Manuscript Group 472
WALTER LYON PAPERS
1902-2007 (bulk 1955-1995)
58 cubic feet
Walter Lyon was an environmental engineer who held a variety of management
positions in local, state and federal government during the second half of the
twentieth century, and specialized in environmental and health issues.
Born in Cologne, Germany on June 26, 1924, he eventually immigrated to the
United States, serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. After the war,
he received a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering, as well as a Master's
Degree in Sanitary Engineering, from The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore,
Maryland. He also studied political science and public administration at American
University in Washington, D.C. from 1950-1953. Lyon started his career in sanitary
engineering at the U.S. Public Health Service in Washington, D.C., serving as
Assistant Chief of the Planning and Development Branch, Division of Engineering
Resources, from 1950-1954. After a three-year stint as Assistant Chief of the
Environmental Health Section, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, he moved
into a number of Pennsylvania Civil Service positions.
Beginning his career with the Commonwealth as the Assistant Director of the
Division (later Bureau) of Sanitary Engineering, Department of Health, in 1957,
Lyon was quickly promoted to Director of the Division in 1958, a post at which
he served until 1970. In 1971, he accepted the position of Director of the Bureau
of Water Quality Management, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources.
During the twenty-two years Lyon was in charge of the Bureau, he led the Commonwealth's
water pollution and drinking water programs, instituting many program innovations
such as the State's groundwater and biology programs. The final position Lyon
held with the Commonwealth was Deputy Secretary for Planning, Department of
Environmental Resources, from 1979-1983. In addition to heading the water pollution
and drinking water programs during his tenure with the Commonwealth, Lyon was
responsible for the Commonwealth's Environmental Master Plan, which gives direction
to many diverse resources and programs of Pennsylvania's government, the State's
Recreation Plan, federal environmental and resources legislation and policy
analysis.
After 1983, he served as a consultant in environmental engineering and water
resources for various public and private organizations, as well as instructing
prospective engineers in Systems Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania
in Philadelphia. In addition to his service on numerous technical committees
for organizations such as the American Society of Civil Engineers, Lyon has
worked on national and international engineering, environmental resources and
water policy matters as a member of the International Joint Commission's Great
Lakes Water Quality Board, Science Advisory Board, the Board of Visitors of
the University of Pittsburgh, the U.S. Delegation to the International Conference
on Water for Peace, and the U.S. Environmental Control Mission to the Netherlands
and Eastern Europe. Some of his numerous awards include: the Karl M. Mason Award
for Creativity in Environmental Management (1980), 1994 Service to the Profession
Award of the American Society of Civil Engineers' Water Resources Planning and
Management Division, and the 1998 Engineer of the Year, Pennsylvania Society
of Professional Engineers.
Included in this collection are Lyon's personal and professional papers, which
have been divided into four sections. The first grouping contains materials
relative to the various organizations with which Lyon was involved over the
course of his career, including twenty boxes of files pertaining to the International
Joint Commission, eight boxes discussing various Pennsylvania associations,
as well as the Society for Risk Analysis and the Coalition of Northeastern Governors,
both interstate commissions. Lyon's Subject File encompasses the second section,
which is housed in seventy-eight boxes. It includes topics such as Pennsylvania
solid wastes, drinking water, environmental monitoring and mapping, public health
and water quality, to name a few. Newspaper articles, correspondence, meeting
notices and agendas, publications, reports, academic papers, and miscellaneous
other documents are present in these first two groups. Walter Lyon's personal
file comprises the third group, with personal correspondence, interviews relative
to Lyon's career and the career of Karl Mason, publications, speeches and general
files, included in ten boxes. Finally, audio and graphics files, which encompass
audio tapes, camera cards, lantern slides, microfiche, microfilm, negatives
(4"x5"), photographs, slides and video tapes, are contained in the
fourth section.
ORGANIZATION FILES
International Joint Commission
- General Reports, 1965-2000. (3 boxes) {#472m.1} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Files, 1972-1995. (1 box and 1 folder)
{#472m.2} [Description] [Holdings]
- Monitoring Files, 1979-1993. (12 folders) {#472m.3} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Dredging/In-Situ Contaminants Files, 1983-1988. (2 boxes) {#472m.4}
[Description] [Holdings]
- Niagara River Contamination Files, 1978-1990. (1 box) {#472.5}
[Description] [Holdings]
- Great Lakes Science Advisory Board Minutes and Agendas, 1989-1995. (1
box) {#472.6} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Great Lakes Science Advisory Board Reports and General Files, 1959-1994.
(2 boxes) {#472.7} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Great Lakes Water Quality Board Reports and Meeting Materials, 1970-1993.
(2 boxes) {#472.8} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Land Use Reports, 1974-1993. (1 box) {#472.9} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Toxic Substance Files, 1980-1995. (2 boxes) {#472.10} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Political and Social Files, 1973-1994. (16 folders) {#472.11} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Aquatic Ecosystem and Phosphate Materials, 1972-1992. (2 boxes) {#472.12}
[Description] [Holdings]
- Health and Atmospheric/Climatic Issue Files, 1980-1992. (10 folders) {#472.13}
[Description] [Holdings]
Interstate Commissions
Pennsylvania
- Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Pesticide Board Files, 1987-1997.
(1 box) {#472m.16} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Department of Environmental Resources (DER)/Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) Files, 1970-2000. (2 boxes) {#472m.17} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Bureau of Water Quality Management (BWQM) Files, 1902-2000. (3 boxes and
4 folders) {#472m.18} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Benjamin Franklin Fund File, 1974-1990. (1 folder) {#472m.19} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Friday Group File, 1996-1996. (1 folder) {#472m.20} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Karl Mason Fund File, 1987-2002. (1 folder) {#472m.21} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Advisory Health Board Files, 1997-2002. (2 folders) {#472m.22} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Pennsylvania Water Environment Association (PWEA) Correspondence, 1996.
(1 folder) {#472m.23} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry (PCBI) Files, 1990-1995.
(3 folders) {#472m.24} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Harrisburg Water-Related Materials, 1902, 1978-1998. (1 box) {#472m.25}
[Description] [Holdings]
- Miscellaneous Files, 1984-1997. (1 folder) {#472m.26} [Description]
[Holdings]
SUBJECT FILE
Air Pollution Files, 1973-2002. (1 box) {#472m.27} [Description]
[Holdings]
Acid Rain and Biology Files, 1958-1996. (10 folders) {#472m.28} [Description]
[Holdings]
Environmental Engineering Files, 1924-1998. (1 box) {#472m.35} [Description]
[Holdings]
Science and Technology Files, 1950-1996. (1 box) {#472m.59} [Description]
[Holdings]
Swimming Places, 1942-1992. (9 folders) {#472m.60} [Description]
[Holdings]
Economics, Demography and Geography Materials, 1938-1996. (2 boxes) {#472m.88}
[Description] [Holdings]
Biographies, 1984-1999. (2 boxes) {#472m.89} [Description]
[Holdings]
Pennsylvania Solid Wastes
Drinking Water
Energy and Environment
Environmental Monitoring and Mapping
Government and Public Administration
Mining and Geology
Natural Resources and Recreation
Public Health
Water Resources
- National Policy Files, 1960-1997. (1 box and 11 folders) {#472m.61} [Description]
[Holdings]
- National Planning Materials, 1953-2000. (1 box and 7 folders) {#472m.62}
[Description] [Holdings]
- National Economics Files, 1957-1994. (1 box) {#472m.63} [Description]
[Holdings]
- National Project Files, 1935-1986. (6 folders) {#472m.64} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Regional and State Policy and Management Materials, 1967-1994. (8 folders)
{#472m.65} [Description] [Holdings]
- Regional and State Planning Files, 1957-1996. (1 box) {#472m.66} [Description]
[Holdings]
- State Water Resource Planning Papers, 1956-1997. (1 box) {#472m.67} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Groundwater Files, 1963-1999. (9 folders) {#472m.68} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Conservation Materials, 1983-1992. (1 folder) {#472m.69} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Dam Safety Articles and Reports, 1982-1997. (1 folder) {#472m.70}
[Description] [Holdings]
- Delaware River Basin Files, 1931-2001. (4 boxes) {#472m.71} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Great Lakes Files, 1971-2000. (3 boxes) {#472m.72} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Lake Erie Materials, 1968-1991. (1 box and 1 folder) {#472m.73} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Potomac River Files, 1958-2001. (2 boxes) {#472m.74} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Chesapeake Bay Papers, 1968-2002. (8 boxes) {#472m.75} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Susquehanna River Files, 1963-2001. (2 box) {#472m.76} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Ohio River Files, 1948-2001. (2 boxes) {#472m.77} [Description]
[Holdings]
- Pennsylvania Articles and Reports, 1937-1998. (1 box) {#472m.78}
[Description] [Holdings]
Water Quality
PERSONAL FILE
General Files, 1958-1981, 2007. (3 boxes) {#472m.90} [Description]
[Holdings]
Interviews, 2005, 2006. (1 box) {#472m.101} [Description]
[Holdings]
Newspaper and Original Publications, 1951-2002. (4 boxes) {#472m.91}
[Description] [Holdings]
Personal Correspondence, 1980, 1981. (1 box) {#472m.92} [Description]
[Holdings]
Speeches and Speech Notes, 1958-1999. (3 boxes) {#472m.93} [Description]
[Holdings]
Testimony and Legal Reports, 1994-2001. (2 boxes) {#472m.100} [Description]
[Holdings]
AUDIO AND GRAPHICS FILES
Audio Tapes, [ca. 1956-1977]. (1 box) {#472m.94} [Description]
[Holdings]
Lantern Slides, [ca. 1940s-1960s]. (3 boxes) {#472m.95} [Description]
[Holdings]
Microfiche, Microfilm, Negatives (4"x5") and Camera Cards, [ca.
1950s-1978]. (1 box) {#472m.96} [Description]
[Holdings]
Photographs, [ca. 1960s]. (1 binder) {#472m.97} [Description]
[Holdings]
Slides (35mm), [ca. 1950s]. (1 binder) {#472m.98} [Description]
[Holdings]
Video Tapes, 1958 & [ca. 1960s]. (1 box) {#472m.99} [Description]
[Holdings]