These papers consist of incoming and outgoing correspondence mostly documenting Oman's career as a research entomologist at the USDA and his study of leafhopper systematics.
Most of the letters were exchanged between Oman and professional colleagues and concern the identification of specimens. Correspondence after 1950 was created primarily by
David A. Young, Jr., and James P. Kramer, two USDA Homopterists who assumed responsibility for taxonomic studies after Oman's work became more administrative in nature.
Historical Note:
Paul Wilson Oman (1908-1996), an entomologist and specialist on leafhopper taxonomy, was educated at the University of Kansas (A.B., 1930; A.M., 1935) and the George
Washington University (Ph.D., 1941). In 1930, Oman joined the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a Junior Entomologist with the Bureau of Entomology and Plant
Quarantine. He remained with the USDA, in various research and administrative posts, until 1967 when he retired to join the faculty of Oregon State University. Oman served
in the United States Army during World War II and the Korean War, conducting studies on medical entomology and the biological control of insects.
