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Finding Aids to Personal Papers and Special Collections in the Smithsonian Institution Archives

Record Unit 7310

Blake, Doris Holmes, 1892-1978

Doris Holmes Blake Papers, 1899-1985

Repository:Smithsonian Institution Archives, Washington, D.C. Contact us at osiaref@si.edu.
Creator:Blake, Doris Holmes, 1892-1978
Title:Doris Holmes Blake Papers
Dates:1899-1985
Quantity:18.5 cu. ft. (37 document boxes)
Collection:Record Unit 7310
Language of Materials:English
Summary:

These papers contain the professional correspondence of Doris Holmes Blake, primarily concerning the exchange and identification of beetles. The papers also contain Blake's correspondence with family and friends, including many letters from her husband, Sydney Fay Blake. Doris Holmes Blake kept extensive diaries for seventy-five years recording mundane details and her most personal thoughts. To preserve her privacy, the diaries, while in English, were written in Old German script, making them difficult to decipher. Some of Blake's entomological and botanical sketches, as well as her non-academic writing, are also included. The papers also include a number of photographs of Blake and her family and of entomologists, both at the Smithsonian and at USDA.

Historical Note

Doris Holmes (1892-1978) was born in Stoughton, Massachusetts, to a middle-class grocer and his wife. Essentially an only child (two siblings died in early childhood and infancy), her natural intelligence, stubbornness, and extremely competitive nature were well fostered by her parents, who steadily encouraged and supported her determination to excel.

Holmes left Stoughton for Boston University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 1909, where she pursued studies in business and the classics, earning her A.B. in 1913. Her business skills led to her association with the Boston Psychopathic Hospital in 1913, initially as a clerk, and later as aide to Dr. Herman Adler. Her interests in science and psychology led her to an A.M. from Radcliffe College in zoology and psychology in 1917.

After a short time as a researcher at Bedford Hills Reformatory for Women, Holmes married her childhood sweetheart, botanist Sidney Fay Blake. Early in 1919, Doris Blake found work as a clerk for the Department of Agriculture's Bureau of Entomology under Frank H. Chittenden, and began the entomological studies that would continue for the rest of her life.

Blake worked her way up to junior entomologist and, when Chittenden retired, continued her work under Eugene A. Schwarz at the United States National Museum. The birth in 1928 of daughter Doris Sidney (an infant son had died shortly after birth in 1927) was not a sign for her to slow down -- Blake hired a nurse to watch the baby while she continued to watch beetles. In 1933 her official employment came to an end with the institution of regulations prohibiting more than one member of a family from holding a government position (Sidney Blake was then working for the Department of Agriculture).

Although no longer on the payroll, Blake continued her taxonomic work on the family Chrysomelides for almost 45 more years, first as a collaborator and then as a research associate of the Smithsonian Institution. Shortly after her husband's death, Blake traveled to Europe in 1960 on a National Science Foundation grant to revise the genus Neobrotica Jacoby. She ultimately published 97 papers in various journals (see "Doris Holmes Blake," Froeschner, Froeschner and Cartwright, Proc. Entomol. Soc. Wash., 83(3), 1981, for a complete bibliography) and continued her active research until shortly before her death on December 3, 1978.

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Introduction

This finding aid was digitized with funds generously provided by the Smithsonian Institution Women’s Committee.

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Descriptive Entry

The Doris Holmes Blake papers consist of correspondence, diaries, photographs and related materials documenting in great detail Blake's personal life and, to a lesser degree, her professional career.

The heavy correspondence she maintained with her mother and daughter, her essays and children's books, and the 70 years' worth of daily journals all attest to her infatuation with the written word and preoccupation with her inner life. Blake's diaries and family papers stunningly illuminate the contrasts in the daily lives of herself, her mother, and her daughter.

The papers relating to her professional life are less complete. Although she spent almost 60 years (1919-1978) in association with the entomological staffs of the U. S. Department of Agriculture and the Smithsonian Institution, published numerous professional papers, produced all of her own illustrations, and illustrated many of her husband's botanical works as well, this collection contains only a very limited amount of material documenting those activities. The papers do, however, include her extensive correspondence with fellow entomologists, both in the United States and abroad.

In the course of transferring her husband's papers to the University of Texas, some of Blake's own papers were included as well. They are presently in the collection of the Humanities Research Center of the University of Texas at Austin and include letters to her parents, 1906-1950; school and college notebooks, papers, essays and drawings; and clippings, genealogical notes, and miscellaneous family letters and papers.

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Preferred Citation

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 7310, Doris Holmes Blake Papers

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Container List

Series 1

PROFESSIONAL CORRESPONDENCE AND PAPERS, CIRCA 1918-1978, ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY.

This series contains correspondence and a very small amount of other materials relating to Blake's entomological activities and studies.

Correspondents include professional colleagues; private collectors; and staff members of institutions such as the California Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Agriculture of Brazil, the USDA Bureau of Entomology, and the Smithsonian.

Because Blake did not keep a collection of her own, all her taxonomic determinations were made on materials belonging to the U. S. Department of Agriculture, the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian, or other collections. Thus, a large part of the correspondence deals with the borrowing and lending of specimens.

Other materials included here, such as fragments of research notes, notebooks, and some publications are indicated in the folder list.

Box 1

Folder 1 A, general

Box 1 of 37

Folder 2 Atkinson, Thomas H., Jr., 1974-1975

Box 1 of 37

Folder 3 Ba-Be, general

Box 1 of 37

Folder 4 Balsbaugh, Edward U., Jr., 1960-1977

Box 1 of 37

Folder 5 Banks, Nathan, 1924-1945 and undated

Box 1 of 37

Folder 6 Barr, William F., 1951-1969

Box 1 of 37

Folder 7 Barro, Manuel, 1932-1971

Box 1 of 37

Folder 8 Bequaert, Joseph Charles, 1945-1950. Includes photographs.

Box 1 of 37

Folder 9 Berti, Nicole, 1970-1978

Box 1 of 37

Folder 10 Bi-By, general

Box 1 of 37

Folder 11 Blair, Kenneth G., 1927-1932

Box 1 of 37

Folder 12 Brisley, Harold R., 1931-1933

Box 1 of 37

Folder 13 Brown, W. J., 1941-1960

Box 1 of 37

Folder 14 Bruner, Stephen Cole, 1929-1941

Box 1 of 37

Folder 15 Bruner, Stephen Cole, 1942-1951

Box 1 of 37

Folder 16 Bryant, G. E., 1950-1958

Box 1 of 37

Folder 17 C, general

Box 1 of 37

Folder 18 California Academy of Sciences, Department of Entomology 1928-1974 and undated. Includes correspondence with Frank E. Blaisdell, Sr., Alice Eastwood, David H. Kavanaugh, Edward S. Ross, E. P. Van Duzee, and Edwin C. Van Dyke.

Box 1 of 37

Folder 19 Carr, F. S., 1929-1933

Box 1 of 37

Box 2

Folder 1 Chittenden, Frank Hurlburt, 1901-1929 and undated. Includes Chittenden's correspondence with August Busck, Daniel William Coquillett, Charles Popenoe, A. C. Ruggles, E. A. Schwarz; obituary; photographs; copy of "Lema Trilineata Oliv. (Coleop.) controlled by an Egg Parasite." See also United States Department of Agriculture.

Box 2 of 37

Folder 2 Colorado State College (formerly Colorado Agricultural College), 1932-1949. Includes correspondence with Clarence Preston Gillette, Maurice T. James, George M. List, Sam McCampbell, Miriam A. Palmer.

Box 2 of 37

Folder 3 Costa-Lima, Angelo M. da, 1952-1955

Box 2 of 37

Folder 4 Cresson, Ezra Townsend, Jr., 1926-1944

Box 2 of 37

Folder 5 D, general

Box 2 of 37

Folder 6 Darlington, Philip Jackson, Jr., 1930-1950

Box 2 of 37

Folder 7 Darlington, Philip Jackson, Jr., 1951-1971 and undated

Box 2 of 37

Folder 8 Davis, John J., 1942-1950

Box 2 of 37

Folder 9 Dodge, Harold Rodney, 1954-1970

Box 2 of 37

Folder 10 Duncan, Douglas K., 1931-1943

Box 2 of 37

Folder 11 E, general Includes photograph of Juan Esteban.

Box 2 of 37

Folder 12 F, general

Box 2 of 37

Folder 13 Fall, Henry Clinton, 1926-1937

Box 2 of 37

Folder 14 Farr, Thomas H., 1961-1967

Box 2 of 37

Folder 15 Farr, Thomas H., 1968-1977

Box 2 of 37

Folder 16 Frost, Charles A., 1929-1955

Box 2 of 37

Folder 17 Frost, Stuart W., 1926-1962

Box 2 of 37

Folder 18 G, general

Box 2 of 37

Folder 19 Gentner, Louis G., 1924-1955

Box 2 of 37

Folder 20 H, general

Box 2 of 37

Box 3

Folder 1 Hatch, Melville Harrison, 1931-1977 and undated

Box 3 of 37

Folder 2 Hicks, Stanton D., 1944-1956

Box 3 of 37

Folder 3 Hinton, Howard E., 1948-1949

Box 3 of 37

Folder 4 Hoffrtan, William A., 1929-1939

Box 3 of 37

Folder 5 Hopping, Ralph, 1924-1941. Includes copy of "A New Buprestid from British Columbia, with Notes on the Genus Buprestis."

Box 3 of 37

Folder 6 Howden, Henry F., 1951-1971. Includes correspondence with Dr. Anne T. Howden.

Box 3 of 37

Folder 7 Illinois State Natural History Survey 1930-1951. Includes correspondence with Theodore H. Frison, Carl O. Mohr, Herbert H. Ross. See also Milton W. Sanderson.

Box 3 of 37

Folder 8 J, general

Box 3 of 37

Folder 9 Jolivet, P., 1948-1977

Box 3 of 37

Folder 10 K, general

Box 3 of 37

Folder 11 Kinsey, Alfred C., 1922-1927

Box 3 of 37

Folder 12 Kuntzen, Heinrich, 1931

Box 3 of 37

Folder 13 L, general

Box 3 of 37

Folder 14 Larsson, Sv. G., 1971

Box 3 of 37

Folder 15 Leech, Hugh B., 1931-1974 and undated

Box 3 of 37

Folder 16 Loding, S. P., 1929-1942

Box 3 of 37

Folder 17 M, general

Box 3 of 37

Folder 18 Mail, G. Allen, 1931-1933

Box 3 of 37

Folder 19 Malaise, Rene, 1948-1953

Box 3 of 37

Folder 20 Maldonado Capriles, Jenaro 1962-1975

Box 3 of 37

Folder 21 Marshall, M. Y., 1940-1945

Box 3 of 37

Folder 22 Martorell, Luis F., 1934-1974

Box 3 of 37

Folder 23 Maulik, S., 1941-1950 and undated

Box 3 of 37

Box 4

Folder 1 Muntanola-Cvetkovic, Maria, 1965-1975. Includes photographs. See also Francisco de Asis and Maria Monros.

Box 4 of 37

Folder 2 Mutchler, Andrew J., 1930-1937

Box 4 of 37

Folder 3 N, general

Box 4 of 37

Folder 4 National Science Foundation (NSF). Contains correspondence, proposals, and reports relating to the two NSF grants (G 14827, 1960; GB-410, 1962) Blake received for performing a revision of the genus Neobrotica Jacoby.

Box 4 of 37

Folder 5 Ohio State University, 1922-1971. Includes correspondence with Sidney L. Pressey, Charles A. Triplehorn, Barry D. Valentine.

Box 4 of 37

Folder 6 Ostmark, H. Eugene, 1972-1978

Box 4 of 37

Folder 7 Otero, Angel R., 1931-1944

Box 4 of 37

Folder 8 P, general

Box 4 of 37

Folder 9 Pallister, John C., 1950-1969

Box 4 of 37

Folder 10 Pierce, W. Dwight, 1944-1956

Box 4 of 37

Folder 11 Pohl, Bruno, 1960-1964

Box 4 of 37

Folder 12 Pope, R. D., 1966-1972

Box 4 of 37

Folder 13 R, general

Box 4 of 37

Folder 14 Rozen, Jerome G., Jr., 1963-1964

Box 4 of 37

Folder 15 Ruppel, Robert F., 1960-1965 and undated

Box 4 of 37

Folder 16 Sa-Sm general. Includes photograph of Eugene Amandus Schwarz.

Box 4 of 37

Folder 17 Samuelson, G. A., 1965-1968

Box 4 of 37

Folder 18 Sanderson, Milton W., 1938-1974

Box 4 of 37

Folder 19 Schaffer, Charles, 1924-1933 and undated

Box 4 of 37

Folder 20 Scherer, Gerhard, 1960-1978 and undated. Includes photograph.

Box 4 of 37

Folder 21 Scott, Hugh, 1937

Box 4 of 37

Folder 22 Seeno, Terry N., 1975-1976

Box 4 of 37

Folder 23 Selman, B. J., 1961-1966

Box 4 of 37

Folder 24 Severin, Harry Charles 1930-1959

Box 4 of 37

Folder 25 Sherman, Franklin, 1930-1942

Box 4 of 37

Folder 26 Sherman, John D., Jr., 1933-1957 and undated.

Box 4 of 37

Box 5

Folder 1 Shute, Sharon, 1971-1978

Box 5 of 37

Folder 2 Smith, G. Stace, 1944-1945

Box 5 of 37

Folder 3 Smith, Ray Fred, 1949-1966

Box 5 of 37

Folder 4 Smithsonian Institution 1918-1978 and undated. Contains correspondence with Smithsonian Institution Press; routine office memos to and from members of the entomological department concerning sick leave, attendance, and loans of specimens. See also Series 7, Photographs.

Box 5 of 37

Folder 5 So-Sw, general

Box 5 of 37

Folder 6 Sommeijer, Marinus J., 1972-1973

Box 5 of 37

Folder 7 Stehlik, Jaroslav, 1969-1972

Box 5 of 37

Folder 8 Stirrett, George M., 1931-1945

Box 5 of 37

Folder 9 T, general

Box 5 of 37

Folder 10 Thompson, T. T., 1968-1972

Box 5 of 37

Folder 11 Torre-Bueno, J. R. de la, 1930-1939

Box 5 of 37

Folder 12 Tuxen, S. L. 1951-1976

Box 5 of 37

Folder 13 United States Civil Service Commission, 1918-1966

Box 5 of 37

Folder 14 United States Department of Agriculture, 1919-1935 and undated

Box 5 of 37

Folder 15 University of Kansas, Dept. of Entomology/Entomological Museum 1926-1974. Includes correspondence with Raymond Hill Beamer, Warwick Benedict, George W. Byers, Herbert Barker Hungerford.

Box 5 of 37

Folder 16 V, general

Box 5 of 37

Folder 17 Virkki, Niilo, 1964-1972

Box 5 of 37

Folder 18 W, general

Box 5 of 37

Folder 19 Watts, J. G., 1931-1937 and undated

Box 5 of 37

Folder 20 Werner, Floyd G., 1948-1974 and undated

Box 5 of 37

Folder 21 White, Burdette E., 1939-1949

Box 5 of 37

Folder 22 White, Janice C. 1973. See also Janice C. Scott.

Box 5 of 37

Box 6

Folder 1 Wilcox, John A., 1947-1962

Box 6 of 37

Folder 2 Wilcox, John A., 1963-1965

Box 6 of 37

Folder 3 Wilcox, John A., 1966-1976 and undated

Box 6 of 37

Folder 4 Wolcott, George Norton, 1941-1965

Box 6 of 37

Folder 5 Zayas, Fernando de, 1939-1976 and undated

Box 6 of 37

Folder 6 Zi-Zu, general

Box 6 of 37

Folder 7 Miscellaneous research notes, primarily undated fragments. Includes specimen loan invoices, lists of traded specimens.

Box 6 of 37

Folder 8 Item 1: Insect Morphology notebook, 1924; Item 2: Insect Morphology notebook, 1924-1925; Item 3: Insect Physiology notebook, 1925; and Item 4: notebook on Trirhabda, undated

Box 6 of 37

Series 2

PERSONAL CORRESPONDENCE, 1905-1978.

Blake's personal correspondence spanned more than 70 years, and involved chiefly childhood friends, college classmates, and cousins. One of her closest friends was economist Elizabeth E. Hoyt, with whom she corresponded faithfully from her first year in college until her death in 1978.

Other materials included here, such as photographs, biographical sketches, clippings and obituaries are noted in the folder list.

Box 6

Folder 9 A, general

Box 6 of 37

Folder 10 Adkinson, June, 1918-1969 and undated

Box 6 of 37

Folder 11 Adler, Herman M., 1913-1935. Includes photograph and obituary.

Box 6 of 37

Folder 12 Ba-Be, general

Box 6 of 37

Folder 13 Barry, Blanche, 1935-1951 and undated

Box 6 of 37

Folder 14 Beals, Charles E. and Nellie D., 1915-1930. Includes obituary of Charles Beals.

Box 6 of 37

Folder 15 Beals, Helen, 1909-1911

Box 6 of 37

Folder 16 Beals, Helen, 1912-1914 and undated

Box 6 of 37

Box 7

Folder 1 Beals, Robert V., 1931-May 1945

Box 7 of 37

Folder 2 Beals, Robert V., June 1945-1976 and undated. Includes photographs.

Box 7 of 37

Folder 3 Bi-Bu, general

Box 7 of 37

Folder 4 Bray, Madeline, 1905-1944. Includes photographs.

Box 7 of 37

Folder 5 C, general

Box 7 of 37

Folder 6 Chase, Mary Agnes, 1927-1940 and undated

Box 7 of 37

Folder 7 Cochran, Doris Mable, 1951-1968. Includes photograph, obituary and clippings.

Box 7 of 37

Folder 8 Colcord, Mabel, 1928-1953 and undated. Includes obituary.

Box 7 of 37

Folder 9 Cutting, Maud "Auntie" L., 1930-1953 and undated. See also Series 3, Doris Sidney Blake.

Box 7 of 37

Folder 10 D, general

Box 7 of 37

Folder 11 Dinsmore, Elizabeth, 1916-1954 and undated

Box 7 of 37

Folder 12 Drake, Evelyn, 1960-1975 and undated

Box 7 of 37

Folder 13 Drake, Hazel, 1941-1968 and undated

Box 7 of 37

Folder 14 E, general

Box 7 of 37

Folder 15 F, general

Box 7 of 37

Folder 16 Fowler, Helena "Lena" G., 1916-1964. See also Series 3, Arthur Lake Holmes and Lucy Wentworth Holmes.

Box 7 of 37

Folder 17 Fowler, Helena "Lena" G., undated

Box 7 of 37

Box 8

Folder 1 G, general

Box 8 of 37

Folder 2 Gardner, Julia Anna, 1926-1960 and undated. Includes obituaries and a memorial pamphlet published by the Geological Society of America, 1962. See also Series 7, Photographs.

Box 8 of 37

Folder 3 Geoffroy, Helen, 1927-1977 and undated

Box 8 of 37

Folder 4 Greene, Gertrude M., 1919-1933 and undated

Box 8 of 37

Folder 5 H, general. Includes photographs of Alma Hoge and family.

Box 8 of 37

Folder 6 Hepworth, Leonard and Prudence, 1963-1967

Box 8 of 37

Folder 7 Hermann, Frederick Joseph, 1960-1977 and undated

Box 8 of 37

Folder 8 Herrick, Ilga Elaine, 1916-1927

Box 8 of 37

Folder 9 Herrick, Ilga Elaine, 1928-1948 and undated

Box 8 of 37

Folder 10 Hoyt, Elizabeth E., 1911-1928. Includes draft of character sketch of Elizabeth Hoyt by Doris Blake.

Box 8 of 37

Folder 11 Hoyt, Elizabeth E., 1929-1954

Box 8 of 37

Folder 12 Hoyt, Elizabeth E., 1955-1978 and undated. Includes photographs and clippings. See also Anna Hoyt and Anna C. Mavor. See also Series 7, Photographs.

Box 8 of 37

Box 9

Folder 1 Hubbard, Mary L. Beals, 1927-1970. Includes photographs, clipping and obituary.

Box 9 of 37

Folder 2 Hughes, Merritt Y., 1950-1952

Box 9 of 37

Folder 3 I, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 4 Inden, Hugo, 1938-1941. Includes photographs, obituaries, clippings, exhibition and play programs, and a biographical sketch by Blake. See also Hans von Knorr. See also Series 3, Doris Sidney Blake and Series 7, Photographs.

Box 9 of 37

Folder 5 K, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 6 Knorr, Hans L. von, 1941-1976. See also Hugo Inden, biographical sketch by Blake. See also Series 7, Photographs.

Box 9 of 37

Folder 7 L, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 8 Lindelof, Ernest E., 1965-1967

Box 9 of 37

Folder 9 "Little Greek Class," 1912-1961 and undated. Comprises "round robin" correspondence among the members of 1911 Greek class attended by Blake at Boston University. Also contains fragment of Blake's 1906 diary. See also William Goodwin Aurelio, John A. Larson, Ruth B. Webb, Mae G. Woollcott, Irene P. Zahn.

Box 9 of 37

Folder 10 Longyear Foundation, 1961-1975. Correspondence with administrative personnel of the Foundation concerning the connection of Blake's mother, Lucy Wentworth Holmes, with Mary Baker Eddy, founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist. Eddy lived with the Wentworth family in Stoughton, Mass., 1868-1870; correspondence primarily pertains to the restoration of the Wentworth house for use as a museum by the Foundation. Also includes copy of Mary Baker Eddy and the Stoughton Years, by Kenneth Hufford (Longyear Foundation, Brookline, Massachusetts, 1963), and correspondence with the author.

Box 9 of 37

Folder 11 M, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 12 McClure, Mary M., 1927-1940 and undated

Box 9 of 37

Folder 13 Metcalf, Mildred, 1912-1971

Box 9 of 37

Folder 14 Metcalf, Mildred, 1972-1978 and undated

Box 9 of 37

Folder 15 N-O, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 16 P, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 17 Parfin, Sophy, 1948-1957. Includes photographs. See also Series 3, Doris Sidney Blake.

Box 9 of 37

Folder 18 R, general

Box 9 of 37

Folder 19 Reynolds, Bertha C., 1918-1975 and undated. Includes clippings.

Box 9 of 37
Reynolds, Frank W., 1958-1973

Folder 20 Robbins, Nellie, 1930-1955 and undated

Box 9 of 37

Folder 21 Rodgers, Hattie, 1915-1974 and undated

Box 9 of 37

Box 10

Folder 1 Sa-Sk, general

Box 10 of 37

Folder 2 Schieber, Caroline C., 1931-1952 and undated

Box 10 of 37

Folder 3 Schorr, Cornelia B., 1918-1938 and undated

Box 10 of 37

Folder 4 Schussler, Hermann, Jr., 1917-1941 and undated. Includes photograph.

Box 10 of 37

Folder 5 Serbian Child Welfare Association of America, 1921-1924. Includes photograph of Nataly Kovavchevic.

Box 10 of 37

Folder 6 Seymour, Frank and Irene, 1961-1975

Box 10 of 37

Folder 7 Sm-Sw, general

Box 10 of 37

Folder 8 Sproull, Amy Leonard, 1941-1977 and undated

Box 10 of 37

Folder 9 T, general

Box 10 of 37

Folder 10 Taylor, Ethel and Jim, 1947-1977

Box 10 of 37
Taylor, Richard and Ruth, 1941-1977 and undated. Includes clipping and photographs.

Folder 11 Turner, Billie L., 1974-1980. Materials largely pertain to disposition of botanical collection and papers of Dr. Sidney Blake. Also includes some correspondence between Turner and Richard Froeschner regarding the settlement of Doris H. Blake's estate, and an inventory of the Blake personal library donated to the University of Texas

Box 10 of 37

Folder 12 V-W, general

Box 10 of 37

Folder 13 Wentworth, Bertram F., 1967-1978 and undated

Box 10 of 37
Wentworth, Gladys, 1911-1935

Folder 14 Woollcott, Mae G., 1911-1921. See also "Little Greek Class".

Box 10 of 37

Folder 15 Zahn, Irene P., 1917-1970 and undated. Includes clipping. See also "Little Greek Class".

Box 10 of 37

Box 11

Folder 1 Unidentified correspondents

Box 11 of 37

Folder 2 Unidentified correspondents

Box 11 of 37

Series 3

FAMILY CORRESPONDENCE AND PAPERS, CIRCA 1899-1977. ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY.

In addition to entomological papers and correspondence, private correspondence, essays, children's books, and daily entries in her diary, Blake maintained a prodigious correspondence with members of her family. This series contains personal papers and letters to and from members of her own, her husband's, and her daughter's immediate families (see below for identification of relationships).

Blake and her parents exchanged daily (and sometimes twice-daily) letters from the time she left for school in 1910 until her father's death in 1934; she continued the daily letters to her mother until Mrs. Holmes's death in 1950. Following the family custom, Blake's daughter also produced a steady, semi-weekly flow of letters after she left home until her early death in 1974. (Correspondence from Doris Sidney Blake Ullman appears under both Blake and Ullman.)

Because Blake's husband, daughter, parents, and husband's parents predeceased her, many of her letters to them, and their letters to each other (e.g., correspondence between Blake's parents and her daughter), ultimately found their way back into her possession. (However, some family correspondence and papers, and a large part of the letters from Blake to her parents, are in the collection of the Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas.) These letters are included here, and with the inclusion of Blake's carbon copies of her own letters provide an unusual and multi-dimensional picture of family dynamics.

Also found in the series are the diaries and school papers of Blake's daughter; and materials relating to her husband's work, family, and death.

Notes on dating: Frequently the bodies of letters themselves were undated. In many such instances, postmarks, other enclosed dated material, and internal subject matter were used to establish chronological order and provide probable dates (noted on letters in brackets: [ ]).

It should also be noted that letters from Doris S. B. Ullman were sometimes misdated at the beginning of a new year (notably in 1947 and 1948).

Correspondents' relationships to Doris Holmes Blake and the types of materials included: Blake, Doris Sidney - daughter (see also Ullman): correspondence, school papers, diaries; Blake, Hattie (Harriot) E. and Walter R. - parents-in-law: correspondence; Blake, Ralph S. and Maude - brother-in-law and wife: correspondence; Blake, Sidney Fay - husband: correspondence, Flora of Stoughton, condolences, biographical materials; Holmes, Arthur Lake and Lucy Wentworth - parents: correspondence, other correspondence; Holmes, Lucy Wentworth - mother: correspondence; Thompson, Mary Blake - sister of father-in-law: correspondence; Ullman, Doris Sidney Blake and Jack Donald - daughter and son-in-law: correspondence, miscellaneous personal papers; Ullman, Doris Sidney Blake - daughter (post 1967): correspondence; Ullman, Jack Donald - son-in-law (post 1967): correspondence; Ullman, Marguerite - mother of son-in-law: correspondence

Box 11

Doris Sidney Blake (See also Ullman. See also Series 7, Photographs.)

Folders 3-8 Correspondence with Doris Holmes Blake, 1928-October 1949

Box 11 of 37

Box 12

Folder 1 Correspondence with Doris Holmes Blake, November 1949-1951 and undated

Box 12 of 37

Folder 2 Other correspondence, A-H

Box 12 of 37

Folder 3 Other correspondence, I-Z and unidentified

Box 12 of 37

Folder 4 School papers. Includes artwork, essays, report cards, term papers, clippings.

Box 12 of 37

Folder 5 Diaries, 1934-1937 (two volumes). Includes typescript of diary fragment dated 1-11 April 1936.

Box 12 of 37

Folder 6 Diaries, 1940-1941 (two volumes)

Box 12 of 37

Folder 7 Enclosures from diary, 1940

Box 12 of 37

Folder 8 Enclosures from diary, 1941

Box 12 of 37

Box 13

Folder 1 Diaries, 1942-1943 (two volumes)

Box 13 of 37

Folder 2 Enclosures from diary, 1942

Box 13 of 37

Folder 3 Enclosures from diary, 1943

Box 13 of 37

Folder 4 Diaries, 1944-1945

Box 13 of 37

Folder 5 Enclosures form diary, 1944

Box 13 of 37

Folder 6 Enclosures from diary, 1945

Box 13 of 37

Hattie E. and Walter R. Blake (See also Maude and Ralph S. Blake, 1929.)

Folders 7-9 Correspondence, 1918-1929, and undated

Box 13 of 37

Box 14

Maude and Ralph S. Blake

Folders 1-2 Correspondence, 1947, and undated. Includes some correspondence from Hattie E. Blake on reverse of letters from Ralph S. Blake, 1929.

Box 14 of 37

Sidney Fay Blake (See also Series 7, Photographs.)

Folders 3-9 Correspondence 1913-August 1951

Box 14 of 37

Box 15

Folder 1 Correspondence Sept. 1951-1957 and undated

Box 15 of 37

Folder 2 Correspondence pertaining to Flora of Stoughton, posthumous book by Sidney Fay Blake. Dated 1960-1964; arranged alphabetically. Correspondents include personal friends and colleagues of both Doris Holmes Blake and Sidney Fay Blake.

Box 15 of 37

Folder 3 Letters of condolence upon death of Sidney Fay Blake 1959-1960.

Box 15 of 37

Folder 4 Biographical materials. Includes clippings; genealogical information; biographical sketch by Doris Holmes Blake. See also Series 2, Allen, Bell, Knoblock.

Box 15 of 37

Arthur Lake Holmes and Lucy Wentworth Holmes

Folders 5-9 Correspondence, July 1899-December 1925

Box 15 of 37

Box 16

Folders 1-8 Correspondence, 1926-February 1932

Box 16 of 37

Box 17

Folders 1-8 Correspondence, March 1932-July 1934 and undated

Box 17 of 37

Box 18

Folders 1-2 Correspondence, undated

Box 18 of 37

Folder 3 Correspondence between Arthur L. and Lucy W. Holmes 1899 and undated

Box 18 of 37

Folder 4 Other correspondence, general, arranged alphabetically.

Box 18 of 37

Folders 5-8 Correspondence, Fowler, Helena "Lena" G. 1918-1949, and undated. See also Series 2.

Box 18 of 37

Box 19

Lucy Wentworth Holmes (See also Series 2, Longyear Foundation, and Series 7, Photographs.)

Folders 1-11 Correspondence August 1934-1941

Box 19 of 37

Box 20

Folders 1-9 Correspondence, 1942-November 1950

Box 20 of 37

Box 21

Folders 1-2 Correspondence, December 1950-September 1951

Box 21 of 37

Mary Blake Thompson

Folders 3-4 Correspondence, 1921-1932, and undated

Box 21 of 37

Doris S. Blake and Jack Donald Ullman

Folders 5-9 Correspondence, 1955-October 1963

Box 21 of 37

Box 22

Folders 1-2 Correspondence, November 1963-January 1968

Box 22 of 37

Folder 3 Miscellaneous personal papers. Includes marriage service booklet; birth certificates; correspondence with Alan Oster concerning Doris S. B. Ullman's death and estate.

Box 22 of 37

Doris S. Blake Ullman

Folders 4-8 Correspondence, February 1968-1974, and undated

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Jack Donald Ullman

Folder 9 Correspondence, 1968-1977

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Marguerite Ullman

Folder 10 Correspondence, 1958-1971 and undated

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Folder 11 Miscellaneous family correspondence

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Series 4

DIARIES, 1901-1976.

Blake was a faithful recorder of the details of her day-to-day existence throughout her life. The diaries comprise volumes dating from 1901 to 1976 and contain almost daily entries for those 75 years. Blake used her diary as a sort of day-book as well, including school assignments, Christmas lists, first drafts of her correspondence, and annual lists of all the books she read.

An immediately apparent peculiarity of the diaries is that they were written in Old German script. Beginning in 1907, for privacy, Blake began writing isolated phrases and sentences in script; by the end of 1909 most entries were entirely in script, a practice which continued for the rest of Blake's life. Although the script is German, the language is not: except for the words "I" and "yesterday," which were rendered into the German "Ich" and "gestern," Blake wrote in English.

Included are typescripts of the diaries for the years 1915, 1917, and January through July of 1918. Blake produced the transcriptions herself in 1974 at the age of 82. She selected those particular years to transcribe because of their personal content, which she wished to share with her friend, Elsie Froeschner; but they also happen to include her experiences at the Boston Psychopathic Hospital (where she worked under Dr. Herman M. Adler), and the account of the four months she spent as a researcher at the Laboratory for Social Research in Bedford Hills, New York, prior to her marriage in May of 1918.

The physical form of the diaries varies considerably: Blake wrote upon whatever was at hand, utilizing even the backs of used stationery and scientific notes, as well as old school notebooks and tiny notepads. This sometimes created disruptions in the strict chronology of her entries; instances of overlapping dates have thus been noted in the folder list.

No attempt has been made to interleave the loose diary fragments and pages with the bound volumes; they are included in the folder list at the end of this series.

Box 23

Diaries, 2 November 1901-1913 July 1912. Includes enclosures. (5 folders)

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Box 24

Diaries, 16 July 1912-June 1915. Includes enclosures and a typescript of the diary of January-June 1915. (7 folders)

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Box 25

Diaries, July 15-August 1917. Includes typescripts of diaries of July-December 1915; January-May 1917; and June- August 1917. (8 folders)

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Box 26

Diaries, September 1917-December 31, 1921. Includes typescripts of diaries of September-December 1917 and January-July 1918. (8 folders)

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Box 27

Diaries, 7 January 1922-22 January 1925. (7 folders)

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Box 28

Diaries, 22 January 1925-4 July 1928. Includes enclosures. (7 folders)

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Box 29

Diaries, 15 July 1928. 11 May 1937. (11 folders)

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Box 30

Diaries, 12 May 1937-23 April 1945. (10 folders)

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Box 31

Diaries, 24 April 1945-31 December 1951. (7 folders)

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Box 32

Diaries, 15 January 1952-18 July 1959. (6 folders)

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Box 33

Diaries, 22 July 1959-26 May 1965. (6 folders)

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Box 34

Folders 1-5 Diaries, 8 July 1966-12 June 1976.

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Folders 6-8 Loose pages from diaries, 1909-1971.

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POPULAR WRITINGS.

In addition to her entomological publications, Blake also tried her hand at several types of creative, literary productions. She wrote at least two children's books (neither of which was ever published) and produced biographical sketches of several of her friends. Her essay on entomologists Eugene A. Schwartz and Frank H. Chittenden (originally "The Two Entomologists"; later "Two Old Coleopterists") was published in The Coleopterists' Bulletin in 1951-1952.

This series includes editorial correspondence, and drafts and final versions of short stories and essays.

Box 35

Folder 1 Biographical and character sketches, general. Subjects include Alice Stone Blackwell, Sidney Fay Blake, Mrs. Lucas. See also Series 2, Julia Gardner, Hugo Inden, Elizabeth E. Hoyt.

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Folder 2 "The Two Entomologists"

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Folder 3 "Two Old Coleopterists"

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Folder 4 Editorial correspondence, general. See also Fiction, general. For correspondence with Smithsonian Institution Press, see Series 1, Smithsonian Institution.

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Folder 5 "Acri's Kith and Kin". Correspondence only, no text.

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Folder 6 Essays, general. Includes autobiographical material; essay contest material; fragment of sketch about Mary Baker Glover Eddy (authorship uncertain).

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Folder 7 "An Analysis of Two Hundred Cases of Delinquency" and "The Fruit of the Forbidden Tree"

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Folder 8 "An Analysis of Two Hundred Cases of Delinquency", research notes

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Folder 9 "Left-Handedness and Speech Disturbances"

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Folder 10 Fiction, general. Includes "Gus Lane's Wife"; "Feminine Supremacy"; "It Happened in Lafayette Square"; correspondence concerning "The Tale of the Turtle that Lost Her Ball".

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Folder 11 "Squaring the Cabbage; or, The Brassica Quadruplets"

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Folder 12 Unidentified notes

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Series 6

MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS AND MEMORABILIA.

Box 35

Folder 13 Artwork, general. Includes cartoons, Christmas card designs, pencil and pen-and-ink sketches.

Draft of holiday card drawn by Doris Holmes Blake showing lightning bugs lighting Christmas tree. [Image no. SIA2011-0016]
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Folder 14 Botanical sketchbooks, 1909 and undated, four volumes.

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Folder 15 Entomological illustrations

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Folder 16 Mailing lists. Includes Christmas lists, alumni organization names and addresses and lists of colleagues receiving publications of Blake's articles.

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Box 36

Folder 1 Memorabilia. Includes driver's licenses, Smithsonian identification badge, ship passenger lists, dance program, address book, and invitations to government functions.

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Folder 2 S. F. Blake passport (Accession 03-126)

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Folder 3 Miscellaneous papers. Includes passports, marriage license and announcement, clippings, obituary, death certificate, draft of will, school report cards, employment applications and certificates.

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Folder 4 Correspondence and obituary of D. H. Blake (Accession 03-126)

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Folder 5 Miscellaneous papers, 1925-1985. Includes Blake’s last will and testament and correspondence concerning her estate. (Accession 06-107)

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Folder 6 Biographical sketch and list of publications of Blake, by Froeschner, Froeschner and Cartwright. Proc. Entomol. Soc. Wash., 83 (3), 1981, pp. 544-564.

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Series 7

PHOTOGRAPHS, CIRCA 1905-1976.

This series includes approximately 185 black and white, almost exclusively silver gelatin, prints in good condition. The photographs are primarily family and personal pictures, circa 1905-1976, with some group photographs of Blake's entomological colleagues. The prints are frequently dated and captioned on reverse. Some prints had been enclosed in Blake's personal correspondence; dates of letters and names of correspondents are noted on reverse in brackets [ ].

The photographs are arranged by subject (person). Major divisions in the series are Blake, Doris Holmes; Blake, Doris Sidney; Blake, Sidney Fay; Blake family groups; Entomologists; Others. Also included are two albums containing photographs of Blake's girlhood and family.

The collection also contains 27 negatives of family pictures, including wedding pictures of Blake's daughter.

Box 36

Folder 7 Blake, Doris Holmes, circa pre-1920

Doris Holmes Blake, (1892-1978) an entomologist who specialized in the study of Chrysomelidae, is seated at her desk at the Smithsonian. [Image no. SIA2010-1589]
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Folder 8 Blake, Doris Holmes, circa pre-1920

Doris Holmes Blake, coleopterist and research associate at the NMNH, with her pet iguana on her shoulder. [Image no. SIA2010-1590]
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Folder 9 Blake, Doris Holmes, circa 1920-1950

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Folder 10 Blake, Doris Holmes, circa post-1950. Includes Ludmilla Kassianoff, the Munos family, Frances Paulsen.

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Folder 11 Blake, Doris Holmes, circa post-1950

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Folder 12 Blake, Doris Sidney Ullman, Doris Sidney Blake

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Folder 13 Blake, Sidney Fay. Includes Ezra Benson, Ivan Tidestrom.

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Folder 14 Blake family groups

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Folder 15 Blake family groups

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Folder 16 Entomologists, circa 1926-1976. Includes staff members of USDA Bureau of Entomology and the Smithsonian Institution.

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Folder 17 Others. Includes Lucy Wentworth Holmes, Carl Frederick William Ivar Tidestrom, Unidentified.

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Box 37

Folder 1 Album "Photographs". Unidentified subjects, circa pre-1910

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Folder 2 Album "Kodak Library". Family and vacation photographs, 1932-1939. Includes Leroy Barnard, Blake family members, Jerry Bowles, Mr. Buzwell, Mabel Colcord, Johnnie Fell, Julia Gardner, Lucy Wentworth Holmes, Hugo Inden, Hans von Knorr, Albina Musil, Clara Pitcher, Grace Sandhouse, Maxwell Smith, Tidestrom family members, Wentworth family members.

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Folder 3 Loose photographs from Folder 1, above.

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Folder 4 Negatives. 27 images, includes pictures of wedding of Doris Sidney Blake to Jack Donald Ullman.

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Folder 5 Photographs of Doris Holmes Blake (2 folders) (Accession 03-126)

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Folder 6 Photograph of Leonhard Stejneger (Accession 03-126)

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Folder 7 Photographs (Accession 06-107)

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