Skip to main content

Oliver C. Dunn papers

 Collection — Multiple Containers
Identifier: MSF 526

Scope and Contents

This collection includes a brief history of Purdue University Libraries as well as correspondence, floor plans, purchase orders, statistics, and related materials on various Purdue Libraries: Aero Library, Agricultural Economics Library, Black Cultural Center, Chemistry Library Expansion, Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering Library, Civil Engineering Library in Grissom, Electrical Engineering Library, Engineering Library collections, Engineering Science Library, Home Economics Library, Life Sciences Library, Industrial Management Library, Mechanical Engineering Library, and the libraries at the Calumet and Fort Wayne campuses.

The collection also contains materials related to the commissioning of calligrapher Ray DaBoll to make memorials for Krannert, Wright, Wainwright, Estey, Goda, Rogers, Scarseth, and Buettner.

Dates

  • Creation: 1951-1972

Creator

Languages of Materials

Collection material is in English.

Access Information

This collection is open for research.

Use and Copyright Information

Copyright restrictions may apply.

Biographical Information

Oliver C. Dunn was born in 1909 in California. He earned his Bachelors (1930) and Masters (1934) from Stanford and his Ph.D. from Cornell in 1937. In 1948, he also earned a Bachelors of Library Science from Berkeley. Dunn began his career as associate director of libraries at the California Institute of Technology. In 1953, he moved to West Lafayette and became the assistant director and later associate director of libraries at Purdue until his retirement in 1975. After retiring, he was granted professor emeritus status at Purdue.

Notable points of his career include the planning and developing of libraries in Peru, India, Columbia, and Lebanon. Dunn's interests included architecture, landscape design, antiquarian books, and the history of exploration, and he was a member of the Hakluyt Society and the Society for the History of Discoveries. He passed away at age 88 on July 21, 1998.

Extent

2.572 Cubic Feet (One flat map box and three legal-size full-width manuscript boxes)

Acquisition Information

Collection donated by Oliver C. Dunn.

Processing Information

All materials have been rehoused in acid-free folders and boxes. Staples and paper clips have been removed.

Title
Oliver C. Dunn papers
Status
In Progress
Author
Sarah Kenny
Date
2018-10-10
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English
Edition statement
Second edition.

Revision Statements

  • 2018-10-10: Changed collection identifier from dunnoc0 to MSF 526. Rehoused collection in archival boxes and folders and record updated by Sarah Kenny.

Repository Details

Part of the Purdue University Archives and Special Collections Repository

Contact:
504 Mitch Daniels Boulevard
West Lafayette Indiana 47907 United States
765-494-2839