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Frank J. Mather papers

 Record Group
Identifier: MC-18

Scope and Content Note

The Frank J. Mather papers include correspondence, proposals, manuscripts, project reports, cruise records, conference materials, and research, particularly regarding Mather's fish tagging work.

Dates

  • 1926-1997

Language of Materials

The records are in

English.

Access

Open: materials are available for research.

Use

Copyright: Permission to publish material from the collection must be authorized by the Institution Archivist.

Biographical Information

Frank J. Mather, III began his employment at the Institution as a Research Associate to work for Maurice Ewing in assisting Mr. Arthur Klebba as a field man in the development of a shore recording pressure wave recorder in 1945. In the late 40’s, worked as acting second mate on R/V Atlantis and on cruises on the R/V Balanus assisting Dr. Von Arx in testing the G.E.K. Frank participated in the 1948 Atlantis cruise to the Mediterranean and also in 1948 began an association with Bill Schroeder on experimental fishing cruises aboard Caryn . In 1950, Frank’s own cruiser “Black Prince” was used with Frank as Captain and Chief Scientist in an expedition to study the local fishes in connection with an archaeological expedition off the coasts of Honduras, Guatemala, and British Honduras. In September 1950, Frank was promoted to Research Associate in Engineering, in September 1951 to Research Associate in Oceanography, and in March 1964 to the scientific staff as an Associate Scientist. His research in biology includes the study of large pelagic fishes – migrations, distribution, environment, general ecology, life history and taxonomy. He is the author and co-author of more than 30 scientific publications on large pelagic fishes. In 1976, he was honored by the Sport Fishing Institute, the International Game Fish Association, and the National Coalition for Marine Conservation with an international banquet in recognition of his contributions to pelagic fish research. He has served as a scientific advisor to the United States in the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas ever since its inception and is generally recognized as one of the world’s leading authorities on the Atlantic bluefish tuna.

[Biographical information taken from memoriam written by Charlie Innis.]

Extent

28 boxes plus photographs (21.25 lin. ft.)

Overview

The Frank J. Mather papers span the years 1926-1997, and include materials and research regarding Mather's fish tagging work.

Arrangement

Arranged in two series:

List of Series:

Custodial History

The papers were stored in Frank Mather's house prior to their donation to the Archives.

Acquisitions Information

The papers were donated by Frank Mather on August 6, 1998 as acc.1998-19.

Separated Material

Several logbooks were removed from the papers and added to the Miscellaneous Logbook Collection. In 2006, several cabinets of cards with tagging data were removed from the collection and sent to the National Marine Fisheries Service in Miami.

Processing Information

Processed by Margot Garritt in 2000.

Title
A Guide to the the Frank J. Mather papers, 1926-1997
Author
[Margot Garritt]
Date
October 13, 2003
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written inEnglish

Repository Details

Part of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Data Library and Archives Repository

Contact: