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Creator
Cobb, Jewel Plummer, 1924-2017
Call number
Sc MG 298
Physical description
29.46 linear feet (72 boxes, 2 tubes). 28 megabytes (1,241 computer files)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
[Item], Jewel Plummer Cobb papers, Sc MG 298, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library
Repository
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

Jewel Plummer Cobb (1924-2017) was a Black scientist, educator, and advocate for Black women entering the scientific field. Cobb's papers hold her professional publications; research files on cancer, particularly melanoma; and her personal files. The collection details Cobb's academic and teaching career, scientific research, and personal genealogical research.

Biographical/historical information

Jewel Isadora Cobb (later Jewel Plummer Cobb) was born in 1924 to Carriebel (Cole) and Frank V. Plummer in Chicago, Illinois. The family came from a line of medical and science professionals. Cobb's mother was a dancer and taught physical education, while her father was the first Black graduate of Cornell University to hold a doctorate in medicine. Frank Plummer's father graduated from Howard University in 1898, after being freed from enslavement, and later became a practicing pharmacist.

During high school, Cobb's teachers encouraged her developing interest in biology. Cobb enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1942; however, segregated housing policies did not allow Black students to live on campus, and she transferred to Talladega College, a historically Black institution in Alabama. At Talladega, Cobb became a lifelong member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in biology in 1945. Cobb continued her studies, earning a Master of Science in 1947 and later a PhD in cellular biology in 1950 from New York University (NYU). While she was initially denied the fellowship at NYU, Cobb was admitted after her interview. Her dissertation, "Mechanisms of Pigment Formation," examined melanin pigment granule formation in vitro using the enzyme tyrosinase. In 1949, Cobb was appointed to the role of independent investigator at Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory in Falmouth, Massachusetts.

After earning her PhD, Cobb continued to teach at NYU and was appointed to a teaching fellowship in the Biology department. Cobb held postdoctoral positions at the Harlem Hospital Cancer Research Foundation, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and the National Cancer Institute.

In 1952, she was hired as an instructor in anatomy at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, a position she held until 1954. Cobb returned to New York, where she taught and lectured at Hunter College and NYU. A tenure as head of the biology laboratory at Sarah Lawrence College from 1960 to 1969 followed. While there, Cobb conducted undergraduate research for participants in the National Science Foundation.

Cobb also taught at Connecticut College in New London, where she served as the institution's first Black Dean of Arts and Sciences. While serving in this role, Cobb established a scholarship program that provided financial assistance to Black students pursuing careers in the sciences.

Due to her expanding role at Connecticut College, Cobb had less time to dedicate to her research. She decided to leave Connecticut College for Douglass College at Rutgers University, where she also served as the College's Dean. Cobb was recommended as a candidate for the President of Hunter College in 1979, but was not selected for the role. Several Black civic groups and women in science organized protests and petitions in support of Cobb's appointment. Had she been selected, Cobb would have been Hunter's first Black president.

Cobb was appointed President of California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) in 1981, where she pursued both private and state financing to improve the campus's facilities. Cobb initiated numerous construction projects, including the completion of several science buildings and the University's first student housing. The residence building is named after Cobb. Enrollment at the college increased after Cobb implemented these measures. However, the University had a strict policy of not employing staff over the age of sixty-five, and Cobb was forced into retirement in 1990.

After leaving CSUF, Cobb continued her work supporting Black students' access to science education. She established the Science Technology Engineering Program (STEP) Up for Youth through California State University, Los Angeles, and the Pueblo Science ASCEND Project.

Cobb was the recipient of many awards, including the 1999 Achievement in Excellence Award from the Center for Excellence, in recognition of her contributions to science and education. She has also served as a board member of numerous organizations, including the National Science Board; Talladega College; and the National Committee on Women in Science and Engineering of the National Academy of Sciences.

Later in life, Cobb became interested in writing her memoir, and through the encouragement of her son Jonathan, she began keeping journals to document remembrances and reflections. During this time, Cobb also developed a strong interest in her family history and conducted extensive genealogical research.

Cobb died in 2017 at her home in New Jersey due to complications of Alzheimer's disease at the age of 92.

Scope and arrangement

The Jewel Plummer Cobb Papers contain material related to Cobb's career as a scientist, as well as her personal life. The collection spans the years 1897 to 2020, with the bulk of the files dating from 1942 to 1990. Cobb's papers are organized into three series: academic files, research and writing, and personal.

The collection consists of Cobb's research and published works, biographical material, including genealogical research and drafts of her memoir, administrative and teaching files from Universities, correspondence with friends and colleagues, as well as minutes and files related to her participation in professional organizations.

The Jewel Plummer Cobb papers are arranged in three series:

  • Series I: Academic Career
    1900-2020
    18.33 linear feet (44 boxes). 12.2 megabytes (1193 computer files)

    Series I details Cobb's academic career, which includes her work as both a scientist and educator. The series holds lectures and speeches from throughout Cobb's life, files documenting her education; awards and recognition for work in cancer research and academia; files of work Cobb did in various professional organizations; and administrative and teaching files from colleges and university courses she taught.

  • Series II: Research and Writings
    1897-2017
    8.33 linear feet (20 boxes). 184.3 kilobytes (12 computer files)

    Series II holds Cobb's published studies, background research, genealogical research, drafts of her memoir, and subject files. These files date from 1897 until 2017, and include others' writing used in research and Cobb's original texts. Materials created related to Cobb's published and unpublished writings on cancer include her notes and grant proposals, including reports on the status of the project. In addition to her science writing and research, Cobb spent a significant amount of time researching and writing about her family and personal history.

    Cobb kept notebooks, daybooks, and diaries, often related to her cancer and scientific research. However, these often also contain personal reflections, travel notes, and various practical information, such as phone numbers, addresses, and appointments. Notable among these are notebooks kept during a trip to Antarctica and a travel diary.

    Cobb collected published writings by several different authors who specialize in cancer research. These articles often contain Cobb's comments and margin notes, and were often used in her research and teaching.

    Genealogy was a strong interest of both Cobb and her mother, Carriebel (Cole) Plummer. Cobb conducted extensive research on her ancestry, tracing it back to before the Civil War, when her ancestor was an enslaved man. Conducting research in smaller museums, libraries, and later, online, Cobb collected materials about both sides of her family. This research dates back to 1841, tracing the ancestry of Adam Francis Plummer. An enslaved person, Plummer kept a diary for over sixty years. He also taught his daughters to write and encouraged them to keep diaries. Plummer's diaries are an important historical record, tracing the separation of the enslaved Plummer family and their efforts to reunite after the Civil War. Cobb also conducted extensive genealogical research into Bob Cole, her mother Carriebel's elder brother. Cole was a significant composer, producer, and lyricist at the turn of the 20th century.

    Additionally, Cobb printed resources on recommendations for conducting genealogical research. Cobb's files on members of her family, particularly Adam Francis Plummer and Bob Cole, hold clippings and correspondence. The Bob Cole files also contain copies of all his published compositions and sheet music.

    Cobb and her students often relied on grant funding for their research, and her writing files hold the applications and progress reports on grants and fellowships. The majority of these grants were conducted with her biology lab students at Sarah Lawrence College in cancer research and experiments on melanoma cells in animals

    Cobb worked on her biography for the latter half of her life, and much of this writing is present in both diaries and journals, as well as several drafts with edits. These notes were often referred to as "Musings" and contain her reflections on her career, childhood, and daily thoughts. Her memoir files also hold reference materials from throughout Cobb's life, such as newspaper clippings and personal items. Cobb also kept a separate folder of writings about her travels.

    The series also holds Cobb's published writings and articles on her cancer research. Beginning with her PhD dissertation entitled "Mechanics of Pigment Formation" (1950), Cobb's writing files contain notes and progress reports on her cancer research, and copies of her scientific publications. Files include Cobb's collaborative research with others (mainly her students) studying cancer cells, particularly those related to melanoma and tissue cultures. These studies were published in various outlets, including journals, magazines, university presses, and collections of scientific articles. These articles' files also include illustrations using diagrams and microscopic photography.

    In addition to Cobb's writing, the series contains writings about Cobb and her career, including articles, thesis papers, and a bound copy of an interview conducted with Cobb as part of an oral history project at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and California State University, Fullerton.

    Subject files in the series are related to Cobb's interests in Black scientists, women in science and engineering, cancer research, and biology.

  • Series III: Personal
    1924-2019
    1.04 linear feet (3 boxes). 15.7 megabytes (36 computer files)

    Series III contains Cobb's biographical files, letters, yearbooks from both Cobb and her son, clippings, pictures, and documentation of Cobb's accomplishments. Correspondence primarily consists of letters to her parents and later her son, condolence letters following Cobb's death in 2017, letters from her family, and thank-you notes from scholarship awardees.

    There are also several of Cobb's personal effects present, including athletic letters from high school, a business card holder, coins collected from her travels, an embossed library seal, and scrapbooks.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Gift of R. Jonathan Cobb in 2020.

Processing information

Processed by Emily P. Dunne in 2025.

Separated material

See the Photographs and Prints Division for the Jewel Plummer Cobb photographs, Sc Photo Jewel Plummer Cobb Collection.

See the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division for the recordings.

Using the collection

Location

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division
515 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10037-1801
Second Floor