Atwater Family Collections

Special Collections & Archives at Wesleyan University holds three separate collections containing materials related to Wilbur Olin Atwater (1844-1907) and his family:

The Wilbur Olin Atwater Papers, 1869-1915, consist of the scientific research and works of Atwater that were located in the attic of the Scott Laboratory of Physics in the 1950s, organized by Professor Karl Van Dyke and were received by the Wesleyan Archives in 1966 after Van Dyke’s death. Some letters between family members are found within Series I: Incoming Correspondence and Series II: Outgoing Correspondence, but mainly the collection is comprised of items related to Atwater’s scientific works.

The Atwater Family Papers, 1843-1943, were given to Special Collections & Archives in 1966 by Catherine Merriam Atwater Galbraith (Atwater’s granddaughter). The papers consist of publications, personal papers and letters of Wilbur Olin Atwater, Marcia Woodard Atwater (his wife), William Atwater (his father), Helen Woodard Atwater (his daughter) and Charles Woodard Atwater (his son). The majority of the collection is composed of letters written and received by the aforementioned people. They primarily discuss familial, financial or personal matters; with the exception of the papers of Helen Atwater, for whom there are is significant collection of papers and publications relating to her work in the field of Home Economics. The correspondence centers on family topics; current events are rarely discussed in the letters.

The Atwater Family Papers, 1788-2003, was a gift to the Special Collections & Archives in 2008 & 2009 by the estate of Catherine Merriam Atwater Galbraith (Atwater’s granddaughter) via J. Alan Galbraith, executor. The papers consist of personal papers and letters of Wilbur Olin Atwater, Marcia Woodard Atwater (his wife), William Atwater (his father), Helen Atwater (his daughter), Charles Atwater (his son), Catherine Merriam Atwater Galbraith (his granddaughter) and Charles Woodard Atwater, Jr. (his grandson).