Files of the head of the Botany Department. The files are only extensive for the periods when David Valentine and Elizabeth Cutter were in charge of the Department i.e. from the mid-1960s to the demise of the Department in 1986. It is not believed that any earlier files have survived.
The content of the files is diverse: many deal with the Department's relations with University central administration, particularly the Bursar and Registrar, and concern the financing of the Department and staff issues. Internal administration is covered by files on the Finance sub-committee and the Health and Safety Committee, as well as files relating to the acquisition of equipment, and the management of the Department's experimental grounds at Fallowfield and Jodrell Bank. There is a good deal of material relating to syllabuses and courses, including statistics on students taking botany courses, and the Department's contribution to other degree courses (information relating to single honours botany is more extensive in the minutes of the Departmental Board [DBO/1]). There also 'personal' files of Professors Valentine and Cutter which deal with various aspects of professional work including publications, membership of societies and contacts with other botanists.