Guide to the Orrin Edgar Klapp Papers
© Copyright 2008 Special Collections & University Archives. All rights reserved.
2008-01-16
5500 Campanile Dr. MC 8050
San Diego, CA, 92182-8050
URL: http://library.sdsu.edu/scua
Email: scref@rohan.sdsu.edu
Phone: 619-594-6791
Guide to the Orrin Edgar Klapp Papers
1942/1997
Special Collections & University Archives
Overview of the Collection
Collection Title: Orrin Edgar Klapp Papers
Dates: 1942-1997
Identification: MS-0341
Creator:
Klapp, Orrin Edgar, 1915-1997
Physical Description: 0.21 linear ft
Language of Materials:
English
Repository:
Special Collections & University Archives
5500 Campanile Dr. MC 8050
San Diego, CA, 92182-8050
URL: http://library.sdsu.edu/scua
Email: scref@rohan.sdsu.edu
Phone: 619-594-6791
Biographical Information:
Born in 1915, Orrin Edgar Klapp was one of San Diego State College's top sociological researchers and professors. A Chicago
native, Klapp received his bachelors, masters, and Doctorate from the University of Chicago in Sociology. At the outbreak
of World War II, be left his doctoral program and became a Lieutenant in the US Navy. As a Lieutenant, he worked in the hydrographic
office making maps for airplanes and ships.
During his time in the service Klapp started publishing written work. He was the editor of Scuttle Butte, a humor magazine
intended to be distributed throughout Klapp's fleet. The publication was discontinued after the humorous albeit irreverent
material started to offend other officers.
After his time in the military, Klapp finished his doctoral degree and began teaching Sociology at San Diego State College
in 1949. In his twenty years in San Diego, he published several works exploring sociological interaction in San Diego. His
first book, Ritual and Cult, was published in 1956. In 1962, he authored his best known work, Heoes, Villains, and Fools,
a scholarly investigation about the changing American culture in the 1960's.
Klapp left SDSC in 1969 to pursue another teaching career at the University of Western Ontario. He taught there for an additional
14 years and continued his sociological research during that time. After a struggle with Alzheimer's, Klapp died in 1997.
Access Terms
This collection is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms.
Corporate Name:
San Diego State University -- Faculty -- Biography -- Sources
Genre/Form of Material:
Personal Papers
Photographs
Publications
Personal Name:
Klapp, Orrin Edgar, 1915- -- Archives
Topical Term:
Sociologists -- California -- San Diego -- Biography -- Sources
Administrative Information
Conditions Governing Use:
The copyright interests in these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with
the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of historical archival and manuscript collections
is such that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. Requests for permission to publish must be
submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. When granted, permission
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Conditions Governing Access:
This collection is open for research.
Preferred Citation:
Identification of item, folder title, box number, Orrin Edgar Klapp Papers, Special Collections and University Archives, Library
and Information Access, San Diego State University.
Scope and Contents
The
Orrin Edgar Klapp Papers documents the sociologist's career as a professor, naval officer, and professor at San Diego State College from 1949 to 1969.
The collection is comprised of information pertaining to the history of the Hydrographic Office during WWII, correspondence
to and from Klapp, newspaper clippings, and a handwritten manuscript of his work,
A Materialist Metaphysics. Other highlights include manuscripts from
Scuttle Butte, a weekly humor magazine edited by Klapp, and the John Simon Gugenheim Fellowship Application form.
Detailed List of Contents
Box 1, Folder 1
Photographs of Orrin Klapp
1944
Box 1, Folder 2
History of the Hydrographic Office During the Second World War
1939 - 44
Box 1, Folder 3
Correspondence to and from Orrin Klapp
1942 - 45
Box 1, Folder 4
Manuscripts of Scuttlebutt a weekly magazine edited by Orrin E. Klapp
1944 - 45
Box 1, Folder 5
John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship Application Form
1945
Box 1, Folder 6
Memorandum to Orrin E. Klapp from OIC, Division of Air Navigation
1945
Box 1, Folder 7
Newspaper Clippings - Orrin Klapp
1960 - 97
Box 1, Folder 8
Commentary on "Orrin's Trilogy"
1998
Box 1, Folder 9
Sheet Music to Orrin's Blues
Box 1, Folder 10
Manuscript of A Materialistic Metaphysics
Box 1, Folder 11
Quick Reference to Orrin Klapp's Published Works
