Papers of Willard O. Eddy
Scope and Contents
The Papers of Willard O. Eddy consists of documents dated 1926 to 1945 and 1978, with the bulk falling from 1932 to 1945. Correspondence is from colleagues, friends, and family spanning 1929 to 1939 and covers various aspects of his personal and professional life during his stay in Japan and travels in Asia, and advanced studies at the University of Chicago, University of Nebraska, and Yale University. United States Marine and Army training manuals written during the war against Japan in World War II are included and contain class notes written by Eddy. There are receipts for travel and living expenses dated 1935 to 1939. Eddy's class papers for English, Ethics, Social Philosophy, History of Philosophy, and French Language from 1929 to 1932 are included.
Photographs consist of mostly undated and unidentified people and places. A few photographs are from Japan. Miscellaneous items include a silk scarf, a poem, travel brochures from Thailand, greeting cards, military guides, and note cards pertaining to Eddy's research.
One note written by Eddy to Robert Theodoratus that accompanied a military manual is included.
The collection does not include any office or work files from his tenure at CSU or published works by Eddy.
Dates
- 1926-1943, 1978 and 1992
- Majority of material found within 1932-1945
Creator
- Eddy, Willard O. (Person)
Restrictions on Access
There are no access restrictions on this collection.
Restrictions on Use
Not all of the material in the collection is in the public domain. Researchers are responsible for addressing copyright issues.
Biography
Willard O. Eddy, more than any other individual, is credited with promoting liberal arts education at Colorado State University. During his 56-year tenure, he held two full professorships, served as chair of two departments, and created the honors program. He developed the university's first courses in ethics, logic, introduction to philosophy, literary criticism, Western philosophy, and philosophy of science. He was also instrumental in launching programs in religious studies and Asian studies. Officially retiring in 1974, he continued teaching undergraduate classes and held the position of Professor Emeritus until his death in 1993. The Liberal Arts Building was named in his honor in 1978.
Willard Eddy attended DePauw University where he earned his bachelor's degree in English, followed by his master's degree in comparative literature in 1932. He taught as a professor of English language and literature at the Imperial University of Hokkaido in Sapporo, Japan, from 1932 to 1935. He was awarded a scholarship to attend Yale University where he studied political philosophy and the sociology of revolutions and dictatorships. He earned a second master's degree in philosophy from the University of Nebraska and did his doctoral work at the University of Chicago.
Willard O. Eddy was born August 1, 1908, in Hamilton, Indiana, the son of Guy C. and Mamie Eddy. While teaching at CSU he met and married his wife, Gladys Louise Shellabarger, who was also an employee at CSU. They had two children, daughter Sandra and son William.
Eddy took military leave from Colorado A & M from 1942 to 1945 to serve with the Military Intelligence Training Division. He created a curriculum on the Japanese army and taught the Intelligence Sections of the Marine Corps divisions and the 96th Army Division in the Philippines and Okinawa. He later prepared and taught a course on the geography of Korea for occupation troops.
He was at various times a member of the College English Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, the Modern Language Association, the Rocky Mountain Language Association, the Mountain-Plains Philosophical Association, the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences, and the Association of University Professors.
Extent
2.25 linear feet (2 record cartons)
Language of Materials
English
French
Abstract
Willard O. Eddy (1908-1993) played a pivotal role in transforming Colorado State University (CSU) from an agricultural college to a university. Eddy taught at CSU beginning in 1937 and later founded CSU's Honors Program and the department of philosophy. This collection consists of Eddy's correspondence, class papers, training manuals, receipts, photographs and ephemera accumulated primarily before his career at CSU.
Arrangement
The collection consists of 7 series in 2 record cartons:
Series 1: Correspondence, 1932-1939
Series 2: Receipts, 1932-1939 and undated
Series 3: Class assignments, research, and notes, 1927-1939 and undated
Subseries 3.1: Class assignments, 1927-1931
Subseries 3.2: Research notes, 1931, 1939 and undated
Series 4: World War II training manuals, 1937, 1942-1945 and undated
Series 5: Photographs, 1926-1928 and undated
Series 6: Ephemera, 1933-1943, 1978, 1992 and undated
Series 7: Books, 1932-1933 and undated
Acquisition
The Papers of Willard O. Eddy was donated by Roger Hoover. Subsequent permission for the university to archive them was obtained from his son, William Eddy.
An accrual consisting of United States Marine and Army training manuals concerning the war against Japan in World War II was transferred from Government Documents in Morgan Library in April, 2016.
In June 2018 a brief gift note by Eddy to Dr. Robert Theodoratus for Eddy's publication, "Orientation for the Pacific Theater" was donated by Theodoratus.
Separated Collections
The book entitled 3rd Report on Progress in Manchuria to 1907-1932. The South Manchuria Railway Dairen, June, 1932, was removed from the collection and added to Special Collections.
Processing
Correspondence was removed from envelopes. If the letter was undated, the envelope was retained for the postmark; otherwise, the envelope was discarded. All metal paperclips were removed and plastic clips were used when needed. Acid-free paper was placed between the more fragile or deteriorating papers and dates or archivist's notes written on these. There was no original order to the papers, but those that were tied or clipped together were kept together using acid free materials. The materials were re-boxed in archival boxes with acid free folders. Photographs were placed individually in folders labeled with any known information and filed by the description written on it or as described by the archivist. If multiple copies of brochures or books were present, only two copies were retained. The accrual to the collection is bound with the exception of two documents. Those documents were placed in an archival folder.
- Title
- Guide to the Papers of Willard O. Eddy
- Status
- Edited Full Draft
- Author
- Prepared by Brenda E. Carns, Amy Meger, and Sarah Lillis; revised by Victoria Lopez-Terrill
- Date
- Copyright 2015; 2016; 2018
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the CSU Libraries Archives & Special Collections Repository
Fort Collins Colorado 80523-1019 USA
970-491-1844
library_dl_specialcollections@mail.colostate.edu