Malcolm Dole (1903-1990) Papers

The Malcolm Dole (1903-1990) Papers fill eleven boxes (including two slide boxes and two drop-front boxes), spanning the years 1924 to 1990 and including materials from his tenures at both Northwestern and Baylor. The bulk of the papers consist of personal data, personal financial records, and materials relating to research projects. The papers are arranged in five sub-series: Biographical, Correspondence, Teaching, Personal Financial, and Research Files.

The biographical files, spanning the years 1924 to 1989, include personal data, clippings, news releases, obituaries, notes on the Dole Symposium at Baylor University, date books, passports, and the log of Dole's yacht, the Malolo III. Items are arranged chronologically within folders. Several items are of particular interest, including clippings about the "Pedaling Professor" and a 1946 news release detailing Dole's wartime research experience. The scrapbook Malcolm Dole: A Lifetime of Contributions, was created by the Chemistry Department at Baylor University upon Dole's retirement, and contains photographs, clippings, a biographical sketch, and letters of congratulations. Also of interest are Dole's Cambridge Journal (July 8-28, 1933) which records his impressions during a research trip to England, and his Post-Bellum Diary (1948-1950) that describes his travels to meetings and presentations after World War II. The file titled "Driving Directions," containing 3x5 cards with directions to friends' homes and other locations, sheds light on Dole's thought processes.

The correspondence files, spanning the years 1951 to 1989, include mainly personal correspondence (mostly incoming, but some outgoing), letters of congratulation upon Dole's retirement, and a few business letters.

The teaching file contains several exam questions, date and course unknown.

Personal financial records, spanning the years 1929 to 1990, include meticulously detailed daily, monthly, and yearly budgets for travel and household expenses.

Research files, spanning the years 1929 to 1987, include reports, proposals, article reprints, and correspondence. The "Research Notes" folder includes parts of articles and a small notebook with references to cancer experiments. Two boxes hold slides arranged by subject. These slides were used for lectures and presentations at various symposiums and conferences. Topics include Radiation Chemistry, the History of Oxygen, H2 Solubility, Cancer, Viscosity, and Macro Ions. The papers also document his work on projects for the Atomic Energy Commission (1966-76).

Slides include graphs and charts Dole prepared for lectures and symposia in San Diego, Tokyo, Ottawa, and Houston on oxygen, viscosity, radiation chemistry, and other topics.

Drop-front boxes hold some of the many awards Dole received. Box 10 contains the professional awards garnered by Dole throughout his career. Among these are an academic award for algebra (1917), the A. Ottenberg Service Award (1987), the ACS Southwest Regional Award (1979), a certificate from the Henry Wade Rogers Society at Northwestern University (1988), and various retirement plaques and certificates from Baylor University (1982). Box 11 contains various yachting trophies including the Wilmette Arrow Fleet Antwerp Series (1967), the John S. Knight Award from the Chicago Daily News Regatta (1956), and the C.C.Y.C. Hobleman Regatta (1969).