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The Kenneth S. Davis Papers (1886; 1912-2000) documents Davis’s career as a prominent historian and writer. Davis’s Estate holds the copyright to his literary works. The majority of the collection is related to his writings.
The Writings/Journals Series (1919; 1935-1967) consist of one box and includes some of Davis’s early writing efforts when he was seven years old. Davis kept journals for the years 1935, 1937, 1941, 1953 through 1955, 1961, and 1966 through 1967. In 1958, Davis began keeping a journal with is his wife Florence (Flo) Olenhouse Davis and they continued writing in the same journal through 1959. This series also includes some of Flo’s writing efforts. While she was never published, Flo was a highly skilled and diverse writer who wrote about topics that interested her such as trains, souvenirs from Chicago, and relatives.

Contained in 12 boxes the Correspondence Series (1934-1999) includes letters between Davis and his agents and publishers and editors and other correspondence. The agent's letters are arranged chronologically in one box while the publishers/editors are arranged alphabetically and stored in three boxes. Other correspondence is arranged alphabetically, consists of eight boxes, and includes letters from historians David McCullough, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., and William Shirer. Some other correspondence of interest includes letters from Kansas individuals such as Dave Kendall host of the PBS show Sunflower Journeys, Bill Koch, Karl Menninger of the Menninger Foundation, and Richard Seaton of The Manhattan Mercury newspaper. Davis received letters from K-State individuals such as Betty Bailey, Earle, and Kay Davis, George Kren, Don Mrozek, Homer Socolofsky, Ralph Titus, President Jon Wefald, and Dent Wilcoxon.

The Awards/Certificates Series (1935-2000) is housed in one box and includes the Friends of American Writers Award that Davis won in 1943 for his fiction novel In the Forests of the Night, the 1960 Thormod Monsen Award for The Hero, Charles A. Lindbergh, and the American Dream, and the 1973 Francis Parkman Prize for FDR: The Beckoning of Destiny, 1882-1928. In 1963 Davis received the Centennial Award for Distinguished Service at K-State, he received an Honorary Doctorate degree from Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1968, and in 1975 he became a member of Phi Beta Kappa at K-State. Between 1967 and 2000, Davis was often listed in the Marquis Who’s Who in America.

Housed in one box, the Organizations/Clubs Series (1952-1999) includes Davis’s membership in the Society of American Historians, Bohemians, Inc., Century Club, and Dickens Fellowship and some other documents related to the organizations. Of interest in the Society of American Historians is correspondence from Kenneth T. Jackson announcing in 1973 that Davis won the Francis Parkman Prize and had been elected to membership in the society. Davis presented programs to the Bohemians including “What’s Wrong With The Press,” “The Problem of a Biographer,” and “Puritan Kansas: New England Influence” and gave a speech about remembering Clarence Daigneau. Adlai E. Stevenson proposed Davis as a member of the Century Club in New York City and William Shirer also played an instrumental role in Davis’s election into the club. Davis and his wife, Flo, were active in the Dickens Society in Worcester, Massachusetts and this section includes newspaper clippings about the Society’s Christmas dinners.

The Fellowship and Grants Series (1953-1982) is contained in one box that includes documents on Guggenheim Fellowships, National Endowment for the Humanities grants, the Stern Family Fund, and the Woodrow Wilson Scholar. In 1961, Davis applied for a Guggenheim Fellowship, however, it was not granted, and in 1974, he received a $12,000 grant. In 1980, Davis applied for a National Endowment for the Humanities grant, but he did not the grant.

Contained in four boxes, the Speeches Series (1942-1998), includes Davis’s 1943 acceptance speech for the Friends of Americans Writer Award he received for his novel In The Forests Of The Night. Other speeches of interest in this series include Davis’s 1947 speech for the Topeka Chapter of the League of Women Voters titled “UNESCO-Its Nature and Function,” his 1971 speech for Assumption College titled, “Thinking About FDR: Some Problems Of A Biographer,” his 1975 speech at the Kansas State Historical Society Dinner titled, “Portrait of a Changing Kansas,” and his 1994 Lou Douglas Lecture at K-State titled, “Mass Communication and the American Democracy.” Davis and his wife, Flo, were actively involved in the Dickens Society and speeches of interest to this group include the 1962 “Of Dickens and ‘Bleak House’” and the 1968 “Edwin Drood Concluded, Again,” speeches.

Literary Works (1934-2000) is comprised of 51 boxes containing Davis’s works of published and unpublished articles, manuscripts, book reviews, essays, poems, and short stories. The series is chronological within each section, except for the published books, which are in alphabetical order. The most notable of the literary works is Davis’s Franklin D. Roosevelt manuscripts, which includes his research for the series of books, working drafts, and manuscript chapters. A sub-category of the FDR manuscripts is the 1997 FDR Symposium at K-State that includes the book from the symposium, correspondence, invitation, programs, and the speech Davis gave at the Symposium. Those who participated in the symposium with Davis were Nancy Kassebaum Baker, James MacGregor Burns, Doris Kearns Goodwin, William E. Leuchténburg, and Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. Other subjects Davis wrote about that are of interest include Kansas history, Clarence Darrow, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Robert H. Goddard, James Lane, Charles A. Lindbergh, Adlai E. Stevenson, Eli Thayer and topics such as the birth control pill, fire departments, Kansas history, social security, stone walls, and UNESCO.

The Subjects Series (1942-1971) is housed in five (5) boxes and consist of information pertaining to Milton Stover Eisenhower (K-State President and his work with UNESCO, Alexander Meiklejohn who was a professor of Davis’s at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Adlai E. Stevenson, who lost by landslides in two races for president against Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952 and 1962. The files contain correspondence between Davis and each of the individuals, speeches that Davis wrote for Eisenhower and Stevenson, other correspondence, newspaper clippings, and programs.

Death and Memorial Series (1999) is stored in two boxes and consists of Davis’s death certificate, eulogies, funeral papers, memorial service, obituaries, and sympathy cards.

Davis Family Series (1907-1999) is comprised of nine (9) boxes. Two (2) boxes are made up of family documents, three (3) boxes contain French souvenir postcards that Charles Davis collected during World War I, and four (4) boxes contain family correspondence. Correspondence of interest is the letters between Charles and Lydia Davis while Charles was stationed in France during World War I.

The Photographs Series (circa 1912-1999) is stored in two (2) boxes and arranged alphabetically. The majority of photographs are of family members.

The Media Series (circa 1972-1999) is comprised of three (3) boxes. Included are 3 ½ inch disks and 5 ¼ inch disks, and the files that were able to be retrieved from these disks. Documents retrieved from the disk include correspondence and manuscripts that are not found anywhere else in the collection. Items of interest are correspondence between Davis and his last editor Robert Loomis of Random House and some drafts of Davis’ first FDR books.

There are three (3) Scrapbooks in the collection: In The Forests Of The Night, 1942, Soldier of Democracy, 1945, and A Prophet In His Own Country, 1957. Because of their fragile conditions, the scrapbooks were taken apart and photocopied. Each scrapbook includes book reviews and correspondence.

The Oversize Items (1927-1997) are stored in one box. The Oversize Items include Davis’s 1927 Junior High School Diploma, his 1930 High School Diploma, and his 1934 Kansas Agricultural College Diploma. It also includes the 1973 Francis Parkman Prize certificate, the 1994 Lou Douglas Lecture Poster (Davis was the speaker), 1996 Presidential prints of President Bill Clinton and Vice-President Al Gore, and two posters from the 1997 FDR symposium.

The Map Series (1919-1985) is stored with the Oversize Items and includes National Geographic Society magazine maps and a few maps from France dated 1919.

The Artifact and Art Series (1955-1997) is housed in (1) box and includes two caricatures of Davis, one by his first wife, Flo, and one by F. Mason, and a watercolor sketch. Other items include award plaques, badges, a guest book, and jewelry.

Printed Material is made up of four (4) boxes, one being a flat box for oversize documents, and consists of journals, leaflets, newspapers, pamphlets, and the Davis Family Bible dated 188 that is in the Swedish language.

Records contained in this accession include early agriculture experiment station press reports and bulletins.
- Folder 1: Agriculture Experiment Station: Press Reports 1898-1900
- Folder 2: Press Bulletins 159-178
- Folder 3: Press Bulletins 1-115
- Folder 4: Press Bulletins 1-34
- Folder 5: Press Bulletins 35-70
- Folder 6: Press Bulletins 71-124
- Folder 7: Press Reports 125-158

The Loren W. Elliott papers consist of documents pertaining to the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity, Alpha Kappa Psi Fraternity, and Phi Kappa Phi, during the time Elliott was a student at Kansas State Agricultural College in the late 1920s and 1930s. Included are Laboratory Outlines and Elliott's class notes for General Botany I, General Botany II, and Laboratory Experiments of Elementary Organic Chemistry. Elliott was also a member of the President's Club (1981-1982 and 1987). A vinyl record (33 1/2 rpm) titled "Purple Pride 1971-72" is included in the collection.

Records relating to the history of Cooperative Extension work in Sedgwick County Kansas and focusing particularly on the Prairie Gem unit of which Lou Herndon and her mother, Ruth Wilkins, were charter/lifetime members.

The Manuscript Cookbook collection includes 125 cookbooks with culinary recipes and home remedies dating from the early 16th century to the late 20th century. The cookbooks originate from various countries, such as Austria (1), Denmark (1), England (25), France (1), Germany (7), Ireland (3), Mexico (5), Palestine (1), Slovakia (1), Switzerland (2), and the United States (42). The books vary in size and shape and are almost exclusively handwritten. Although most are written in English, other languages include German (10), French (2), Danish (1), and Hebrew (1).

McPherson collection includes a multitude of documents pertaining the McPherson extension office as well as the 4-H program. Documents range from executive files such as financial records, meeting minutes, membership lists, and construction plans to documents such as photographs, slides, and program guides.

The Nellie Kedzie Jones series is part of the College of Human Ecology historical files at Kansas State University. Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones was an 1876 alumna who returned to lead domestic science instruction from 1882 until 1897. This series reflects papers related to her and her relatives and friends.
The first subseries pertains to Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones with dates between 1889 and 1955. Contents include developments in human ecology and are reflected in publications, printed materials, published works, manuscripts, typescripts, awards, and correspondence. Materials are organized chronologically within each group.
The second subseries is devoted to Howard Murray Jones, Nellie's husband from 1901 until his death in 1953. He was a minister, including time as a professor and administrator at Berea College. Contents include minimal correspondence along with writings, sermons, and printed materials. His sermons are arranged chronologically divided between typed and handwritten. Because he often used sermons twice, there are two dates on the manuscripts. The bulk of the materials pertains to religion and Christianity.
The third through ninth subseries contain information about friends and relatives of Howard and Nellie. Included are documents associated with the Fairchild family (Frank, David, and George Fairchild), Abby and Charles Marlatt, Gertrude and Theodore Jessup, Robert Clark Kedzie (Nellie's first husband who died in 1882), Addison Jones, his father, Ada Alice Tuttle, and Helen M. Jones. Types of material include news articles, correspondence, memoranda, printed materials, scrapbooks, and biographical information.
The tenth subseries includes five items relevant to Nellie: an autograph book, a scrapbook, a personal Bible, an award ribbon, and a leather pouch or wallet (unknown origin or ownership).
The final subseries includes photographs of Nellie and those associated with her. They are divided by group photos, photos of her, and photos of others who include Robert Clark Kedzie, Howard Murray Jones, the Fairchilds, and others.

This manuscript collection, consisting of approximately 450 items housed in one box. The material spans the years 1888-1950. Series 1, Military Papers (1898-1950), is the largest series and it is divided into the following sub-series: Spanish-American War, 1898; Cavalry Units, 1906-1915; Punitive Expedition Diary, ca. 1916; Letters of Recommendation, 1914-1919; Stateside Mobilization Camps, 1917-1918; Embarkation to France, 1918; Company Command in France, 1918-1919; 344th Labor Battalion Company Funds and Payroll; General A.E.F. Orders and Memoranda, 1919; Demobilization in France, 1919; Demobilization Camp in U.S., 1919; and, Retirement, ROTC and IRS, 1919-1950. Enroute to Namiquipa - U.S. Soldiers bathing, ca 1916 A Spanish-American War Roster and a roster of the 344th Labor Battalion (WWI) are interesting for their notations of names and addresses of the men who participated in these wars. The papers reveal the rapid promotion Nels A. Tornquist received after he was selected to command a black service company The certificates show that he was promoted from sergeant to first lieutenant in July of 1918 and then to captain the following month, just in time to take his new command to France during WWI. Among the activities documented in the papers during the time Capt. Tornquist commanded the black service company is a serious incident concerning large quantities of unexpended ammunition that the men in his company were expected to work around at their own risk. There are two folders in the collection that deal with the 344th Labor Battalion. One rare find in the collection is a war diary of the Punitive Expedition into Mexico after Pancho Villa, ca. 1916-1917. The comments on forage problems, climate and travel are noteworthy. Series 2, Personal Correspondence, is divided between that of Nels A. and Nels F. Tornquist. The father, Nels F., received all of his letters from his native Sweden so they are written in that language. The son's letters, fortunately for the Army censors during WWI, are written in English and are addressed to his step-mother Carrie. There are also many envelopes without the enclosures but they are useful for showing Tornquist's change of address as he moved from one unit to another throughout his career. Tornquist astride an Indian, U.S. Mobilization Camp, 1918 Series 3, Legal Papers, contains an original Kansas homestead deed for Salina, Kansas in 1888 and deeds for property in Washington state. Series 4, Certificates, indicate the official notification of each rank that Nels A. Tornquist achieved. A so included are notifications of retirement after 24 years of honorable service with the pre-WWI rank of sergeant; the notification in 1934 that he advanced to the retired rank of captain; and an undated memorial on behalf of the United States, signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Series 5, Printed Material, includes many souvenirs, train passes and army pamphlets from WWI. Of particular interest are War Information series pamphlets entitled, The War Message and the Facts Behind It, printed in June, 1917 and Treaty of Peace with Germany, printed in June, 1919. The remainder of the printed material is a mixture of wedding announcements, veterans organization membership cards, and incidental items. Series 6, is comprised of maps showing the progress of WWI and WWII. There is an excellent period map of Verdun, France which Capt. Tornquist personally annotated to show where he spent time prior to and after the armistice of November 11, 1918. 344th Labor Battalion, World War I, ca 1918 344th Labor Battalion, World War I, ca 1918 Approximately 61 photographs from the Spanish-American War, the Mexican border during 1916-1917 and WWI were filed in the KSU photograph collection, and several three-dimensional items were stored with the artifacts collection. A number of WWI and WWII maps were transferred to the Documents Department in the library. Of related interest is an oral history interview between Carl Rehfeld, the uncle of Nels Tornquist, and Evan Williams of Farrell Library. The tape and transcript are in the University Archives Oral History Collection.

The subject files cover numerous aspects of the university, mainly between 1960 and 2010. A few items exist from 1925 to 1960. The series of buildings include many helpful photographs, and many other files include photographs and negatives.

The North American Alfalfa Improvement Conference is a community of public- and private-sector scientists and educators that promotes the exchange of information among researchers involved in alfalfa improvement and utilization in North America and around the world.