Clyde Fisher
Like most special collections and archives we have a backlog in the Walter Havighurst Special Collections. This backlog consists of both uncataloged books as well as unprocessed manuscript collections. One of the items recently removed from our backlog is the Clyde Fisher and Te Ata Collection. You can see the finding aid here, the collection can also be searched for in our catalog on the library’s home page.
Clyde Fisher
George Clyde Fisher was born on May 22, 1878 near Sidney, Ohio. He attended Miami University and graduated with an A.B. in 1905. After several years of teaching science at high schools and universities he returned to school and received a Ph.D in Botany from Johns Hopkins University in 1913.
Later that same year he was hired as the Curator of Education at the American Museum of Natural History. He was later named Curator of Astronomy in 1924 and the Head of the Hayden Planetarium in 1935, which he was one of the individuals responsible for raising the funds to build. Fisher was also an avid traveler and prolific writer, publishing a significant amount of articles in academic journals.
One of Fishers many publications
Fisher’s wife, Te Ata, was a Chickasaw Princess and performer. They married in 1933, and remained so until his death in 1949.
The Clyde Fisher and Te Ata Collection consists primarily of Fisher’s travel journals. Other items in the collection include some of his publications, biographical information, and photographs.
Fishers Travel Journal from a Trip to Lapland in 1924.
To learn more about these amazing individuals please come see us in Special Collections on the third floor of King Library.
More resources:
Te Ata: Chickasaw Story Teller, American Treasure
New York Botanical Gardens: Clyde Fisher Papers
Shelby County Historical Society
The University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma – Special Collections (They have video footage of some of the travels that Fisher and Ata went on that correspond to the travel journals in our collection, though not available online)
Johnathan Cooper
