Stephen Jay Gould papers, 1868-2004, bulk bulk

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Summary

Creators:
Gould, Stephen Jay and Shearer, Rhonda Roland
Abstract:
This collection documents the life of noted American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science, Stephen Jay Gould. The papers include correspondence, juvenilia, manuscripts, subject files, teaching files, photographs, audiovisual materials, and personal and biographical materials created and compiled by Gould. Both textual and born-digital materials are represented in the collection.
Extent:
575 Linear Feet (958 boxes) and 1180 computer file(s) (52 megabytes)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[identification of item], Stephen Jay Gould Papers, M1437. Dept. of Special Collections, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection documents the life of noted American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science, Stephen Jay Gould. The papers include correspondence, juvenilia, manuscripts, subject files, teaching files, photographs, and personal and biographical materials created and compiled by Gould.

The materials found in the born-digital series were processed separately by Peter Chan, Digital Archivist for Stanford University Libraries' Department of Special Collections. For detailed processing and access information, please see notes for "Series 6: Born-Digital Materials." Audiovisual materials include audio cassettes, videotapes, compact discs, and reels. Titles were transcribed directly from media by Crystal Rengal in 2010, and the listing was incorporated into the finding aid in 2011.

Wherever Gould's original arrangement of materials was discernible, the order was retained. However, a significant portion of the materials were not well organized. Where possible, arrangement notes for the specific series will indicate which portions reflect Gould's arrangement system, and which were arranged by processing archivists.

Biographical / historical:

Stephen Jay Gould, notable American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science was born on September 10, 1941, in New York City, the son of Leonard and Eleanor (Rosenberg) Gould. His father Leonard was a court stenographer, and his mother Eleanor was an artist. When Gould was five years old, his father took him to the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Gould often recalled throughout his life how viewing the Tyrannosaurus rex during this childhood trip marked the beginning of his lifelong passion for paleontology. His interest in paleontology continued to develop throughout his childhood and teenage years, and was encouraged by his family and educators. In addition to steadfast support of their boy’s academic pursuits, the Goulds were doting parents who sought to expose their child to a wide range of culture and activities, as well as a sense of civic responsibility. Though Gould’s early childhood and teenage years were largely focused on his two prevailing passions, paleontology and the New York Yankees, he also sang in school and city choirs, and was a zealous advocate for civil rights and supporter of many progressive social issues of the day.

Gould attended New York public schools, and attended Antioch College in Ohio, graduating in 1963 with a degree in Geology. During his undergraduate years he studied abroad at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. In 1965 he married Deborah Lee, an artist and fellow Antioch student. Together they would have two sons, Jesse and Ethan. In 1966, Gould accepted a position at Antioch College as Professor of Geology. Following his time at Antioch College, Gould attended Columbia University for his graduate work, under the guidance of mentor Norman Newell. For his doctoral thesis he investigated variation and evolution in an obscure Bermuda land snail. He earned his Ph.D. in paleontology from Columbia University in 1967. That same year he joined the faculty of Harvard University as Assistant Professor of Geology and Assistant Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology. In 1971 he was promoted to Associate Professor, and in 1973 he was promoted to Professor of Geology. In 1982 he was awarded the title of Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology, a position he retained until his death in 2002. From 1996 to 2002 Gould also served as Vincent Astor Visiting Research Professor of Biology at New York University. In 1972, along with Niles Eldredge, he developed the theory of punctuated equilibria. Theirs was a revision of Darwinian theory proposing that the creation of new species through evolutionary change occurs not at slow, constant rates over millions of years but rather in rapid bursts over periods as short as thousands of years, which are then followed by long periods of stability during which organisms undergo little further change.

A prolific writer, Gould authored 300 consecutive essays for his monthly column "This View of Life" which appeared in Natural History, the journal of The American Museum of Natural History. He also authored over 20 best-selling books, and wrote nearly a thousand scientific papers. Many of Gould's Natural History essays were reprinted in collected volumes, such as Ever Since Darwin and The Panda's Thumb. Popular treatises included books such as The Mismeasure of Man, Wonderful Life, and Full House, and his landmark work The Structure of Evolutionary Theory. Gould was also a lifelong baseball fan, and often referenced the sport in his essays. Many of his baseball essays were anthologized in his posthumously published book Triumph and Tragedy in Mudville.

In July 1982, Gould was diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma, a deadly form of abdominal cancer most commonly linked to asbestos exposure. After a difficult two-year recovery, Gould published a column for Discover magazine, titled "The Median Isn't the Message," which discusses his reaction to discovering that mesothelioma patients had a median lifespan of only eight months after diagnosis and the importance of statistical reasoning and the meaning of variation.

Gould was among the first group awarded the prestigious MacArthur Foundation Prize Fellowship in 1981. In 1983, Gould was awarded fellowship into the American Association for the Advancement of Science, where he later served as president (1999–2001). He also served as president of the Paleontological Society (1985–1986) and the Society for the Study of Evolution (1990–1991). In 1989 Gould was elected into the body of the National Academy of Sciences. In 2001 the American Humanist Association named him the Humanist of the Year for his lifetime of work. In his lifetime, Gould would be awarded over forty-four honorary degrees and 66 major fellowships, medals, and awards.

In 1995, Gould married artist and sculptor Rhonda Roland Shearer who is the mother of two children, Jade and London Allen, Gould’s stepchildren. Together Gould and Shearer founded the non-profit Art Science Research Laboratory, which is “committed to the creation of intellectual environment and advocacy of interdisciplinary study, encompassing the areas of research, collections and publishing.”

Stephen Jay Gould died May 20, 2002, of cancer at the age of 60.

Text for Biographical Note provided from:

http://www.stephenjaygould.org/biography.html; http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/shermer_sjgould.pdf; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Jay_Gould; http://www.biography.com/people/stephen-jay-gould-9316907

Bibliographies of Gould’s writings:

http://www.stephenjaygould.org/bibliography.html Allmon, W. D., Kelley, P. H., & Ross, R. M. (2008). Stephen Jay Gould: Reflections on his view of life. New York: Oxford University Press.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Rhonda Roland Shearer, 2004 (Accession 2004-148); 2005 (Accession 2005-248); 2007 (Accessions 2007-021, 2007-193, and 2007-240); 2008 (Accession 2008-099); 2009 (Accession 2009-144); 2010 (Accession 2010-018); 2011 (Accession 2011-017); 2012 (Accession 2012-152); 2016 (Accession 2016-043); 2018 (Accession 2018-057)
Processing information:

This collection was processed by Jenny Johnson with assistance from Laura Williams & Beth Noyes. Audiovisual materials were processed in 2010 by Crystal Rengal.

Arrangement:

The papers are arranged in 24 series. The arrangement of the collection is as follows:

Series 1. Correspondence

Series 2. Juvenilia

Series 3. Manuscripts

Series 4. Subject Files

Series 5. Audiovisual Materials

Series 6. Born-Digital Materials

Series 7. Columbia University

Series 8. Harvard University

Series 9. New York University

Series 10. Organizations, committees, boards

Series 11. Conferences, lectures, and symposia

Series 12. Research

Series 13. Baseball

Series 14. Music

Series 15. Photographs

Series 16. Artifacts, ephemera, memorabilia

Series 17. Awards

Series 18. Clippings and scrapbooks

Series 19. Biographical

Series 20. Family

Series 21. Works by others

Series 22. Oversize (miscellaneous)

Series 23. CVs, endorsements, reviews (restricted)

Series 24. Addenda

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Indexed terms

Subjects:
Evolution.
Cerion
History of Science
Creationism.
Sociobiology.
Natural history
Punctuated equilibrium (Evolution)
Paleontology
Evolution (Biology)
Baseball -- Research.
Race discrimination.
Names:
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Antioch College
Bahamas National Trust
Harvard University
National Science Foundation (U.S.)
Boston Cecilia (Musical group)
Royal Society of Edinburgh
National Academy of Sciences.
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Ehrlich, Paul R.
Luria, S. E. (Salvador Edward)
Gardner, Martin
Mayr, Ernst
Clinton, Bill
Medawar, P. B. (Peter Brian)
Djerassi, Carl
Merton, Robert King
Pauling, Linus
Montagu, Ashley
Newell, Norman Dennis
Gates, Bill
Raskin, Jef
Nabokov, Vladimir Vladimirovich
Raup, David M.
Krementz, Jill
Chomsky, Noam
Clarke, Arthur C. (Arthur Charles)
Correia, Clara Pinto
Dawkins, Richard
Carter, Jimmy
Lamarck, Jean Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet de
Leakey, Richard E.
Lewontin, Richard C.
Dershowitz, Alan M.
DiMaggio, Joe
Arnheim, Rudolf
Angell, Roger
Bok, Derek Curtis.
Asimov, Isaac
Cain, Arthur J. (Arthur James)
Bunge, Mario
Halsell, Grace
Huxley, Julian
Gore, Albert
Hallam, Anthony
Fuller, R. Buckminster (Richard Buckminster)
Gingrich, Newt
Eldredge, Niles
Eysenck, H. J. (Hans Jurgen)
King, Stephen
Huxley, Thomas Henry
Vrba, E. S. (Elisabeth S.)
Vonnegut, Kurt
Wright, Sewall
Wilson, Edward O.
Clinton, Hillary Rodham.
Ternes, Alan
Sulloway, Frank J.
Stebbins, G. Ledyard (George Ledyard)
Maynard Smith, John
Gould, Stephen Jay
Darwin, Charles
Shearer, Rhonda Roland
Sagan, Carl
Sacks, Oliver W.
Rogovin, Milton
Ripley, Sidney Dillon
Fox, Harold Munro
Skinner, B. F. (Burrhus Frederic)
Gates, Henry Louis
Simpson, George Gaylord
Sibley, Charles Gald
Scott, Eugenie Carol

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for research, except restricted materials in Series 8. Harvard University; Series 9. New York University; Series 10. Organizations, committees, boards; Series 20. Family; and Series 23. CVs, endorsements, reviews. These restricted files are closed for research until 2086. Audiovisual materials are not available in original format, and must be reformatted to a digital use copy. Born-digital materials are in-process and currently unavailable. Series 24 is closed until processed.

Terms of access:

While Special Collections is the owner of the physical and digital items, permission to examine collection materials is not an authorization to publish. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. Any transmission or reproduction beyond that allowed by fair use requires permission from the owners of rights, heir(s) or assigns.

Preferred citation:

[identification of item], Stephen Jay Gould Papers, M1437. Dept. of Special Collections, Stanford University Libraries, Stanford, Calif.

Location of this collection:
Department of Special Collections, Green Library
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-6004, US
Contact:
(650) 725-1022
specialcollections@stanford.edu
Website