Rheinart Parke Cowles papers

Collection — Box: 1

Identifier: MS-0453

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collections consists of one bound volume. It is a scrapbook put together by Dr. Cowles to display his collection of newspaper articles, drawings and photos about the oyster trade in the Chesapeake Bay area. The collection provides a look at the struggle amongst oyster tongers, oyster farmers and the Republican and Democratic parties to find a solution to declining oyster population in the early 20th century.

Dates

Creation: 1906-1907

Creator

Cowles, R. P. (Rheinart Parker), 1872-1948 (Person)

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions. It is not necessary to seek our permission as the owner of the physical work to publish or otherwise use public domain materials that we have made available for use, unless Johns Hopkins University holds the copyright.

Biographical Note

Rheinart Parker Cowles was born in Washington, Iowa in 1872 to Oscar Parker Cowles and Viola Cowles (nee Parker). He was educated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. After school he worked for the Milwaukee Gas Company and the Remington Typewriter Company before entering Stanford and receiving his BA in 1899. In 1900 he moved to Baltimore and started his graduate work at the Johns Hopkins University. From 1901-1902 he was a University Fellow and from 1902-1904 he held an Adam T. Bruce Fellowship. While at Hopkins, Cowles worked under the instruction of Zoology Professor William Keith Brooks, author of The Oyster: A Popular Summary of a Scientific Study. Brooks is listed as a contributor to Cowles' thesis Phoronis Architecta: Its History, Anatomy and Breeding Habits.

After graduation, Cowles worked as a professor of Biology and Zoology at Hopkins from 1904 until 19 . He left Hopkins for a time and spent the years 1911-1919 as a Zoology Professor at the University of the Philippines. He returned to Hopkins after WWI. Dr. Cowles authored several works on marine life including A Biological Study of the Offshore Waters of the Chesapeake Bay (1930) and wrote articles for the JHU Naturalists' Club.