Osgood, Harry Painton, and Fred Schneider. The
name of the club, as well as that of the present society which bears its name, commemorates an early California naturalist,
Dr. James Graham Cooper (1830-1902), whose son, J.S. Cooper, was long active in the affairs of the Society.
The earliest ornithological club in California, similarly named after Cooper, was founded in the winter of 1890-1891 by students
at the University of the Pacific in Santa Clara. It lasted only a few years, when many if not most of the early members of
the club transferred to the newly instituted Stanford University. While it was resurrected for a short time a few years later,
and is important as an early example of organized ornithological research on the West Coast, it achieved nothing close to
the academic presence nor level of regional dispersion achieved by the later Cooper Ornithological Club (or the Society which
eventually took its name).
The Southern Division of the Club arose from independent origins in 1893 when several bird collectors organized to form the
Southern California Natural History Society. As its member list, meetings, and activities increasingly overlapped with the
local COC chapter in Santa Clara, however, the SCNHS title soon fell by the wayside. Although each division had regular meetings
and field trip schedules, the first joint annual meeting of the two divisions of the COC occurred in Los Angeles in 1926.
Although its commitment to filling its principal goals has never wavered, the Society has undergone numerous structural organizational
changes during the course of its existence, reflecting both its natural growth as a professional organization, as well as
the shifting interests and aspirations of both the organization and its members. Certain events have precipitated both technical
and procedural adjustments, the incorporation of the COC in 1934 being one obvious example of such an occurrence. In 1976
the Northern and Southern Divisions were abolished as such, signaling a less provincial mindset on part of the Society and
reflecting the increasingly international scope of membership.
The present leadership is composed of a nine-member Board of Directors; nine officers, including two positions held by editors
of the Society's two major publications; and nearly twenty standing and ad-hoc committees. There are also a number of representatives
to various councils and societies.
Progressive research and widespread ornithological awareness and appreciation have always been at the heart of the Society's
mission, and the numerous publications it has produced over the course of its existence have been integral to helping achieve
those objectives. COC member and future Club president Harry R. Taylor's independent monthly journal,
The Nidiologist (later called
The Nidologist), served as the closest thing to an official Club publication for the first four years of the Club's existence.
The Nidologist halted publication in 1897 and the new unofficial outlet became The Osprey, a monthly journal co-founded by Chester Barlow,
who had played a key role in stimulating the formation of the Club, as well as assisting in the formulation of its earliest
aims and tenets. In 1898 the club decided to publish an official journal. The first issue was published in 1899 as the
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club, and was edited primarily by Barlow. In 1900 the name of the journal was changed to The Condor. The journal, which is currently
one of the premier ornithological publications in the world, has been published continuously for over a century.
At the same time The Condor was becoming established around the turn of the 20th century, the COC also recognized the need
for a forum that would be more amenable to longer submissions beyond the scope of The Condor. A new series was begun, titled
Pacific Coast Avifauna, to allow for these more extensive offerings. The series was published continuously until 1974, and continued in 1978 under
the new
title Studies in Avian Biology, whose present scope includes both monographs and proceedings of symposia of general interest to ornithologists.
From the handful of founding members present at the first organizational meetings of the Cooper Ornithological Club in 1893,
and those at the first organizational meetings of the Southern California Natural History Society (forerunner to the Southern
Division of the COC) held that same year, the Cooper Ornithological Society has grown from a small group of naturalists and
amateur enthusiasts into an international community of scholars, scientists, and amateur enthusiasts. Preserving the rich
history evidenced by the records in this collection is of vital importance to present as well as future generations of ornithologists
and historians of science.
Chronology
1890 |
Unaffiliated forerunner to the Cooper Ornithological Club, also named after James Cooper, is founded at the College of the
Pacific in Santa Clara, California.
|
1893 |
Cooper Ornithological Club is founded on June 22 in San Jose, California. |
|
Future Southern Division of the COC is founded separately in Los Angeles, as the Southern California Natural History Society. |
1894 |
Cooper member H.R. Taylor publishes
The Nidiologist (later renamed
The Nidologist), the first unofficial publication dedicated to providing coverage of the COC.
|
|
Southern California Natural History Society merges with the Santa Clara COC chapter, giving rise to the Southern Division
of the COC.
|
1895 |
First annual COC outing is held in Arroyo Seco, California. |
1896 |
First formal mention of Northern and Southern Divisions occurs in The Nidologist. |
1897 |
The Nidologist ceases to publish. A column edited by COC member Donald Cohen appearing in the unaffiliated journal
The Osprey becomes the new mouthpiece of the Club.
|
1899 |
Club begins to publish
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club.
|
1900 |
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club changes name to
The Condor.
|
|
Club begins to publish
Pacific Coast Avifauna, a series intended to provide a forum for longer submissions, as well as transcripts of symposia proceedings.
|
1921 |
Board of Governors is formed. |
1926 |
First annual meeting of entire COC (North and South) is held in Los Angeles. |
1934 |
Cooper Ornithological Club becomes incorporated. |
1952 |
Name of the organization is changed at the annual business meeting to Cooper Ornithological Society. |
1965 |
Editorial office of
The Condor leaves California for Lawrence, Kansas.
|
1970 |
Cooper Ornithological Society and Wilson Ornithological Society hold first joint annual meeting. |
1974 |
Pacific Coast Avifauna halts publication.
|
1976 |
Northern and Southern Divisions are abolished. |
1978 |
Series in Avian Biology, a new COS publication, assumes the role previously held by
Pacific Coast Avifauna.
|
1890 |
Unaffiliated forerunner to the Cooper Ornithological Club, also named after James Cooper, is founded at the College of the
Pacific in Santa Clara, California.
|
1893 |
Cooper Ornithological Club is founded on June 22 in San Jose, California. |
|
Future Southern Division of the COC is founded separately in Los Angeles, as the Southern California Natural History Society. |
1894 |
Cooper member H.R. Taylor publishes
The Nidiologist (later renamed
The Nidologist), the first unofficial publication dedicated to providing coverage of the COC.
|
|
Southern California Natural History Society merges with the Santa Clara COC chapter, giving rise to the Southern Division
of the COC.
|
1895 |
First annual COC outing is held in Arroyo Seco, California. |
1896 |
First formal mention of Northern and Southern Divisions occurs in The Nidologist. |
1897 |
The Nidologist ceases to publish. A column edited by COC member Donald Cohen appearing in the unaffiliated journal
The Osprey becomes the new mouthpiece of the Club.
|
1899 |
Club begins to publish
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club.
|
1900 |
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club changes name to
The Condor.
|
|
Club begins to publish
Pacific Coast Avifauna, a series intended to provide a forum for longer submissions, as well as transcripts of symposia proceedings.
|
1921 |
Board of Governors is formed. |
1926 |
First annual meeting of entire COC (North and South) is held in Los Angeles. |
1934 |
Cooper Ornithological Club becomes incorporated. |
1952 |
Name of the organization is changed at the annual business meeting to Cooper Ornithological Society. |
1965 |
Editorial office of
The Condor leaves California for Lawrence, Kansas.
|
1970 |
Cooper Ornithological Society and Wilson Ornithological Society hold first joint annual meeting. |
1974 |
Pacific Coast Avifauna halts publication.
|
1976 |
Northern and Southern Divisions are abolished. |
1978 |
Series in Avian Biology, a new COS publication, assumes the role previously held by
Pacific Coast Avifauna.
|
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Cooper Ornithological Society Records, BANC MSS 74/144 c, The Bancroft Library, University of California,
Berkeley
Processing Information
Processed by Juliet Demeter and Josue Hurtado in 2004. 2017 additions processed by Bancroft Library student employees and
Lara Michels in 2022.
Related Collections
Louis B. Bishop Papers, BANC MSS 75/140 c
Willie Chambers Papers (bulk 1891-1964), BANC MSS 67/131 c
Joseph Grinnell Papers, 1884-1948
Joseph and Hilda Wood Grinnell Papers, 1886-1967, BANC MSS 73/25 c
Portraits of Joseph Grinnell's Family and his Colleagues, ca. 1880-1969, BANC PIC 1973.044-PIC
(Alden H. Miller) Papers Relating to the Cooper Ornithological Society, ca. 1949-1965), BANC MSS 67/3 c
John G. Tyler Correspondence Relating to Ornithological Research, ca. 1905-1937, BANC MSS 79/11 c
Miklos D. F. Udvardy Papers, 1947-1995, BANC MSS 99/306 c
Photographs Relating to the Cooper Ornithological Society and the American Ornithological Union, ca. 1900-1993, BANC PIC 1966.052-PIC
[Board of Governors of the Cooper Ornithological Society], 1926, BANC PIC 1979.146-PIC
Scope and Content of Collection
The Cooper Ornithological Society (COS) Records, 1874-1994, document the organization's history from its origins as a small
association of naturalists to its current status as a renowned scientific society with extensive international membership.
The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence and administrative records produced by the Board of Directors and COS
Officers. Also prevalent are committee minutes, annual meeting materials, and individual member correspondence and field notes.
Materials relating to the official publications of the society, including
The Condor and
Studies in Avian Biology, are also included. The records are divided into five series: Administration, Divisions/Chapters, Annual Meetings, Publications,
and Members.
The first series in the collection, Administration (1893-1994), is composed of five subseries: Leadership, Committees, Governing
Documents, Financial Records, and History. Leadership is further divided into two sub-subseries: Officers, which consists
primarily of correspondence, and Board of Directors, which consists of meeting minutes recorded after the Society's incorporation
in 1934. Correspondence of the Treasurer was originally kept with that of the other officers and so is included in this subseries
as opposed to the later one Financial Records. The final subseries in this series, History, includes the earliest Cooper Ornithological
Club (COC) minutes on record (1893-1899), recorded by the first Northern Division Secretary and future editor of The Condor,
Chester Barlow. It also contains materials documenting the Society's own investigation of its past, through both committee
work and the independent research of members. An eloquent if somewhat irreverent history of the Club up to the year 1929,
composed by Harry S. Swarth, past Northern-Division president and long-time associate editor of The Condor, is included in
this subseries.
Since 1896, the Society was composed of two divisions: Northern and Southern. In 1976, the distinction, intended to allow
for the fledgling Club's vertical expansion across California during the organization's early years, was deemed anachronistic,
since the society already had extensive national and international membership, and was eliminated. Arranged into two subseries
according to this earlier distinction, Divisions (1896-1989) reveals the separate origins and stratified early development
of the two divisions, as well as the shared qualities which ultimately lead to the contemporary Society's cohesive organizational
structure.
The most comprehensive series in the collection is Annual Meetings (1926-1989), which contains materials from nearly sixty
annual Club/Society meetings, including documents relating to the first annual meeting of both the Northern and Southern divisions
of the Cooper Ornithological Club, held in Los Angeles in 1926. The series includes programs, correspondence, announcements,
and abstracts of papers presented at the meetings.
Although not as complete as the previous series, Publications (1894-1991), remains one of the strongest series in the collection.
The publishing history of the Society is complex and significant; in some ways, the Society truly expanded beyond California
when the publishing office left the state in 1965. More conservatively, it is clear that the official publications of the
Society and their editors have had tremendous impact on the growth of the Society both in stature and membership. This series
includes materials relating to The Condor, the official publication of the Cooper Ornithological Society, as well as materials
concerning the two Cooper publications intended to accommodate lengthier submissions: the now-defunct
Pacific Coast Avifauna, and its successor,
Studies in Avian Biology. The series also includes official and unofficial documentation of the Club's activities prior to the naissance of
The Condor.
Members (1874-1986) provides especially strong coverage of the Society's genesis and formative years. It is composed of two
subseries; the first focuses on the body of correspondence generated by the Society's devoted members over the course of the
organization's history. The second subseries includes membership rolls, miscellaneous field notes, photographs of the earliest
members, and various member-related ephemera.
The final series consists of additions made to the collection in 2017. These materials consist primarily of board of directors
materials and annual meeting materials.
Publication Rights
Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction
of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions,
privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond
that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be
commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
For additional information about the University of California, Berkeley Library's permissions policy please see: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/about/permissions-policies
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Birds--Pacific Coast
Chambers, W. L. (W. Lee)
Grinnell, Joseph, 1877-1939
Law, John Eugene, d.1931
Swarth, Harry Schelwald, b. 1878
Cooper Ornithological Club
Series 1:
Administration
1893-1994
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Cartons 1-7; Carton 8, Folders 29-34; Volumes 1-3
Arrangement
Divided into five subseries: Leadership, Committees, Governing Documents, Financial Records, and History. Further arranged
both hierarchically and chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
This series, the largest of the collection, traces the development of the Society from its inception as a small club in 1893
to its robust state at the beginning of the 21st century. It consists of official correspondence, meeting minutes, governing
documents including constitutions, by-laws, and articles of incorporation, as well as financial records and internal files
which document the history of the Society. Until 1921, gatherings of the executive boards of each division (whose members
included President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary) were conducted at monthly general meetings. But as the member
population of the Club began to swell, the general meetings become increasingly lecture-oriented and tended to feature less
time for focused discussion. It soon became evident that independent board meetings would be required. In January and February
1921, the Northern and Southern Divisions approved amendments to the Club constitution calling for the formation of a united
Board of Governors, composed of the acting officers of the Club as well as ex-presidents, with meetings held annually. Following
the incorporation of the Club in 1934, the Board of Governors, in accordance with California state law, split into a Board
of Directors, responsible for financial matters and corporate affairs, and a Council, responsible for determining organizational
policy related to scientific and educational endeavors. All members of the Board of Directors, as well as all editors of official
Society publications, were members of the Council. In 1976, the Northern and Southern Divisions were abolished. Over the years
the organizational structure of the Society has altered considerably, in line with each generation's views on how the Society's
goals can best be achieved. As of June 2005, the Society maintains a nine-member Board of Directors, a nine-member Officer
leadership (including two positions reserved for editors of the Society's two major publications) as well as a stock of Representatives
to partner scientific organizations and associations.
Subseries 1_1:
Leadership
1897-1992
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Cartons 1-5; Volume 1
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically and chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes correspondence of the President, Secretary, and Treasurer, as well as Board of Directors meeting minutes
beginning after the incorporation of the Society in 1934.
Officers 1_1_1:
1897-1992
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Cartons 1-4; Carton 5, Folders 1-6
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically by office. Further arranged chronologically.
1_1_2:
Board of Directors
1934-1991
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Cartons 5, Folders 7-32; Volume 1
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
carton 5, folder 7-32
Minutes of the Meetings of the Board of Directors
1934-1991
volume 1
Minutes of the Meetings of the Board of Directors
1935-1958
Subseries 1_2:
Committees
1921-1981
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 6, Folders 1-42
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes correspondence and meeting proceedings produced by active member committees covering the sixty-year
period from 1921-1981.
carton 6, folder 28-42
Meeting Minutes
1921-1980
Subseries 1_3:
Governing Documents
1893-1993
undated
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 6, Folders 43-52; Carton 7, Folders 1-41
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes a century's worth of Cooper constitutions, bylaws, and resolutions, as well as the articles of incorporation
of 1934. There is also a procedural manual, and materials from 1964 which document the varying perspectives held by COS members
concerning the ideological direction of the Society.
carton 6, folder 43-52
Constitutions
1893-1933
undated
carton 7, folder 33
Articles of Incorporation
1933-1942
Subseries 1_4:
Financial Records
1897-1994
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 7, Folders 42-97; Carton 8, Folders 1-28; Volume 2
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes fiscal reports (1897-1994), Investment Committee materials (1964-1990), and IRS correspondence (1950-1993).
Of particular archival interest is a petty cash ledger from the early years of the COC, covering the years 1899-1907.
carton 7, folder 42-97
Financial Reports
1897-1975
carton 8, folder 1-17
Financial Reports
1976-1994
volume 2
Petty Cash Ledger
1899-1907
carton 8, folder 18-25
Investment Committee
1964-1990
carton 8, folder 26-28
IRS Correspondence
1950-1993
Subseries 1_5:
History
1893-1989
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 8, Folders 29-34;Volume 3
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes the earliest COC minutes on record (1893-1899), recorded by Chester Barlow, who served as Secretary
of the Northern Division from 1893-1902, and was also the first editor of The Condor. It also contains materials documenting
the Society's own investigation of past, through both committee work and the independent research of its members. An example
includes The COC, an eloquent, if somewhat impious history composed in 1929 by past-Northern Division president and long-time
associate editor of The Condor Harry S. Swarth. Material from the History Advisory Committee covering the years 1977-1989
can also be found in this subseries.
volume 3
Early record of club meetings including minutes
1893-1899
carton 8, folder 30-32
History of the C.O.S. by H. Swarth
1929
carton 8, folder 32
Grinnell gathers in the last of the grizzlies for the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology. BANC MSS 74_144 c
1929
Grinnell gathers in the last of the grizzlies for the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology.
Scope and Contents
Illustration on page 37 of History of the C.O.S. by H. Swarth.
carton 8, folder 33
The Bancroft Library
1967-1983
carton 8, folder 34
History Advisory Committee
1977-1989
Series 2:
Divisions/Chapters
1896-1989
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 8, Folders 35-59; Carton 9, Folders 1-9; Volumes 4-5
Arrangement
Divided into two subseries: Northern Division and Southern Division. Further arranged hierarchically.
Scope and Content Note
This series comprises the records of the Northern and Southern Divisions of the Society, which were maintained separately
until the bi-divisional structure was abolished in 1976. The Southern Division was actually the successor to the short-lived
Southern California Natural History Society, whose genesis occurred independently from, though in remarkable synchronicity
with, that of the Cooper Ornithological Club in 1893. The clubs' agendas proved to be so similar that by 1894, the SCNHS had
already merged with the closest COC chapter in Santa Clara. It adopted the COC title, and, following a steady increase in
membership, soon received formal designation as the Cooper Ornithological Club, Southern Division. The present material allows
for a unique historical comparison of the ways in which regional factors may have impacted each division's earliest aims and
methodologies. It also provides an opportunity to examine the ways in which those goals and approaches were aligned.
Subseries 2_1:
Northern Division
1894-1989
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 8, Folders 35-52; Volume 4.
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically and then chronologically.
carton 8, folder 35-41
Meeting Minutes
1894-1901
1930-1989
volume 4
Meetings minutes
1901-1911
carton 8, folder 42-44
Meeting Announcements
1898-1917
1969-1976
undated
carton 8, folder 45
Meeting programs
1971-1972
undated
carton 8, folder 49
Symposium on Falconry
1972-1973
carton 8, folder 50-51
Areas of Special Biological Significance
1972-1973
Subseries 2_2:
Southern Division
1894-1971
undated
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 8, Folders 53-59. Volume 5.
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically and then chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes minutes, announcements, and bylaws from the Southern Division of the COC/COS. A photograph of division
members from 1929 is also included.
volume 5
Meeting minutes
1894-1899
carton 8, folder 53-58
Meeting minutes
1898-1965
carton 9, folder 1-6
Meeting Announcements
1896-1971
undated
carton 9, folder 8
Photograph of Southern Division members
1923
Series 3:
Annual Meetings
1926-1989
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 9, Folders 10-63; Carton 10, Folders 1-15
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically by meeting year.
Scope and Content Note
This series contains materials from nearly sixty annual Club/Society meetings, including documents relating to the first annual
meeting of both the Northern and Southern divisions of the Cooper Ornithological Club, held in Los Angeles in 1926. The series
includes programs, correspondence, announcements, and abstracts of papers presented at the meetings.
carton 9, folder 38
30th Annual Meeting
1958-1959
carton 9, folder 52-53
43rd Annual Meeting
1972-1974
carton 10, folder 1
49th Annual Meeting
1978-1979
undated
carton 10, folder 4
52nd Annual Meeting
1981-1982
carton 10, folder 8-9
56th Annual Meeting
1985-1986
carton 10, folder 11-12
58th Annual Meeting
1985-1989
carton 10, folder 13-15
59th Annual Meeting
1986-1989
Series 4:
Publications
1894-1991
undated
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 10, Folders 16-36; Carton 11; Folders 1-24
Arrangement
Divided into three subseries:
The Condor,
Pacific Coast Avifauna/Studies in Avian Biology, and Miscellaneous Publications. Further arranged chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
This series comprises materials relating to
The Condor, the official publication of the Cooper Ornithological Society, as well as materials concerning the two Cooper publications
intended to accommodate lengthier submissions
: Pacific Coast Avifauna, and its successor
Studies in Avian Biology. Published journals, subscription lists, and sales records, as well as correspondence between several editors of
The Condor and long-time publisher Allen Press may be found in this series. Other published materials, including both official and unofficial
documentation of the Club's activities prior to the naissance of
The Condor, are also included here. For the first four years of the COC's existence, Club member and future Club president Harry R.
Taylor's independent monthly bird journal,
The Nidiologist (later called
The Nidologist), served as the closest thing to an official Club publication. Taylor published the minutes and news of both divisions of
the Club as well as Club members' papers. The Nidologist halted publication in 1897 and the new unofficial outlet became
The Osprey, founded the prior year and based in Galesburg, Illinois.
The Osprey was a monthly publication which ran the minutes of the COC in a California Department section edited by active COC member
Donald Cohen. In 1898 the club decided to release an official publication. The first issue was published in 1899 as
the Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club, and was edited primarily by Chester Barlow, who had played a key role in stimulating the early formation of the club, as well
as the formulation of its goals and tenets. In 1900 the journal changed its name to
The Condor. Barlow edited the journal for two more years, before dying from tuberculosis at the young age of 28. In 1906 Joseph Grinnell,
professor of Zoology and director of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California, Berkeley, assumed editorial
responsibility of
The Condor. Grinnell was one of the most prominent zoologists in the history of the northwest United States, and greatly influenced
the direction of
The Condor. He held the position as editor for 34 years - longer than any other person to date. For 58 years the editorial office of
The Condor resided within the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1965 the editorial office left
California and moved to Lawrence, Kansas. Under James R. King, editor from 1966-1968, a system was instituted which subjected
all submissions to external peer review. At the same time
The Condor was becoming established around the turn of the 20th century, the COC also recognized the need for a forum that would be
more amenable to longer submissions beyond the scope of
The Condor. A new series was begun, titled
Pacific Coast Avifauna, to allow for these more extensive offerings. The series was published continuously until 1974, although individual volumes
appeared inconsistently, depending upon both the quality of the submissions and the financial resources available to the Society.
The series continued in 1978 under the new title
Studies in Avian Biology, whose scope includes both monographs and proceedings of symposia of general interest to ornithologists.
Subseries 4_1:
The Condor
1894-1991
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 10, Folders 16-36; Carton 11, Folders 1-6
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Content/Description
This subseries includes issues of two of the publications which proceeded
The Condor, Harry Taylor's
The Nidiologist (later
The Nidologist) as well as the first official Club publication, the
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club. It also includes correspondence relating to the journal, subscription lists, and sales records.
carton 10, folder 16
The Nidiologist
1894-1897
carton 10, folder 17
Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club
1899
carton 10, folder 35
Subscriptions
1899-1901
undated
carton 10, folder 36
Miscellaneous
1905-1906
undated
carton 10, folder 37-38
Sales records
1905-1907
1951-1979
carton 11, folder 2
Painton Award Committee
1959-1972
carton 11, folder 3
Johnson Reprint Company
1964-1918
carton 11, folder 4-5
Allen Press correspondence
1965-1991
carton 11, folder 6
Editorial guidelines
1968-1974
undated
Subseries 4_2:
Pacific Coast Avifauna/
Studies in Avian Biology
1900-1984
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 11, Folders 7-19, Volume 8
Arrangement
Arranged hierarchically, then chronologically.
Content/Description
This subseries includes materials from
Pacific Coast Avifauna (1900-1974), and its successor
Studies in Avian Biology (1978-). Both of these published series are predominantly composed of monographs and symposia proceedings and were created
with the intention of complementing
The Condor by providing a forum for longer submissions.
carton 11, folder 7
Pacific Coast Avifauna
1900-1902
carton 11, folder 8
Pacific Coast Avifauna, Issue No. 1
1900
carton 11, folder 9
Pacific Coast Avifauna, Issue No. 2
1901
carton 11, folder 10
Pacific Coast Avifauna, Issue No. 3
1902
carton 11, folder 11
Pacific Coast Avifauna, Issue No. 4
1904
carton 11, folder 12
Pacific Coast Avifauna, Issue No. 9
1913
volume 8
Finances
Scope and Contents
Material on money spent, income from ads, and subscriptions and sales of Pacific Coast Avifaunas.
Subseries 4_3:
Miscellaneous Publications
1895-1934
undated
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 11, Folders 20-24
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Content/Description
This subseries includes materials relating to
The Avifauna, a short-lived publication unaffiliated with the COC to which many COC members contributed, and
The Buzzard, an irregularly issued satirical mini-magazine begun by Club members in 1926. It also includes various pamphlets and circulars
produced by the COC which were not part of any regularly ongoing published series.
carton 11, folder 20
Biographical Sketch of James G. Cooper
1902
carton 11, folder 22
Some Cooper Club Personalia
1928
carton 11, folder 23
Ornithologists in the Southwest and Mexico
undated
Series 5:
Members
1874-1986
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 11, Folders 25-52; Box 1; Carton 12, Folders 1-38; Carton 13, Folders 1-66; Volumes 6-7
Arrangement
Divided into two subseries: Member Files and Member Listings/Ephemera. Member Files are arranged alphabetically, then chronologically.
Member Listings/Ephemera is arranged chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
Divided into two subseries: Member Files and Member Listings/Ephemera. Member Files are arranged alphabetically, then chronologically.
Member Listings/Ephemera is arranged chronologically.
Subseries 5_1:
Member Files
1874-1987
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 11, Folders 25-52; Oversize Box 1; Carton 12, Folders 1-38; Carton 13, Folders 1-52
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically. Further arranged chronologically.
carton 11, folder 28
Barlow, Chester, d. 1902
1894-1897
carton 11, folder 37-39
Chambers, W. Lee
1900-1968
carton 11, folder 40
Childs, John Lewis, d. 1921
1921
volume 6
Daggett, Frank: Ornithology Scrapbook
1900-1902
volume 7
Daggett, Frank: Ornithology Scrapbook
1906
carton 12, folder 26
Davis, Clarence
1897-1898
carton 12, folder 30
Gaylord, Horace A.
1926
1949
carton 12, folder 31
Grinnell, Joseph
1896-1913
undated
carton 12, folder 32
Higbee, Henry G.
1896-1897
carton 12, folder 36-38
Howard, Hildegarde, 1901-
1940-1964
carton 13, folder 10
Illingsworth, J.F.
1897-1898
carton 13, folder 12-14
Johnson, Walter Adams
1894-1897
carton 13, folder 17
Kaeding, George L.
undated
carton 13, folder 18
Kaeding, Henry B.
1895-1897
carton 13, folder 21
Linsdale, Jean M. (Jean Myron), 1902-
1955-1971
carton 13, folder 23
Mayfield, Harold F.
1972
1974
carton 13, folder 24
McIlhenny, Edward Avery, 1872-1949
1895-1897
carton 13, folder 25
Mewaldt, Richard
1966
1970-1972
carton 13, folder 30
Pierce, Wright M.
1929-1936
carton 13, folder 33-35
Robertson, John McB.
1929-1932
carton 13, folder 37
Savage, Walter G.
1896-1897
carton 13, folder 42
Skutch, Alexander Frank
1975
carton 13, folder 44
Stone, Clarence F.
1894-1898
carton 13, folder 45
Stone, Lois Chambers
1967-1987
carton 13, folder 50
Williams, R. W.
1895-1898
carton 13, folder 51
Woodhouse, Robert C.
1897
carton 13, folder 52
Wright, Frank J. (Frank James), 1888-
1896-1898
Subseries 5_2:
Member Listings/Ephemera
1893-1986
undated
Physical Description:
0 needs updating
Carton 13, Folder 53-66
Arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Scope and Content Note
This subseries includes group photographs of the Club's earliest members, field notes, membership rolls, mailing lists, an
inventory of the books present in the Cooper Ornithological Club Library in 1934, and other member-related ephemera.
carton 13, folder 53
Group photographs
1895
undated
carton 13, folder 54
Miscellaneous field notes
1950
carton 13, folder 55-61
Membership lists
1893-1986, undated
undated
carton 13, folder 62
Price lists for bird eggs and skins
1894-1909
undated
carton 13, folder 63
Membership information
1899-1986
undated
carton 13, folder 64
List of books in Cooper Club library
1934
undated
carton 13, folder 65
Honorary members
1947-1970
carton 13, folder 66
Mailing lists
1977-1978
undated
Series 6:
Additions received in 2017
Box 1, Folder 1-8
Board of Directors meeting minutes
1969-1989
Box 1, Folder 9
Incorporation materials
1970-1989
Box 1, Folder 10
Annual meeting program and letter
1984
1987
Box 1, Folder 12
Materials relating to The Condor (publication)
1988-1989
Box 2, Folder 1-11
Annual meeting materials
1979-1989