This collection is an arrangement of letters, postcards and other materials relating to botanists and naturalists throughout the 20th century. The material was received by the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation on 18 January 1968 from Professor William Winfield Ray (1909–1995). According to our correspondence from the time, the materials were sent to us as part of a larger collection amalgamated from various sources by Professor Ray, including materials given to him by Thomas J. Fitzpatrick and Charles E. Bessey (1845–1915). The materials presented here were isolated from their original collection around July 1968 and put into their current organization by our founding director George H. M. Lawrence (1910–1978; director, 1960–1970). It is expected that these items may be used both for their historical interest and as a sampling of handwriting for the botanists represented within.