Dickey (Donald R.) papers, 1925-1992

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Summary

Title:
Donald R. Dickey papers
Dates:
1925-1992
Creators:
Dickey, Donald R. (Donald Ryder), 1887-1932
Abstract:
The Donald R. Dickey papers consist of field catalogues and correspondence. The two field catalogues cover the years 1925-1927. The two folders of correspondence span the years 1931-1992.
Extent:
0.3 Linear feet
Language:
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Donald R. Dickey papers, MVZA.MSS.0294, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology Archives, University of California, Berkeley.

Background

Scope and content:

The Donald R. Dickey papers consist of two non-standard bound field catalogues containing information from the years 1925-1927. The catalogues include data relating to specimens collected, such as collector number, date collected, sex, and related information. All of the specimens are mammals and were collected in El Salvador. The correspondence includes spans the years 1931-1992. One folder contains correspondence addressed to both Dickey and his wife, Florence V.V. Dickey. The other correspondence folder contains communications relating to the Donald R. Dickey specimen collection.

Biographical / historical:

Donald R. Dickey (1887-1932) was known for amassing a significant bird and mammal specimen collection, photographing and filming wildlife, and discussing his field work as a lecturer. While health issues, primarily heart problems, frequently slowed his work, his collection included almost 30,000 specimens by 1926. Receiving a B.A. from Yale in 1910, Dickey made his way to California in that same year, having been a UC Berkeley student previously. He received a Masters degree from Occidental College in 1925. Eventually becoming focused on establishing a research center for vertebrate zoology in southern California, Dickey was appointed as a Research Associate by the California Institute of Technology in 1926. At the Institute, Dickey was given space to keep his collection of specimens, photographs and film, and books. In 1940, eight years after his death, his widow Florence Van Vechten Dickey donated his collection of over 50,000 skins and skeletons of birds and mammals to the University of California, Los Angeles. The collection is now known as the UCLA Donald R. Dickey Bird and Mammal Collection.

Sources Consulted:

Correspondence 1931-1962 folder, Donald R. Dickey papers, MVZA.MSS.0294, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology Archives, University of California, Berkeley.

"Dickey, Donald Ryder. OAC." SNAC: The Social Networks and Archival Context Project. Accessed May 21, 2014. http://socialarchive.iath.virginia.edu/xtf/view?docId=dickey-donald-ryder-cr.xml

Harris, Harry. "An Appreciation of Donald Ryder Dickey." The Condor, 36, 2 (1934): 59-66. Accessed May 21, 2014. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1363619

"The UCLA Donald R. Dickey Bird and Mammal Collection." UCLA Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. 2009. Accessed May 21, 2014. https://www.eeb.ucla.edu/dickey/

Arrangement:

The collection has been arranged in the following series: El Salvador mammals field catalogues and Correspondence. There are no subseries.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Finding aid prepared by Greg Borman
Sponsor:
The processing of this collection was made possible through funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, administered through the Council on Library and Information Resources' "Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives" Project.
Date Prepared:
May 2014
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2015-01-26T11:51-0800

Access and use

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research, except for the Correspondence regarding Donald R. Dickey specimen collection folder; consult Museum Archivist for details.

Terms of access:

Copyright restrictions may apply. All requests to publish, quote, or reproduce must be submitted to the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology Archives in writing for approval. Please contact the Museum Archivist for further information.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Donald R. Dickey papers, MVZA.MSS.0294, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology Archives, University of California, Berkeley.

Location of this collection:
3101 Valley Life Sciences Bldg, #3160
University of California Berkeley
Berkeley, CA 94720-3160, US
Contact:
(510) 642-3567
mvzarchives@berkeley.EDU
Website