Winfred Emory Allen Papers, 1893-1942 (SMC 23)

Series 1) DATA FILES: This series consists mainly of phytoplankton data and reports drawn from observations and samples collected on cruises and from various piers in southern California. It includes logbooks, charts and summaries of research findings. Cruises typically report data on phytoplankton collected in 5 liter Allen bottles.

Arranged in thirteen subseries: A) CalCOFI Cruises, B) E.W. Scripps Cruises, C) Fisheries, D) Pioneer Cruises, E) Miscellaneous California Cruises, F) Farallone, G) La Jolla Pier, H) Oceanside, I) Point Hueneme, J) Scotch Cap, K) Miscellaneous Pier Measurements, L) Manuscripts and Reports, and M) Subject Files and Miscellaneous Data.

Series 2) CORRESPONDENCE AND PROFESSIONAL PAPERS: This series includes both personal and professional correspondence from 1915-1948, including letters exchanged with T. Wayland Vaughan, Henry B. Bigelow, Wesley R. Coe, Charles Atwood Kofoid, W. E. Ritter, and others. These papers were damaged in a flood prior to their donation to the Library and are delicate and stained.

The Allen correspondence was maintained in its found order when the collection was reviewed and updated in 2016. The subseries represented here reflect the order of the papers as they were when acquired by the Archives, and include three broad categories of correspondence: a chronologically sorted body of letters that arrived at the Archives loose, without any prior sorting or description; letters that Allen had sorted and arranged in folders with titles; and an incomplete bundle of letters in folders which Allen had labeled "Lab Correspondence." Accordingly, there is some overlap with correspondents and topics throughout these three subseries (for example, there might be letters exchanged with a specific SIO colleague in the General Correspondence subseries, and letters from that same person in a file that Allen maintained and labeled in the Sorted Correspondence subseries). Additionally, some of the correspondents are repeated in Series 3, SUBJECT FILES AND WRITINGS, where drafts of Allen's letters to colleagues and administrators at SIO may be found.

Arranged in three subseries: A) General Correspondence, B) Sorted Correspondence, and C) Lab Correspondence.

A) General Correspondence: Professional and personal correspondence, arranged chronologically. The letters often touch on personal matters, such Allen's interest in sports, in addition to professional matters, such as his plankton research. It also includes correspondence in his role as a committee member for the La Jolla Country Club, though additional materials on the Club and the La Jolla Land and Improvement Company are also located in Series 3. Allen had professional disputes and disagreements with SIO director T. Wayland Vaughan, and correspondence on this topic is frequent beginning in late 1930 and may also be found in Series 3. Allen favored the biological and ecological perspective of Ritter, and felt less comfortable in Vaughan's broad oceanographic program. In letters to others, including the president of the University, Allen details his complaints with the facilities, laboratory operations, and staff.

B) Sorted Correspondence: Professional correspondence between Allen and specific people or publications, including the previous director of Scripps, William E. Ritter. Arranged alphabetically.

C) Lab Correspondence: An incomplete series of professional correspondence, arranged alphabetically.

Series 3) SUBJECT FILES AND WRITINGS: This series includes Allen's files on various topics and his publications, including key reports on early research programs at Scripps. Typewritten drafts of Allen's reports and memoranda on events, colleagues and leadership at Scripps--including his opinions on the research of others and director Vaughan, and the political climate on the young campus--are interspersed throughout the series in his original files. It also includes seminar assignments, correspondence, biographical information, ephemera and subject files on old La Jolla, and annual reports submitted to the president of the University of California. These papers were damaged in a flood prior to their donation to the Library and are delicate and stained. Arranged chronologically.

Series 4) CALIFORNIA BIOLOGICAL FEATURE SERVICE: Over the course of his career, Allen wrote many newspaper features, which appeared in several newspapers in California. These were syndicated through the California Biological Feature Service. This series includes notes, correspondence, and articles.

Series 5) PHOTOGRAPHS: Photographs and negatives documenting Allen's personal and professional life.