Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish material from John P. Sawyer Letters must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech.

Acquisition Information

The collection was acquired by Special Collections prior to 1987.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: John P. Sawyer Letters, Ms1987-047, Special Collections, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the John P. Sawyer Letters was completed in October 2013.

Biographical Information

John P. Sawyer was a graduate student at VPI during the late 1930s.

Ralph Brown was the head librarian of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University from 1926 to 1947. He was originally born in Fort Shaw, Montana, in 1878. He was an ambulance driver during World War I. He also worked as an editor for Rand McNally and Popular Mechanics before coming to work at Virginia Tech. The accomplishment he was best known for as head librarian at Virginia Tech was his compilation of the V.P.I Historical Index, 1872-1942. Among other things, he was a book collector and an amateur naturalist.

Scope and Content

The collection consists of letters from John P. Sawyer, written between 1943 and 1945, while on active duty during World War II. The letter are addressed to Ralph M. Brown, librarian at VPI.

Index Terms

Persons:

• Brown, Ralph Minthorne

Subjects:

• University Archives
• Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute
• World War II