This collection is unprocessed.

Materials include photographs dating from the 1980s to 2003, a 1997 self-survey, and self-accreditation from 1978.

This collection is UNPROCESSED.

The Mercurio Martinez Papers (1797-1963 (bulk: 1910-1963)) include correspondence, copies of legal documents such as wills, deeds, affidavits and courtroom briefs, maps, a few photographs, field notes for land surveys, genealogical charts, accounts of family and regional history by Mercurio Martinez, and historical accounts from other sources, principally newspapers. There are also financial records of various kinds including tax records, bills and receipts, books of check stubs and account sheets.

The vast majority of the papers relate to families, places and events in Zapata County. Webb County is also well represented, as is the region surrounding the town of Guerrero, Tamaulipas located on the south bank of the Rio Grande opposite Zapata County, Texas. A few papers deal with families, places and events in Starr County and further south in the Rio Grande Valley and a few files deal with Mexican, United States and world affairs. Unless otherwise noted in the inventory, files deal with Zapata or Webb County matters.

The oldest original papers date from the latter part of the nineteenth century and include such documents as Mercurio Martinez's Texas Teachers Certificate, 1898 (Series 1-3/4); a General Land Office map of Zapata County, 1885, (Series 3-14/25); and a certificate appointing Proceso Martinez, Sr., Mercurio's father, to the Zapata County Board of Appeals, 1870, (Series 3-25/23). There are also copies and translations of nineteenth-century documents including partition deeds, deeds of sale, birth records, and maps. Accounts of family and local history written by Martinez in the 1950s and early 1960s deal with events dating back to the Spanish settlements along the lower Rio Grande in the 1750s. Genealogies are generally traced back to the first colonists to arrive in the region. Family records, therefore, cover a time span of more than 200 years, from the settlers who arrived on the banks of the Rio Grande in about 1750 to their descendants in the early 1960s. Each decade from 1900 onward is represented in the papers. There are more files from the 1950s than any other single decade.

Among the most important files in the collection are those on the relocation of the town of Zapata due to the construction of Falcon Dam on the Rio Grande in the early 1950s, the salvation of the community of San Ygnacio from destruction during this period, the accounts of family history and genealogy from Zapata County, and the papers related to the division of lands between descendants of original holders of Spanish grants and sales of family lands. Maps, genealogies, and legal documents provide a clear picture of the rapidity with which even extensive landholdings can be reduced to tracts hardly adequate to support the families of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the original owners. Reconsolidation of holdings through the purchase of interest from siblings and through cousin marriage are also documented. It is also possible to trace shifts in settlement and land-use patterns. For example, the original grantees of porciones along the Rio Grande held land in long narrow blocks extending inland from the river. Over the generations, these blocks were subdivided among heirs and parts of them were sold outside the families. Through separate inheritance from parents, through marriage, and through purchase, individuals came to own small pieces of land located in widely separated tracts. This pattern of dispersed holdings, each of economically inefficient size and too far apart to be worked as units, has been noted for many peasant societies. These papers clearly reveal the processes whereby such a land-holding pattern developed out of the more economically efficient block holdings within a few generations. The most completely documented tract of land is the vast Jose Vasquez Borrego Grant made in 1750. It was later divided into the Dolores, Corralitos, and San Ygnacio Subdivisions. The first settlement was made at the Hacienda de Dolores on August 22, 1750. This settlement was abandoned, apparently during Indian troubles in the early 19th century. A settlement or Rancho of Dolores was founded nearby in the Dolores subdivision of the Borrego Grant by Cosme Martinez in 1859. Meanwhile, the town of San Ygnacio had been founded in the San Ygnacio subdivision in 1830. Until the early 20th century, an hacienda in the Corralitos subdivision was occupied by members of the Vidaurri family, who were descendants of the original grantee's daughter, Alejandra Vasquez Borrego de Vidaurri.

Also of interest are the Corridos, or ballads, composed by Mercurio Martinez and dealing with dramatic events in Zapata County history such as an escape from prison, a contested election and the destruction of Zapata by the rising waters of Falcon Reservoir.

This collection contains letters, magazine and newspaper articles, magazines, prints, and other materials documenting the work of artist Edward Muegge "Buck" Schiwetz, as both a commercial and fine artist.

His sketches and watercolors are featured in a vast majority of the print material in the collection, from Christmas cards to sketchbooks to fine prints.

Rather than focusing on Schiwetz's life and his time at Texas A&M, the collection pays most attention to his art career and people's opinion of Schiwetz as an artist in the traditional sense of the definition.

This collection consists of manuscripts, typescripts, printed items, correspondence, official documents, and publications from the French seventeenth to twentieth centuries. Authors and addressees include many personalities prominent in French history but also many ordinary individuals.

This small collection includes 11 letters from Maurice Bailey, 6 photos from Stanley C. Jordan, and 18 photos of other African Americans serving in the armed forces during World War 2 in two theatres Naples and Marseille France.

The collection is of a black soldier from Chemung County, New York, named Maurice M Bailey (1906-?). There are 11 letters he wrote to his sister Beatrice Craig, who lives in Harlem. Enlisting at the age of approximately 36 on May 27, 1942, Maurice M Bailey was a Private in the Branch Immaterial or General Officers branch of the Selectees during World War II. At the time of enlistment, Maurice M Bailey was single, with dependents, stood 70 inches tall, weighed 179 pounds, and had an education level of 2 years of college. He landed in Oran in April 1943 as part of the 99th Quartermaster Company RHD and was a baker. Before the war, he was an electrician. His service number was 32344461. He refers to Mussolini as "their famous spaghetti boy Mussi". He describes his stay in Naples, where high-ranking fascists stayed. He describes being on guard duty in Oran during an axis air raid. He cares for his sister deeply, who is not well, and he talks about his plans when he gets back and the things he misses. Noteworthy is his generosity towards his sister, and when he sees how pricey everything is in Naples he prefers to give his money to her.

All the letters are from his service overseas during the war. His pay was only $5.30. He comments "Time heals all wounds. Even war.". He goes on "I must mention how a colored USO show here brought the house down when the girl from Brooklyn sang "Not now baby I'll tell you when". She really was a scream. Why even I fell for the jive and I am not a hip cat". These are just samples of what he has written. Interesting content on both war and reflections of his home by an African-American serving in North Africa, Italy, and France.

Also included are 6 photos from a black soldier named Stanley C Jordan (1921-?) who was a trombone player with the 1333 Eng. Regiment band in World war 2. The photos show Jordan participating in the victory day parade in Marseille France on May 9, 1945. Jordan enlisted when he was 21 on December 21, 1942. At the time of enlistment, he was single, with dependents, stood 70 inches tall, weighed 139 pounds, and had an education level of 4 years of high school. He came from Baltimore, Maryland. His service ID was 33390589.

Also included are 18 photos of African Americans serving in the armed forces during World War 2, in both theatres. Photos from Camp Ellis in Illinois, some photos have descriptions on the reverse.

This collection consists of materials from various science fiction and fantasy conventions, assembled over the years by Russ Ault. Materials include program guides, program books, and pocket programs.

This collection consists of the diaries and journals kept by Andre Norton between 1930 and 2004, a few months before her death. The diaries record Norton's life experiences, thoughts, and notes on her writing and writing process.

This collection consists of fanworks produced and gathered by fans of the Klingon culture from the Star Trek franchise. Materials include fanzines, art, club newsletters, and other objects of creative expression.

Klingons represent an active subset of the larger Star Trek fan community, and have been so for several decades. Klingon fans are particularly visible because of their frequent involvement in often-elaborate cosplay (that is, the use of costumes and accessories to represent specific characters, often personae created by the participants themselves).

The Klingons are an aggressive race of humanoid warriors, first seen in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Errand of Mercy" (1967). The Klingons started out as major adversaries of the U.S.S. Enterprise crew, Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets. However, as the Star Trek franchise began expanding in 1987 with the debut of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Klingons evolved from enemies into uneasy allies, and numerous episodes of TNG and later Star Trek series were devoted to exploring aspects of Klingon culture. They continue to occupy a major position in the overall Star Trek universe.

Klingon fandom is most notable for its adoption of the Klingon language. Klingon is a real (albeit artificially constructed) language with its own system of grammar, structure and rules of pronunciation. It was originally created by linguist Marc Okrund in the mid-1980s for the Star Trek films and was adopted into later iterations of the television franchise. Klingon has been expanded on by interested fans and language hobbyists to the point where a number of literary works have been translated from English to Klingon. Many Klingon-related fan creations are written at least partially in the Klingon language, and it is not uncommon for dedicated fans to speak it amongst themselves.

This collection consists almost entirely of correspondence between legendary Texas writer Bill Crider and author and professor Robert E. Skinner, of Xavier University in New Orleans. Over several years, the two became regular correspondents in exchanges involving numerous subjects, including writers, writing, films, books, and their personal lives.

The two did not cease corresponding after 1998 (the date of last correspondence in the collection), but once Crider and Skinner started using email as their major medium of choice, Skinner ceased collecting the exchanges.

This collection contains a copy of the Charter, by-laws, financial reports, correspondence, photographs, and news clippings from Community House, Inc. which was an organization in College Station, Texas for the promotion of community welfare and support of benevolent, charitable, and educational undertakings.

This collection contains notebooks given to COSGA student committee leaders, staff, and delegates. Also included is an event mailer for the 2008 program.

This collection contains photocopies of manuscripts, poetry, reviews, and articles written by Roy Fuller and others, along with photocopies of correspondence to and from Roy Fuller, and to and from other writers.

This collection, compiled by Professor A. W. Yeats, contains numerous letters handwritten by Kipling, copies of Kipling letters, letters written by his sister Alice Fleming discussing her childhood with Kipling, and correspondence from Kipling's wife Caroline and daughter Elsie.

Included in the collection are many original newspaper clippings, poems, short stories, photos, drawings, . articles, a publishing contract, lists of various Kipling collections, material regarding the Kipling Society and the Last Will and Testaments of Rudyard Kipling, his wife Caroline and his sister Alice Fleming.

The collection, through a large display of original and reproduced letters, gives a peek at the kind of everyday tasks that Rudyard, as a famous author, and his wife Caroline had to contend with. Through its many newspaper clippings and articles written about him, the collection shows how eminent Rudyard Kipling was as a writer both in the 19th and the 20th centuries. It also serves as an introduction to the Kipling Society, its founding and difficulties therein, as well as the struggles legal and otherwise that surrounded Kipling's work during his life, continuing many years after his death. The collection contains interesting facts about the Kipling family, including some light genealogy, the places they lived and visited, and the people they knew.

There are some thirty-six Rudyard Kipling autograph pieces, all of which are letters excluding a few poems and miscellaneous items. The collection contains many original letters of Alice Fleming, Caroline Kipling, Elsie (Kipling) Bambridge, J.H.C. Brooking, A. W. Yeats and various others as well as many copies of letters from other Kipling collections throughout the country. In addition to any personal correspondence, there are many letters and notes, several minutes, member lists and other paraphernalia of the Kipling Society founded by J.H.C. Brooking in 1926 [?]. There is an assortment of page-proofs, galleys, original drafts, and copies of Kipling's poems, short stories, and manuscripts, along with a wide range of newspaper clippings dealing with all aspects of Kipling's life and influences on society. In addition, the collection has several original and copied catalogs from bookseller's and auction houses holding Kipling material.

Along with the letters, clippings, and many books in the Rudyard Kipling Collection at Texas A&M University, the collection contains items such as an autograph copy of "The Foreloper" framed with an illustration by an unidentified artist, the manuscript for "The Maltese Cat," and the ledger book of Mr. T.E. Elwell, an early member of the Kipling Society, who made many notes and collected numerous clippings towards a Kipling bibliography.

This collection contains letters, newspaper clippings, postcards, empty envelopes, and stamps. The collection contains over 600 items in total, with four letters, and forty-eight postcards. However, the majority of this collection is made up of envelopes.

Most of the correspondence relates to William Youens (1848-1930), his wife Mary (Kennard) Youens (1856-1941) of Navasota, Texas, and their children Anne Caroline Youens (1883-1959), Emmie Lucy Youens (1885-1967), Herbert Percy Youens (1889-1978) and Clifford Kennard Youens (1891-1977). The correspondence concerns the travels of family members and the service of Herbert Youens in Europe during World War I. Of particular interest is a letter written to Judge John R. Kennard, Mary Youens' father by Texas Governor James W. Throckmorton on January 5, 1867. In this letter, Throckmorton references a court case concerning the use of United States Army troops to provide protection for freedmen. Mentioned in the letter are General Charles Griffin, commandant of the Texas sub-district, General Joseph Barr Kiddoo, assistant commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, and Jacob Carl Maria Degress, assistant commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau of the eastern division of the state. Judge Kennard was an early settler of Grimes County.

This collection was originally in a white metal box with the word "BREAD" printed in gold. The collection appears to have been compiled for its stamps, as many have been removed. Some of the stamps were collected in envelopes at the end of the collection.

This collection contains a scrapbook that was made using the book "Teacher's Method and Results Book, Used with Progressive Business Accounting" prepared by L. E. Goodyear (1910), and inscribed on the book's front and back cover is "SCRAP BOOK - Baldwin". Within the book are many clippings from the 1930s related to business, religion, and Baldwin's Business College (Yoakum, TX) among other topics.

Many of the articles pasted within the book are written by Howard Baldwin of Yoakum leading one to believe the scrapbook could have been created by Howard Baldwin himself, however loose documents found within and accompanying the book suggest otherwise. Two short handwritten lists found between the pages note making hair appointments and a "dress altered" and found with the second list are two name cards for "Miss Ann Cade".

Other materials sewed or pasted into the book include recipes, Rural Pastor Conference schedule at Texas A&M (page 61), "Glenn Frank's Ideas" columns, and USDA Leaflet #68, "Roadside Markets" from October 1930.

A one-page letter dated Bryan, Texas, October 20, 1946, is also included in this collection, although it is uncertain whether the typed letter is of any relation or has been misplaced from another collection. It is addressed to "Dear Loved Ones" and there is no signature. We can assume the writer of the letter is a woman by the multiple mentions and use of "Daddy", and with the paragraph about Martha making reservations at the Baker Hotel in Dallas for a convention and wanting the writer to stay with her. There are many names mentioned in the letter that one could possibly narrow down the author.

This collection consists of several apazines to which Prentiss Riddle contributed individual zines. The APAs represented are Argos and Myriad, which take as their subject science fiction, and Lingua (later titled Linguica), which involves explorations of language and languages. The collection contains a few additional materials, including individual zines.

Fanlore.org defines an "apa" (or "amateur press association") as "a kind of fan publication in which all the materials, generally letters, would be sent to a central person, who would simply copy the entire packet in the cheapest possible way (e.g. mimeograph, spirit duplicating, xerography, offset printing; APAs far predate the photocopy machine.) Sometimes each of the contributors sends as many copies of their submission as there are subscribers to the central mailer of the zine, who then collates and mails these, and does not have to take care of the printing.

APAs were, and are, important media for fannish conversation, discussion, and interaction: sort of a fannish mailing list or LiveJournal in print sent by snail mail. "

Apa members were expected to make regular or at least periodic contributions to the mailings (called "minac", or MINimum Activity). The role of the Central Mailer, sometimes called an Official Editor or Central Editor, often rotates between members of the apa. In addition, apa participants often change the title and/or format of their apazines from time period to time period. For example, Prentiss Riddle changed the title of his contributions almost monthly between issues of the apas of which he was a member.

This collection contains sets of galley proofs from several issues, dating from 1965, of the important, groundbreaking British science fiction magazine New Worlds. During this period of the magazine's publication, it was edited by famous and influential science fiction author Michael Moorcock.

The proof sets for April and August 1965 are complete, while there are only partial sets for January-March 1965. There are also several additional fragments from unknown issues.

This collection contains fanzines and some scattered other materials relating to the television series Star Trek: The Original Series[TOS] (1966-1969). The driving force behind most of the stories in the collection - as reflecting the cultural interests of collection donor Holly Brown - is the close friendship between the characters Captain James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock. However, stories in the collection do involve many different characters and situations.

The majority of the contents in this collection consist of fan fiction. Fan fiction is the name given to literary or artistic productions created by fans about the collection is identified as "slash”. "Slash" refers to fanworks that feature same-sex relationships and are sometimes (though not always) sexually explicit. In slash, sexual identity, sexuality and/or romance are often the centers of the story, rather than the conventional adventures featured in more traditional fanworks. Holly Brown is herself a slash writer, and much of her collecting was driven by her interest in slash.

Another substantial portion of the collection consists of "het" material. "Het", like slash, refers to fanworks featuring sexual or romantic content, but with opposite-sex relationships. "Gen" stories are those that, speaking broadly, involve the more standard sorts of adventures one might encounter in the television series or other original source material, or that do not involve sexual content as a focus of the story.

Gen and het items are identified as such on the item folder. If an item is not identified as gen or het, it is to be assumed that the item is slash.

A small portion of the collection involves media productions other than Star Trek[TOS]. These include the show's sequel series Star Trek: The Next Generation[TNG] as well as anthologies of multimedia fanfiction featuring stories from many different sources.

Other, smaller portions of the collection include copies of script drafts from various episodes of Star Trek[TOS] and Star Trek: The Animated Series[TAS], as well as program books and other materials from a number of science fiction conventions.

This collection contains a large collection of reference materials relating to science fiction and fantasy author Andre Norton, assembled by Norton researcher Joseph Goldin. Materials include book reviews (both of Norton's work and those written by Norton herself in her capacity as a librarian at the Cleveland Public Library), essays, interviews, and other articles. They are drawn from newspapers, fanzines, secondary reference works, and prozines, among others.

With one or two exceptions, all of the materials in the collection are photocopies of the originals.

A collection of comic books from the new series from Marvel Comics, Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel.

The first is written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and details the adventures of superhero Carol Danvers, the former Ms. Marvel who in 2013 assumed the name, Captain Marvel. The second series is written by G. Willow Wilson and explores the story of young Kamala Khan, a Muslim American girl who acquires superpowers and adopts the name Ms. Marvel out of tribute to Danvers. Ms. Marvel, as a Pakistani-American, is the first Muslim superhero in an American comic book to have her own title.

The collection includes issues from the post-Secret Warscycle of stories concerning the two heroines.

Artists vary between individual issues of both series.

This collection contains materials that were part of the work done by David Woodcock through the Center for Heritage Conservation as well as the Design Review Sub-Council (DRsc), which reports to the Council for Built Environment and is responsible for ensuring all construction and renovation on the Texas A&M Campus. The materials focus on DRsc review, the Campus Houses that A&M faculty lived in, the Riverside Campus, formerly the Bryan Air Base and the Annex, and historic Bryan and College Station.

This collection consists of correspondence to and from legendary author Frederick Pohl, mostly regarding editorial matters and other items of authorial business.

Most of the letters, dated from 1948-1952, are to or from Shasta Publishing founder Erle Melvin Korshak or editor Ted Dikty. There is also some correspondence between Pohl and Playboy Magazine dated between 1962-1978.

This collection consists of decades worth of science fiction and fantasy fanzines, collected by Canadian fanzine writer and editor Mike Hall, and by book collector and author Chester Cuthbert. Chronologically, the fanzines date from some of the earliest years of organized SciFi fandom through the 21st century.

This collection contains biographical data, publications, and data on the Biology Department at Texas A&M in which Sewell was a faculty member, as well as reports and other papers relating to oyster mortality research carried out through the Texas A&M Research Foundation Research Project 9 (February 1, 1947 - May 31, 1950).

The research project 9 was funded by six major oil companies and led by two Texas A & M University Professors, Sewell H. Hopkins (Head) and John G. Mackin (Associate Head).

Prompted by several lawsuits filed by Louisiana oystermen against major oil companies claiming damages to oyster fields as a result of drilling in the Gulf Of Mexico region, Project 9 was conducted under the auspices of the Texas A & M Research Foundation. Project 9 allowed researchers to design and implement field and laboratory studies seeking to determine the effects of oil production activities on oyster production. Eventually, a then as-yet-unknown parasite was discovered which preyed upon the oyster crop after they had begun to reach maturity.

Two other large research groups investigating the same allegations against oil production in the Gulf headed by H. Malcome Owen (Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission) and Albert W. Collier (Gulf Oil Company) compared notes with the Heads of Project 9, coming to the same conclusion. As a result of this collaboration, a description of this newly discovered parasite called Dermocystidium marinum was published in 1950. The lawsuits were subsequently dropped or settled out of court.

More importantly for the history of the Texas A & M University System, however, is the fact that Research Project 9 led ultimately to the creation and expansion of a Marine Sciences program, represented by the newly established (1949) Department of Oceanography at Texas A & M University in College Station. On 1 June 1950, after the termination of Research Project 9, Research Project 23 was begun to continue studies on oyster disease and maintain a Marine Laboratory at Grand Isle, La. The Texas A & M Marine Laboratory was established (1952) at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Tex. In 1968 Texas A & M University was named a Sea Grant College. The Marine Laboratory and the Texas Maritime Academy were merged in 1971, which is now known as Texas A & M University at Galveston.

These papers, therefore, form a picture of the ground-breaking research in oyster mortality conducted by Sewell H. Hopkins as head of Project 9, which led to increased sensitivity of the interplay of industry and the ecosystem, and to the formalized study at the university level of marine biology in the Gulf area.

Other researchers whose work is represented in the papers include Jay Donald Andrews, A. D. Bajkov, Harry J. Bennet, James L. Boswell, Clair Brown, Sidney O. Brown, M.D. Burkenroad, Fred Caulthron, C. Ray Elsey, I. I. Gardescu, Gordon Gunter, C. K. Hancock, Harold W. Harry, Joel W. Hedgpeth, Willis G. Hewatt, A. A. Jakkula, Fred W. Jensen, P. Korringa, Louis Lambert, Hugh B. Lofland, Elmer J. Lund, G. Robert Lunz, Jr., John C. Aull, Alvin F. Dodds, Shirley Alfred Lynch, John G. Mackin, Wiley G. Lastrapes, H. A. Marmer, R. Winston Menzel, Thurlow C. Nelson, Joseph F. Prokop, W. C. Rasmussen, Sammy M. Ray, J. H. Roberts, Fred W. Sieling, John J. Sperry, Victor Sprague, and Claude E. ZoBell.

    * Bibliography

    * Ray, Sammy M. "Historical Perspective on Perkinsus Marinus Disease of Oysters in the Gulf of Mexico." Journal of Shellfish Research. Vol. 15, No. 1:9-11.

    * Ray, Sammy M. "Texas A & M University's Contributions to Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem Research." [Viewed 2002-10-10 at: ]

This collection consists of documents, daybooks, and photographs pertaining to the life of Jay Martin Poole, whose dedication to academic libraries brought him to Sterling C. Evans Library at Texas A&M University for many years, working as both library administration and a librarian consultant. The majority of the collection are letters written and received by Poole, both personal and professional. Another large portion of the collection contains daybooks and agendas, in which Poole kept an extensive log of his daily activities from 1963 to 1993. Jay's librarian background has given us an incredibly informative record of his life, his personality, and his experiences. A few significant topics and references represented in the collection are the GLBT community, collection and bibliographic services, CHOICE Magazine, academic librarian work, Texas A&M University, Sterling C. Evans Library, the University of Texas at Austin, The College of Santa Fe, Univerisity of California at Irvine, and genealogical records.

This collections of materials documenting the life and literary career of Gwen Faith Hunter, who writes thrillers under the name of 'Gwen Hunter' and, under the name 'Faith Hunter', the Jane Yellowrock, Soulwood, and _Rogue Mage_urban fantasy series. Materials in the collection consists of manuscripts, notes, page proofs, correspondence, publicity materials, awards, and documentation relating to Hunter's childhood and early attempts at writing.

This collection covers predominantly the 1990s to the early 2000s. Most publications are from the Brazos Valley or Texas area, including some national.

This collection includes campus climate research and reports from the mid-1990s to the 2010s. During this time, for several years, A&M was listed on the Princeton Review list of the top twenty LGBTQ-unfriendly campuses in the United States.

This growing collection covers the period in Bryan-College Station when the gay community was increasingly out and vocal, but still faced significant hostility on the Texas A&M University campus, where Aggie Allies was still a very young organization at this time, and in the local community. It contains papers, flyers, records, photographs, promotional items, and ephemera from the gay bar/club scene in Bryan-College Station in the 1990s.

This collection contains letters and greeting cards to and from A. R. (Albert Richard) Moses during his time in the military. Most of the greeting cards are from the Christmas/New Year season or for his birthday.