Scope and Content Note
The papers of Selman Abraham Waksman (1888-1973) span the years 1915-1960. The collection consists of correspondence, speeches, articles, and transcripts of radio programs on which Waksman appeared. The papers include letters from Waksman's student years at Rutgers University, his graduate work at the University of California, and his return in 1918 to Rutgers as a lecturer in soil microbiology. The correspondence with his colleagues sheds light on his discovery of the antibiotic streptomycin as well as his research into other microbes. The articles, radio broadcasts, and speeches in the collection relate almost entirely to the field of microbiology.
Correspondents include Paul R. Burkholder, René J. Dubos, Alexander Fleming, and George W. Merck.