Reginald Truitt papers
Collection
274-UA
Reginald V. Truitt (1890-1991) was a 1914 graduate of the Maryland Agricultural College who received his Ph.D. from American University in 1929. A professor of zoology at the University of Maryland from 1925-1941, Truitt founded and became director of the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, retiring in 1954. This collection documents Truitt's involvement in the Chesapeake Biological Lab, his interest in Worcester County history, relations between university faculty and administration, and zoology curriculum development.
This collection is open for research.
Photocopies of original materials may be provided for a fee and at the discretion of the curator. Please see our Duplication of Materials policy for more information. Queries regarding publication rights and copyright status of materials within this collection should be directed to the appropriate curator.
0.50 Linear Feet
The Reginald Truitt papers date from 1919 to 1977 and consist of correspondence to and from Reginald Truitt and research files pertaining to his book, Worcester County: Maryland's Arcadia. This collection documents Truitt's involvement in the Chesapeake Biological Lab, his interest in Worcester County history, University of Maryland Alumni Council, relations between university faculty and administration, the development of lacrosse and cross country teams, and zoology curriculum development.
Reginald Truitt was born in Snow Hill, Maryland, on August 12, 1890. He graduated from the Maryland Agricultural College in 1914, and after service in the Army Air Corps as a pilot, following a high school principalship, 1914-1918, returned to get his M. S. in 1922. Truitt received his doctoral degree from the American University in 1929. During the period of 1919-27 R. V. Truitt coached the Maryland lacrosse team, enabling it for the first time to become a major sport at the college. For this accomplishment he was elected to the Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1960.
Reginald Truitt began teaching at Maryland as a graduate assistant of Zoology in 1919, becoming a full professor in 1925, a post he held until 1941. He left to become director of the Maryland Department of Research and Education, where he stayed until 1954. During his professorship at the University of Maryland he founded the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory and became Directory in 1925, retiring from this post in 1954. Between 1961-62 he was President of the University of Maryland Alumni Council.
After his retirement Dr. Truitt devoted much interest in Worcester County, Maryland, advising the Worcester County Committee of Mayors, Councilmen, and Representatives. In 1976 he completed a book on this subject, Worcester County: Maryland's Arcadia.
Carbon copies of outgoing letters are interfiled with those he received. The correspondence falls into three chronological groups, and papers within each group have been arranged in that fashion.
The collection is organized as one series.
Reginald V. Truitt donated his papers to the University of Maryland Libraries from 1969-1977.
Part of the Special Collections and University Archives