Frank Horsfall, Jr., Papers

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Special Collections, University Libraries (0434)
Newman Library
Virginia Tech
P.O. Box 90001
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24062-9001
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (540) 231-6308
Fax: (540) 231-3694
Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction. Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Frank Horsfall, Jr., Papers, Ms1992-040, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
0.7 Cubic Feet 2 boxes
Creator:
Horsfall, Frank, Jr., 1903-1988
Abstract:
This collection includes the papers of Virginia Tech professor of horticulture Frank Horsfall, Jr., including his thesis and dissertation, awards and honors, writings, and materials on his interests in barbed wire and primitive tools.
Language:
The materials in the collection are in English.
Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Frank Horsfall, Jr., Papers, Ms1992-040, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains the papers of Frank Horsfall, Jr., a professor of horticulture at Virginia Tech from 1947 to 1973. The collection includes materials relating to both Horsfall's professional career and personal interests. In addition to Horsfall's University of Missouri thesis (1932) and dissertation (1935), the collection contains published copies of several horticulture-related articles written by Horsfall. The collection also contains awards received by Horsfall and a file devoted to his retirement, including letters from Virginia Tech President T. Marshall Hahn and Virginia Governor Linwood Holton, as well as the text of a retirement speech delivered by Horsfall. Horsfall's interest in barbed wire is represented by various articles, notes, and letters on the subject, as well as a small collection of barbed wire samples. A folder relating to stone tools, another of Horsfall's interests, includes printed materials and a collection of drawings by Horsfall. The collection is completed by an assortment of newspaper clippings, ephemera, and photographs, which includes Horsfall's Boy Scouts of America membership card, Fort Snelling ROTC Infantry Camp pass, Civil Air Patrol certificate, World War II draft classification, and three photos of an unidentified locomotive.

Biographical / historical:

Frank Horsfall, Jr., son of Frank and Margaret Atwood Horsfall, was born in Missouri on July 7, 1903. By 1910, he was living with his family in Helena, Oklahoma; the 1920 census found the family living in Monticello, Arkansas. Horsfall was still living in Monticello when he married Louise Richardson on December 22, 1928, and by 1930, the couple was living in Idabel, Oklahoma, where Horsfall was employed as a public school teacher. He obtained his master's (1932) and Ph.D. (1935) in horticulture at the University of Missouri, and evidence suggests that Horsfall remained at the University of Missouri for several years, working at the Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station. He also worked at Northwest Missouri State University and is credited with assembling the collection that would become the nucleus of the university's agriculture museum. Horsfall was hired as a professor of horticulture at Virginia Tech in 1947 and served in that position until retiring in 1973. Frank Horsfall, Jr. died in Roanoke, Virginia on March 21, 1988.

Acquisition information:
The Frank Horsfall, Jr., Papers were donated to Special Collections in three accessions in 1992 and 1995.
Processing information:

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Frank Horsfall, Jr., Papers commenced and was completed in June 2013.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged by subject matter.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard