Plant Collecting, 1921-1970.

Scope and content:

This subseries documents the process of collecting plants. Notebooks number the plants found and these numbers are also marked on the botanical drawings so that the description and the image may be matched. Some photographs are also numbered and they are held in folders entitled "Plant Photographs". Other photographs and albums hold not only images of plants but also South American Indians, houses, markets, individuals and transport. Photographs that were loose in the back of albums were placed in a separate folder with the same title as the album. The Mexican album from the 1930s holds originals by Diego Rivera who was friend of Mulford Foster. The Palm Notebooks document Foster's work for Fairchild Gardens finding Palm species while the Venezuela and Jamaica Travel Notebook contains more information about possible contacts than about plants. Notebooks are embellished with comments by Racine Foster and Michael Spencer. Notes concerning D. J. McGhee of Marine Studios are in the loose materials from the Mexican Notebook. Colombia notes include a scribbled map of Colombia. Correspondence in this subseries documents travel arrangements and provides details of Mulford and Racine's travels to their families and friends. In 1935, Foster visited Mexico with Tibor Patake and correspondence with him may be found with the Correspondence subseries. Much of the research material consists of tourist information for the places visited, and the material continued to be amassed long after the visits to those countries. Items of memorabilia include a coco bag that is pictured in some photographs and the briefcase that Foster used in Colombia.

Contents

Access and use