Descriptive Summary
Access
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Acquisition Information
Biography / Administrative History
Scope and Content of Collection
Arrangement
Indexing Terms
Other Finding Aids
Related Material
Separated Material
Descriptive Summary
Title: Demorest Davenport papers
Dates: 1970-1993
Collection number: MS-05
Creator:
Davenport, Demorest
Collection Size:
1 linear foot
Repository:
Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration (University of California, Santa Barbara). C. H. Muller Library
Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9615
Abstract: Correspondence, research notes, and teaching materials of UCSB zoology professor Demorest Davenport, during the later years
of his tenure and into his retirement. Much of the material focuses on Davenport's 30-year interest in the representation
of animals in primitive and ancient art.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Copyright has not been assigned to the Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration, UC Santa Barbara. All requests
for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director. Permission for publication
is given on behalf of the Cheadle Center as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.
Preferred Citation
Demorest Davenport Papers, MS-05, Cheadle Center for Biodiversity and Ecological Restoration. University of California, Santa
Barbara.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Winnifred Davenport, 2004.
Biography / Administrative History
Demorest Davenport was Professor of Zoology at UCSB from 1946-1974. Although he began his career in entomology, studying butterfly
systematics, he turned his interests to marine invertebrate zoology, specializing in behavior and bioluminescence. Davenport
built up the invertebrate courses at UCSB and spearheaded efforts to create a renewable seawater system and pier for the campus
marine studies program. During his career, he developed an amateur passion for archaeology, and he was interested in how animals
were represented in antiquities. This fascination led to the creation of an interdisciplinary course called Animals in Primitive
and Ancient Art which he taught in the College of Creative Studies and through Adult Education for a number of years.
Born in 1911 in New York, Davenport attended Harvard University and Colorado College, earning a Ph.D from Harvard in 1937.
He passed away in 2004 in Santa Barbara.
Scope and Content of Collection
This collection documents the years 1970-1993, the latter years that Davenport was Professor of Zoology at UCSB and his retirement
period. The papers document the day-to-day administrative and faculty activities he engaged in with colleagues, graduate students,
and administration. They also focus on Davenport's 30-year interest in the representation of animals in primitive and ancient
art.
The collection is organized into five series.
Series One, Correspondence, consists of five years of outgoing letters covering a variety of academic activities from research interests and recommendations,
to campus-wide issues. Davenport's observations on the campus unrest during spring 1970 are particularly enlightening. Also
in this series is subject-related correspondence, both to and from Davenport, relating to sabbaticals during which he pursued
his research on animals in art, visits to and work at marine labs in Great Britain and South America, various conferences
he attended, and recreational activities, such as his favorite, fishing.
Series Two, Lectures and Papers, consists mostly of files related to a talk given at the Linnean Society conference on ethology in 1977 and the subsequent
publication of the proceedings. Also included are copies of several other articles Davenport wrote or co-wrote and one lecture
given in Portland, Oregon.
Series Three, Teaching Materials, contains tests, lecture notes, and reading materials for several classes Davenport taught at UCSB.
Series Four, Miscellaneous Materials, consists of various graphic materials used for reference or publication in some of Davenport's articles, as well as research
notes.
Series Five, Artifacts, includes a microscope that was used on five polar expeditions commissioned by William Ziegler from 1901-1905, and a framed
etching of a salmon.
Arrangement
This collection is organized into five series. Series 1 Correspondence includes general correspondence on UCSB letterhead
and subject files, both arranged chronologically. Series 2 Lectures and Papers is arranged chronologically. Series 3 Teaching
Materials and Series 4 Miscellaneous Materials are organized by topic. Series 5 Artifacts include personal items.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
Animals in art
Marine biology
Zoologists--California
Davenport, Demorest
University of California, Santa Barbara. Dept. of Biological Sciences
Photographs
Drawings
Artifacts
Other Finding Aids
See also Demorest Davenport Papers, 1939-1994, UArch FacP 45 in UCSB Davidson Library, Dept. of Special Collections.
Related Material
Demorest Davenport Papers, 1939-1994, UArch FacP 45 in UCSB Davidson Library, Dept. of Special Collections. The collection
consists of 6.4 linear feet of biographical materials, correspondence, writings, research, teaching materials, slides, and
audiovisual materials.
Separated Material
Approximately 60 books and a complete set of Davenport's reprints were removed from the collection and are housed in the Cheadle
Center library. They can be accessed through the library online catalog.