MS 256
Kenneth Kopf (1904-1997)
Papers, 1895-1994, n.d.

Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140
Descriptive summary   |  Administrative information  |  Biographical/Historical note
Collection description  |  Organization  |  Description of series/container lis

 

Descriptive summary

creator:

Kopf, Kenneth (1904-1997)

title:

Papers

dates:

1895-1994, n.d.

extent:

7.98 linear feet (19 manuscript boxes)

collection number:

MS 256

repository:

Special Collections Department, Iowa State University.

 

Administrative information

access:

Open for research

publication rights:

Consult Head, Special Collections Department

preferred citation:

Kenneth Kopf Papers, MS 256, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library.

 

Biographical note

 
Kenneth Kopf (1904-1997) was born in Farrar, Iowa on May 28, 1904. He received a B.S. (1930) in Agronomy and a Ph.D (1952) in Genetics from Iowa State University.  Kopf began his career with F. H. Woodruff & Sons of Milford, CT as a plant-breeding supervisor  (1933-1944). He then worked as a geneticist for the Hawaiian Pineapple Company (1944-1949) and after serving as a graduate assistant at Iowa State College (University) (1949-1952), he moved to the United Nations where he worked for the Food and Agriculture Organization in Iraq (1952). Kopf then became an agricultural advisor for the U.S.  Agency for International Development and worked in Korea (1954), Columbia (1960), Nigeria (1965), and Vietnam (1970). 

Kopf was a book collector from a young age, and has donated hundreds of books to the Iowa State University Library.  Kopf died January 19, 1997.

 

Collection Description

 
This collection consists of both personal and professional documents and artifacts, including correspondence, reports, publications, course notes, photographs, and certificates.

 

Organization

This collection is organized into ten series:

Series 1: Biographical information, 1930-1994, n.d.
Series 2: Course notes, 1920-1952, n.d
Series 3: F.H. Woodruff & Sons, Milford, Connecticut, 1931-1962
Series 4: Hawaiian Pineapple Company, 1935-1956
Series 5, Food and Agricultural Organization, 1952-1960
Series 6: USAID, 1956-1990
Series 7: Conferences/workshops, 1954-1974
Series 8: Writings, 1951-1952
Series 9: Publications/reports, 1926-1983
Series 10: Plant breeding, 1931-1939.

Each series is arranged alphabetically.

 

Description of series

 

 

 

Series 1

Biographical Information

1930-1994, n.d.

extent:

0.84 linear feet

 

description:

Series contains documents about Kopf’s personal life, including certificates for both he and his wife, personal correspondence, and other non-work-related activities.

 

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

1

1

 50th Class Reunion (Iowa State University) List

1985

1

2

Appointment calendar

1954

1

3

 Appointment calendar with prints from the collection of the museum of modern art

1957

1

4

 Certificates – Grace E. Kopf

1950, 1952

1

5

 Certificates (11)

1930-1991

1

6

Correspondence – personal

1970-1971

1

7

Correspondence and ephemera

1950-1967

1

8

Correspondence and publications (WW II)

1941-1942

1

9

Correspondence related to returning to Iowa State for completion of PhD.

1948-1949

1

10

 Correspondence with First National Bank, Ames, IA

1966-1970

1

11

First aid training (WW II)

1941-1942

1

12

General correspondence

1952-1974

1

13

Grace E. Kopf WAC materials

1942-1947

1

14

Grace Elizabeth Jones Kopf (1 4x5 “B&W prints)

1952

1

15

 Grace Kopf – Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps

1943

1

16

 Iowa State College Diploma (B.S.) and graduation program - Grace E. Kopf

1950

2

1

 Iowa State College Diploma (M.S.) and graduation program - Grace E. Kopf

1952

2

2

 Ken Kopf’s 90th birthday party invitation

1994

2

3

Letters opened by government censors

n.d., 1944

2

4

 Masters Thesis - Grace E. Kopf

1952

2

5

NAFTA correspondence and background publications

1962-1993

2

6

 Pan Am Airline commemorative certificates (2)

1960

2

7

 Personal correspondence

1971-1974

2

8

 Personal photographs (6 8x10” B&W)

ca. 1930’s

2

9

 Personnel evaluations/comment

1970-1973

2

10

Personnel questionnaire (6 8x10” color)

1969

2

11

Personnel records

1954-1959

2

12

 Personnel records

1971

2

13

Red Cross, Civil Defense, and WAC

1934, 1940-1942

2

14

Revised rough draft of Kopf’s PhD thesis

1952

2

15

Sigma Xi Newsletter

1983, 1986

2

16

Milford Conn Sketches of Grace and Ken Kopf

ca. 1936-1938

 

Description of series

 

 

 

Series 2

Course notes

1920-1952, n.d.

extent:

2.94 linear feet

 

description:

Notes and other miscellaneous coursework during Kopf’s education at Iowa State College (University).

 

 

Container list

Box Folder Title Dates

3

1

Agronomy 621, 622, 624, Botany 624

1949-1951

3

2

Agronomy 645 A & B

1952

3

3

Animal husbandry 506B

1936

3

4

Bibliographies

1927-1931

3

5

 Blue book exam – one of Dr. Lush’s early courses

1933

3

6

 Botany 130a

1929-1930

3

7

Botany 143a

1931

3

8

Botany 145 – Cytology

1931

3

9

 Botany 200

1929

3

10

Botany 201

n.d.

3

11

Chemistry 502A, 503A, 606, 751A, 751B

1926-1927, n.d.

3

12

Chemistry 890

1930

3

13

 Chemistry 890

1931

4

1

Cornell University Department of Plant Breeding

1930-1936

4

2

Cytology and Morphology

1931-1932

4

3

Des Moines University Extension certificate – Elementary Psychology

1924

4

4

Disease resistance papers

1920-1930, n.d.

4

5

 Economic Science 119 and 120

1929-1930

4

6

Elementary genetics 130 (Lindstrom)

1929

4

7

 Farm Crops

n.d.

4

8

 Farm Crops 151

1924

4

9

 Farm Crops 152

1924-1925

4

10

 Farm Crops 153 and 251

1930

4

11

 Farm Crops 156

1929

4

12

 Farm Crops 159

1929

4

13

 Genetics

1950-1952

4

14

 Genetics

1934-1935

4

15

 Genetics – R. A. Fisher

1931

4

16

 Genetics 130

ca. 1930

4

17

 Genetics 300

1941

4

18

Genetics 300, 305, 540, 630, 635

1950-1951

5

1

Genetics 530

1935

5

2

 Genetics 630

n.d.

5

3

 Genetics 635

1950-1951

5

4

 Genetics essays

ca. 1930s

5

5

Genetics of populations – J. L. Lush (1 of 2)

1949

5

6

Genetics of populations – J. L. Lush (2 of 2)

1949

5

7

Genetics seminar (Jay Lush)

 1930

5

8

“Genetics varia” (1 of 3)

1950-1951

5

9

“Genetics varia” (2 of 3)

1950-1951

6

1

“Genetics varia”  (3 of 3)

1950-1951

6

2

 Government 215

1930

6

3

 History 124

1929

6

4

 History of genetics

n.d.

6

5

 Industrial Science 2B

1925

6

6

“Introduction to the Definite Integral”

n.d.

6

7

 Iowa State College Genetics course

n.d.

6

8

Lectures in statistics (Gertrude Cox); PRJ-Honolulu

1947

6

9

“Lectures to Prep Engineers in the Fall of 1926”

1926

6

10

Mechanical Engineering 51

n.d.

6

11

Miscellaneous course notes

1918-1932
6

12

Miscellaneous seminars, lectures, readings. Includes correspondence

1930s

6

13

Mycology (J. C. Gilman) folder 1

ca. 1929

7

1

Mycology (J. C. Gilman) folder 2

ca. 1929

7

2

Mycology (J. C. Gilman) folder 3

ca. 1929

7

3

 Physical Education, Bacteriology 314, and misc. notes

ca. 1930

7

4

Physics 208, 209, 210

1928-1929

7

5

Physics 316

1931

7

6

Physics 438

1931

7

7

Physics 567 - Nuclear physics and Biology

1951-1952

7

8

Plant Pathology – C. S. Reddy

1895-1935

7

9

Plant pathology (IE Melhas) folder 1

ca. 1929

8

1

Plant pathology (IE Melhas) folder 2

ca. 1929

8

2

Plant pathology (IE Melhas) folder 3

ca. 1929

8

3

 Religious Education 3 and 7

1925

8

4

Scientific Photography – Iowa State Buildings and Gardens (27 4x5 B&W prints)

1930-1932

8

5

Scientific Photography – Iowa State Buildings and Gardens (6 glass negatives)

1930-1932

8

6

Scientific Photography – painting of a tree on a riverbank (3 glass negatives)

1930-1932

8

7

Scientific Photography – painting of a tree on a riverbank (7 4x5 B&W prints)

1930-1932

8

8

Scientific Photography – plants and plant cuttings

(7 glass negatives)

1930-1932

8

9

Scientific Photography – plants and plant cuttings (29 4x5 B&W prints)

1930-1932

8

10

Scientific Photography – scientific illustrations

(4 4x5” B&W prints)

1930-1932

8

11

Scientific Photography – unidentified men

(4 4x5” B&W prints)

1930-1932

8

12

Scientific Photography – unidentified men

(2 glass negatives)

1930-1932

8

13

Scientific Photography (2 lantern slides)

1927-1932

8

14

 Soil Classification Short Course

1925

8

15

 Soils 151a

1925

8

16

 Soils 251

1929

8

17

 Soils 252 and 251a

1930

8

18

 Soils 451

1930

8

19

 Soils 652a and 652b

1930

8

20

 Statistics

1949-1950

9

1

Statistics (G. H. Snedecor)

1929-1930

9

2

Statistics (R. A. Fisher)

1931

9

3

 Statistics (1 of 2)

1949

9

4

 Statistics (2 of 2)

1949

9

5

Statistics 447 (TA Bancroft) folder 1

1950

9

6

Statistics 447 (TA Bancroft) folder 2

1950

9

7

Statistics 448  (TA Bancroft) folder 1

1950

9

8

Statistics 448 (TA Bancroft) folder 2

1950

9

9

 Studies with β-radiation on Tomato Seed

1932

9

10

 Technical Journalism 28

1930

 

 

Description of series

 

 

 

Series 3

F.H. Woodruff & Sons, Milford, Connecticut

1931-1962

extent:

0.42 linear feet

 

description:

Files relating to Kopf’s plant breeding work for F.H. Woodruff & Sons, his first job after graduating from college. 

 

 

Box Folder Title Dates

10

1

 Correspondence with Crookham Company, Caldwell, Idaho

1941-1942

10

2

Correspondence with ISC professors while at F. H. Woodruff Seed Company (1933-1944)

1931-1962

10

3

Descriptions of National Vegetable Variety Trials

1939-1940

10

4

F. H. Woodruff and Sons, correspondence

1939

10

5

F. H. Woodruff and Sons, Milford, Connecticut, reports

1933-1939

10

6

New England Vegetables Trials Standardization records

1936-1941

10

7

 Vegetable trials, Storrs, CT

1941

10

8

Vegetable trial reports (folder 1)

1938

10

9

Vegetable trial reports (folder 2)

1938

10

10

Vegetable trial reports (folder 3)

1938

 

Description of series

 

 

 

Series 4

Hawaiian Pineapple Company

1935-1956

extent:

0.45 linear feet

 

description:

Correspondence and reports concerning Kopf’s work on improving pineapples in Hawaii – includes photographs.

 

 

Box Folder Title Dates

11

1

 Annual Report of the Hawaiian Pineapple Company, Ltd.

1946

11

2

Annual Reports for the Hawaiian Pineapple Co., Ltd.

1942-1948

11

3

Average fruit weight memo

1948

11

4

“The Bromeliads of Brazil”

1943

11

5

Charts:  Sugar Crops 1938-1947

1948

11

6

Comparison of Hilo and Cayenne Strains of Ananas Comosus

1944

11

7

 Complex experiments

1935-1941

11

8

Correspondence – Rent Control Commission, City and County of Honolulu

1946

11

9

 Correspondence and related materials (2 5x7 B&W prints)

1948-1949

11

10

Genetics Group Triennial Report 1944-1947

1947

11

11

Genetics Section HAPCO Research Department

1947

11

12

Genetics Section, Research Department, Hawaiian Pineapple Co. Ltd. Quarterly Report Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, 1944

1944

11

13

 Guava Survey – Lanai and related correspondence

1946

11

14

 Guava Survey Data Sheets

1948

11

15

 Guava Survey Report for 1947

1947

11

16

 Hawaii: Correspondence and reports – Hawaiian Pineapple Co.

1944-1949

11

17

 Hawaiian Academy of Science

1954-1956

11

18

 Hawaiian Pineapple Company Annual Report

1947

11

19