Marlin H. Bruner Papers
Collection
Identifier: Mss-0281
The papers include articles, charts, correspondence, maps, photographs, and reports.
The papers document Bruner's career at Clemson College, particularly in the 1950s. Bruner spent much of his time during that decade engrossed in the negotiations related to the creation of the Hartwell Dam and Lake Hartwell that greatly impacted the Clemson Forest lands that he managed. There are reports, research material, and financial data concerning the negotiations between Clemson and the Federal government. Correspondents include other professional foresters as well as Clemson President Robert F. Poole.
There are four maps of the Six Mile Creek Watershed, 1941; one map of a census of quail in the Clemson Forest, 1958; two maps related to the Hartwell Dam Project, 1953 and 1957; and one of part of Cheraw State Park, circa 1955. The oversize photograph is from the Soil Conservation Service, labeled ALA-D2 157-B, 1951. The chart is of Hartwell Dam preliminary flow, storage, area, capacity, and tailwater rating curve, circa 1954. The photographs are about fish in Lake Issaqueena.
Marlin Harner Bruner was born in Windber, Pennsylvania on February 5, 1909 to William and Laura Bruner. He attended schools in Middleburg, Pennsylvania and then graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a BS in Forestry in 1931. He received an MS in Forestry from Yale University in 1932.
Prior to accepting the position of Extension Forester at Clemson in 1939, Bruner worked for the New Jersey Department of Conservation and Development, 1933-1934, the United States Forest Service, 1934-1936, and the College of Agriculture at the University of Arkansas, 1936-1939. In 1942, he gained a position as District Manager in the Extension Division of the DuPont Corporation although he continued to reside in Clemson. After twelve years, he became College Forester at Clemson, and in 1957 a member of the faculty in the Department of Forestry where he taught as well as continuing to manage the Clemson Forest until his retirement in 1971.
He was active in a number of professional organizations serving as Secretary Treasurer, Vice President and President of the Appalachian Section of the American Society of American Foresters. The South Carolina Wildlife Federation named him "Forest Conservationist of the Year" in 1971 and he received the Achievement Award of the Appalachian Section of the American Society of American Foresters in 1973.
He married Faith Howell and they had three children, William, Diana and Richard. He died in 1999.
Information for this biographical note is based upon material from Series 28.
1.7 Cubic Feet (5 document boxes, 1 oversize folder with 8 maps, 1 photograph and 1 chart; 1 folder of photographs in 1 box)
English
Marlin H. Bruner, Forester and Professor at Clemson University, helped to manage the land acquired by Clemson during the 1930s from 1939-1942 and from1954 until his retirement in 1971. During this period, Bruner was instrumental in the creation of a variety of reclamation and conservation projects on these lands as well as instructing Clemson students. His papers include information about the creation of Lake Hartwell during the 1950s and its impact upon the Clemson Forest as well as on the general operations of managing the Forest primarily during the 1950s.
The papers are in a subject file arranged alphabetically by folder title. General correspondence is in order alphabetically by the first letter of the last name of the correspondent.
Larry Reamer transferred papers of George Aull and Marlin Bruner 85-04.
Processed by Michael Kohl with help from student assistant Emily Estes in 2006.
The conversion of this finding aid to Encoded Archival Description format was made possible with a grant from the South Carolina State Historical Records Advisory Board in 2009-2010. The finding aid was prepared for encoding by Kristi Roberts.
Part of the Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives Repository