Bertrand R. Adams was born November 29, 1907, on a farm south of Webster City, Iowa. During high school, he became interested in art, and upon graduation he enrolled in an art correspondence course through the Federal School of Commercial Designing (now Art Instruction Schools). He received his diploma from the school in 1932 and also graduated with a BFA (1932) from the University of Iowa the same year.

Adams, along with 13 other artists, was selected by Grant Wood to assist in painting a set of murals for the Iowa State College (University) Library in 1934. Adams was later commissioned by the United States government to complete two murals for placement in post offices. One was for the Dubuque, Iowa, post office titled "Early Settlers of Dubuque" and the other for the post office in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, titled "Lumbering in Arkansas."

After over a decade of pursuing a career in art, Adams decided to change course and attended the Des Moines Still College of Osteopathy (now Des Moines University). He received his license to practice in 1943. He interned at the Detroit Osteopathic Hospital and in 1944 opened an office in downtown Ames, Iowa, as an osteopathic physician. Adams eventually moved his office into the lower level of the house he built in Ames and retired from practice in 1991.

Adams was a very inquisitive man. As a physician he was interested in all kinds of medical research related to a wide spectrum of areas including diet, exercise, nutrition, and organic food and was also willing to explore less mainstream fields such as acupuncture, reflexology, and electronic medicine. Adams also had a number of equally varied interests outside of his medical profession. He studied hypnosis, auras, psychic phenomena, graphology, phrenology, astronomy, astrology, religion, architecture, and gardening. He devoted many hours to professional, civic, and religious groups and associations.

Adams first met Mary E. Beymer while both were attending art school at the University of Iowa. They eventually married in Des Moines in 1956. They had no children together, but helped raise Mary's nephew, William Wolters. Bertrand Adams died December 15, 1994.

This collection (1927-2007, n.d.) contains artwork and correspondence of Bertrand R. Adams. The artwork includes pencil and ink drawings, sketches, and a cartoon drawing for a mural that was never completed. The collection also includes a number of illustrations completed during high school and for the art correspondence course he took in the 1920s. Other artwork includes Christmas cards created by Adams and his wife, Mary Adams (a well-known artist in the community), along with some of the original woodblock carvings used to print the cards.

The correspondence contains letters regarding the commission for the Siloam Springs, Arkansas, post office mural. Other correspondence includes letters of rejection and some of a more general nature. There are also several publications which have information about Adams.

Further information about Adams can be found in the Iowa State University Archives collection RS 4/8/5, Campus Art - PWAP artists and their works related to the Grant Wood murals in the ISU Library. Additionally, information about Bertrand and Mary Adams can be found by contacting the Ames Historical Society which received the bulk of their estate. The Ames Historical Society also hosts an online exhibit about Mr. and Mrs. Adams which can be viewed at http://www.ameshistoricalsociety.org/exhibits/adams.htm.

The collection is listed alphabetically.