American Studies records

This collection primarily covers the period 1945 to 1959, with some scattered correspondence shortly before and after these dates. Most pertains to administrative matters, including dealings with such foundations as the Carnegie Corporation, (which sponsored a seminar on science and technology in the U.S.), the Danforth and the Ford Foundations, the activities of the American Studies Association, summer activities of the American Studies program and a seminar on the centenary of Harpers Ferry, at which Martin Luther King was one of many notable individuals invited to speak. Tremaine McDowell's personal and professional activities are well documented in this collection. He was especially interested in American literature and conducted notable research on the poet William Cullen Bryant.

Material of Mary Turpie, David Noble and Gayle Graham Yates, long-term faculty members in the department, are represented in the collection. Materials of Mulford Q. Sibley found in the collection have been removed and placed in the Mulford Q. Sibley papers.