DANIEL EVERETT WILLARD:
An Inventory of His Reminiscences at the Minnesota Historical
Society
Manuscripts Collection
| | |
| Creator: |
Willard, Daniel Everett, 1862-1947,
creator.
|
| Title: | Daniel Everett Willard reminiscences, |
| Dates: | [1940s?]. |
| Abstract: | Reminiscences containing information on the career and
adventures of Willard, a geologist who taught in a number of North Dakota colleges
and did extensive geological surveys in North Dakota and other states. He also
relates stories of pioneer life on the North Dakota and Western plains. |
| Quantity: | 3 folders. |
| Location: | See Detailed Description section for
shelf location. |
Willard was born in Nile, New York, August 22, 1862; received B.A. (1888) and A.M.
(1890) degrees from Alfred College, New York; and did graduate work at the
University of Chicago (1893-1895). He served as principal of Albion, New York
Academy (1888-1892), and as professor of natural resources and geology at North
Dakota Normal School and North Dakota College (1895-1910). He was the development
and agricultural specialist for the Northern Pacific Railway (1910-1920), and later
the Great Northern Railway (1920-1924), and served as a member of the United States
Geological Survey (1902-1905). Willard wrote books and articles on geology. He died
in 1947 in Nebraska City, Nebraska.
The first folder of the collection contains more biographical information.
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The typed reminiscences are divided into fifteen undated "yarns" and "chapters."
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Availability:
The collection is open for research use.
Preferred Citation:
[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Daniel
Everett Willard Reminiscences. Minnesota Historical Society.
See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional
examples.
Accession Information:
Accession number: 7050
Processing Information:
Processed by: Kathryn A. Johnson, July 1998
Catalog ID number: 990017359120104294
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| Location | Folder |
| P2297 | 1 | Unnumbered. "Education Id [sic] Free, An Autobiographical Sketch." 11 p. |
| | | A fairly detailed account of his birth and early years in New York State; his
education; his teaching career; graduate work at the University of Chicago
and his relationship with its president, William R. Harper; and his
geological career in North Dakota. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Yarn I. "On a Bicycle Ride to Kansas." 8 p. |
| | | Description of a trip made by Willard from Mayville, North Dakota to Kansas
containing information on devastation from a grasshopper plague (1897);
abandoned farms; weather; and visits in the states of Iowa, Missouri, and
South Dakota. He describes his arrival at his brothers' ranch in Kansas;
description of Kansas farmlands; subsequent trips to Oklahoma and Texas; and
his return to North Dakota. The chapter is preceded by a three-page forward
to the entire series of reminiscences. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Yarn II. "Two Days and a Night on the Prairie." 7 p. |
| | | Describes his 1899 trip by bicycle to study geological formations in Township
168, Range 84, Renville County, North Dakota, with descriptions of difficult
travel on the prairie; wildlife; weather conditions; meetings with
homesteaders living in the region; and related matters. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Yarn III. "A Search for Lost Horses." 17 p. |
| | | Related an 1899 incident during his trip to study the Missouri Plateau when
his horse ran away, and the many adventures he had in locating it. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Yarn IV. "A Boy Learns What 'Geologizing' Means." 24 p. |
| | | A description of a thirteen-day trip Willard made with one of his students
at Mayville College, North Dakota, into an area 200 miles northeast to study
the effects of Glacial Lake Agassiz, with information on the soil and
topography of the area. He also mentions visiting sod houses in the
area. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| Location | Folder |
| P2297 | 2 | Yarn V. "Camp Life on the Prairies." 11 p. |
| | | An account, at the time he was North Dakota State Geologist, of his
participation in a Northern Pacific Railway soil survey on lands owned by
the railroad, and to survey for possible agricultural uses. He describes
camp life, the weather, and prairie fires. Two different pages are numbered
"10." |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | [Yarn V]. [Untitled]. 3 p. |
| | | Describes his experiences while lost on the prairie and his eventual location
of a settler's home. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Yarn VI. "Reminiscences of Yellowstone National Park." 10 p. |
| | | Tells of his trip to Yellowstone in 1890 as a member of the Wisconsin Press
Association tour, describing travel accommodations, animals, birds, and
sites, including Old Faithful and the Petrified Forest, and making
observations on changes in the park between 1890 and 1940. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Chapter VIII. "The High Plains." 7 p. |
| | | The chapter describes the high plains as a part of the Great Plains and its
location between the Rocky Mountains and the plains to the east, giving
information of the geology of the Rocky Mountains and the states of Wyoming,
Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico,
and describing interesting geological formations, including Chimney Rock,
Steamboat Rock, Table Rock, and Castle Rock. He also describes rivers in the
area, and the geological relationships of the plains to the Rocky
Mountains. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Chapter X. "The Black Hills." 6 p. |
| | | Similar in content to Chapter VIII, above. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| Location | Folder |
| P2297 | 3 | Chapter XI. "The Bad Lands." 11 p. |
| | | Similar in content to chapters VII and X, above. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Chapter XI. "Coal." 11 p. |
| | | Describes the geological formation of coal and the location of coal beds in
Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Chapter XVI. "Parks and Monuments." 6 p. |
| | | Description of state and national parks, monuments, and scenic areas in
Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota, mentioning the Badlands,
Mount Rushmore, the Black Hills, and Devil's Tower, and gives information on
animals, fossils, bird sanctuaries, and related matters. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Chapter XVII. "Overland One Hundred Years Ago." 8 p. |
| | | Tells of overland routes to the west, particularly in the Sante Fe, Emigrant,
and Oregon trails; the Pony Express; and the difficulties of travel at that
time. |
| | | | | | | | | | | |
| | Chapter XVIII. "Up Stairs and Down." 9 p. |
| | | Contains information on the Missouri River in Nebraska; the geology of the
area; and prairie grass, plants, flowers, and other aspects of life in
Nebraska. |
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the
Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics,
persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.
- Topics:
- Agriculture -- Middle West.
- Autobiographies -- North Dakota.
- Coal -- United States -- Geology.
- Formation (Geology) -- West (U.S.).
- Frontier and pioneer life -- North Dakota.
- Geology -- West (U.S.).
- Grassland ecology -- North Dakota.
- Grassland fire -- North Dakota.
- National parks and resources -- West (U.S.).
- Natural resources -- West (U.S.).
- Overland journeys to the Pacific.
- Prairies -- West (U.S.).
- Railroads -- North Dakota -- Surveying.
- Trails -- United States.
- Places:
- Badlands -- (S.D. and Neb.).
- Black Hills -- (S.D. and Neb.).
- Missouri River.
- Nebraska -- Description and travel.
- North Dakota -- Description and travel.
- Yellowstone National Park.
- Persons:
- Harper, William Rainey, 1856-1906.
- Organizations:
- Northern Pacific Railway Company.
- Pony Express.
- Types of Documents:
- Reminiscences.
- Occupations:
- Geologists -- North Dakota.
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