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John J. Lynch Papers

Collection 387

Lynch, John J. (1914–1983). Papers, 1934–2000, n.d.

4 feet

John J. Lynch a biologist, botanist, and preservationist, specializing in the wetlands and migratory birds. Born October 17, 1914 in Newport, Rhode Island, he was the son of John Michael Lynch and Honora Elizabeth Fenton of Ireland. He obtained his biology degree from Rhode Island College, and had his first assignments working for the United States Biological Survey, later becoming the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. These assignments included the National Waterfowl Refuge in South Dakota, the North Atlantic Coast, and the Gulf Coast in Pilottown, Louisiana. In 1941, he married Mary Zoe Segrera and the couple moved to Abbeville, Louisiana; they had six children together.

Lynch joined the U.S. Navy in 1943, obtaining the rank of lieutenant. His main task was teaching survival procedures for downed Navy airmen. In 1947, after retiring from the Navy, Lynch received a pilot’s license and became a flyway biologist. This entailed surveying the migratory patterns of waterfowl such as geese, brant, and swans. Some of his most important work included the study, recovery, and preservation of Whooping Cranes. He helped rescue surviving cranes in Louisiana and even hatched the first Whooping Crane egg in captivity.

In 1955, Lynch and his family moved the Lafayette, Louisiana, where he joined the Biology department at University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette). He taught on coastal marshes and worked as an advisor to graduate students. He continued to run surveys on Whooping Crane habits in the Canadian Arctic and other waterfowl in the Arctic, North American, and Asia. He also pursued many horticulturist activities, especially with regards to Louisiana orchids.

Lynch received several honors during his career. These include the Preservation of Endangered Wildlife in North America Award, the Louisiana Wildlife Federation Professional Conservation Award, and the Whooping Crane Conservation Association Honor Award. He died on August 20, 1983 in Lafayette and is buried at Calvary Cemetery.

This collection consists of John Lynch’s research and personal papers. These papers include correspondence, maps, and research and writings on Whooping Cranes, marsh ecology, wildlife, and more. There are also news clippings and newsletters on Whooping Cranes and orchids, and materials related to the groups he was associated with.

Mary Lynch Courville, daughter of John J. Lynch, donated this collection.

Series:

A. Biographical 1-01 through 1-02
B. Documents 1-03 through 1-04
C. Certificate/Permits 1-05
D. Correspondence 1-06 through 1-42
E. Writings 1-43 through 2-18
F. Associations/Groups 2-19 through 2-31
G. Newsletters 2-32 through 2-39
H. News Clippings 2-40 through 2-43
I. Research 2-44 through 4-08
J. Maps 4-09 through 4-53
K. Miscellaneous 4-54 through 4-55

Inventory:

Box 1
  A. Biographical
    1-01 Timeline of John J. Lynch; biographical information, list of books published
    1-02 Family Tree
       
  B. Documents
    1-03 Permits: “To take alive one whooping crane at or in the vicinity of White Lake, Louisiana; to crate and take this whooping crane to the Aranzas National Refuge in Texas for liberation on that Refuge", 1 March 1950
    1-04 Resolution: “Rosie and Crip are themselves distinguished citizens of our city, and of the world, being 2 of only 58 whooping cranes now known to be in existence”, San Antonio Chamber of Commerce correspondence included, 8 August 1967
       
  C. Certificates/Permits
    1-05 Louisiana Orchid Short Course: Ten-Year Certificate, University of Southwestern Louisiana, Lafayette, LA, 1978
      Certificate of employee authorized to operate Department-owned motor vehicles, United States Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Biological Survey, 15 September 1936
      Permit to Trap Birds for Banding Purposes, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Department of Conservation - Division of Fisheries and Game, 2 July 1936
      Permit to collect migratory birds for scientific purpose, State of Rhode Island - Division of Fish and Game, 31 December 1936
       
  D. Correspondence
    1-06 Incoming, 1936
    1-07 Incoming, 1937
    1-08 Incoming, 1938-1939
    1-09 Incoming, 1978-1982, no date
    1-10 Outgoing, 1935
    1-11 Outgoing, 1936
    1-12 Outgoing, 1937
    1-13 Outgoing, 1938
    1-14 Outgoing, 1940s
    1-15 Outgoing, 1950s-1960s
    1-16 Outgoing, 1970s
    1-17 Outgoing, 1980-2000
    1-18 Outgoing, Orchid Gardens, 1972-1981
    1-19 Other, 1936-1981, no date
    1-20 Southern Forest Experiment; Plant Insects, 1937-1938
    1-21 Robert D. Spencer, 1938
    1-22 Walter Taylor, 1947
    1-23 P.J. Viosea, 1942
    1-24 Weather Bureau, 1938
    1-25 Student Corporation Research, 1938
    1-26 Student Assistant, Delta Refuge, no date
    1-27 Neil Hotchkiss, 1938-1941
    1-28 Edwin Hasbranch, 1943
    1-29 Harry S. Hathoway, 1930s
    1-30 Dr. Clarence Cotton, 1938-1942
    1-31 Drainage New Orleans and Vicinity, 1938
    1-32 Cecil S. Williams, 1937-1942
    1-33 Louisiana 4-H Clubs, 1937-1939
    1-34 New Orleans Academy of Science, 1938-1939
    1-35 J.B. Davis, 1943
    1-36 John and Frank Craighead, 1946-1947
    1-37 Harrison L. Lewis, 1947
    1-38 R.C. Clement, 1943-1944
    1-39 American Ornithologists Union, 1939
    1-40 E.H. Behre, 1938-1939
    1-41 Waterfowl Ecology Educational, 1938-1941
    1-42 Aircraft, 1949-1952
       
  E. Writings
    1-43 1962 reproductive success in North American Geese, winter appraisals of productivity, 15 August 1963
    1-44 1963 reproductive success in North American Geese, winter appraisals of productivity, 15 August 1964
    1-45 1964 productivity and mortality among geese, swans and brant, from fall and winter appraisals of productivity, 15 August 1965
    1-46 1965 productivity and mortality among geese, swans and brant, from fall and winter appraisals of productivity, 15 August 1966
    1-47 1966 productivity and mortality among geese, swans and brant, from fall and winter appraisals of productivity, 16 August 1967
    1-48 1968 productivity and mortality among geese, swans, and brant from fall and winter appraisals of productivity, 15 August 1969
    1-49 1969 annual report, Part II and appendix A, appraisals of annual productivity and mortality among geese, swans, and other birds. Part II, notes of collecting and utilizing appraisal data and Appendix A, field-scale trial of new methods (Louisiana spring Shoot)
    1-50 1970 productivity and mortality and population histories for period 1966-1970 for geese, swans and brant, from fall and winter appraisals of productivity and midwinter inventory estimates of total numbers, 15 July 1971
    1-51 1971 annual report productivity and mortality among geese, swans and brant. Part I, fall and winter appraisals of 1971 productivity. Part II, historical records from productivity appraisals, 1950-1971, 13 May 1972
    1-52 1972 productivity and mortality among geese, swans and brant, 15 April 1973
       
Box 2
    2-01 1973 productivity and mortality among geese, swans and brant, wintering in North America, 20 December 1974
    2-02 Conservation of America’s Native Wild Orchids, reprinted from American Orchid Society Bulletin, 39:12, pp.1060-1965, December 1970
    2-03 Inventory of Waterfowl Environments of Prairie Canada (reprinted from transactions of the Twenty-Eighth North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference), Published by the Wildlife Management Institute, Washington, D.C. (2 copies), 4-6 March 1963
    2-04 Winter appraisals of annual productivity in geese and other water birds (reprinted from Wildfowl Trust 15th Annual Report), 1964
    2-05 Ducks in Dixie (reprinted from Waterfowl Tomorrow, U.S. Department of the Interior), 1964
    2-06 Orchid Collecting in Louisiana (reprinted from Bulletin of the Louisiana Society for Horticultural Research, volume III, number 2), (2 copies), 1967
    2-07 Winter Ecology of Show Geese on the Gulf Coast (draft), 1925-1975
    2-08 Winter Ecology of Show Geese on the Gulf Coast, 1925-1975 (complete), 8 December 1975
    2-09 A Field Biologist (2 copies), no date
    2-10 Family Life of the Snow Goose, Aubobon Magazine, volume XLVI, no.1, pp. 3-8 (2 copies), January-February 1944
    2-11 Weather, reprinted from Waterfowl Tomorrow, U.S. Department of the Interior (2 copies), 1964
    2-12 “Wildlife Monographs, A Publication of the Wildlife Society, Family and Other Social Groups in Snow Geese”, by J.P. Prevett and C.D. MacInnes. Acknowledgement written by J.J. Lynch
    2-13 Aerial Waterfowl Production Studies in the Far North (rough draft included), 1957
    2-14 “East Texas Big Thicket Area”, by N. Hotchkiss and J.J. Lunch, 1939
    2-15 “Population Characteristics of Three Mainland Colonies of Blue and Lesser Snow Geese Nesting in the Southern Hudson Bay Region”, by Harold C. Hanson, Harry G. Lumsden, J.J. Lynch, and Horace W. Norton, Fish and Wildlife Research Branch, Research Report (Wildlife) No. 92, October 1972
    2-16 Woodcock in South Louisiana During the Freeze of January-February, 1951. USDI, FWS, & CSW, Special Scientific Report, Wildlife, #14 (2 copies), January 1952
    2-17 Winter Appraisals of Productivity and Mortality for Canada Geese
    2-18 Values of the South Atlantic and Gulf Coast Marshes and Estuaries: to waterfowl
       
  F. Associations/Groups
    2-19 Transactions of the Whooping Crane Conservation Conference, Tucson, Arizona, 18-19 February 1961
    2-20 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Articles of Incorporation and By-laws, Pamphlet, Flyers, Timeline of Whooping Crane
    2-21 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Correspondence, 1961
    2-22 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Memos, 1964
    2-23 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Trustee Meeting, Grand Island, Nebraska, Minutes of Meeting, 20 March 1998
    2-24 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Conference Material, 4 October 1980
    2-25 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Annual Meeting Program, 19 March 1978
    2-26 Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc.: Whooping Crane Recovery Plan and Correspondence, December 1977
    2-27 Wildlife Society: General Statement, Correspondence, 1937
    2-28 National Association of Audubon Societies, Sanctuary Department: Correspondence, 1937
    2-29 Provincial Wildlife Conference: Transcript of Proceedings of 20th Federal-Provincial Wildlife Conference, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, 5-6 June 1956
    2-30 Central Flyway Council, Denver Federal Center: Meeting of Technical Committee, Agenda, 24-26 March 1959
    2-31 Bird Sanctuary at Brigentine, Hotel Morton, Atlantic City - Topic: “The Aim and Function of Refuges”, 1 April 1936
       
  G. Newsletters
    2-32 In-Sight, Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife’s, November 1968
    2-33 Grus Americana, Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc., January 1994 - April 1996
    2-34 Grus Americana, Whooping Crane Conservation Association, Inc. (scattered issues), 1978-1993
    2-35 Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior, 19 June 1959
    2-36 Orchid Gardens, Horticultural Services, Biological Experiment Station, Lafayette, LA. Special Bulletin, 1977-1978
    2-37 Orchid Gardens, Horticultural Services, Biological Experiment Station, Lafayette, LA. Special Bulletin, 1976-1977
    2-38 Revue Du Temps Au Canada, 1976-1982
    2-39 News & Views, CLECO, Pineville, LA. April-May 1976
       
  H. News Clippings
    2-40 Whooping Cranes, 1950s-1980s
    2-41 Whooping Crane, “Chick”, 1960s-1970s
    2-42 Survival, no date
    2-43 Coal Mining, 1973
       
  I. Research
    2-44 Black Duck, 1934
    2-45 Local Names of Birds, noted from Rhode Island, no date
    2-46 Delaware County Mosquito Control Fund, September 1936
    2-47 W.P.A. Progress Report, 1935-1956
    2-48 Gardner’s Pond, Rhode Island. Waterfowl Counts by Drury, Jr.
    2-49 Blue Wing Teal, Report, 1936
    2-50 Spring Shoot, Blue and Snow Geese, 31 March 1970
    2-51 Prairie Canada’s 1969 Duck Hatch, 1 April 1969
    2-52 Fulvous Whistling Duck, Report
    2-53 Canadian Whooping Crane, Recovery Plan
    2-54 Family Behavior and Age-Dependent Breeding Biology…
    2-55 Goose Watchers
    2-56 Nesting-Grounds Survey: On the Wintering Grounds
    2-57 Names of Birds
    2-58 John Lear, File. Wildlife Refuge
    2-59 Marsh Ecology, Delta O’Neil
    2-60 Marsh Ecology, Delta - Transects: Long Island Bayou Section
    2-61 March Ecology, Delta - Transects: Octave Pass Section
    2-62 March Ecology, Delta - O’Neil
    2-63 Marsh Ecology, Delta - O’Neil
    2-64 Synoptic Layout, Blues, Snows and All B-S Mixtures, Southwest Louisiana, 1974
    2-65 Synoptic Layout, Blues, Snows and All B-S Mixtures, Southwest Louisiana, December 1974
    2-66 Orchids, Generic Names
    2-67 Goose, 1947
    2-68 Unique Drama of a Wild Whooper
    2-69 Whooping Crane, Sightings Promptly, Report
       
Box 3
    3-01 Waterfowl, Food-Habits - Sand Lake, South Dakota
    3-02 Wildlife Curriculum, Texas A & M
    3-03 Rhode Island, Correspondence, 1935
    3-04 Waterfowl, Lead Poisoning in Sand Lake, South Dakota, 1936
    3-05 Sand Lake, South Dakota Monthly Biological Reports, 1935
    3-06 Louisiana, East Timbalier Bird Reservation
    3-07 Atchafalaya Channel, 57-La-1, Job 10, 1948
    3-08 Breeding Record for the Whooping Crane in Louisiana
    3-09 Now Whooping Crane Population Tried, page 5, 24 October 1975
    3-10 Annual progress report Wildlife Research work unit Denver Wildlife Research Center, Calendar Year 1962-1963
    3-11 Rhode Island, Waterfowl Census - Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, 1937
    3-12 Texas-Arkansas Company, St. Charles Parish - Rockport Region; Harbor Island; Padre Island
    3-13 Texas - Cameron Company, Reconnaissance - Brownsville Lagoons
    3-14 Coastal Marsh for Research, Articles
    3-15 Cranes: Their Biology, Husbandry, and Conservation
    3-16 Whooping Crane, 1950
    3-17 Whooping Crane Management
    3-18 Appraisals of Annual Productivity, July 1980
    3-19 Whooping Cranes, 1st Ten Years
    3-20 Notes: Flying and Bird Biz - Handwritten, 1981
    3-21 Blue Goose, Continental Population
    3-22 Whooping Cranes Perilous Flight Now in Progress
    3-23 Whooping Crane, Nesting Discovery, 1955
    3-24 Whooping Crane, Conservation (Canadian and U.S.)
    3-25 Orchids in Louisiana
    3-26 Birds and Plants - Local Names - 57-La. 1: Job 1-F
    3-27 Game Birds, Upland - Pheasants - Food Habits in South Dakota
    3-28 Canadian Project: Muskrats
    3-29 Waterfowl: Productivity of Nyrocine Ducks, 1939
    3-30 Texas - Lake Surprise, 1939
    3-31 Tennessee - Reconnaissance, Reel Foot Lake; Obion River Bottoms; Isom Lake; Horn Lake
    3-32 Ants, Argentine Ant Control
    3-33 Quail Nutrition Request for Material, August 1939
    3-34 Prevention of Rabbit Damage, 1940
    3-35 Rat Control
    3-36 Field Report of Observations on Australia Point, Near Plaquemine, Louisiana, as a Federal Waterfowl Refuge Site, 1934
    3-37 Wilson Snipe Project, 1953
    3-38 Louisiana Reconnaissance, Avoca Island - Military Reservations
    3-39 Educational - Exhibits
    3-40 Texas-Travis Company, Lake Austin, C. Sperry
    3-41 Texas-Refuge Prospects, A.C. Martin
    3-42 Texas-S. Texas Coast, McAtlee, Reports. Laguna Madue; Intercostal Canal Refugee
    3-43 Texas-Matagorda Company; Palacios Point-Lake Austin; Matagorda Peninsula
    3-44 Texas-Matagorda Company; Palacios Point-Lake Austin; Matagorda Peninsula
    3-45 Texas-Laguna Larga (Kleberg Company)
    3-46 Texas - Jefferson County - McFaddin Ranch
    3-47 Texas - Guadalupe Delta
    3-48 Texas - Colorado River
    3-49 Louisiana - Caddo Lake - Reconnaissance
    3-50 Louisiana - West Feliciana Parish
    3-51 Mississippi - Reconnaissance, Report
    3-52 New England, Reconnaissance
    3-53 Appraisals - Productivity, White Fronts, Gulf-Wintering, Fall 1974
    3-54 Appraisals - Productivity, Blue-Snows-all B-S Mixtures, October 1974
    3-55 Appraisals - Productivity, Blue-Snows and Mixtures, Southwest Louisiana, Report
    3-56 Appraisals - Productivity, Blue-Snows and Mixtures, Reports, Fall 1975
    3-57 Long Island Goose Rat Exp Check Plot Data, Southeast of Long Island Bayou Advancement, Exp. Plot, 1940
    3-58 Goose-Watching Activities, Report, Fall 1974
    3-59 Recent Increases of Blue Geese in Western North America, by Alex Dzubn, Report, 4 December 1978
    3-60 Productivity Surveys of Geese, Swans, and Brant Wintering in North America, 1978
    3-61 United States Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, 1952 Status Report of Waterfowl
    3-62 Winter Appraisals of 1960 Productivity in North American Geese, Research Progress Report, by Lynch and others
    3-63 Blue and Snow Goose Distribution in the Mississippi and Central Flyways: A Preliminary Report, by A. Dzubin, H. Boyd and W.J.D. Stephen, volume 1, August 1973
    3-64 Family Behavior and Age-Dependent Breeding Biology of the Blue Goose, Anser Caerulescens, by J.P. Prevett, University of Western Ontario, Department of Zoology, A Competitions Report (Part 1), November 1972
    3-65 Family Behavior and Age-Dependent Breeding Biology of the Blue Goose, Anser Caerulescens, by J. P. Prevett, University of Western Ontario, Department of Zoology, A Completion Report (Part 2), November 1972
    3-66 Productivity and Mortality Among Geese, Swans, and Brant: Annual Report Covering 1975-76 and 1976-77 Survey Data
    3-67 La Perouse Bay Snow Goose Project - A 13-Year Report
    3-68 Productivity and Mortality Among Geese, Swans, and Brant Wintering in North America, 1974
       
Box 4
    4-01 Marsh Ecology, Delta - Transects: Delta Pass Section (handwritten)
    4-02 Marsh Ecology, Delta - Preliminary Study, 1937
    4-03 Marsh Ecology, Bibliography
    4-04 Marsh Ecology, Delta - Base Data - River Data, 1938
    4-05 Louisiana Gulf Coast Marsh Handbook, 1966
    4-06 Mottled Duck, Its Life History, Ecology and Management. Federal Aid Project W-96-R, Charles D. Stutzenbaker (Draft) 26 September 1979
    4-07 Productivity Surveys of Geese, Swans, and Brant Wintering in North America, 1979
    4-08 Productivity Surveys of Geese, Swans, and Brant Wintering in North America, 1977
       
  J. Maps
    4-09 Map of Old Lufuac on Hwy S. of Kaplan, Handwritten Notes
    4-10 Louisiana Marshes
    4-11 Public Hunting, Hwy 27, West Side
    4-12 Tallahassee, FL
    4-13 Lake Bistinera State Game and Fish Reserve, Bienville, Bossier, Webster Parish
    4-14 Island of Guam
    4-15 Colorado
    4-16 Sectional Trip Map, Kansas City; Chicago and Vicinity
    4-17 Alabama
    4-18 North Carolina/South Carolina
    4-19 Kentucky; Tennessee
    4-20 Fishing Map - Louisiana
    4-21 Gulf of Mexico - Intracoastal Waterways, Hydraulic Survey
    4-22 Meridian
    4-23 Alaska, 1940
    4-24 Texas: Cameron Company - USGS Maps
    4-25 Tennessee, Reelfoot Lake
    4-26 United States Refuge Map
    4-27 United States Engineers
    4-28 Texas-Kennedy Company, USGS Sheets
    4-29 Indiana
    4-30 Illinois, 1935
    4-31 Texas - Neuces Company
    4-32 Massachusetts - Reconnaissance
    4-33 New Jersey - Reconnaissance
    4-34 New York - Reconnaissance
    4-35 New York - Handwritten Maps, Notes
    4-36 South Dakota - Sand Lake
    4-37 Wisconsin, 1935
    4-38 Vermont
    4-39 Florida - General, 1939
    4-40 Virginia - Description
    4-41 Washington, D.C.
    4-42 Del Marvo Penin, Sea Side - Reconnaissance
    4-43 Delaware - Broadway Hook, Prince Hook
    4-44 Connecticut, Reconnaissance
    4-45 Chesapeake Bay - Reconnaissance
    4-46 Arkansas - Reconnaissance. Hood Lake Scatiers; Ash Reservoir; Arkansas Company; Belcher Lake
    4-47 Arkansas - Chicot Company
    4-48 Arkansas - Henrystead Company - Grassy Lake
    4-49 Arkansas - Big Lake, Mississippi Company
    4-50 Arkansas - White River
    4-51 Anarchic - Map of South Pole
    4-52 Texas - Cameron Company
    4-53 Maine
       
  K. Miscellaneous
    4-54 Greeting Cards
    4-55 Directory, Unidentified