Collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice.
Most of the papers contained in this collection are related to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Quantitative Genetics Research Program Project GM 11546. The project was instituted by C. Clark Cockerham in 1963 and ran through 1990. Also included are a doctoral dissertation, administrative files, reprints, and letters of congratulation kept by C. Clark Cockerham.
C. Clark Cockerham, Distinguished University Professor of Statistics and Genetics, directed North Carolina State University's program in quantitative genetics from 1960 to 1990.
C. Clark (Columbus Clark) Cockerham was born on December 21, 1921, in Mountain Park, North Carolina. He received a B.S. in agriculture from the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering (later North Carolina State University) in 1943 and served as a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. In 1949 he earned an M.S. in animal industry from North Carolina State College, and in 1952 he earned a Ph.D. in animal breeding and genetics from Iowa State College. He then returned to North Carolina to teach and do research.
Cockerham combined biological insight with mathematical innovation. Theoretical predictions made possible through his work transformed crop and herd improvement, and benefited all sectors of agriculture and forestry. More than fifty per cent of the hybrid corn in the United States comes from lines that were developed with his help. The field of DNA fingerprinting, the matching of criminal suspects to their body fluids, owes much to his work.
Cockerham began North Carolina State's program in quantitative genetics in 1963 with support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). That program was the largest federal grant project in existence at the university from 1963 through 1990. Cockerham wrote or co-wrote more than a hundred works that contributed to fundamental advances in understanding natural populations, including human populations. His early work set the course of agricultural genetics, and his later work focused on evolutionary genetics.
As a professor of statistics at North Carolina State University and the Director of the NIH Project Program in Statistics at NC State University, Cockerham received many honors and awards. He was the William Neal Reynolds Professor of Statistics and Genetics, winner of the Gamma Sigma Delta Award of Merit, a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and a winner of the North Carolina Award in the field of science. Cockerham received the O. Max Gardner Award in 1980, became a University Distinguished Professor Emeritus in 1988, received the USDA Superior Service Award for Scientific Research in 1990, and was awarded the Holladay medal in 1994.
Cockerham was married to Joyce Allen Cockerham. The couple had three children. C. Clark Cockerham died on November 4, 1996, at the age of seventy-five.
Most of the papers contained in this collection are related to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Quantitative Genetics Research Program Project GM 11546. The project was instituted by C. Clark Cockerham in 1963 and ran through 1990. It was the largest federal grant program in existence at North Carolina State University during that time. Additionally, contained in the collection there are his doctoral dissertation, administrative files generated by Cockerham during his long tenure as a professor of statistics at North Carolina State University. Also included are reprints of scientific and technical publications written and co-written by Cockerham along with a small collection of note cards used by the professor to track his work. There is also a bound collection of letters of congratulation written to commemorate Dr. Cockerhams's retirement in 1990.
This collection is organized into six series; the National Institutes of Health Quantitative Research Program Project Grant GM 11546; NC State University Department of Statistics Administration Files; Reprints; Note Cards; Retirement Letters; and General Records. Dr. Cockerham's original order of arrangement has been maintained wherever possible.
The NC State University Libraries generally claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. Libraries staff are unable to advise on copyright and other legal matters; the user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Helpful resources for assessing copyright include Cornell Libraries' "Copyright Services: Copyright Term and the Public Domain" and copyright.gov. This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information about identifiable living individuals, which may be protected under federal or state laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that there may be legal ramifications for disclosing this information.
The University Archives operates in accordance with the State Public Records Act, with unrestricted access to records not covered by state and federal statutes and regulations.
[Identification of item], C. Clark Cockerham Papers, MC 00309, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
Gift of Bruce Weir, Seattle, Wash., 2005 December (accession no. 2005-0021); 2023 January (accession no. 2023-0020).
Processed by Michael K Watts, 2006 September
Encoded by Michael K Watts, 2006 September
The collection is organized into six principal series:
This series contains papers related to the National Institutes of Health Quantitative Research Program Project Grant GM 11546. It is made up of three subseries; GM11546 Research Files containing original manuscripts, research data, and information related to researchers; GM11546 Administrative Files containing program correspondence and original press releases documenting the beginning of the National Institutes of Health Quantitative Genetics Research Program Project at North Carolina State University, along with the project's financial, technical, and personnel records; and finally Proposals, Renewals and Progress Reports used in the grant review process by the National Institutes of Health to sustain funding for GM11546.
12 archival boxes
Contains manuscript with correspondence and revisions
Contains manuscript with correspondence and revisions
Contains manuscript with correspondence and revisions
Contains manuscript, correspondence, and notes
Contains manuscript and correspondence
Contains manuscript and correspondence
Contains manuscript, correspondence, and notes
Contains manuscript, correspondence, and notes
This subseries contains documentation of proposals, renewals, and progress reports used in maintaining the NIH Program Project Grant GM 11546.
Series contains material related to Cockerham's work as a professor with the North Carolina State University Department of Statistics. Included are biographical information, personnel records, and awards citations.
3 archival boxes
This series contains material written and co-written by Cockerham along with a small collection of reprints written by Cockerham's colleague, B. S. Weir.
2 archival boxes
This series contains the contents of a small file card box that was included with Cockerham's papers.
6 Folders
A bound volume of letters of congratulation given to Cockerham on the occasion of his retirement in 1991.
1 folder
Collection is open for research; access requires at least 48 hours advance notice.
For more information contact us via mail, phone, or our web form.
Mailing address:
Special Collections Research Center
Box 7111
Raleigh, NC, 27695-7111
Phone: (919) 515-2273
[Identification of item], C. Clark Cockerham Papers, MC 00309, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC
The NC State University Libraries generally claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. Libraries staff are unable to advise on copyright and other legal matters; the user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Helpful resources for assessing copyright include Cornell Libraries' "Copyright Services: Copyright Term and the Public Domain" and copyright.gov. This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information about identifiable living individuals, which may be protected under federal or state laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that there may be legal ramifications for disclosing this information.
The University Archives operates in accordance with the State Public Records Act, with unrestricted access to records not covered by state and federal statutes and regulations.