W.G. Whittlestone Papers

The collection comprises around 150 boxes of papers relating to the interests and work of the late Dr Walter George Whittlestone (1913-1985), a scientist, agricultural chemist, researcher and one of the instigators of the NZ Foundation for Peace Studies. His early research transformed the diary industry and extended into human lactation and community work. Major topics covered include the dairying industry, third world development, human lactation, breastfeeding, nuclear disarmament, and the ethics of science.

The 150 boxes have been arranged into the following 20 series. See the finding aid for more specific details on each of the series.

LIST OF SERIES

1 General subject files – this is a large series and has been divided by the following subjects: General and miscellaneous files; Lactation, maternity care, etc; Mental health; Nuclear concerns/peace movement - including Material returned from Wayne Robinson (see finding aid); Overseas aid, politics and agricultural development.                                 

2 Publications by W G Whittlestone - series created to contain published material by Whittlestone (plus one item that is kept because it contains an article about rather than by him), Issues of each journal etc have been put together, but other than that there is no deliberate arrangement.

3 Research notebooks - notebooks contain handwritten (sometimes barely legible) notes on experiments, mainly but not exclusively concerning milk and milking. These notes are not always dated.

4 Student notebooks and theses – this series contains four categories of records: Whittlestone's own note- books, R W Willett's notebooks, Whittlestone's thesis, and KS Birrell's thesis. Whittlestone appears to have been given Willett's notes for subjects that Whittlestone himself did not study, and preserved them for reference purposes. Birrell's thesis was probably kept for the same reason.

5 Appointment diaries - These appointment diaries are kept because they provide a skeletal outline of Whittlestone's activities, including personal activities that are otherwise scarcely documented. 

6 Reading notes - This series contains notes made by W G Whittlestone from journal articles and books, on a range of scientific subjects. These notebooks complement series 4 and 3 in revealing Whittlestone's methodology, training, and sense of scientific inquiry. They may suggest Whittlestone's early research interests and some of the influences on his work.

7 Address books - The address book in this series is kept not only because it can be used to identify people and places mentioned in other parts of the Whittlestone Papers, but also because it gives an indication of the contacts Whittlestone made in his work and travels. 

8 Household accounts - This volume provides a link between Whittlestone the scientist and Whittlestone the man and husband, as it records expenditure of the Whittlestone household - including, however, Whittlestone's car expenses which must count partly as work-related expenses as well as personal. It offers some personal background to Whittlestone's work at the time, as well as scope for comparison of the organisation of his personal affairs with that of his professional work.

9 Items created after Whittlestone's death - This series contains posthumous publications by or about Whittlestone, and significant letters about him.

10 Nuclear and peace studies - This file is mainly concerned with nuclear weapons, but it also contains material on other weapons and on nuclear power. As noted above, it includes articles by Whittlestone as well as copies of articles by others. There is also material connected with particular anti-nuclear groups, including correspondence and reports.

11 Loose papers from Whittlestone's study – These papers were gathered under the following subjects: Mental health; Lactation, Maternity care, etc; Nuclear concerns/peace movement; Dairying; Overseas aid, politics and agricultural development; Automation; Miscellaneous.

12 General correspondence - This correspondence not only touches on most areas in which Whittlestone was interested and which are documented in other series; it also contains more personal letters which reveal something of the private man. 

13 [Number not now used]

14 Travel diaries and notes - These diaries record not only Whittlestone's travel experiences, but also his contacts with scientific colleagues overseas, and his impressions and ideas at the time. 

15 Scientific reference files - This series contains journal articles and other notes on Whittlestone's scientific interests - overwhelmingly concerned with dairying and lactation.

16 Sound recordings (tapes) – This series contains two cassettes which were recorded from the original reels. Digital audio recordings have been made and are available by request.

Whittlestone_16_01 – Side A - Dictation by Whittlestone on the AmidLac method for the determination of protein in milk, using pro milk testers : Foss Pro Milk Mark II, Foss Pro Milk Automatic (preliminary draft). Side B - Dictation by Whittlestone on the quality of milk production (continued) – [N. B. Tape gets very slow].

Whittlestone_16_02 – Side A and B - Whittlestone interviewing young lady on breastfeeding her adopted son. [Women is difficult to hear at the beginning and recording slows down and distorts about halfway through.]

Dr_Whittlestone_01 – This is an edited interview with Dr. Whittlestone refuting the article about CORSO diminishing and/or becoming political. Interview was played on Sunday and repeated "next week".

17 Scientific subject files - These files include research data, correspondence, reference material, printed material, manuscripts, travel documentation, lecture notes, and illustrations for articles etc. They constitute W. G. Whittlestone's main filing series for records of his professional interests from the 1970s on. The files are concerned mainly with Whittlestone's interests in dairying, but there is also material on the breast pump and wind-powered water pump he developed, and his concerns with overseas aid. 

18 Loose papers from Alfa-Laval - Most of the material in this series relates to work done by Whittlestone for Alfa-Laval Ltd, although some items refer to Ruakura rather than Alfa-Laval.

19 Filing lists - The item in this series reveals the classification scheme used by Whittlestone to arrange the reference files concerning his work.

20 Notes re electronic instrumentation - These papers include circuit diagrams and notes, and occasional items of correspondence usually concerning the supply of equipment or information about same). There are also occasional reprints of articles about various instruments.

21 Photographic records - personal and scientific subjects - This series contains a variety of photographic records, both in format and in subject. The photographs were taken by Whittlestone himself, and most may have been developed by him as well. They include records of his research especially his wartime work on the deterioration of rubber - as well as glimpses of personal interests (music, and holiday photographs). There are also many photographs taken by Whittlestone during his travels, principally of work- related subjects.