Scope and Content Note
The papers of Samuel Whittemore Boggs (1889-1954) span the years 1912-1954. Consisting of correspondence, drafts of articles, notes, maps, printed matter, and clippings, the collection focuses on Boggs's diverse geographical interests. Included are files of geographic data on various regions of the world, reports of missionary activity, material relating to Boggs's mapping inventions, files for proposed studies, and preparatory materials for his lectures, speeches, and publications. The collection is organized into seven series: Correspondence , Professional File , Writings File , Lectures , Subject File , Miscellany , and Oversize .
Topics of significance include boundary delimitation, regionalism, global relations, and water boundaries. Featured are Boggs's pioneering work as inventor of an eumorphic equal-area map projection, graphic traffic signals, and a universal graphic charting instrument. Also in the papers are notes on courses given at Columbia University.
Boggs's filing system was retained in parts of the collection, including a "Regions of the World" section in the Subject File series. A guide to the section is in the first folder of the material.