Guide to the Thomas D'Amico Papers, circa 1926-1957, bulk circa 1933-1935 SPEC.PA.56.0235 Finding aid prepared by Casey Blackmore Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections
1858 Neil Avenue Columbus, OH, 43210
August 2024 This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2024-08-23T12:37-0400 English Describing Archives: A Content Standard Thomas D'Amico Papers SPEC.PA.56.0235 Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections 7.91 Cubic feet Bulk, 1933-1935 circa 1926-1957 Thomas D’Amico was a crew member on the U.S.S. Bear of Oakland during the Byrd Antarctic Expedition II in 1933-1935, where he served as commissary steward and cook. The Thomas D’Amico Papers contain materials collected by D’Amico before, during, and after his time aboard the U.S.S. Bear of Oakland. The collection contains one coat, four pairs of googles, one pocket knife, one knife in a sheath, one pair of gloves, a three piece set of Fraunfelter commemorative china (a mug, small bowl, and a soup bowl), one United States Navy medal, one American Guernsey Cattle Club medal, one Havalite pencil and lighter combination, and several documents pertaining to D’Amico’s time before, during and after the expedition, including scrapbooks, correspondence, photographs, and newspaper clippings. Material is dated circa 1926-1957, with the bulk of material being dated circa 1933 to 1935. (3) oversize folders, (2) costume boxes, (1) oversize flat box, (1) flat box, (1) 5" letter document box, (1) 5" legal document box English D'Amico, Thomas Arrangement of Materials

Materials are arranged in chronological order; items with the same date are arranged alphabetically within by title or topic of contents.

 Acquisitions Information

Accession No. PA.2024.0007: Diane D’Amico, 2021 June

 Preferred Citation

[identification of item], Thomas D'Amico Papers, SPEC.PA.56.0235, Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program, Ohio State University

 Access to Materials

Materials in this collection are available for use, but may be used in the University Archives reading room only. Contact the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program at polararchives@osu.edu for more information.

 Use of Materials

Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright, and are made available for research and educational purposes. In general, the OSU Libraries do not own the copyright for materials from our collections and cannot grant copyright permissions for these materials. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Works in the public domain are not protected by copyright and do not require permission to use.

 Processing Information

Processed by: Casey Blackmore, 2024 July; Finding aid written by: Casey Blackmore, 2024 July

 Biographical Note

Thomas D’Amico was a crew member on the U.S.S. Bear of Oakland during the Byrd Antarctic Expedition II in 1933-1935, where he served as commissary steward, cook, stenographer, and supply officer. As a supply officer, D'Amico was in charge of the unloading of supplies for the expedition, which in addition to food also included sled dogs, cows, airplane parts, and scientifc equipment. He also acted as an assistant to Richard Byrd in various capacities. After his time with the expedition, D'Amico kept in contact with Byrd and corresponded with him about future endeavors and work opportunities.

 Scope and Contents

The Thomas D’Amico Papers contain materials collected by D’Amico before, during, and after his time aboard the U.S.S. Bear of Oakland for Richard Byrd's second Antarctic expedition. The collection contains one coat, four pairs of googles, one pocket knife, one knife in a sheath, one pair of gloves, a three piece set of Fraunfelter commemorative china (a mug, small bowl, and a soup bowl), one United States Navy medal, one American Guernsey Cattle Club medal, one Havalite pencil and lighter combination, and several documents pertaining to D’Amico’s time before, during and after the expedition. Documents include correspondence, a scrapbook, clippings and photographs. Materials are dated circa 1926 to 1957, with the bulk of material being dated circa 1933 to 1935.

 Related Materials Admiral Richard E. Byrd Papers Bear of Oakland (Ship) Byrd Antarctic Expedition (2nd: 1933-1935) D'Amico, Thomas Antarctica--Discovery and exploration--20th century Cargo handling--Equipment and supplies--Antarctica--20th century Certificates Clippings (information artifacts) Male cooks--Antarctica--20th century Maps (documents) Outerwear Photographs Scientific expeditions--Antarctica--20th century Scientific expeditions--Antarctica--Equipment and supplies--20th century Scrapbooks Stenographers--Antarctica--20th century United States Coast Guard Cutter Bear and Successive Commanding Officers certificate Polar Flat Items 1 1 circa 1926 The Great Navy of the State of Nebraska certificate Polar Flat Items 1 2 1931 American Guernsey Cattle Club medal 1 1 circa 1933-1935 Byrd Antarctic Expedition II coat 2 1 circa 1933-1935 Bryd Antarctic Expedition II towel 3 1 circa 1933-1935 D'Amico (Thomas) United States Navy medal 1 2 circa 1933-1935 Dark tinted round goggles 1 3 circa 1933-1935 Havalite pencil and lighter combination 1 4 circa 1933-1935 Leather mittens set 3 2 circa 1933-1935 Pocket knife 1 5 circa 1933-1935 Sheathed knife 3 3 circa 1933-1935 Silver goggles 1 6 circa 1933-1935 Silver and leather goggles 1 7 circa 1933-1935 Yellow tinted goggles 1 8 circa 1933-1935 Commemorative Fraunfelter china mug 1 9 1933 Commemorative Fraunfelter china small bowl 1 10 1933 Commemorative Fraunfelter china soup bowl 1 11 1933 D'Amico (Thomas) Byrd Antarctic Expedition II related documents 4 1 1933-1957 Norfolk and Western magazine 5 1 1933 November Imperium Nepuni Regis certificate Polar Flat Items 1 3 1933 November 26 Byrd Antarctic Expedition II map 5 2 1934 U.S.S. Bear of Oakland ship roster 5 3 1934 Byrd Antarctic Expedition II newspaper articles 5 4 1934 January-February Kenyon (Alden H.) correspondece 4 2 1934 May 11 Powers (Donald J.) correspondence 4 3 1934 October D'Amico (Thomas) scrapbook 6 1 1934-1935 D'Amico (Thomas) name badge 4 4 1935 Admiral Richard Byrd homecoming newspaper articles 5 5 1935 May Dinner and reception in honor of the members of the Bryd Antarctic Expedition II program 4 5 1935 May 10 Welcome home dinner for Admiral Richard E. Byrd invitation 4 6 1935 May 12 Welcome home for Admiral Richard Byrd at Boston Common program 4 7 1935 May 16 Xavierette article 5 6 1939 November