MS 975 - Lyle R. Fletcher Collection

Title	MS 975 - Lyle R. Fletcher Collection
Introduction	The Lyle R. Fletcher collection, dating from approximately 1912-2001, documents the former Bowling Green State University geography professor’s research of Wood County history, geography, and weather. The papers include minutes, from local organizations with which Dr. Fletcher was affiliated, correspondence, research files, literary productions, and printed materials. The collection was donated to the Center for Archival Collections by Jennifer Niehaus in 2002 with assistance from Ann Bowers. A later addition was incorporated from the Wood County Historical Society in 2014. The finding aid was completed by Eric Honneffer in August 2015.
Biographical Sketch	Lyle Rexford Fletcher was born February 28, 1901 on a farm in Pulaski, Iowa. He was only a few days shy of his 100^th birthday when he died in Bowling Green, Ohio on February 16, 2001. During his later years he was known by his many friends and colleagues as the leading authority on Bowling Green and Wood County history, geography, and weather. He was passionate about local history and actively served in the community. Dr. Fletcher attended the University of Kansas, Lawrence in 1922 majoring in earth science with a minor in journalism and geography. He did not graduate but began a journalism career. He worked as a reporter for Parsons, Kansas Sun, as editor of the Daily Kansan, 1924-1925, and at Whiteside Sentinel, Morrison, Illinois before moving to Mount Vernon, Ohio to become city editor of the Mount Vernon News. In 1933 he married Helen Bebout while living there. He graduated from Ohio University in 1931 with a bachelor’s degree in geography and by 1934 received a master’s degree from Ohio State University. That same year he passed the civil service examination and began work in the geography division of the Bureau of the Census in Washington D.C. In 1936 he transferred to the U.S. Weather Bureau to pursue a career as a meteorologist. His daughter, Beverly Niehaus commented, “He did long-range forecasts for Eisenhower’s Normandy Invasion and the A-bomb drops on Nagasaki and Hiroshima.” He was assigned to work for the Iowa Weather Service as chief in Des Moines and served as an adjunct professor of agro—climatology in the department of physics at Iowa State University in Ames. In 1946 he and his family moved to Bowling Green where he worked as assistant professor of geography at Bowling Green State University. He was chairman of the Great Lakes Division of the Association of American Geographers and served on the national board of that organization and the National Council for Geographic Education. He wrote a monthly column, for years, on Wood County weather for the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune and in 1996 published a book on the history of Wood County weather. He was awarded emeritus status by the university in 1971, designated an honorary alumnus in 1986, and presented with an honorary doctorate of public service in 1995. In the early Seventies he became director of the Wood County Parks Commission and was credited with preventing the demolition of the Wood County Infirmary (one of the last intact county homes in Ohio). The site became the home of the Wood County Historical Museum and Center. In 1956 Dr. Fletcher had helped co-found the Wood County Historical Society. He would serve as its first secretary, curator, newsletter editor, and third president. He also planted all of the trees and shrubs on the surrounding land, later designated the Fletcher Arboretum. Paul Jones, former editor of the Sentinel-Tribune, called him “the real sparkplug of the organization from the beginning.”
Scope and Content	The Lyle Fletcher Collection concentrates primarily upon his research of the history, geography, and weather of Wood County and his activities while living in Bowling Green. Those interested in the history of the county’s weather might wish to consult the data he collected on temperature and precipitation in Wood County. That research was useful not only for his 1996 publication - A Century or So of Wood County Weather - but also for a series of weather articles which appeared for years in the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune. Copies of some of the articles are included in the collection. Dr. Fletcher kept notes, clippings, and statistical data about Bowling Green and Wood County history. The edited manuscript for An Historical Gazetteer of Wood County, Ohio offers information about the history and geography of the local townships and their communities. His correspondence, personal files, autobiographical notes, and news clippings offer some details about Dr. Fletcher’s activities, interests, and community involvement during the time he lived in Bowling Green. The collection contains very little about his career and activities prior to coming to Bowling Green. Check the UL catalog for additional information about Lyle Fletcher (ie. interview with Dorsey Sergent on dvd POG5258).
Series Description	MINUTES 1934-1994 Arranged alphabetically by group These include committee agendas, proceedings, correspondence, and notes for mostly Bowling Green, Wood County, and Ohio organizations with whom Lyle Fletcher was affiliated. Additional information about his committee responsibilities may be found in the Personal Files. CORRESPONDENCE 1947-1999 Arranged by subject. Letters document Lyle Fletcher’s many research interests and family activities. FILES Series: PERSONAL FILES 1948-2001 Arranged by subject These can contain correspondence, certificates/honors, legal documents, printed materials, news clippings, photos, and notes pertinent to Lyle Fletcher, his activities, and some about his family. RESEARCH FILES 1912-2001 Arranged by subject. These files concentrate predominantly upon Lyle Fletcher’s research interest in Wood County history, geography, and weather. The files can contain correspondence, research notes, charts, maps, printed materials, news clippings, and photographs. Some of the research notes include hand written extractions of local history topics and stories from area newspapers dated 1836-1949. These have been organized by name of newspaper and by decades for ease of access. LITERARY PRODUCTIONS 1954-1988 Include articles written by Lyle Fletcher mostly while teaching at Bowling Green State University. Some autobiographical and family history notes are included. An edited manuscript of An Historical Gazetteer of Wood County, Ohio by Lyle Fletcher may be found here as well.
Inventory	Box 1: Minutes and Correspondence Folder: Minutes – Bowling Green U.S. Bicentennial Committee, 1973-1974 Minutes – Bowling Green Sesquicentennial Commission, 1982-1983 Minutes – Ohio Council of Geography Teachers, 1949-1958 Minutes – Wood County Committee on Aging, 1976-1994 scatt. Minutes – Wood County Landmarks Committee, 1974 Minutes – Wood County Park Commission, 1934-1965 Minutes – Wood County Park Commission, 1973-1993 scatt., nd Minutes and agendas, miscellaneous, 1950-1966 scatt. Correspondence - Outgoing, 1966-1974 scatt. Correspondence, 1947-1988 Correspondence – Great Lakes research, 1957-1958 Correspondence – Topographical map research, 1958 Correspondence – Fletcher Family Christmas letter – The Buckeye Breeze, 1951-1998 Correspondence – Fletcher 6oth wedding anniversary cards, 1993 Correspondence – Fletcher birthday cards, 1995-1999, nd Box 2: Personal Files Folder: Bowling Green Kiwanis, 1992, nd Bowling Green M.E. Church – Wesleyan Class, 1948-1974 scatt. Bowling Green – Parks and Recreation, nd Bowling Green – Tree survey, 1968-1993 scatt. Bowling Green – Weather study, nd Bowling Green – Fletcher Arboretum, nd Wood County Bicentennial Constitution Citizens Committee, 1989 Wood County Courthouse Centennial, 1994 Wood County Historical Society, 1955-1997 scatt. Wood County History – County officials and Spirit of Wood County Award winners, 1976-1993, nd Wood County Sesquicentennial Committee, 1970 Fletcher honors, 1970-1992, 2000, nd Fletcher honors – Emeritus certificate, 1971 Legal documents, 1979-1992 Clippings – Lyle Fletcher, 1955-2001 Clippings – Fletcher family, 1955-1959, nd Lyle Fletcher’s high school annual, 1922 Photographs – Pemberville and miscellaneous, 1912, nd Box 3: Wood County Research Files Folder: Development of political subdivisions, 1979, nd Distances between places in the county, nd Place names and locations, 1955-1977, nd Early settlers and residents, nd Population, 1822-1970 Cemeteries, 1961-1972 Indexes to county history resources, 1979, nd Brief county histories, 1974,nd Bowling Green roads and streets, 1983, nd Bowling Green buildings and businesses, 1910-1997 scatt., nd Bowling Green historic points of interest, 1965-1977 Bowling Green history by subject (possibly for the Sesquicentennial history of the city), 1975-1983 Bowling Green – History of the First Christian Church, 1955 Bowling Green clippings, 1951-1968 Wood County clippings, 1942-1992 Wood County maps, 1876-1989, nd Anthony Wayne Parkway map, 1955 Maumee River Valley maps, 1903, 1973, nd Ohio Geologic maps and natural vegetation map, 1931-1957, 1966 Indians of Ohio, nd 1963 map of Ohio Country up to 1800 1964 map of the Western Reserve 1800-1850 1961 map of North Union 1870 (Cleveland, Ohio Shakers) Box 4: Wood County Research Files – Newspaper extractions Folder: Wood County history, 1848-1949 Bowling Green buildings and businesses, 1867-1973 Bowling Green, North Baltimore, 1888-1889 Fort Meigs Reveille, 1848-1859 Miami of the Lake, 1836-1854 Prairie Depot Observer, 1900-1950 Pemberville, 1934-1965 Pemberville Leader, 1887-1956 Tri-County News, 1934-1948 Unique Weekly, Rising Sun, 1908-1934 Wayne Observer, 1933-1939 Early Recollections by W.J. Veitch, 1941-1942 Hull’s Trace, Harrison’s Trail, 1876 Newspaper extractions, 1830’s-1840’s Newspaper extractions, 1850’s Newspaper extractions, 1860’s Newspaper extractions, 1870’s Newspaper extractions, 1880’s Newspaper extractions, 1890’s Newspaper extractions, 1900’s Newspaper extractions, 1917 Newspaper extractions, 1920’s Newspaper extractions, 1930’s Newspaper extractions, 1940’s Box 5: Weather Research Files Folder: Monthly record of climatological observations, 1957-1970 Monthly record of climatological observations, 1971-1984 Monthly record of climatological observations, 1990-1997 Temperature charts – Max. and min., 1858-1973 Temperature charts – Max. and min., 1858-1992 Temperature charts – Max. and min., 1858-1996 Temperature charts – Max. and min., 1858-1997 Box 6: Weather Research Files Folder: Temperature charts – Max. and min., 1886-1980 Precipitation charts, 1858-1991 Wood Co. weather analysis – notes, 1854-1990 Two Centuries of Wood Co. Weather – notes, 1787-1991 Tornado, 1953 Box 7: Literary Productions – An Historical Gazetteer of Wood County, Ohio, 1988 Folder: Edited manuscript - The drainage Edited manuscript - Islands in the Maumee River Edited manuscript – The Portage River System, Toussaint Creek Edited manuscript – The Superficies or Land Surface Features Edited manuscript – Bloom Township Edited manuscript – Center Township Edited manuscript – Freedom Township Edited manuscript – Grand Rapids Township Edited manuscript – Henry Township Edited manuscript – Jackson Township Edited manuscript – Lake Township Edited manuscript – Liberty Township Edited manuscript – Middleton Township Edited manuscript – Milton Township Edited manuscript – Montgomery Township Edited manuscript – Perry Township Edited manuscript – Plain Township Edited manuscript – Portage Township Edited manuscript – Webster Township Edited manuscript – Weston Township Edited manuscript – End pages and miscellaneous Final manuscript – Pages 1-81 Final manuscript – Pages 82-146 Articles about Wood County by Lyle Fletcher or in which he was quoted. Box 8: Literary Productions – Articles by Lyle Fletcher Folder: Some Observations on the Additional Climatological Data Needed for Courses in Air Mass Climatology, 1954 Articles by Lyle Fletcher on Wood County weather (taken from the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune), 1956-1979 Lyle Fletcher autobiography and Wood County History notes, nd Family history notes, nd Some Observations on the Geographic Factors Basic to World Power, nd The Need for an Adequate Public School Curricula and Teacher Training Program in Geography for Understanding the U.S.’s Position in World Power Politics, nd An Observational Factor Affecting Our Mean and Absolute Temperature Values, nd Toward Understanding Ohio Weather and Climate, nd Frequency of Severe Winters in A Century of Wood County Weather (incomplete), nd Some Observations on the Distribution of Temperature Over Ohio, nd Bibliography by Lyle Fletcher for Wood County History class, nd Student essays on American Indian chiefs, Geography 451, nd OVERSIZE Box 1 1. Diploma, Lyle Fletcher, 1918 2. Diploma, Lyle Fletcher, 1932

MS 975 - Lyle R. Fletcher Collection

Center for Archival Collections

MLA Citation