Rydal Mt. Loan Book, undated

The bulk of the collection, which consists of photocopies, photographs, genealogies and notes, is organized around six record series: I. Student Years [1924-1937]; II. Academic Teaching Files; III. Talks and Writings (General); IV. Correspondence, Notes and Research Materials Files (General); V. Wordsworth Catalogue Project Files; and, VI. Additional Materials Received.

The correspondence, though meager in some cases, contains letters from such well-known Oberlin College faculty as Philip D. Sherman (1881-1957) and Charles Wager (1869-1939). In addition, letters from Richard Carl (1906-1991, Class of 1928) and Jack Warner (1907-1991, Class of 1929) Schaefer are also included. An original William Wordsworth signature exists in the collection, which was sent to Shaver by a descendant of Wordsworth.

Though Shaver diligently served on college faculty committees, faculty councils and so forth, no materials relating to his service are to be found in his personal papers. Evidence of the role he played in departmental affairs will be found in the faculty council minutes for the English Department.

Shaver's personal life is not well documented. Two travel diaries (undated, 1937) and a 1928 college daybook (all are modest in research value) say little about his life outside of academia. Some of Shaver's notes, research papers and examination bluebooks while he was a student at Oberlin College constitute the only other material relating to his pre-teaching years. The research papers, covering topics such as Shakespeare, Chaucer and Wordsworth, documents the early years in his academic career; in some respects, they may even foreshadow Shaver's later academic scholarship.

In series 2 of this collection, are Shaver's lecture notes and class books (restricted access). The lecture notes, on 5 x 8 sheets, are quite extensive and outline every class he taught at Oberlin College. Correspondence from colleagues (1937-1974) from this period is also included.

Two indexes (series 4) and slides (series 2 and series 7) represent different media in the collection. The indexes were used in his work various research projects, some of which may not have been complete. The slides in the teaching files, which document Wordsworth and Coleridge, were part of a presentation he used in his classes. The slides in series 7, presumably by Shaver, were taken of his colleagues, buildings and other subjects in Oberlin.