THEODORE DRU ALISON COCKERELL PAPERS
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
Of interest in this collection are the twenty-three love letters Theodore Cockerell wrote to Wilmatte Porter, his second wife. Most were written in 1900, while Cockerell taught entomology at the New Mexico Agricultural College. Also in the collection are reprints of articles Cockerell wrote while teaching at the University of Colorado in Boulder, a few letters to Wilmatte from other people, her notes on the Okapi and clippings about their development of the Red Sunflower. There are several printed letters to Theodore Cockerell from his brother Douglas describing the effects of the World War II on day-to-day British life, and a similar letter from Dr. David Kerr. The printer/publisher of these letters is unknown.
This series, arranged by date, contains twenty-three handwritten letters by Theodore Cockerell to Wilmatte Porter during their courtship and first year of marriage (1900). Three letters are undated, but the address is Mesilla Park where Cockerell lived while teaching at the New Mexico Agricultural College, so it is likely they were written in 1900. His last letter is undated and the address is The University of Colorado at Boulder. There is correspondence that was apparently printed or published by Cockerell, two with additions by Wilmatte Cockerell. There is correspondence from the Pan-American Agricultural School in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and a series of printed letters from Cockerell’s brother, Douglas Cockerell, written in England during World War II.
Reprints of Cockerell’s articles are arranged by author and date. Their subjects include education, natural history, bees, the Red Sunflower, book reviews and the naturalists Spencer Fullerton Baird, Samuel Hubbard Scudder and Kate Olivia Sessions. There are handwritten notes, poems, and two small sketches on note cards done by Cockerell. Notes by Wilmatte Cockerell on her study of the Okapi are included.
This series contains scientific reprints of interest to Cockerell. It includes a brochure about the Escuela Agricola Panamericana (The Pan-American Agricultural School) and a typewritten description of the school and curriculum, perhaps written by Cockerell.
Christmas cards and a set of postcards from Java comprise this small series.
Dates
- 1900-1949
ACCESS:
The collection is open for research.
OWNERSHIP:
Theodore Dru Alison Cockerell Papers are the physical property of the Denver Public Library.
PUBLICATION RIGHTS:
All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from material in the collection should be discussed with the appropriate librarian or archivist. Permission for publication may be given on behalf of the Denver Public Library as the owner of the physical item. It is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which also must be obtained by the customer. The Library does not assume any responsibility for infringement of copyright or publication rights of the manuscript held by the writer, heirs, donors, or executors. Reproduction restrictions are decided on a case-by-case basis.
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Theodore Dru Alison Cockerell was born in Norwood, England, on August 22, 1866. His father was a naturalist and an avid reader of Darwin. Cockerell worked in London until the age of 20 in flourmills. He helped Alfred Russell Wallace prepare the 2nd edition of Wallace’s book Island Life, which was published in 1881. Cockerell came to the United States in 1887 after contracting tuberculosis. He lived in Westcliff, Colorado for three years before he returned to England to work in the British Museum of Natural History. Later, he accepted a job as curator of the Public Museum in Kingston, Jamaica. In 1893, Cockerell suffered a reoccurrence of tuberculosis, which prompted him to "exchange jobs" with his friend Charles Henry Tyler Townsend at the New Mexico Agricultural College, Mesilla Park, New Mexico.
In 1900, he courted and married Wilmatte Porter. In 1904, they moved to Boulder, Colorado where he taught at the University of Colorado until his retirement in 1934. Wilmatte taught biology at Boulder High School. Cockerell studied and traveled extensively with Wilmatte, and together, they developed the Red Sunflower. Cockerell also taught for many years during the winter in Tegucigalpa, Honduras at the Pan-American Agricultural School, maintained by the United Fruit Company. Throughout his life he made contributions that advanced the study of evolution, scale insects and bees. He died on January 26, 1948.
Extent
1 box(es) (.25 linear feet)
Language of Materials
English
Other Finding Aids
PROVENANCE:
The Theodore Dru Alison Cockerell Papers came to the Denver Public Library while Arthur Carhart was a consultant with the Conservation Collection
SIZE:
Number of Boxes: 1 (.25 linear ft.)
LOCATION:
CONS138
PROCESSED BY:
Elizabeth Happy
November 1999
REVISED AND ENCODED BY:
Claudia Jensen
October 2004
PROJECT MANAGER:
Ellen Zazzarino
- England -- Social conditions -- 20th century. Subject Source: Lcnaf
- Letters (Correspondence) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Okapi Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Sunflowers -- Varieties. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Title
- THEODORE DRU ALISON COCKERELL PAPERS
- Date
- 2004
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Denver Public Library, Western History and Genealogy Repository
