Latin America and the Caribbean: Resources available in the Special Collections Research Center

Dates; 1881-1984; personal and professional papers of Sewell Hepburn Hopkins (1906-1984), a marine biologist and Professor of Biology at Texas A & M University (1935-1972), best known for his research into the effects of oil spills on marine life in the Gulf of Mexico. His papers document his professional career, but focus on Research Project 9 (1947-1950), headed by Hopkins and sponsored by the Texas A & M University Research Foundation, regarding abnormally high mortality rates in oyster beds harvested by Louisiana oystermen. One of at least four major research projects initiated as a result of lawsuits filed in 1946 by Louisiana oystermen against major oil companies active in offshore drilling in the Gulf Mexico, Project 9 resulted in the identification and published description (1950) of a newly discovered parasite called Dermocystidium marinum. The lawsuits against the oil companies were subsequently dropped or settled out of court.

Papers; ca. 1940s-1950s; of Sewell H. Hopkins, professor of Texas A&M University. Includes correspondence, reports, biographical data, photographs, administrative files, certificates, and other research papers. Papers concerning Project 9, San Antonio Bay Projects, and other.

Included are 32 diaries, 1947-1978 (1955 is missing) of engineer Charles E. Kolodzey of Texas with entries of varying length and regularity. The author mentions activities related to work, family and social life. There are also photographs and slides of Charles Kolodzey from his work and personal life. Charles E. Kolodzey designed and constructed the first offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico.