Guide to Federal Records

Records of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering [BPISAE]


(Record Group 54)
1879-1972 (bulk 1893-1953)

Overview of Records Locations

Table of Contents

  • 54.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY
  • 54.2 GENERAL RECORDS OF THE BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY AND BPISAE 1885-1953
  • 54.3 RECORDS OF OPERATING UNITS OF THE BPISAE ORIGINATING IN THE BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY AND THE BUREAU OF AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY AND ENGINEERING 1879-1972
  • 54.3.1 Records of the Division of Agricultural Engineering
  • 54.3.2 Records of the Office of Agricultural Technology
  • 54.3.3 Records of the Arlington Experimental Farm (Arlington, VA)
  • 54.3.4 Records of the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (Beltsville, MD)
  • 54.3.5 Records of the Biophysical Laboratory
  • 54.3.6 Records of the Division of Botany
  • 54.3.7 Records of the Division of Cereal Crops and Diseases
  • 54.3.8 Records of the Office of the Chief Chemist
  • 54.3.9 Records of the Office of Congressional Seed Distribution
  • 54.3.10 Records of the Division of Cotton, Rubber, and Other Tropical Plants
  • 54.3.11 Records of the Division of Drug and Related Plants
  • 54.3.12 Records of the Division of Farm Machinery
  • 54.3.13 Records of the Division of Forage Crops and Diseases
  • 54.3.14 Records of the Division of Forest Pathology
  • 54.3.15 Records of the Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Diseases
  • 54.3.16 Records of the Division of Plans and Services
  • 54.3.17 Records of the Division of Plant Exploration and Introduction
  • 54.3.18 Records of the Division of Rubber Plant Investigations
  • 54.3.19 Records of the Division of Soil Fertility Investigations
  • 54.3.20 Records of the Division of Sugar Plant Investigations
  • 54.3.21 Records of the Division of Tobacco and Plant Nutrition
  • 54.3.22 Records of the Division of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations
  • 54.3.23 Records of the Division of Western Irrigation Agriculture
  • 54.4 GENERAL RECORDS OF THE BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY AND SOILS 1894-1953
  • 54.5 RECORDS OF OPERATING UNITS OF THE BPISAE ORIGINATING IN THE BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY AND SOILS 1898-1954
  • 54.5.1 Records of the Fertilizer Research Division
  • 54.5.2 Records of the Fixed Nitrogen Research Laboratory
  • 54.5.3 Records of the Soil Chemistry and Physics Research Division
  • 54.5.4 Records of the Soil Survey Division
  • 54.6 CARTOGRAPHIC RECORDS (GENERAL) 1912-13 and n.d. 26 items
  • 54.7 STILL PICTURES (GENERAL) 1913-1953

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 54.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY

Established: In the Agricultural Research Administration (ARA), Department of Agriculture, by ARA Memorandum 5, February 13, 1943, pursuant to EO 9069, February 23, 1942, and Secretary's Memorandums 960, December 14, 1941, and 986, February 25, 1942.

Predecessor Agencies:

  • Agricultural Section, Patent Office (1839-62)

In the Department of Agriculture:

Research in plant cultivation and utilization:

  • Division of Gardens and Grounds (1862-1900)

  • Division of Seeds (1868-1900)

  • Division of Botany (1869-1900)

  • Division of Pomology (1886-1900)

  • Section of Vegetable Pathology, Division of Botany (1887-90)
  • Division of Vegetable Pathology (1890-95)
  • Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology (1895-1900)

  • Division of Agrostology (1895-1900)

  • Office of Plant Industry (1900-1)
  • Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI, 1901-43), in the Agricultural
  • Research Administration (1942-43)

Research on soils and agricultural engineering:

  • Division of Chemistry (1862-1901)
  • Bureau of Chemistry (1901-27)

  • Division of Agricultural Soils, Weather Bureau (1894-95)
  • Division of Agricultural Soils (1895-97)
  • Division of Soils (1897-1901)
  • Bureau of Soils (1901-27)

  • Bureau of Chemistry and Soils (1927-38)
  • Bureau of Agricultural Engineering (1931-38)

  • Bureau of Agricultural Chemistry and Engineering (BACE, 1938-43)
  • BACE, Agricultural Research Administration (1942-43)

Functions: Conducted research on agricultural (farming and gardening) and forestry problems in such areas as crops, soils, machinery, storage, transportation, and housing.

Abolished: By Secretary's Memorandum 1320, supplement 4, November 2, 1953.

Successor Agencies: Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Forest Service.

Finding Aids: Harold T. Pinkett, comp., Records of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering, PI 66 (1954); Herbert J. Horwitz, comp., "Records of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering (Record Group 54), A Supplement to Preliminary Inventory No. 66," NC 135 (Nov. 1965).

Related Records: Record copies of publications of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government.
Records of the Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine, RG 7.
Records of the Bureau of Agricultural Engineering, RG 8.
Records of the Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry, RG 97.
Records of the Cooperative State Research Service, RG 164.
Records of the Agricultural Research Service, RG 310.

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 54.2 GENERAL RECORDS OF THE BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY AND BPISAE
1885-1953

History: Agricultural research initially vested in the Agricultural Section (later Division), established in the Patent Office by an act of March 3, 1839 (5 Stat. 354), and redesignated the Department of Agriculture by an act of May 15, 1862 (12 Stat. 387). Pursuant to the new Department's legislative mandate "to procure, propagate, and distribute...new and valuable seeds and plants," the Division of Gardens and Grounds was established in 1862 to maintain the department's propagating garden. The Appropriation Act for fiscal year 1869 (15 Stat. 105), July 20, 1868, contained provision for a botanist and a supervisor of the seed room, from which authority the Division of Botany and Division of Seeds can be dated, although the organization of the department into divisions was not recognized legislatively until the Agricultural Appropriation Act (21 Stat. 293), June 16, 1880, which included funds for the Divisions of Botany, Gardens and Grounds, and Seeds. A Division of Pomology was established, effective July 1, 1886, by the Agriculture Appropriation Act (24 Stat. 100), June 30, 1886. A Section of Vegetable Pathology was established within the Division of Botany, effective July 1, 1887, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (24 Stat. 495), March 3, 1887. It was made a separate division by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (26 Stat. 283), July 14, 1890, and was redesignated the Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, effective July 1, 1895, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (28 Stat. 728), March 2, 1895. That same act (28 Stat. 735) also established the sixth of the plant research divisions, the Division of Agrostology. Office of Plant Industry established by Secretarial order, October 1900, to coordinate the plant investigation work of these divisions. Superseded by the BPI, established effective July 1, 1901, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (31 Stat. 926), March 2, 1901. Soil investigation functions of BPI transferred to Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, 1927; restored, 1934. (SEE 54.4.) BPI placed under the newly created Agricultural Research Administration by EO 9069, February 23, 1942. Acquired agricultural engineering research functions from the Bureau of Agricultural Chemistry and Engineering (SEE 54.4), and redesignated BPISAE, 1943. SEE 54.1.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1900-53, with indexes, 1908-30. Letters sent by the Office of the Chief of Bureau, 1901- 29. Letters sent by the Assistant Chief, 1904-9, and the Executive Assistant, 1911-13. Office files of the Assistant Chief, 1938-53. Letters sent to the departmental solicitor, 1906- 21. Correspondence relating to the salinity laboratory, 1938-42. Correspondence relating to drug plants, 1900-2. Correspondence of agronomist S.B. Nuckols, 1923-28. Correspondence relating to tobacco breeding experiments, 1905-6. Correspondence and reports relating to fertilizers, 1917-19. Annual reports, 1903-4. Project planning records, 1905-23. Washington, DC, office reports, 1925- 38. Field activity reports, 1924-35. Project records, 1885-1913. Deeds and title records to bureau property, 1908-49. Notes relating to plant pathology work, 1917-20. Records relating to budget estimates, 1906-33. Progress reports, 1921-25. Microfilm copy of bureau library catalog cards of botanical, paleobotanical, and plant pathology literature, 1937 (57 rolls). Records relating to seed distribution, 1903-16. Trail, British Columbia, smelter fumes investigation records, 1927-34. Records relating to the 1934-36 Roerich Expedition to Mongolia in search of drought resistant grasses, 1934-37. Journal relating to China asters, n.d. Microfilm copy of records relating to Thomas A. Edison's rubber investigations, n.d. (3 rolls).

Related Records: Additional Trail smelter fumes investigation records UNDER 54.3.8 and 54.4; in RG 76, Records of Boundary and Claims Commissions and Arbitrations; and in RG 97, Records of the Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry. Record copies of publications of the Bureau of Plant Industry in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government.

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 54.3 RECORDS OF OPERATING UNITS OF THE BPISAE ORIGINATING IN THE BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY AND THE BUREAU OF AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY AND ENGINEERING
1879-1972

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 54.3.1 Records of the Division of Agricultural Engineering

History: Established in the BPISAE to accommodate programs transferred from the Bureau of Agricultural Chemistry and Engineering, 1943. Split into Divisions of Farm Mechanical Equipment, Farm Structures, and Mechanical Processing of Farm Products, 1944. Agricultural Engineering Divisions (AED) designated, 1946, as an administrative component of BPISAE, consisting of Divisions of Farm Buildings and Rural Housing (formerly Farm Structures), Farm Electrification, Farm Power and Machinery (formerly Farm Mechanical Equipment, redesignated Farm Machinery, 1951), and Mechanical Processing of Farm Products. AED redesignated Agricultural Engineering Group, 1951. Became Agricultural Engineering Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1943-50. Office files of Division Chief S.H. McCrory, accumulated primarily while he was a member of the Committee on Research, 1929-42. Office files of agricultural engineer A.T. Holman, 1930-40. Records relating to the U.S. Department of Agriculture rubber survey in Central and South America, 1938-46.

Architectural and Engineering Plans (71 items): Details of proposed rural hemp production mill (43 items) and flax production mill (28 items), 1942-43. SEE ALSO 54.6.

Photographs (985 images): Investigations, 1938-39. SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.2 Records of the Office of Agricultural Technology

History: Established as the Office of Crop Technology Investigations, 1906. Redesignated Office of Agricultural Technology, 1909. Became Office of Crop Technology Investigations, ca. 1911, and Office of Crop Technology, ca. 1913. Redesignated Office of Agricultural Technology, ca. 1923. Abolished, ca. 1925.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1906-14. Proceedings of a meeting of the Committee on Cotton Standardization, 1909.

Related Records: Record copies of publications of the Office of Agricultural Technology in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government.

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 54.3.3 Records of the Arlington Experimental Farm (Arlington, VA)

History: Established by an act of April 18, 1900 (31 Stat. 135). Transferred to the Bureau of Plant Industry by Presidential order, 1901. Served as the main field laboratory for the bureau until 1941, when activities transferred to Beltsville Agricultural Research Center.

Textual Records: Correspondence of the senior horticulturalist and superintendent, 1916-40.

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 54.3.4 Records of the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center
(Beltsville, MD)

History: Established, 1910, to supplement BPI research facilities at Bethesda, MD. Redesignated National Agricultural Research Center, 1935; Beltsville Research Center, 1939; and Agricultural Research Center, 1945. Transferred to Agricultural Research Service, 1953. Redesignated Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, ca. 1984.

Textual Records: Correspondence and reports, 1933-45. Records relating to the Beltsville Horticultural Station, 1935-41.

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 54.3.5 Records of the Biophysical Laboratory

History: Established as the Physical Laboratory, 1906. Name changed to Biophysical Laboratory, 1912. Redesignated Division of Genetics and Biophysics, 1931. Abolished, ca. 1935.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1906-20, with index. Miscellaneous reports, 1907-20.

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 54.3.6 Records of the Division of Botany

History: One of the plant research bureaus that were merged to form BPI, 1901. (SEE 54.2.) Designated Office of Botanic Investigations and Experiments, 1901, and Office of Economic and Systematic Botany, ca. 1905. Became Office of Botany, ca. 1926, and Division of Botany, 1931. Merged into newly created Division of Plant Exploration and Introduction, February 9, 1934. (SEE 54.3.17.)

Textual Records: Letters sent by the botanist, 1893-1936. General correspondence, 1894-1934. Intra-departmental, -bureau, and - divisional correspondence, 1894-1934. Correspondence with U.S. and foreign legations and embassies, 1894-1929, and with U.S. consular offices, 1894-1934. Correspondence with scientific institutions and organizations, 1894-1934. Letters sent by F.V. Coville, Curator of the National Herbarium, 1896-1927; agricultural explorer Walter T. Swingle, 1901, 1906-7; and economic botanist W.E. Safford, 1905-26. Records relating to the Blueberry Project, including Blueberry Bulletin, 1906-29. Records relating to the American Joint Committee on Horticultural Nomenclature, 1916-34. Press copy books relating to plant taxonomy, 1927.

Photographs (10 images): Weed investigations of the Office of Botany, ca. 1922-26 (WD). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.7 Records of the Division of Cereal Crops and Diseases

History: Cereal investigations conducted by the Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology and its BPI successor, the Division of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations (SEE 54.3.22), 1895-1906. Function transferred to newly established Division of Grain Investigations, 1906, redesignated Office of Cereal Investigations, 1912. Absorbed work of Office of Corn Investigations, 1921. Redesignated Office of Cereal Crops and Diseases, ca. 1926, and Division of Cereal Crops and Diseases, 1931. Made a divisional component of the Field Crops Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, and of the Field Crops Group, 1951. Became Cereal Crops Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1895-1935, with index, 1895-1917. Foreign correspondence, 1900-34. Miscellaneous correspondence, 1919-39. Annual research reports, 1900-49. Draft report on oat varieties in the United States and Canada, 1942. Records relating to corn investigations, 1908-14; and European corn borer investigations, 1925-35. Records relating to corn and wheat research and the development of hybrid strains, 1879-1956. Records relating to the Flax Investigation Project, 1913-72 (bulk 1913-53), including annual reports of experiment stations (in Kansas City).

Photographic Prints (6,432 images): Corn cultivation in the United States, and in Mexico and other Latin American countries, in albums, 1920-42 (CC, 2,423 images). Corn cultivation collection of the Office of Corn Investigation, 1892-1941 (CI, 4,000 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

Lantern Slides (3,100 images): Culture studies of fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, and other plants, 1902-41 (LS, LSF). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.8 Records of the Office of the Chief Chemist

History: S.W. Griffin served as Chief Chemist in the BPI, 1930- 48. He was active in the investigation by the Bureau of Plant Industry and the Bureau of Chemicals and Soils, 1928-38, of agricultural damage suffered by farmers in Stevens County, WA, from smelter fumes generated by the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada, Ltd., Trail, British Columbia.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1928-48. Notebooks, 1927-48. Reports and related records, 1928-48. Publications, 1910-41.

Related Records: Additional Trail smelter fumes investigation records UNDER 54.2 and 54.4; in RG 76, Records of Boundary and Claims Commissions and Arbitrations; and in RG 97, Records of the Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry. SEE 97.3.8.

Photographs (428 images): Photographs, from the office file of Chief Chemist Stuart K. Griffin, who led the USDA investigation of complaints from farmers in Stevens County, WA, of fumes created by the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada, Ltd's lead and zinc smelter at Trail, British Columbia. The photographs may have been submitted and/or used as U.S. evidence of the effects of sulphur dioxide (CO2)in the Trail Smelter Arbitration Tribunal, 1910-43 (CE, FFM, NFF, SWG, TSR, USE). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.9 Records of the Office of Congressional Seed Distribution

History: Established, 1902, as BPI successor, with Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, to Division of Seeds. Administered the program of seed distribution to constituents of Members of Congress. Abolished, 1923, upon termination of program.

Textual Records: Letters sent and received, 1893-1901. Correspondence and reports relating to seed distribution policies, 1901-8. Correspondence relating to requests for seeds and plants, 1904-8. Seed lists, 1881-82. Seed purchase records, 1891-1916. "Record of Congressional seed distribution," 1901-23. Press copies of notifications of seed distribution bid offers, 1912-13. Receipt book of Congressional seed distribution, 1886- 1900.

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 54.3.10 Records of the Division of Cotton, Rubber, and Other
Tropical Plants

History: Established as the Division of Investigation in Agricultural Economy of Tropical and Sub-Tropical Plants, 1905, assuming tropical plant research functions of Division of Botany. (SEE 54.3.6.) Redesignated Office of Crop Acclimatization and Adaptation Investigations, ca. 1911, and Office of Acclimatization and Adaptation of Crop Plants and Cotton Breeding, ca. 1915. Redesignated Office of Crop Acclimatization, ca. 1921. Became Office of Crop Acclimatization and Adaptation Investigations, ca. 1923. Redesignated Office of Cotton, Rubber, and Other Tropical Plants, ca. 1926. Became Division of Cotton, Rubber, and Other Tropical Plants, 1931. Redesignated Division of Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and Diseases following transfer of tropical research project activities to newly created Division of Plant Exploration and Introduction (SEE 54.3.17), February 9, 1934. Became a divisional component of the Field Crops Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, redesignated Field Crops Group, 1951. Became the Cotton and Other Fiber Crops Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: Letters sent, 1896-1931. General and "official" correspondence, 1931-33. Field reports, 1905-32. Research papers prepared for publication, 1932-35.

Photographic Negatives (56 images): Views of varieties of date palm trees in Indio and Mecca, CA, 1915-27 (DP). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.11 Records of the Division of Drug and Related Plants

History: Division of Drug and Poisonous Plant Investigations established, 1905, consolidating research scattered among several BPI units. Acquired responsibility for tea culture by 1911. Redesignated Office of Drug Plant, Poisonous Plant, Physiological, and Fermentation Investigations by 1913. Became Office of Drug and Poisonous Plant Investigations, 1916; Office of Drug Plant Investigations, ca. 1920; Office of Drug, Poisonous, and Oil Plant Investigations, ca. 1922; and Office of Drug, Poisonous, and Oil Plants by 1926. Redesignated Office of Drug and Related Plants, 1929, and Division of Drug and Related Plants, 1931. Consolidated with Division of Tobacco Investigations (SEE 54.3.21) to become Division of Tobacco, Medicinal, and Special Crops, 1945. Made a divisional component of the Field Crops Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, and of the Field Crops Group, 1951. Became the Tobacco and Special Crops Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1920-29. Correspondence relating to castor beans, 1918, and camphor trees, 1917-20. Ledgers of expenditures, 1903-8.

Photographs (2,781 images): Various projects and fieldwork of botanists and other scientists from the Division of Drug and Related Plants, ca. 1905-50 (DRG 2,653 images), with accompanying shelf list, 1905-50 (DRS). Illustrations for USDA publication no. 77: American Medicinal Plants of Commercial Importance, 1930 (DRP, 128 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.12 Records of the Division of Farm Machinery

History: Established in the Bureau of Agricultural Engineering as the Division of Mechanical Equipment, 1931. Transferred to the newly created Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry as the Mechanical Farm Equipment Division, 1939. Redesignated Farm Mechanical Research Division, 1940. Transferred to the BPISAE, 1943, as part of the Division of Agricultural Engineering (SEE 54.3.1). Designated Division of Farm Mechanical Equipment, 1944; Division of Farm Power and Machinery, 1946; and Division of Farm Machinery, 1951. Became Farm Machinery Section, Agricultural Engineering Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: Annual reports, 1933-53. Weekly and monthly project statements and reports, 1931-44. Miscellaneous reports, 1928-45. Correspondence and reports relating to the use of machinery in plant exploration, 1938-40. Correspondence relating to sugar beet machinery, 1942-54. Correspondence and related records on the proposed Inter-American Highway, 1938-40.

Photographs (1905 images): Sweet potato harvesting machinery, 1947-50 (SP, 16 images). Sugar beet machinery and operations at Davis, CA, 1931-55 (DA, 779 images); and at Fort Collins, CO, 1944-51 (SB, 1,110 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

Color Slides (679 images): Sugar beet machinery and operations at Davis, CA, 1939-42 (Kd, 324 images); and at Fort Collins, CO, 1939-50 (Kf, 355 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

Lantern Slides (73 images): Sugar beet machinery, 1931-37 (LSB, LSDa). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.13 Records of the Division of Forage Crops and Diseases

History: Originated as the Division of Agrostology, 1895. Became Division of Grain and Forage Plant Investigations, 1901. Redesignated Office of Forage Crop Investigations, 1907. Acquired forage disease research functions from the Office of Vegetable and Forage Diseases, 1928, and redesignated Office of Forage Crops and Diseases. Became Division of Forage Crops and Diseases, 1931. Made a divisional component of the Field Crops Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, and of the Field Crops Group, 1951. Became the Forage and Range Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1905-29. Press copies of letters sent, 1918. Intrabureau correspondence, 1909-29. Correspondence with state agricultural experiment stations, 1899- 1928. Office files of agronomist A. J. Pieters, Office of Forage Crop Investigations, 1902-9; and of BPI forage crop investigations chief C.V. Piper, 1903-24. Records accumulated by Office of Forage Crop Investigations agronomist R.A. Oakley relating to the work of the Federal Horticultural Board, 1925-29. Records relating to alfalfa culture, 1903-10. Forage Crop Gazette, 1936-42.

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 54.3.14 Records of the Division of Forest Pathology

History: Field study of timber and of forest and fruit tree diseases initiated in Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, ca. 1899. Research functions transferred to the BPI's Mississippi Valley Laboratory, St. Louis, MO, 1901. Became responsibility of newly established Office of Forest Pathology, 1907. Made a divisional component of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Specialized Divisions, BPISAE, 1946; of Horticultural Crops and Forest Diseases, 1947; and of Horticultural Crops Group, 1951. Became the Division of Forest Disease Research, Forest Service, 1953.

Textual Records: Letters sent, 1901-8. General correspondence, 1907-38. Correspondence with field personnel, 1907-38. Correspondence and other records of forest pathologist George S. Hedgecock, Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station, Lincoln, NE, 1901-7 (in Kansas City). Letters received by Mississippi Valley Laboratory chief Hermann von Schrenk relating to timber preservation work, 1902 (in Kansas City). Office file of forest pathologist Perley Spaulding, 1913-24. Project files on cooperative studies in forest pathology, 1912-37.

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 54.3.15 Records of the Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Diseases

History: Division of Pomological Investigations established, 1901, as BPI successor to Division of Pomology. Subsequently divided into Office of Pomological Collections and Office of Field Investigations in Pomology. Office of Horticultural Investigations established, 1901, to coordinate work at Arlington (VA) Experimental Farm (SEE 54.3.3). Office of Horticultural and Pomological Investigations established, 1913, by consolidation of Office of Horticultural Investigations, Office of Pomological Investigations, and Office of Field Investigations in Pomology. Redesignated Office of Horticulture, ca. 1926. Office of Horticultural Crops and Diseases established, 1928, by consolidation of Office of Horticulture; Office of Crop Physiology and Breeding; Office of Fruit Diseases; Office of Vegetable and Forage Diseases (except cotton and forage disease work); Pathological Laboratory (except tobacco disease and photographic units); and physiological section of Office of Plant Geography and Physiology. Redesignated Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Diseases, 1933. Assigned as a divisional component to Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Specialized Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, and to successor Horticultural Crops and Forest Diseases, 1947. Divided into Division of Fruit and Nut Crops and Diseases and Division of Vegetable Crops and Diseases in the Horticultural Crops Group, 1951. Became Fruit and Nut Crops Section and Vegetable Crops Section, respectively, in Horticultural Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence of the Division of Pomology, 1887-1907, and of the Office of Field Investigations in Pomology, 1902-13; with indexes, 1887-1910. General correspondence of the Office of Pomological Collections, 1907-12. Register-indexes to the general correspondence of the Division of Pomology and the Office of Pomological Collections, 1894-1912. General correspondence of the Office of Horticultural Investigations, 1901-13, with name and subject indexes. General correspondence of the Office of Horticultural and Pomological Investigations, 1911-17, with index, 1915-17. Index to general correspondence of the Office of Pomological Collections and the Office of Horticultural and Pomological Investigations, 1911-15. General correspondence of the Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Diseases, 1917-41, with index, 1917-39. General correspondence of the Horticultural Crop Research Branch, 1931- 40. Annual and miscellaneous reports, 1930-40. Correspondence relating to crop physiology and plant pathology, 1898-1935; crop physiology and plant breeding investigations, 1906-9; and the breeding of alkali- and drought-resistant plants, 1908-9. Correspondence of the Office of Vegetable and Forage Diseases, 1912-28. Letters sent by the Office of Cotton and Truck Disease and Sugar Plant Investigations, 1912-13. Records relating to fruit transportation investigations at Spokane, WA, 1917-23. Scrapbooks and other records collected by David Griffith, Chief of Bulb Culture Investigations, 1916-34.

Architectural and Engineering Plans (69 items): Blueprints of experimental refrigerated buildings and railroad cars, 1909-20. SEE ALSO 54.6.

Photographs (6,941 images): Collection of the Office of Horticultural and Pomological Investigations, documenting landscaping of federal facilities, 1902-41 (PD, 2,700 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.; and horticultural and pomological activities, 1900-46 (H, HC, HPN; 3,178 images), with accompanying subject index, ca. 1950 (HX). Views of many varities of roses and irises, 1880-1931 (HA, 550 images). Species of flowering plants and related subjects, 1916-40 (FNP, 513 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

Photographic Prints (32,608 images): Cultivation, harvesting, and processing of fruits, vegetables, and nuts; diseased plants; Mexican laborers; Theodore Roosevelt planting CA trees (1903); and fairs, exhibits, and memorials, including the 1903 Louisiana Purchase Exposition, St. Louis, MO, and the 1900 Paris International Exposition, 1883-1941 (F, 14,000 images). Cultivation and marketing of apples, peaches, pears, and citrus fruits in the United States, 1889-1924 (FF, 245 images). Cultivation, processing, storage, and marketing of fruits, 1903-24 FM, (93 images). Rural, urban, and suburban homes; landscaped areas; farmlands; miscellaneous schools, municipal buildings, and state capitols; and federal buildings in Washington, DC, 1902-29 (FT, 1,100 images). Use of ornamental plants and trees in landscape gardening in the United States; and scenes of the 1900 Paris International Exposition, 1892-1940 (HP, HH; 8,347 images). Landscape gardening in the United States and abroad, 1892-1933 (L, 1,680 images). Research on the effects of vegetable diseases; and markets, cultivated fields, farm laborers, and irrigation methods, 1901-34 (VD, 2,916 images). Research on vegetable varieties; vegetable cultivation, agricultural equipment, farm workers, and rural scenes in Brazil, the Philippine Islands, Denmark, and Covent Garden, London, England, 1897-1953 (VV, 4,227 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.16 Records of the Division of Plans and Services

History: Established in the Bureau of Agricultural Engineering, 1931. Transferred to the Bureau of Agricultural and Chemical Engineering, 1938, and to BPISAE as part of the Division of Agricultural Engineering, 1943. Became Division of Plans and Services, Agricultural Engineering Divisions, 1946, and Agricultural Engineering Group, 1951. Terminated, 1952. Functions primarily administrative.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1939-49. Records relating to building costs, 1939-49. Records concerning construction projects, 1937-50.

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 54.3.17 Records of the Division of Plant Exploration and
Introduction

History: Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, responsible for field expeditions in search of agriculturally and horticulturally useful plants, established as an initial component of the BPI, 1901. Redesignated Office of Foreign Plant Introduction, ca. 1924. Merged with Division of Botany, and certain projects of Division of Cotton, Rubber, and Other Tropical Plants, February 9, 1934, to create Division of Plant Exploration and Introduction. Made a component division of the Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Specialized Divisions unit of BPISAE, 1946, which was successively redesignated Horticultural Crops and Forest Diseases, 1947, and Horticultural Crops Group, 1951. Became the Plant Introduction Section, Horticultural Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1900-40. Project studies, 1902-32. Records relating to the Plant Introduction Gardens at Bellingham, WA, and Brownsville, TX, 1904-16. Reports relating to the Mexico and Central America Expedition for Tobacco Seeds, 1935-36. Bulletin of New Plant Immigrants, 1908-24. Records of the Puerto Rico Experiment Station, Mayaguez, PR, consisting of annual reports, 1906-53, and progress reports, 1935-53. Annual reports of vegetable breeding in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the southeastern United States, 1951-53. Card index relating to soybean research, ca. 1917-38.

Photographs (101,841 images): Soybean expedition of P. Howard Dorsett and W. J. Morse, 1921-31 (DM, DMP; 1,291 images), with accompanying index, 1921-29 (DMS) and caption list, 1921-31 (DMX). Scientific expeditions to Asia, Africa, and South America undertaken by botanists of the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction between 1903-38, ca. 1901-53 (FS, 63,736 images), with accompanying index, 1901-53 (FSI). Activities of the field stations, experiment gardens, and other agencies directly administrated by or associated with the Office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, ca. 1901-53(FSA, 34,014 images), with accompanying index, 1901-53 (FSJ) and shelf lists, 1901-53 (FSS, FST). Images of a reference file for motion pictures of P. Howard Dorsett's overseas survey, 1925-26 (FSD, 500 images). Plants and trees of early construction at the National Arboretum, 1903-48 (FSR, 2,300 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

Microfilm Publications: M840.

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 54.3.18 Records of the Division of Rubber Plant Investigations

History: Established in the BPISAE as the Rubber Plant Investigations Project pursuant to a special appropriation under the Second Deficiency Appropriation Act of 1940 (54 Stat. 639), June 27, 1940. Designated as the Division of Rubber Plant Investigations, 1946, and assigned to the Field Crops Division, redesignated the Field Crops Group, 1951. Became the Rubber Crops Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Maps and Charts (150 items): Emergency Rubber (Guayule) Project, soil classification maps of counties, ranches, and other study areas in TX, NM, and AZ, 1942-44. SEE ALSO 54.6.

Photographs (9,844 images): Views of rubber plants showing various stages of Brown Bast on Hevea trees, 1918-20 (BB, 39 images). Photographs corresponding to the report on localities, soil and vegetation conditions, and general economic, social, and political conditions in the Republic of Costa Rica, compiled by Survey Party Number 3 of the Natural Rubber Survey, 1940 (CR, 124 images). Research and production programs relating to the cultivation of kok-saghyz in the United States, 1942-45 (GP, RR, RRK; 402 images). Guayule Emergency Rubber Plant Project, Salinas, CA, 1942-43 (SA, SK; 402 images). Guayule chromosome experiments, root and soil studies, and activities with seedlings, 1940 (CRS, 350 images). Activites relating to guayule growth, harvesting, and processing in the United States, 1926-54 (GS, RPM; 1,400 images). Tillage equipment photographs, used in identifying classes of tillage equipment, 1943 (TE, 130 images). Progress and results of an intensive seeding and cultivation program of kok-saghyz, 1942-44 (KS, KSM, 220 images). Guayule rubber production project in Texas, in album, 1951 (TX, 58 images). Cultivation of rubber-yielding plants and hemp substitutes in Central and South America, 1940-48 (RH, RHM, RHR; 6,974 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

Color Slides (1,369 images): Guayule Emergency Rubber Plant Project, Salinas, CA, 1942-43 (SK, 69 images). Emergency Rubber Plant Project activities in the southwestern United States, 1942-43 (S, 1,300 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.19 Records of the Division of Soil Fertility Investigations

History: Soil fertility research initially vested in Fertility Investigations Division, Bureau of Soils, 1901. Transferred to BPI, 1915, and redesignated Office of Soil Fertility Investigations. Transferred to Bureau of Chemistry and Soils (SEE 54.4), July 1, 1927, and functioned as the Soil Fertility Division in the Soil Investigations unit. Assigned to the BPI by Secretary's order as the Division of Soil Fertility Investigations, September 1, 1934, with formal transfer effective July 1, 1935, pursuant to the Appropriation Act (49 Stat. 268), May 17, 1935. Absorbed by the Division of Fertilizer Research, BPI, July 1, 1940. (SEE 54.5.1.)

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1915-40, with name and subject indexes, 1915-33. Correspondence relating to fertilizer experiments, 1919-36. Research papers prepared for publication, 1930-40.

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 54.3.20 Records of the Division of Sugar Plant Investigations

History: Sugar plant research initially vested in Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, 1890's. Continued in BPI Division of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations (SEE 54.3.22), 1901. Sugar beet investigation work consolidated with cotton and truck crop disease research to form Office of Cotton and Truck Disease and Sugar Plant Investigations, 1910. Separate sugar crop investigation unit established, ca. 1914. Designated Office of Sugar Beet Investigations, 1915, and Office of Sugar Plant Investigations, ca. 1917. Became Office of Sugar Plants, ca. 1926. Redesignated Division of Sugar Plant Investigations, 1931. Made a divisional component of the Field Crops Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, and of the Field Crops Group, 1951. Became the Sugar Crops Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1914-21. Subject files of agronomist H.B. Cowgill, 1923-35. Correspondence of pathologist Caroline Rumbold, 1917-24. Office files of pathologist C.O. Townsend, 1904-23. Correspondence and reports of the Sugar-Plant Field Experiment Station, Cairo, GA, 1913-29 (in Atlanta). Correspondence relating to state agricultural experiment stations, 1929-41. Monthly reports of state agricultural stations, 1942-47. Records relating to variety tests on sugar beets, 1930-35. Reports on sugar beets, 1910-52. Translations of articles on sugar cane, ca. 1888-1945.

Photographs (2,541 images): Sugar cane cultivation, harvesting, and processing in the United States and the Philippine Islands, taken or acquired by sugar cane technologist Peter A. Yoder, 1913-38 (Y, 819 images). Activities of sugar cane field laboratories, experiments, research, and cultivation programs, 1920-50 (B, 1,722 images). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.21 Records of the Division of Tobacco and Plant Nutrition

History: Tobacco research vested initially in Division of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations (SEE 54.3.22), successor in BPI, 1901, to Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology. Function assigned to Office of Plant Breeding Investigations, established as a partial successor to Division of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations, 1906; and to Office of Cotton and Tobacco Breeding Investigations, established as a partial successor to Office of Plant Breeding Investigations, 1907. Separate Office of Tobacco Investigations established, ca. 1908, redesignated Office of Tobacco and Nutrition Investigations by 1911, and redesignated Office of Tobacco Investigations by 1912. Redesignated Office of Tobacco and Plant Nutrition by 1922. Became Division of Tobacco and Plant Nutrition, 1931. Redesignated Division of Tobacco Investigations, 1941. Consolidated with Division of Drug and Related Plants (SEE 54.3.11) and redesignated Division of Tobacco, Medicinal, and Special Crops, 1945. Made a divisional component of the Field Crops Divisions, BPISAE, 1946, and of the Field Crops Group, 1951. Became the Tobacco and Special Crops Section, Field Crops Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1901-26, with index, 1907-26. Crop experiment reports, 1907-20. Consular reports, 1910-11.

Photographic Prints (6,542 images): Tobacco cultivation, and experiments documenting effect of light and nutrition on tobacco and other plants, by J.E. McMurtrey, in albums, 1908-36 (TI, TIA). SEE ALSO 54.7.

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 54.3.22 Records of the Division of Vegetable Pathological and
Physiological Investigations

History: Mycological Section established in Division of Botany, 1886. Functions assumed by Section of Vegetable Pathology, established in Division of Botany, 1887; designated a division, 1890; and renamed Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, 1895. Became Division of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations, BPI, 1901. Division abolished, 1906, and functions assigned to coordinate research units, including the Plant Pathology Laboratory, Office of Plant Breeding Investigations, and Office of Plant Life History Investigations.

Textual Records: Letters sent, 1885-1911. Letters received, 1891- 1908, with indexes. Correspondence of agricultural special agent M.A. Carelton, 1891-1947. Letters sent by pathologist Newton B. Pierce, Santa Ana, CA, relating to work with grapes, walnuts, and other fruits, 1892-1902 (in Los Angeles).

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 54.3.23 Records of the Division of Western Irrigation Agriculture

History: Office of Western Agricultural Extension established 1905. Name changed to Office of Western Irrigation Agriculture, ca. 1912. Became Division of Western Irrigation Agriculture, 1931. Redesignated Division of Irrigation Agriculture, effective July 1, 1939, pursuant to the Agricultural Appropriation Act (53 Stat. 953), June 30, 1939. Consolidated with the Division of Dry Land Agriculture (established as the Office of Dry Land Agriculture Investigations by 1911; redesignated Office of Dry Land Agriculture, 1922; and made a division, 1931) and Division of Soils and Fertilizers (SEE 54.5.1 and 54.5.3) to form the Division of Soils, Fertilizers, and Irrigation, a component of the Soil Divisions, BPISAE, 1946. Made a separate unit, Division of Soil Management and Irrigation, in the Soil Divisions, 1948, and in the Soil Group, 1951. Divided into Division of Soil Management-Humid Regions and Division of Soil Management- Irrigated and Dry Land Regions, 1952. Became the Eastern and Western Soil and Water Management Sections, respectively, Soil and Water Conservation Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: General correspondence, 1901-37. Annual and miscellaneous reports and notes relating to experiment farms, 1907-32. Correspondence relating to cotton culture, 1912-14. Weekly bulletins, 1911-37.

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 54.4 GENERAL RECORDS OF THE BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY AND SOILS
1894-1953

History: Division of Chemistry established in the Department of Agriculture pursuant to its establishing act (12 Stat. 387), May 15, 1862. Designated Bureau of Chemistry, effective July 1, 1901, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (31 Stat. 930), March 2, 1901.

Soil analysis functions of Division of Chemistry transferred to Division of Agricultural Soils, established in the Weather Bureau, effective February 15, 1894, by Secretary's order, January 2, 1894, confirmed by Agricultural Appropriation Act (28 Stat. 274), August 8, 1894. Made a separate division, effective July 1, 1895, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (28 Stat. 735), March 2, 1895, and designated Bureau of Soils, effective July 1, 1901, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (31 Stat. 930), March 2, 1901.

Bureau of Chemistry and Bureau of Soils consolidated to form Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, effective July 1, 1927, by Agricultural Appropriation Act (44 Stat. 991), January 18, 1927, absorbing also the soil bacteriology and fertility investigation functions of BPI. Soil bacteriology and fertility investigation functions assigned to BPI by Secretary's order, September 1, 1934, with formal transfer effective July 1, 1935, by the Agricultural Appropriation Act (49 Stat. 260, 268), May 17, 1935. Fruit and vegetable utilization investigation functions transferred to Bureau of Chemistry and Soils from BPI by Secretary's Memorandum 669, April 3, 1935.

Bureau of Chemistry and Soils consolidated by Secretary's Memorandum 789, October 6, 1938, with Bureau of Agricultural Engineering, established effective July 1, 1931, by Agricultural Appropriation Act (46 Stat. 1266), February 23, 1931, to form Bureau of Agricultural Chemistry and Engineering, with the nonchemical functions of Bureau of Chemistry and Soils going to BPI and Soil Conservation Service. Placed under Agricultural Research Administration by EO 9069, February 23, 1942. Renamed Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry, 1943, and its engineering research functions transferred to BPI, redesignated Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering. SEE 54.1.

Textual Records: Letters received by the Division of Agricultural Soils and the Bureau of Soils, 1894-1901. General correspondence of the Bureau of Soils, 1901-36, with indexes, 1906-28. Records of A.G. McCall, Chief of Soil Investigations, Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, relating to investigations of soil types, research in soil microbiology, and problems of soil erosion, 1927-35. Organization charts of the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, 1929- 33. Records relating to the Soil Erosion Nursery Project, 1933- 35. Annual and progress reports, 1918-41. Reports relating the U.S.-Canada arbitration hearings on Trail, British Columbia, smelter damage, 1930-41. Records relating to Muscle Shoals, AL, 1922-53. Personnel records, 1905-26.

Architectural and Engineering Plans (32 items): Floor plans, Bureau of Soils laboratory, and plan of buildings and grounds of Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC, 1905-8. SEE ALSO 54.6.

Related Records: Additional Trail smelter fumes investigation records UNDER 54.2 and 54.3.8; in RG 76, Records of Boundary and Claims Commissions and Arbitrations; and in RG 97, Records of the Bureau of Agricultural and Industrial Chemistry.

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 54.5 RECORDS OF OPERATING UNITS OF THE BPISAE ORIGINATING IN THE BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY AND SOILS
1898-1954

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 54.5.1 Records of the Fertilizer Research Division

History: Division of Fertilizer Investigations (sometimes styled Division of Fertilizer Resources) established in Bureau of Soils, ca. 1912. Merged with the Fixed Nitrogen Laboratory to become Fertilizer and Fixed Nitrogen Investigations unit, Bureau of Chemicals and Soils, 1927. Redesignated Fertilizer Research Division, Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, 1935. Became a component of Bureau of Chemistry and Agricultural Engineering, 1939. Assigned to BPI as the Division of Fertilizer Research by Secretary's order, December 1, 1939, and formally transferred, effective July 1, 1940, pursuant to the Agricultural Appropriation Act (54 Stat. 744), June 25, 1940, absorbing the Division of Soil Fertility Investigations, BPI (SEE 54.3.19). Consolidated with BPI Divisions of Soil Microbiology and Soil Chemistry and Physics (SEE 54.5.3) to form the Division of Soil and Fertilizer Investigations (DSFI), 1942. DSFI consolidated with Division of Irrigation Agriculture (SEE 54.3.23) and assigned, as the Divisions of Soils, Fertilizers, and Irrigation (DSFI), to the Soil Divisions unit, BPISAE, 1946. DSFI divided, 1948, into Division of Soil Management and Irrigation and Division of Fertilizer and Agricultural Lime, continuing under the Soil Divisions unit, redesignated the Soils Group, 1951. Division of Fertilizer and Agricultural Lime became the Fertilizer and Agricultural Lime Section, Soil and Water Conservation Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: Correspondence relating to potash and kelp investigations, 1916-35. Correspondence of the Office of Fertilizer Control, 1918-19, with indexes. Office and personal files of bureau chemist J.W. Turrentine, regarding his chemical fertilization work, 1912-26. Reports of city waste disposal, 1914. Correspondence and reports regarding potash and organic fertilizer investigations, 1919-30. State laws concerning manufacture and sale of fertilizers, 1918-25. Reports relating to proposed federal legislation for sale and shipment of fertilizer, 1920-21. Fertilizer bibliography, ca. 1920.

Maps (53 items): Areas where potash was processed from kelp for fertilizer, 1912-13. SEE ALSO 54.6.

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 54.5.2 Records of the Fixed Nitrogen Research Laboratory

History: Established in the War Department under the Nitrate Division, Office of the Chief of Ordnance, March 29, 1919, pursuant to the National Defense Act (39 Stat. 215), June 3, 1916. Transferred to Department of Agriculture by Presidential order, July 1, 1921. Operated as an independent unit in the department until July 1, 1926, when it was subordinated to the Bureau of Soils. Functions assigned to Fertilizer Research Division, Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, 1927.

Textual Records: Correspondence and reports of the Nitrate Division, Office of the Chief of Ordnance, War Department, 1916- 19. General correspondence, 1919-29. Reports and correspondence of the laboratory, including records relating to work undertaken at the Muscle Shoals, AL, nitrate plant, 1919-25. Technical reports, 1919-25. Letters sent, 1919-27. Correspondence with government agencies, 1924-25. Correspondence of the Physics, Chemical, Synthetic Ammonia, and Engineering Divisions, 1920-27.

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 54.5.3 Records of the Soil Chemistry and Physics Research
Division

History: Research in areas of soil chemistry and physics were functions of the Bureau of Soils and were initially centralized in Soil Chemistry and Soil Physics Divisions, ca. 1912. Transferred to Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, 1927, and vested in the Soil Chemistry and Physics Division of the Soil Investigations unit. Redesignated Soil Chemistry and Physics Research Division, July 1, 1935. Transferred to BPI by Secretary's Memorandum 784, October 6, 1938, as the Division of Soil Chemistry and Physics. Consolidated with BPI Divisions of Soil Microbiology and Fertilizer Research (SEE 54.5.1) to form the Division of Soil and Fertilizer Investigations (DSFI), 1942. DSFI consolidated with Division of Irrigation Agriculture (SEE 54.3.23) and assigned, as the Divisions of Soils, Fertilizers, and Irrigation (DSFI), to the Soil Divisions unit, BPISAE, 1946. DSFI divided, 1948, into Division of Soil Management and Irrigation (SEE 54.3.23) and Division of Fertilizer and Agricultural Lime (SEE 54.5.1), 1951.

Textual Records: Records relating to moisture studies, 1903. Well survey records, 1910. Records relating to the examination of soil samples, 1917-26. General administrative records, 1937-42. Miscellaneous soil analyses and crop experiment records of division chief Lyle T. Alexander, 1943-51.

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 54.5.4 Records of the Soil Survey Division

History: Soil survey work initiated by Division of Agricultural Soils, 1898. Soil Survey Division established in Bureau of Soils by 1912. Transferred to Bureau of Chemistry and Soils, 1927, where it was a component of the Soil Investigations unit until July 1, 1935. Transferred to BPI by Secretary's Memorandum 784, October 6, 1938. Assigned to Soil Divisions unit, BPISAE, 1946. Redesignated U.S. Soil Survey, Soil Group, 1951. Soil Survey assigned to Soil Conservation Service, 1952, and BPISAE unit redesignated Division of Soil and Plant Relationships, Soil Group. Became Soil-Plant Relationships Section, Soil and Water Conservation Research Branch, ARS, 1953.

Textual Records: Soil survey reports, 1899-1927 (395 ft.). Correspondence relating to soil management at Goldsboro, NC, 1902. Reports on Georgia farm soils, 1907. Reports on field investigations, including forest land classification and soil investigations in MD, NJ, and NY, 1914-19. Correspondence relating to peat investigations, 1933-36. Clippings relating to soil surveys, ca. 1912. Correspondence and reports on soil surveys and analyses, 1922-42. Soil studies, NC and OR counties, 1911. Soil survey records, "Sassafras Series," Eastern Shore, MD, 1910.

Maps (39,317 items): Manuscript soil survey field sheets, 1898- 1953 (37,000 items). County soil surveys, 1898-1954 (2,237 items). Status of soil surveys, United States and Alaska, 1911-51 (8 items). Alkali soils, western United States, 1900-36 (44 items). Underground water, counties in western United States, 1900-4 (10 items). United States soil regions, soil provinces, soil associations, and distribution of parent soils, 1931-38 (6 items). Alaska soil associations, 1950 (1 item). Soil groups in the northern Shelterbelt, n.d. (1 item). Cotton Belt soil regions, 1917 (1 item). Geological formations and effects of glaciation in Ohio, 1900 (2 items). Land classification, adaptability, and potential, Washington State, 1909-11 (7 items). SEE ALSO 54.6.

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 54.6 CARTOGRAPHIC RECORDS (GENERAL)
1912-13 and n.d.

Charts (19 items): Department of Agriculture organization charts, 1912-13.

Architectural and Engineering Plans (7 items): Floor plans, unidentified facility, n.d.

SEE Maps UNDER 54.5.1 and 54.5.4.
SEE Maps and Charts UNDER 54.3.18.
SEE Architectural and Engineering Plans UNDER 54.3.1, 54.3.15, and 54.4.

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 54.7 STILL PICTURES (GENERAL)
1813-1953

Photographs (3,663 images): BPI facilities and personnel, 1928-41 (C, 163 images). Personnel, facilities, and activities of personnel of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering; and plant types by bureau photographer Wilfred J. Mead, 1941-53 (M, 3,500 images).

Photographic Prints (1 image): Panoramic view of an unidentified area showing a field area bounded on the left by a river, containing the notation "Yurac 1950, Dr. Kenoling(?) at Beltsville 11/6/51," 1950 (PAN).

Glass negatives (199 images): Panama-Pacific International Exposition, San Francisco, CA; parks in CA, PA, NY, and DC; and trees and flowers, 1913-16 (SN).

SEE Photographs UNDER 54.3.1, 54.3.6, 54.3.8, 54.3.11, 54.3.12, 54.3.15, 54.3.17, 54.3.18, and 54.3.20.
SEE Photographic Prints UNDER 54.3.7, 54.3.15, and 54.3.21.
SEE Photographic Negatives UNDER 54.3.10.
SEE Color Slides UNDER 54.3.12 and 54.3.18.
SEE Lantern Slides UNDER 54.3.7 and 54.3.12.


Bibliographic note: Web version based on Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States. Compiled by Robert B. Matchette et al. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995.
3 volumes, 2428 pages.

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