Faculty Records (University Of Maine). Professor Deering (Arthur Lowell) Records

The records mainly contain textual information created and curated by Arthur Lowell Deering who was a nationally known educator and expert in Maine agriculture and agricultural education, but there are also some photographic material of staff in the Extension Service and events at the University of Maine and other academic institutions and an audio recording from an outstanding farmers awards ceremony (1957). The records cover his service to the University of Maine at Orono as Director of Extension, as Dean of the College of Agriculture, and as Director of the Agricultural Experiment Station.

The record series Subject Records contains correspondence, memorandums, reports and publications, and meeting material on a range of subjects including University of Maine Board of Trustees, education, the economy, history of Aroostook County, tax revision in Maine, and the Maine potato industry.

The record series Organization For European Economic Cooperation & Foreign Travel Records contains details of trips Deering took to Europe as a representative of the Organization For European Economic Cooperation to study extension work and agricultural education methods and facilities as part of the agricultural aid in the U.S. government’s Marshall Plan. Includes notes, reports, correspondence, travel guides, clippings, itineraries, and photographs. Also, includes travel reports from earlier trips Dering took to attend conferences in England and Scotland.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Records contains copies of reports and meeting material from some of the Organization’s conferences, particularly the 1945 conference held in Quebec City which Deering attended as a representative of the U.S. Government. Also, includes copies of various Food and Agriculture Organization publications including their newsletter, facts about FAO, and United Nations reports on food and agriculture.

The record series Agriculture & Extension Service History & Education Records contains copies of various addresses and speeches given by Deering and others on the subject of agriculture and extension work, various miscellaneous reports, clippings and publications regarding the work, staff, and history of the Maine and U.S. agricultural extension services, agriculture in general, the University of Maine’s College of Agriculture and University of Maine. Also, includes photographs, reports, clippings, and programs from Extension Service events (particularly Farm and Home Week) and conference both at the University of Maine and at Cornell University, Iowa State College, and the University of Arkansas. There is also material on Cornell University’s Extension Education Program which Deering taught at including: syllabus, papers on the history and objectives of extension work and agricultural education (including some by Deering), teaching material, lists of students, reference material, summaries of panel discussions, schedules, questionnaires, and bibliographies.

The record series Bibliographical Information and Personal Records including miscellaneous biographical material on Deering including details of awards he received, copy of his retirement letter and a press release regarding his retirement, details of a scholarship fund in his honor, curriculum vitae, and a copy of a Bangor Daily News tribute to Deering. Also, includes miscellaneous personal material related to Deering’s membership in Phi Kappa Sigma and the University of Maine Class of 1912 and other interests including Aroostook County, education, and banking.