Inventory of the Edward J. Wickson Papers
Melissa Tyler and Anne Rapaport
Department of Special Collections
General Library
University of California, Davis
Davis, CA 95616-5292
Phone: (530) 752-1621
Fax: (530) 754-5758
Email: speccoll@ucdavis.edu
© 2006
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Creator:
Wickson, Edward J. (Edward James), 1848-1923
Title: Edward J. Wickson Papers
Date: 1874-1923
Date (bulk): (1900-1920 bulk)
Extent:
2 linear feet
Abstract: The Edward J. Wickson Papers pertain to agriculture in California, which Wickson studied and taught during his 34 years as
a professor and later Dean of the College of Agriculture at the University of California. The papers include many works by
and about experimental horticulturalist Luther Burbank such as articles, correspondence, and duplicates of Burbank's scrapbooks.
Physical location: Researchers should contact Special Collections to request collections, as many are stored offsite.
Repository:
University of California, Davis. General Library. Department of Special Collections.
Davis, California 95616-5292
Collection number: D-037
Language of Material: Collection materials in English.
Biography
Born on August 3, 1848 in Rochester, New York, Edward James Wickson devoted much of his life to agricultural research. In
1872, he graduated from Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. Wickson was elected secretary of the New York Dairymen's Association
in 1871. He organized the first dairy association in California in 1876. Wickson started at the University of California in
1879 as a lecturer in Practical Agriculture, was promoted to Assistant Professor of Agriculture in 1891, and in 1897 became
a Professor of Agricultural Practice and Superintendent of Agricultural Extension courses. From 1906-1912, he served as the
Dean of the College of Agriculture and Director of the Agricultural Experiment Station. From 1905-1906 he reviewed nearly
seventy sites on which to locate the University Farm.
Wickson admired experimental horticulturalist Luther Burbank (1849-1926) and wrote about him in
Luther Burbank; Man, Methods and Achievements, published in 1902. Wickson's other writings include
The California Fruits and How to Grow Them (1889),
The California Vegetables in Garden and Field (1898), and
Rural California (1923). He began working with
The Pacific Rural Press in 1875, was named a special contributor in 1894 and was the editor from 1899 until 1923. He died on July 16, 1923.
Sources:
Scheuring, Ann.
Abundant Harvest: The History of the University of California, Davis. Davis: The Regents of the University of California, 2001.
Stadtman, Verne A.
The Centennial Record of the University of California. Berkeley: UC Printing Department, 1967.
Scope and Content
The Edward J. Wickson Papers spans the years of 1874-1923. The bulk of the material dates between 1900 and 1920. The majority
of the documents in this collection are about Luther Burbank with some pertaining to the University of California, College
of Agriculture. The papers are arranged into two series: 1. Material Related to Luther Burbank and 2. Material Related to
Other Topics.
The first series, Material Related to Luther Burbank, contains Wickson's Burbank-related correspondence, works by and about
Burbank, and Burbank's Scrapbooks. There are seventy pieces of correspondence between Burbank and Wickson. Letters from publisher
Oscar Binner include editing notes for a manuscript that Burbank and Wickson wrote together. The second series, Material Related
to Other Topics, contains correspondence to and from Wickson and Wickson's writing and speeches, related to his own research
and to the College of Agriculture.
Arrangement of the Collection
Arranged into two series: 1. Material Related to Luther Burbank and 2. Material Related to Other Topics.
Related collections
The Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley holds 1.5 linear feet of Edward J. Wickson Papers.
The Library of Congress holds the Luther Burbank Papers.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Wickson, Edward J. (Edward James), 1848-1923--Archives.
Burbank, Luther, 1849-1926
University of California (1868-1952). College of Agriculture
Agriculture-California
Horticulture--History
Access
Collection is open for research.
Acquisition Information
This collection was acquired by the library in 1972 with additional materials added in 2002.
Processing Information
Special Collections intern, Anne Rapaport, and Manuscript and Photograph Curator, Melissa Tyler, arranged this collection
and created its finding aid. Collections Manager Sara Gunasekara encoded the online finding aid.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Edward J. Wickson Papers, D-037, Department of Special Collections, General Library, University
of California, Davis.
Publication Rights
Copyright is protected by the copyright law, chapter 17, of the U.S. Code. All requests for permission to publish or quote
from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf
of the Department of Special Collections, General Library, University of California, Davis 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 researcher.
Series 1.
Material Related to Luther Burbank
1874-1920
Physical Description:
92 folders
Scope and Content Note
Wickson created or collected this material related to Luther Burbank. Arranged in six subseries: Wickson's Correspondence
Related to Burbank, Wickson's Works about Burbank, Others' Works about Burbank, Burbank's Works, Extracts from Burbank's Scrapbooks,
and Ephemera Related to Burbank.
Subseries 1.1
Wickson's Correspondence Related to Burbank
1900-1920
Physical Description:
36 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged alphabetically by name of correspondent. Includes Wickson's outgoing, incoming, and collected correspondence with
or about Burbank. Wickson is the recipient rather than the author of most of these letters.
Box 1:2
The Atlantic Monthly, the editors
1905
Physical Description:
Wickson's manuscript enclosed.
Box 1:5
Binner, Oscar E.
1902-1912
Physical Description:
75 letters with enclosures.
Box 1:8
Brauton, Ernest
1906-1909
Box 1:9
Burbank, Luther
1900-1920
Physical Description:
70 letters with enclosures.
Box 1:16
Horsburgh, J.
1901-1905
Physical Description:
Reviews of Wickson's
Sunset Magazine articles enclosed.
Box 1:18
Johnson, Joseph
1901-1902
Box 1:23
Lilienthal, Hugo
1909-1910
Box 1:32
Sunset Magazine, the editors
1905-1911
Box 1:34
Wheeler, Benjamin Ide
1902-1903
Subseries 1.2
Wickson's Works about Burbank
1899-1913
Physical Description:
11 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged alphabetically by title. Includes manuscripts, notes, and clippings of articles written by Wickson about Burbank.
Box 1:37
Life and Work of Luther Burbank, manuscripts
1902
Box 1:38
Luther Burbank and His New Environment, manuscripts
undated
Box 1:39-42, Box 2:1
Luther Burbank: Man, Methods and Achievements, manuscripts
circa 1902
Scope and Content Note
Includes photographic negative of Burbank.
Box 2:2
"Luther Burbank Story," clipping
1913 February 8
Box 2:3
"Mr. Burbank's Work," clipping
1905 October 21
Box 2:4
The Plant Breeding of Luther Burbank, "Preface," manuscripts
undated
Box 2:5
[Remarks at Fruit Growers' Convention], notes
1899
Subseries 1.3
Others' Works about Burbank
1905-1913
Physical Description:
5 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged alphabetically by author. Wickson collected these articles written by other authors about Burbank.
Box 2:6
Beaty, John, "The Boyhood of Luther Burbank," clipping
1913 July
Box 2:7
DeVries, Hugo,
California Fruit: A Visit to Luther Burbank, typed copy
undated
Box 3:1
Gregory, Thomas J., "Luther Burbank: Traveler in Plantland," in
History of Sonoma County, California, typed copy
1911
Box 2:8
Reynolds, C.P., "Burbank As He Is," clipping
1905 June 1
Box 2:9
Unidentified author, "Burbank Again," clipping
1907 February
Box 2:10
Unidentified author, "A Worthy Tribute to Luther Burbank," clipping
undated
Subseries 1.4
Burbank's Works
1906-1912
Physical Description:
25 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged alphabetically by title. Includes articles, letters to the editor, and remarks by Burbank in the form of clippings,
a typed copy, and a periodical. Also included are Wickson's copies of drafts of chapters of Burbank's twelve-volume work,
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application (1914-1915).
Box 2:11
"How to Produce New Flowers and Fruits," clipping
undated
Box 2:12
"Large Profit in Growing Walnuts," in
For California
1906 April
Box 2;13
Letters to the editor of
The Rural New Yorker, clippings
undated
Box 3:2
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Bulbs"
undated
Box 3:3
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Cactus"
undated
Box 3:4
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Climbing Vines"
undated
Box 3:5
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Climbing Vines (large)"
undated
Box 3:6
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Desert Succulents (other than Palms)"
undated
Box 3:7
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Everlasting Plants"
undated
Box 3:8
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Ferns"
undated
Box 3:9
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Forage Plants"
undated
Box 3:10
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Forage Plants (clover)"
undated
Box 3:11
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Forage Plants (giant ornamental grasses)"
undated
Box 3:12
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Forage Plants (rushes, ornamental, etc)"
undated
Box 3:13
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Gourds"
undated
Box 3:14
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Medieval, Etc. Fruit Trees and Vines"
undated
Box 3:15
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Mistletoe, Parasitic Plants"
undated
Box 3:16
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Orchids"
undated
Box 3:17
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Palms"
undated
Box 3:18
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Potato"
undated
Box 3:19
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Textile Plants"
undated
Box 3:20
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Vegetable and Garden Plants"
1911-1912
Box 3:21
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Water and Bog Plants"
undated
Box 3:22
Luther Burbank: His Methods and Discoveries and their Practical Application, "Miscellaneous Plants"
undated
Box 3:23
"Remarks at Fruit Growers Convention"
1911
Subseries 1.5
Extracts from Burbank's Scrapbooks
1874-1911
Physical Description:
14 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged in chronological order. Contains Wickson's duplicates of extracts from Burbank's scrapbooks. Includes typed copies
of articles, clippings, letters, notes, and speeches by Burbank and other authors.
Box 3:24
Scrapbook 1, extracts
1874-1895
Box 4:1
Scrapbook 2, extracts
1896-1901
Box 4:2
Scrapbook 3, extracts
1901-1904
Box 4:3
Scrapbooks (unidentified numbers), extracts
1901-1905; undated
Scope and Content Note
Fragments from several scrapbooks.
Box 4:4
Scrapbook 4, extracts
1902-1905
Box 4:5
Scrapbook 5, extracts
1905
Box 4:6
Scrapbook 6, extracts
1905-1906
Box 4:7
Scrapbook 7, extracts
1906-1907
Box 4:8
Scrapbook 8, extracts
1907-1908
Box 4:9
Scrapbook 9, extracts
1908
Box 4:10
Scrapbook 10, extracts
1909
Box 4:11
Scrapbook 11, extracts
1909-1910
Box 4:12
Scrapbook 12, extracts
1910-1911
Physical Description:
page 1
Box 4:13
Scrapbook 13, extracts
1910-1911
Subseries 1.6
Ephemera Related to Burbank
1911-1914
Physical Description:
1 folder
Scope and Content Note
Includes promotional material for Burbank's books and horticultural productions.
Box 4:14
Clippings and flyers
1911-1914
Series 2
Material Related to Other Topics
1895-1923
Physical Description:
51 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged in three subseries: Wickson's Correspondence Related to Other Topics, Wickson's Works about Other Topics, and Others'
Works about Other Topics. Materials are not related to Luther Burbank.
Subseries 2.1
Wickson's Correspondence Related to Other Topics
1896-1923
Physical Description:
6 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged alphabetically by sender. Contains Wickson's correspondence, not related to Burbank.
Box 5:3
Grady, K. (Chancellor)
1922-1923
Subseries 2.2
Wickson's Works about Other Topics
1895-1923
Physical Description:
44 folders
Scope and Content Note
Arranged alphabetically by title. Contains Wickson's articles, speeches and manuscripts, not related to Burbank.
Box 5:7
"Memoranda on Agricultural Education"
circa 1900
Box 5:8
"Agricultural Education and Development"
1912
Box 5:9
"Artistic Arrangement at Flower Shows"
undated
Box 5:10
"The California Citrus Industry"
1911
Box 5:11
"The California Fruit Industry"
1904
1913
Box 5:12
"California Garden Calendar"
1905
Box 5:13
"California's Leadership in Alfalfa"
1913
Box 5:14
"California Nurserymen of the Fourth Decade"
1919
Box 5:15
"California Nurserymen of the Fifth and Sixth Decades"
1920
Box 5:16
"Citrus Fruit in Northern California"
1917
Box 5:18
"The Development of California Fruit Industries"
1917
Box 5:19
"The Development of California Fruit Industries"
1920
Box 5:20
"Do We Need New Varieties of Commercial Fruit?"
1915
Box 5:22
"The Eleventh National Irrigation Congress"
undated
Box 5:24
, "A Few Facts About Beneficial Insects"
undated
Box 5:25
"Regarding Forecasting the Future of California"
circa 1900
Box 5:26
"Forestry Education in California"
1902
Box 5:27
"Fruit Gardens of the Pacific Coast"
1903
Box 5:28
, "Hot Air Furnaces for House Heating in California"
1895
Box 5:29
"How the Agricultural Colleges Best Serve the Farmers in Solving Rural Problems"
1909
Box 5:30
"In Praise of Trees"
circa 1923
Box 5:32
"Ladies and Gentlemen"
undated
Box 5:33
Multiplication of Beauty and Wealth"
1911
1923
Box 5:34
"Must the Apple Go to the Mountain?"
undated
Box 5:35
"Opinion Upon the Choice of the Davisville Site"
circa 1907
Box 5:36
"Orange Growing"
circa 1904-1905
Box 5:37
"Progress of Pomology in America"
circa 1903-1904
Box 5:38
"The Present Conditions of California's Fruit Industries"
circa 1903
Box 5:39
The Prune in California
1916
Box 5:40
"Ralph Palmer Merritt"
circa 1920
Box 5:41
"Reading and Correspondence Courses, University Extension Agriculture"
undated
Box 5:42
"Remarks of E.J. Wickson on the Unveiling of the Bust of E.W. Hilgard"
1912
Box 5:43
"Suggestions on Policies in the Improvement of University Grounds"
circa 1907
Box 5:44
"Voting on Amendment 11"
undated
Box 5:45
"What California has Done for Fruit Growing"
circa 1910
Box 5:46
"What Fruit Growing is Doing for California"
1903
Box 5:47
"Why California for Farming?"
circa 1921
Box 5:48
"Why California Leads the World in Fruits"
1915
Subseries 2.3
Others' Works about Other Topics
1904
Physical Description:
1 folder
Box 5:51
Wing, Joseph, "A Chat About Agricultural Colleges"
1904
