The papers of Alexander Dallas Bache (1806-1867) relate to his study of European education, his appointment as Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey, his professional intercourse with other scientists on a broad range of topics, his own research, and his work on the United States Lighthouse Board. They include diaries, 1836-1837, of his study of educational institutions in Britain; correspondence, 1821-1866, documenting his European trip, his work on education during the years 1839-1841, and his contact with the American scientific community; small collections of papers concerning the Coast Survey, the Lighthouse Board, and the Smithsonian Institution; letters to his wife, Nancy Clarke Fowler Bache; and a small collection of posthumous papers