Archives and Manuscript Collections
Records of the Laboratory (RG5)
ALMA WHIFFEN BARKSDALE RECORDS (1938-1973)
2.0 linear feet (4 boxes)
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Alma
Whiffen Barksdale (1916-1981) was born in Hammonton, New Jersey on October
25, 1916. She received her A.B. (1937) at Maryville College, Maryville,
Tennessee, and her M.S. in botany (1939) and Ph.D. in botany and mycology
(1941) at the University of North Carolina, where she was a Carnegie Fellow
(1941-42). Dr. Barksdale conducted postdoctoral research under Dr. John
N. Couch (1943) and became a National Research Council Fellow with Dr.
William H. Weston at Harvard University (1942-43).
Dr. Barksdale's work falls into three periods. The first was her graduate
and postdoctoral studies on the cytology, nutrition, and taxonomy of aquatic
fungi (phyla Oomycota and Chytridiomycota). Her contributions
included: (1) the development of methods for the isolation, purification,
and culture of nine genera of lower aquatic fungi; (2) the determination
of their nutritional requirements; and (3) the discovery of a new type
of sexual life cycle in the Blastocladiales, an order composed of
aquatic parasites.
In the second period of her work, she was employed as a professional
mycologist in the Department of Antibiotic Research of the Upjohn Company
of Kalamazoo, Michigan (1943-52). She discovered cycloheximide, an antifungal
agent used to control fungal spot diseases in cherries and on turfs of
golf greens. She played a major role in the development of actidione, the
trade name for cycloheximide, an antibiotic derived from Streptomyces
griseus, used in isolating pathogenic fungi. In 1951 Dr. Barksdale
was a John Simon Guggenheim Fellow at Stanford University with C. B. Van
Niel. In 1952 she married Lane Barksdale and spent a year in Paris working
on research projects.
In 1952 Dr. Barksdale became a research associate at The New York Botanical
Garden, where she investigated sexual reproduction in the genus Achlya,
comprised of filamentous aquatic fungi. Thus commenced the third period
of her career. Her studies confirmed and further developed the work of
Dr. John Raper on sexual hormones in Achlya. She discovered that
the hormone that induces the formation of antheridia in Achlya is
a steroid secreted by female strains of Achlya bisexualis and A.
ambisexualis. She confirmed the structure of this hormone, antheridiol,
by laboratory synthesis.
Dr. Barksdale's career at the Garden spanned two decades; her final
position was Senior Botanist (1972-75), after which she retired for reasons
of health. She published over 30 papers on Achlya and aquatic fungi.
She served on the editorial board of Mycologia (1949-59), as its
book review editor (1969), and as Secretary-Treasurer of the Mycological
Society of America (1971-73). After a long illness, Dr. Barksdale died
on July 5, 1981.
SCOPE AND CONTENT
The Alma Whiffen Barksdale collection consists of correspondence, research
papers, laboratory notebooks, manuscripts, grant records, reprints, and
photographic material covering her graduate studies and career at The New
York Botanical Garden from 1952 to 1975. Some material relates to her positions
as book review editor of Mycologia and as Secretary-Treasurer of
the Mycological Society of America.
SERIES DESCRIPTIONS
Series 1: Correspondence
Series 2: Research Papers
Series 3: Manuscripts and Lecture Notes
Series 4: Grant Records
Series 5: New York Botanical Garden Internal Memoranda
Series 6: Publications
Series 7: Photographic Material
Series 1 Correspondence, 1952-1975
0.7 lin. ft. Arranged alphabetically.
There are 57 files pertaining to Dr. Barksdale's research on sexual
reproduction in Achlya, the chemical composition of Achlya
hormones, and the laboratory synthesis of antheridiol. Correspondents include
John Couch, Linda Lasure, Trevor McMorris, John Raper, Kenneth Raper, William
Robbins, and Gary Samuels.
Series 2 Research Papers
1.3 lin. ft. Arranged alphabetically.
This series consists of 16 files of research notes on reproduction in
Achlya
and synthesis of antheridiol. There are also 8 laboratory record books
with data on schedules, chromatography, culture strains, and bibliographic
note cards.
Series 3 Manuscripts and Lecture Notes
0.5 lin. ft. Arranged alphabetically.
There are 22 files consisting of manuscripts and lecture notes for seminars
and conferences. Two of the manuscripts include Dr. Barksdale's M.A. and
Ph.D. theses.
Series 4 Grant Records, 1959 - 1973
0.3 lin. ft. Arranged by grant number.
There are 16 files containing grant applications, proposals for research,
renewals, accounting, fiscal reports, progress reports, summaries, and
outcomes relating to grants from the National Institutes for Health (NIH),
the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the American Philosophical Society.
Series 5 New York Botanical Garden Internal Memoranda
0.1 lin. ft. Arranged alphabetically.
There are 4 files of The New York Botanical Garden annual reports, a
long-range planning proposal, and various Garden memos and internal communications.
Series 6 Publications
0.5 lin. ft. Arranged alphabetically.
This series consists of 4 files of reprints of Dr. Barksdale's publications
and newsletters and directories of the Botanical Society of America.
Series 7 Photographic Material
0.6 lin. ft. Arranged chronologically, then by project.
This series consists of 7 boxes of positive and negative plates, 1 file
book of negative plates, and miscellaneous envelopes of positives. All
are contained in Box 4.
RELATED COLLECTIONS
The New York Botanical Garden
PP Kenneth B. Raper Papers
RG5 William Jacob Robbins Records
Processed December 1998 by David Rose under a grant from
the Harriet Ford Dickenson Foundation.
For more information and a complete description contact:
Susan Fraser, NYBG
Archivist
The LuEsther T. Mertz Library
The New York Botanical Garden
Bronx, NY 10458-5126
(718) 817-8879
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