Hopkins, Sewell Papers Guide to the Sewell Hopkins Papers Mss. 85 Se8

Guide to the Sewell Hopkins Papers Mss. 85 Se8


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Special Collections Research Center

William & Mary Special Collections Research Center
Earl Gregg Swem Library
400 Landrum Dr
Williamsburg, Virginia
Business Number: 757-221-3090
spcoll@wm.edu
URL: https://libraries.wm.edu/libraries-spaces/special-collections

Finding Aid Authors: Tom Scott and Ywone Edwards.

Repository
Special Collections Research Center
Identification
Mss. 85 Se8
Title
Sewell Hopkins Papers 1881-1984
Quantity
33.00 Linear Feet
Creator
Hopkins, Sewell Hepburn, 1906-1984
Language
English

Administrative Information

Conditions Governing Use:

Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.

Conditions Governing Access:

Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.

Preferred Citation:

Sewell Hopkins Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.

Acquisition Information:

Gifts of 31 Aug. 1985, 15 April 1986, and 20 May 1986.

Processing Information:

Processed by Tom Scott and Ywone Edwards during 1988-89.


Biographical Information:

Sewell Hepburn Hopkins (1906-1984), a marine biologist best known for his research into the effects of oil spills on marine life in the Gulf of Mexico, was born 24 March 1906 in Nuttall, Va., the son of Nicholas Snowden Hopkins and Selina Lloyd Hepburn Hopkins. He received a B.S. in 1927 from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va., followed by the M.A. in 1930 and the Ph.D. in Zoology in 1933 from the University of Illinois. In 1930 Hopkins married Pauline Cole and they had two sons, Thomas Johns Hopkins (b. 28 July 1930) and Nicholas Arthur Hopkins (b. 4 Sep. 1936).

Hopkins was appointed as a Biology Instructor at Danville Junior College in Virginia (1933-1935), but in 1935 he transferred to the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, now Texas A & M University. Hopkins remained on the faculty at Texas A & M University as an Instructor, then Associate Professor until 1947, when he was promoted to Professor of Biology, a position he held until his retirement in 1972.

Perhaps the highlight of Hopkins' career was when he was appointed Director of Research Project 9 with the Texas A & M Research Foundation (1947-1950). His research interests included parasitology; taxonomy, morphology and life history of trematodes; life history of crabs; oyster biology; and ecology of estuaries. Hopkins was made Professor Emeritus of Texas A & M University in 1972. He died 15 Nov. 1984. Further information about this individual or organization may be available in the Special Collections Research Center Wiki: .

Scope and Contents

Dates; 1881-1984; personal and professional papers of Sewell Hepburn Hopkins (1906-1984), a marine biologist and Professor of Biology at Texas A & M University (1935-1972), best known for his research into the effects of oil spills on marine life in the Gulf of Mexico. His papers document his professional career, but focus on Research Project 9 (1947-1950), headed by Hopkins and sponsored by the Texas A & M University Research Foundation, regarding abnormally high mortality rates in oyster beds harvested by Louisiana oystermen. One of at least four major research projects initiated as a result of lawsuits filed in 1946 by Louisiana oystermen against major oil companies active in offshore drilling in the Gulf Mexico, Project 9 resulted in the identification and published description (1950) of a newly discovered parasite called Dermocystidium marinum. The lawsuits against the oil companies were subsequently dropped or settled out of court.

Related Material

See also the Sewell H. Hopkins Papers, Oyster Mortality Reports, Texas A&M University; and the Sewell Hopkins Reports, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.

Subjects and Indexing Terms


General

Other Information:

A PDF document of this inventory is available online.

Additional information may be found at http://scrc.swem.wm.edu/findingaids/85_Se8_Hopkins_Sewell.pdf

Significant Persons Associated With the Collection

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Container List

Mixed Materials Box: 1 id141544
Box 1
Mixed Materials Box: 2 id141635
Box 2
Mixed Materials Box: 3 id142000
Box 3
Mixed Materials Box: 4 id142041
Box 4
Mixed Materials Box: 5
Box 5
English
Mixed Materials Box: 6
Box 6
English
Mixed Materials 25 boxes
25 boxes
English
Scope and Contents

22 boxes without inventories. Stored off site.

Mixed Materials Oversize Folder: 1
Oversize Folder
Physical Location: SOSS 55f-h English
Scope and Contents

Two maps, both of TerreBonne, Louisiana. One of Bay St. Elaine Field and one of Dog Cake Dome.