Elon Howard Eaton papers, 1877-2009

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: SC-11

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The papers of Elon Howard Eaton, Professor of Biology at Hobart and William Smith Colleges from 1908 to 1935, are contained in 3 boxes. The papers include materials of professional as well as personal significance, compiled over the course of his life, as well as materials gathered by his family after his death. Major components of the papers include correspondence, biographical information, family information, material related to his publications, bird lists and research, bird photography, news articles, notes, official documents, and teaching materials. All material dates from between 1877 and 2009. Boxes 2 and 3 of the collection were originally organized and collected by Professor EatonΓÇÖs son, Stephen W. Eaton, and many of the folders contain inventory lists and notes that he provided. These materials have been kept in the order in which they were received.

Dates

1877-2009
Majority of material found within 1877-1935

Creator

Eaton, Elon Howard, 1866-1934 (Person)

Biographical Note

Elon Howard Eaton was born in Springville, New York, on October 8, 1866 to Luzerne and Sophia Eaton. He was a member of the faculty of Hobart and William Smith Colleges from 1908 to 1935. He received his A.B. and M.A. degrees from the University of Rochester in 1890 and 1893, respectively. Afterwards, he taught in secondary schools for 15 years, and came to Hobart and the newly founded William Smith College in 1908, establishing a department of biology. Professor Eaton taught courses in biology, ornithology, and hygiene, among others, and was chairman of the department for 26 years.

He is perhaps best known for his books on the birds of New York, his studies and surveys for state and local governments, and serving as state ornithologist and curator of the New York State Museum. His most important contribution was ΓÇ£Birds of New YorkΓÇ¥, which at the time of its publication in 1910 was the most complete treatise on birds in any state.

Professor Eaton married Gertrude Yeames in 1909, with whom he had two children, Elizabeth and Elon Howard Eaton, Jr. After Gertrude's death he married Esther Woodman in 1915 and had two more children, Mary and Stephen Woodman Eaton. Elon Howard Eaton died on March 27, 1935, of heart disease at his home in Geneva.

Extent

3 Linear Feet (3 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Elon Howard Eaton, 1866-1935, was a faculty member in the Hobart and William Smith Colleges' Biology Department from 1908-1935, author of Birds of New York, and winner of the 1992 Distinguished Faculty award. This is a collection of his papers compiled over the course of his life and after, which includes correspondence, biographical information, family information, material related to his publications, bird lists and research, bird photography, news articles, notes, official documents, and teaching materials. Additional materials donated in 2011 by Eaton's son Stephen include information on Elon H. Eaton gathered after his death.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in the following series:

Biographical materials
Correspondence
Personal records
Photographs
Diplomas
"Elon Howard Eaton: Scholar and Scientist," by Mary Alice Herendeen Flocken, 1936
Additional materials received June 2011

Location

Box 1: Archives Office, Section 4

Box 2-3: Archives Storage, Range 22B, Section 1

Provenance

The provenance of Series I-VI is unknown. The materials in Serives VII were given to the Archives and Special Collections by Elon H. Eaton's son Stephen Eaton in June, 2011.

Separated Material

Diplomas have been removed to Archives Storage Flat File Drawer 7.

Subjects

Biographical sources Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Biology Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Bird watching Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Birds Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Burtch, Verdi
Conservation of natural resources Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Correspondence Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Eaton, Esther Woodman
Eaton, Gertrude
Evolution Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Family records Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Fuertes, Louis Agassiz
Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Laurie, Mary Eaton
Manuscripts Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Ornithology Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Stone, C. F.
Taxidermy Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Trees Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Wildlife photography Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Wildlife research Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings