Charles L. Camp field notes
Finding aid created by
Museum
of
Vertebrate
Zoology
staff using RecordEXPRESS
Title: Charles L. Camp field notes
Dates: 1908-1922
Collection Number: MVZA.MSS.0051
Creator/Collector:
Camp, Charles Lewis, 1893-1975
Extent: 5.0 volumes
Abstract: The Charles L. Camp field notes collection contains 5 volumes of field notes between the years 1908 and 1922, as well as the
transcriptions of an MVZ field trip to Yolla Bolly in 1913. The collection contains Camp's diary of the first field trip of
the
Museum
of
Vertebrate
Zoology
in 1908. His field notes contain his journals, species observations, catalogs, hand-drawn maps, and specimen drawings from
these trips in his early career.
Language of Material: English
The collection is open for research.
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.
[Identification of item]. Charles L. Camp field notes. Collection Number: MVZA.MSS.0051. UC Berkeley.
Museum
of
Vertebrate
Zoology
Biography/Administrative History
Charles Lewis Camp, born 1893 in North Dakota, was the third Director of the University of California Museum of Paleontology
and an early researcher at the
Museum
of
Vertebrate
Zoology
, where he was a participant on the first ever field trip of the MVZ in 1908. Camp had been noticed by Joseph Grinnell at
his school in Pasadena as a young man, and was encouraged by Grinnell to come study Zoology at Berkeley. This he did in 1911,
and while at Berkeley he collected specimens for the MVZ from 1913-1915. He then went on to earn a Ph.D from Columbia University
in 1923 in Paleontology, during which time he served in World War I and assisted at the American Museum of Natural History
in New York. Camp began teaching in the Zoology Department at Berkeley in 1922 and later in the Paleontology Department in
1930. He would eventually become the chair of the Paleontology Department in 1939. Camp actively engaged in field work all
over the United States, and, thanks to a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1935, in Europe, South Africa, and China as well. In 1949
Camp gave up his Directorship and chairmanship, but continued to mentor, teach, and do field work all over the world. He formally
retired in 1960, though like so many others in the field, never gave up his work. Camp was a thorough and detailed researcher
who published extensively during his career including, to name a couple, his Earth Song, which is a poetic interpretation
of the geologic history of Western America, and Stories of Fossils, which was geared toward elementary school children. As
his hobby, Camp was also an avid and accomplished historian of Western America and published many books on pioneers, during
which time he would often retrace their travels. For this simultaneous work as a paleontologist and historian, Camp was presented
with an honorary doctorate from the University of California, Berkeley in 1968 and was awarded the Henry R. Wagner Medal from
the California Historical Society in 1970. Charles L. Camp died in 1975 at the age of 82. References: University of California
Museum of Paleontology. “Charles L. Camp (1893-1975), third director of UCMP.” History of UCMP. University of California Museum
of Paleontology, n. d. Web. 12 Aug. 2013. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/about/history/clcamp.php.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Charles L. Camp field notes collection contains 5 volumes of field notes between the years 1908 and 1922 to locations
all over California including the San Jacinto Mountains, Yosemite National Park, Alameda Co., Marin Co., Sonoma Co., Mendocino
Co., Tehama Co., Napa Co., San Bernardino Co., Los Angeles Co., Kern Co., as well as trips to Arizona, New York, New Jersey,
and Michigan. His field notes also include the transcriptions of a field trip to Yolla Bolly with fellow researchers Taylor,
Ferris, Stone, and Shelton in 1913. Notably, the collection contains Camp's diary of the first field trip of the
Museum
of
Vertebrate
Zoology
in 1908 to the San Jacinto Mountains. Camp was 15 years old and was accompanied by Walter P. Taylor, Charles H. Richardson,
and Joseph Grinnell. This diary also includes a letter from Camp to his mother, describing their trip. The field notes of
Charles L. Camp contain his journals, species observations, catalogs, hand-drawn maps, and specimen drawings from these trips
in his early career.
University of California, Berkeley. Museum of Paelontology