creator:

Packer, R. A. (Raymond Allen)

title:

Papers

dates:

1835-2000

extent:

11 linear feet (18 document boxes, 2 half-document boxes, 1 map case folder)

collection number:

RS 14/6/11

repository:

University Archives,Special Collections Department, Iowa State University.

access:

Open for research

publication rights:

Consult Head, Special Collections Department

preferred citation:

R. A. Packer (Raymond Allen) Papers,  RS 14/6/11,  Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library.

Biographical note

Raymond Allen Packer was born July 27, 1914 in Clemons, Iowa.  In 1933, he entered Iowa State College (University), where he majored in Veterinary Medicine and Animal Husbandry.  While at Iowa State, he played varsity baseball in 1934, 1935 and 1936.

Packer received a B.S. in Animal Husbandry and a DVM (1940), a M.S. (1942), and a Ph.D. (1947) from Iowa State College (University).

Dr. Packer began his teaching career at Iowa State as a graduate student in 1940.   He was appointed Head of the Department of Hygiene (Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine) in 1952; he served in this capacity until 1980.  Although Dr. Packer officially retired in 1985, he continued to teach courses in veterinary history.  As of 2000, Dr. Packer is said to have educated seventy-eight percent of all Iowa State’s veterinary graduates.

His main areas of research included veterinary bacteriology and virology, including such diseases as bovine mastitis.  Packer was also interested veterinary history, particularly the history of veterinary education and veterinary medicine at Iowa State University.  Dr. Packer authored numerous papers and publications, including Veterinary Bacteriology and Virology, which he co-authored with I. A. Merchant and has become a textbook that is used around the world.  His interest in the history of veterinary medicine and its beginnings at Iowa State prompted him to write the First 100 Years of the College of Veterinary Medicine, in addition to several articles on the history of teaching veterinary medicine at Iowa State. 

Packer was also an active member of several professional organizations, including the World Association of Microbiologists, American Veterinary Medical Association, Iowa Veterinary Medical Association, and the Conference for Research Workers in Animal Diseases.  He was also a charter member of the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists and the American Veterinary History Society.

Due to his excellence in teaching and scholarship, Dr. Packer was the recipient of several awards and honors.  In 1966, he received the Iowa State University Faculty Citation, and he was named the Clarence Hartley Covault Distinguished Professor in Veterinary Medicine in 1969.  The Conference for Research Workers in Animal Diseases chose Packer as its 1990 Dedicatee.

Dr. Packer passed away April 9, 1999.  He was interred in the Iowa State University Cemetery April 12, 1999.

Collection description

 
The collection is comprised of materials that relate to Dr. Packer’s professional life.  The files contain a variety of materials including correspondence, newsclippings, research materials, and photographs.

The papers are arranged into eleven series:

Series 1:  Biographical Materials, 1943-2000, contains newsclippings and an oral history regarding his work and his life.  It also includes a professional profile and materials relating to awards he had received.

Series 2:  Education, 1936-1940, is comprised of a class schedule from 1939 and course notes from his undergraduate classes.  The courses include pathology, surgery, bacteriology, and biophysical chemistry.

Series 3: Teaching, 1953-1995, consists of syllabi, notes, assignments, tests, and other materials from some of the courses taught by Packer.   The files are arranged according to course number.  The classes include veterinary history, live stock sanitation, virology, and bacteriology.  Seminars and workshops are also apart of this series.

Series 4: Research, 1907-1994, contains notes, data and general information on a variety of subjects including bovine mastitis, antibodies, virology, burcellosis, and pasteurella.  The data includes information Dr. Packer collected while studying the university herds of cattle..

Series 5:  Papers and Publications, 1943-1990, includes papers and articles authored and co-authored by Dr. Packer.  Speeches and exhibits are also in this series. The materials reflect his interest in bovine mastitis and the history of veterinary medicine at Iowa State University.  There is also a file regarding his work on the 1900 veterinary office at Living History Farms. 

Series 6:  Veterinary History, 1835-1994, is comprised of subject files regarding the history of veterinary medicine, including veterinary education, microbiology, and various state and local veterinary histories.  The series also contains a file on museums dedicated to veterinary medicine.

Series 7:  Iowa State University’s Veterinary History, 1891-1990, consists of information on the history of teaching veterinary medicine at Iowa State.  Files include materials on teaching bacteriology, women in the veterinary medicine program, lists of faculty and staff and theses written.  Photographs from this series have been filed into the University Archives photograph collection.

Series 8:  Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, 1952-1996, contains materials regarding the College of Veterinary Medicine and the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine, including committee files, alumni information, correspondence, and reports.  There are also files regarding the equipment and facility needs for the department.

Series 9:  Iowa State University, 1954-1994, includes correspondence, meeting minutes, and reports relating to Dr. Packer’s work with various university committees, programs, and the Iowa State University Library.  The series also contains information regarding Dr. Packer’s efforts to increase the veterinary medicine collections in the Special Collections Department of the Iowa State University Library.

Series 10:  American Veterinary History Society, 1960-1995, is comprised various materials relating to the American Veterinary History Society.  The files contain materials from annual meetings, Packers correspondence with various members of the organization, newsletters, and information regarding the history of the society.

Series 11: Professional Associations, 1956-1994, includes correspondence, meeting minutes, constitutions and by-laws, resolutions, and organizational histories materials for eight of the professional organizations and boards to which Dr. Packer belonged.  These include the American Association Veterinary Bacteriologists, American College of Veterinary Microbiologists, American Veterinary Association, Conference of Research Workers in Animal Diseases, Iowa State Board of Control, Mastitis Research Workers Conference, Iowa Veterinary Medical Association, Phi Zeta, and World Association for the History of Veterinary Medicine.

Organization

 
Dr. Packer’s papers are arranged according to eleven series then alphabetically, unless otherwise stated.

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