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Vanez T. Wilson papers

 Collection
Identifier: UUS_COLL MSS 363

Scope and Contents

Vanez T. Wilson's manuscript collection is divided into five series and documents his career with the Bear River Bird Refuge through correspondence, newspaper and magazine articles, journals, reports, and calendars. The "Personal" series chronicles his life beginning as a young student and engineer. Included are correspondence with friends and acquaintances as well as papers he delivered and articles he authored. Wilson's personal papers also include awards and certificates from his career and involvement with community groups.

The series entitled “Bear River Bird Refuge” contains papers, articles, maps, etc. that pertain to the refuge but which were not authored by Mr. Wilson personally. The series also includes various newspaper and magazine articles which often feature Mr. Wilson in his role as refuge manager and the work he did there. “Field Diaries and Travel Records” provides a valuable look at Mr. Wilson’s daily work at the Refuge in his own words, from 1929 to 1957. The “Narrative Reports” series documents the conditions, progress, and affairs of the Refuge between 1938 and 1963. Finally, the volumes held within the “Calendars” section are similar to Mr. Wilson’s field diaries and travel records in that they record Mr. Wilson’s personal and professional business, though not in as much detail.

Dates

  • 1918-2002

Language of Materials

Material in English

Conditions Governing Access

No restrictions on use, except: not available through interlibrary loan.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material from the Vanez T. Wilson papers must be obtained from the Special Collections and Archives manuscript curator and/or the Special Collections and Archives department head.

Biographical Note

Vanez Theurer Wilson was born September 13, 1895, in Logan, Utah. From 1918 to 1919, Mr. Wilson served in the United States Army and fought in World War I. Mr. Wilson received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Utah State Agricultural College in 1920, with a specialty in irrigation. On July 14, 1921, he married Margaret Ann Budge in the Logan Latter-day Saints temple. Together they had five children, four of which survived to adulthood.

After receiving his bachelor’s degree, Mr. Wilson was employed in the private sector for a number of years. In 1927, he began his career with the Department of the Interior helping to survey and establish what was to become the Bear River Bird Refuge just outside of Brigham City, Utah. He was appointed to the position of refuge manager on April 1, 1937, a job which he held until his retirement on August 5, 1965.

Mr. Wilson was an active member of his community. He held many leadership positions in the Rotary Club (where he was president for a number of years), the American Legion, the Boy Scouts of America, the Chamber of Commerce, and his local LDS congregation, where he served in a number of ecclesiastical positions.

Extent

11 boxes (5 linear feet)

Abstract

Vanez T. Wilson's manuscript collection is divided into five series and documents his career with the Bear River Bird Refuge through correspondence, newspaper and magazine articles, journals, reports, and calendars.

Arrangement

This collection is largely arranged by document type.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

This collection was donated to USU Special Collections and Archives by Vanez T. Wilson’s son, Vanez T. Wilson, Jr., in 2011.

Related Materials

See also the Vanez T. Wilson Photograph Collection (P0468).

Separated Materials

The photographs were separated from the manuscripts and housed in the Vanez T. Wilson Photograph Collection (PO468)

Processing Information

Processed in August of 2011.

Title
Guide to the Vanez T. Wilson papers 1918-2002
Author
Finding aid/Register created by Andrew Izatt
Date
©2011
Description rules
Finding Aid Based On Dacs (Describing Archives: A Content Standard, 2nd Edition)
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid encoded in English.

Revision Statements

  • 2009: Template information was updated to reflect Archives West best practice guidelines.

Repository Details

Part of the Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections & Archives Repository

Contact:
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
3000 Old Main Hill
Logan Utah 84322-3000 United States
435 797-8248
435 797-2880 (Fax)