Ernst A. Bessey Papers

Record Group

Identifier: UA-17.5

Staff Only

Content Description

The Ernst A. Bessey Papers includes personal and professional correspondence from 1935 to 1956. Topics include botany, various national and international science organizations, research, and publications. Of note are a few letters from Albert Einstein.

Dates

Creation: 1935 - 1956

Creator

Bessey, Ernst Athearn, 1877-1957 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Permission to publish material from this collection must be obtained from University Archives & Historical Collections, Michigan State University.

Biographical Note

Born in Ames, Iowa, Ernst Athearn Bessey became an internationally known botanist specializing in mycology. He received his A.B., B.S., and M.A. from the University of Nebraska in 1896, 1897, and 1898 respectively.

Between 1899 and 1908, Ernst Bessey worked for the United States Department of Agriculture. From 1902 to 1904, he traveled extensively in Russia, the Caucuses, Upper Armenia, the Trans-Caspian provinces, Russian Turkestan, Algeria, and central Europe on an agricultural mission for the Office of Seed and Plant Introduction. Interspersed with his travels, Ernst studied at the University of Halle, Germany, receiving a PhD in 1904.

From 1908 to 1910, Ernst served as a professor of botany and bacteriology at Louisiana State University. He spent the remainder of his career, from 1910 until his retirement in 1946, at Michigan State College (now Michigan State University). He succeeded W. J. Beal as professor of botany from 1910 to 1920, was made head of the Botany Department in 1920, and later served as acting dean of the Applied Science Division from 1927 to 1930. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Graduate School at Michigan State, and became its first dean in 1930.

In 1946, he retired, and was named professor emeritus of the Graduate School.

He married Edith Carleton Higgins of Omaha, Nebraska, and had two sons. He died on July 17, 1957, in East Lansing.

Extent

1.5 Cubic Feet (Papers)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Related Archival Materials

See also Bessey Family papers, 1878-1968 (UA 10.3.416), at the University Archives and Historical Collections, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.

See also Charles E. Bessey papers, 1869-1932 (UA 10.3.157), at the University Archives and Historical Collections, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.

Legal Status

Donor(s) have transferred any applicable copyright to Michigan State University but the collection may contain third-party materials for which copyright was not transferred. Copyright restrictions may apply. Property Rights: Michigan State University.