Earl N. Bressman papers

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: RS 9/9/53

Staff Only

Scope and Content

The collection (1922-1988, undated) contains articles, an oral history, reports, and writings by and about Dr. Earl N. Bressman. The articles include published materials related to Dr. Bressman’s research in plant genetics and breeding. Transcripts of an oral history interview with Dr. Bressman conducted by Douglas Helms of the Soil Conservation Service, USDA, covers Dr. Bressman’s childhood, highlights of his career in both education and government, and his relationship with Henry A. Wallace.

The collection also contains material related to Dr. Bressman’s government employment. Reports and news clippings from the Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences, of which he was the first director, are available. Of particular interest are the two diaries included in the collection. Both diaries date from Bressman's time working in the Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs. The daily diary documents official meetings and planning for the Institute. The “rubber diary” was started at the request of Vice President Wallace and documents the United States government’s efforts to investigate and secure a stable source of rubber prior to its engagement in World War II.

Dates

Creation: 1922-1988, undated

Language of Materials

English

Access Restrictions

Open for research.

Use/Re-use Restrictions

Consult Special Collections and University Archives

Biography/Profile

Earl Norman Bressman was born August 27, 1894, near Omaha, Nebraska. He received his B.S. (1920) and M.S. (1927) from Iowa State College (University) and his Ph.D. (1930) from the University of Nebraska.

After receiving his B.S., Dr. Bressman was hired at Iowa State College (University) as Instructor (1920-1922) in the Department of Agronomy. He went on to become Head (1922-1923) of the Agronomy and Farm Management Department at New Mexico State College (University) and then Assistant Professor (1923-1924) of agronomy at Montana State College (University). He was also Associate Agronomist and Professor (1924-1933) at Oregon State College (University).

While attending school at Iowa State, Dr. Bressman became associated with Henry A. Wallace, then the editor of Wallace’s Farmer. In 1922, the two of them collaborated on Corn and Corn Growing, a book which was used as a text in college classrooms for over 30 years with the fifth and final edition released in 1949. Dr. Bressman also wrote scientific articles on farm crops such as corn, hops, and wheat.

Dr. Bressman’s long association with then Secretary of Agriculture, Henry A. Wallace, brought him to work for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as Scientific Adviser (1933-1940) to the Secretary. In this capacity, Dr. Bressman was in charge of the Agricultural Experiment Station at Beltsville, Maryland, as well as twenty other departmental bureaus. He then took a position as Assistant Director (1940-1941) in the Office of Foreign Agricultural Relations and was responsible for USDA participation in agricultural programs in the Western Hemisphere.

In 1941, Norman A. Rockefeller, Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs, appointed Dr. Bressman to be Director (1941-1942) of the newly formed Agricultural Division in the Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs. The primary goal of this job was to establish the Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences (now the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture or IICA) which was subsequently headquartered in Turrialba, Costa Rica. Dr. Bressman served as the first Director (1942-1946) of the Institute.

After many years of national and international service, Dr. Bressman returned to Iowa and joined his father-in-law in the banking business. Upon his father-in-law’s death in 1956, Dr. Bressman became president of the Moorhead State Bank, a position he held for the rest of his life.

He married Leone Anita Moorhead on September 1, 1921, and together they had two children: Donna Ann and Charles Moorhead. Dr. Bressman died on January 3, 1985.