Collection Summary
Edgar Alexander Mearns Papers
1864-1918
1876-1916
1864-1918
1876-1916
MSS32490
Mearns, Edgar Alexander, 1856-1916
5,850 items
18 containers plus 3 oversize
8.4 linear feet
English
Collection material in English
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Naturalist and U.S. Army surgeon.
Correspondence, reports, printed matter, newspaper clippings, and miscellaneous material
chiefly relating to Mearns's activities as a collector of data on animal and plant life,
on his participation in the Smithsonian African Expedition of 1909, and his duties and
assignments as an army surgeon.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC
Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and
by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Mearns family.
Mearns, Edgar Alexander, 1856-1916.
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919--Correspondence.
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919.
Organizations
Smithsonian African Expedition (1909)
United States. Army--Medical care.
Subjects
Botany.
Natural history.
Scientific expeditions--Africa.
Zoology.
Places
Africa--Description and travel.
Africa--Discovery and exploration.
Occupations
Army surgeons.
Naturalists.
Acquisition Information
The papers of Edgar Alexander Mearns, naturalist and U.S. Army surgeon, were given to
the Library of Congress by Charles W. Richmond, 1924-1926.
Processing History
The papers of Edgar Alexander Mearns were arranged and described by Kate Stewart in 1962
and 1978. The finding aid was revised in 2012.
Transfers
Some photographs received with the Mearns Papers have been transferred to the Library's
Prints and Photographs Division where they are identified as part of these papers.
Other Repositories
A collection of Edgar Alexander Mearns is also at the Smithsonian Institution Archives,
Washington, D.C.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Edgar Alexander Mearns is
governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Edgar Alexander Mearns are open to research. Researchers are advised to
contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored
off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information:
Container number, Edgar Alexander Mearns Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of
Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1856, Sept. 11
Born, Highland Falls, N.Y.
1881
Graduated, College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, N.Y.
Married Ella Wittich
1883
Entered United States Army as assistant surgeon with rank of first lieutenant;
assigned to duty at Fort Verde, Ariz.
1891
Appointed medical officer, Mexican United States International Boundary
Commission
1892
1894
Explored boundary area from El Paso, Tex. to San Clemente Island, collecting
flora and fauna in the region
1894
1903
Continued natural history investigations while stationed at Fort Myer, Va.;
Fort Clark, Tex.; Fort Adams, R.I.; and Fort Yellowstone
1903
1907
Served two separate terms of duty in Philippine Islands
1909
Retired from army with rank of lieutenant colonel
Naturalist, Smithsonian African Expedition, on invitation of Theodore
Roosevelt
1911
1912
Visited Africa on a scientific expedition
1916, Nov. 1
Died, Washington, D.C.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Edgar Alexander Mearns (1856-1916) span the years 1864-1918, with the bulk
of the material concentrated in the period 1876-1916. The collection consists primarily
of correspondence, supplemented by reports, printed matter, newspaper clippings, and
miscellaneous material. The papers are organized into six series: [ Family Correspondence ](famcorrepond), [ General Correspondence
](gencorrepond), [ Military
Correspondence ](milcorrepond), [ Special Correspondence ](speccorrepond), [ Miscellany ](miscella), and [ Oversize ](overs).
The collection focuses on Mearns’s career as a naturalist and army officer.
Correspondence dealing with his activities as a collector of data on animal and plant
life and as an army surgeon is scattered throughout the collection, but the [ Special Correspondence
](speccorrepond) series mainly pertains to Mearns’s scientific concerns whereas the [ Military Correspondence
](milcorrepond) series deals with his army duties. The [ Miscellany ](miscella) includes reports, printed matter, and clippings
relating to both scientific and military matters.
Mearns’s private and family papers form the basis of the [ Family Correspondence ](famcorrepond) series, and a
large portion of the [
General Correspondence ](gencorrepond) consists of letters from personal friends and
colleagues. Both series also contain references to Mearns’s scientific activities. A
section of the [ Special
Correspondence ](speccorrepond) relating to the Smithsonian African expedition of 1909 includes
several letters from Theodore Roosevelt.
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged in six series:
-
[ Family Correspondence,
1883-1910 ](famcorrepond)
-
[ General
Correspondence, 1864-1918 ](gencorrepond)
-
[ Military
Correspondence, 1880-1911 ](milcorrepond)
-
[ Special
Correspondence, circa 1877-1916 ](speccorrepond)
-
[ Miscellany, circa
1880-1916 ](miscella)
-
[ Oversize, circa 1891-1898
](overs)
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/mm78032490]
Container List
Container
Contents
1
Family Correspondence, 1883-1910
1883-1910
Letters between Mearns and members of his family.
Arranged chronologically by month.
1
1883-1919, undated
1883-1919,
undated
2-9
General Correspondence, 1864-1918
1864-1918
Primarily letters received by Mearns, supplemented by occasional letters sent.
Arranged chronologically by month.
2
1864-1880
1864-1880
3
1881-1884
1881-1884
4
1885-1891
1885-1891
5
1892-1898
1892-1898
6
1899-1900
1899-1900
7
1901-1903
1901-1903
8
1904-1908
1904-1908
9
1909-1918
1909-1918
10-11
Military Correspondence, 1880-1911
1880-1911
Letters sent and received by Mearns concerning his military duties, supplemented
by miscellaneous orders and records.
Arranged by type or topic.
10
Chronological, 1880-1908, undated
1880-1908, undated
11
Contract surgeon, 1898-1900
1898-1900
11
Expense account, George M. Barbour,
1907
1907
11
Information slips, Mearns, 1906
1906
11
Military messages, 1898
1898
11
Muster roll and payroll, 1893-1894
1893-1894
11
Military records, 1891-1894
1891-1894
11
Special orders, 1884-1911
1884-1911
11
Wittich, Willis, 1900
1900
12-15
Special Correspondence, circa 1877-1916
circa 1877-1916
Correspondence, related matter, and miscellaneous items concerning the
Smithsonian African expedition of 1909.
Arranged by name of person or subject.
12
African expedition,
1908-1911, undated
1908-1911,
undated
13
Allen, J. A., 1877-1916
1877-1916
13
Anthony, A. W., 1886-1898
1886-1898
13
Botanical and ornithological,
1903-1907
1903-1907
14
Dunham, W. R., 1909
1909
14
Earliest military history, 1882-1883
1882-1883
14
Hunting trip, 1887
1887
14
Mule litter, description of, 1887-1888
14
Newport Hospital, 1899-1902
1899-1902
14
Permit to visit Bulls Island, S.C.,
1911
1911
14
Regarding International Boundary Commission
14
General
14
1890-1893
1890-1893
15
1893-1895
1893-1895
15
Mearns, Edgar Alexander
15
Correspondence, 1891-1893
1891-1893
15
Special orders, 1891-1895
1891-1895
15
Report of vital statistics, Department of Cuba,
1901
1901
15
Scientific association, Philippine
15
Scientific information
15
Smithsonian African Expedition,
1909
[
See Container 12, African expedition ](con12smitafrexped)
1909
15
Zerega, Louis A. di
16-18
Miscellany, circa 1880-1916
circa 1880-1916
Account book, reports, papers, articles, notices, lists, and printed matter.
Arranged alphabetically by subject or type of material, with newspaper clippings
filed at the end.
16
Account books
16
Acknowledgments
16
Articles and poems by Mearns
16
Blank forms and instruction sheet, military
16
Blueprint of bridge
16
Calling cards
16
Cliff dwellings
16
District of Columbia Medical Society, notices
16
Entertainment
16
Inaugural thesis
16
Index to register of patients, International
Boundary Commission, circa 1891-1894
[
See Oversize
](con16indexov)
circa 1891-1894
16
Letterbooks, 1898
[
See Oversize
](con16letbookov)
1898
16
Linnaean Society
16
Dues receipts
16
Notices
16
Membership certificates
16
Meeting
16
Notebooks
16
Personnel returns
16
Printed matter
17
Printed matter
17
Purchase order books
17
Records
17
Reports
17
Scrapbook, Spanish-American War [
See Oversize
](con17scrapov)
17
Supply and equipment lists
17
West China Religious Tract Society
18
Yellowstone National Park
18
Newspaper clippings, chiefly 1909 Smithsonian
African expedition
OV 1-OV 3
Oversize,
circa 1891-1898
circa 1891-1898
Oversize letterbook, scrapbook, and index to register of patients.
Arranged and described according to the series and container from which the items
were removed.
OV 1
Miscellany
OV 1
Letterbooks, 1898
(Container 16)
OV 2
Index to register of
patients, International Boundary Commission, circa 1891-1894
(Container 16)
circa 1891-1894
(Container 16)
OV 3
Scrapbook, Spanish-American
War, 1898 (Container 17)
1898 (Container
17)