Mintz, Sidney W. (Sidney Wilfred), 1922-2015 Search this
Creator:
Murra, John V. (John Victor), 1916-2006 Search this
Extent:
42.5 Linear feet ((88 boxes and 1 map case folder) )
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Diaries
Correspondence
Notes
Date:
1927-1998
Summary:
The Papers of John Victor Murra document his personal and professional life through audiovisual materials, correspondence, diaries, graduate school notes, lectures, photocopies of archival materials, photographs, published materials collected by Murra, reading and research notes and his own writings. The materials span more than 70 years. The collection includes materials relating to Murra's immigration to the United States and later lawsuit for naturalization, his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Chicago, his experiences in the Spanish Civil War and in Ecuador during the Second World War as Don Collier's assistant, his teaching career at a number of colleges and universities in the United States and abroad including the University of Puerto Rico, Vassar College, Yale University, and Cornell University, and his research interests such as the fieldwork projects he directed at Hunuco and Lake Titicaca. The bulk of his correspondence may be found in Series I - Correspondence which mostly consists of his communications with former classmates from the University of Chicago, colleagues in the United States and abroad, and former students. Series IV - Biographical and Series VII - Graduate School and Teaching contain a significant amount of material pertaining to Murra's studies at the University of Chicago and his lawsuit for naturalization. Correspondence and newspaper editorials from F. C. Cole and Robert Redfield as well as oral history transcripts of Murra's personal reminiscences are among the items found in these series. For many years, Murra also kept personal diaries, originally intended as records of his dreams, which form Series III - Dream Archives. Although this collection is primarily textual in nature, there are also a photograph and an audio-visual series. The later includes recordings of Murra's Lewis Henry Morgan lectures. The occasional photograph also appears throughout other series.
Scope and Contents:
The Papers of John Victor Murra document his personal and professional life through audiovisual materials, correspondence, diaries, graduate school notes, lectures, photocopies of archival materials, photographs, published materials collected by Murra, reading and research notes and his own writings. The materials span more than 70 years.
The collection includes materials relating to Murra's immigration to the United States and later lawsuit for naturalization, his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Chicago, his experiences in the Spanish Civil War and in Ecuador during the Second World War as Don Collier's assistant, his teaching career at a number of colleges and universities in the United States and abroad including the University of Puerto Rico, Vassar College, Yale University, and Cornell University, and his research interests such as the fieldwork projects he directed at Huánuco and Lake Titicaca.
Murra is a polyglot and a prolific correspondent, two elements which are reflected throughout the collection. English, French, Spanish and Romanian are the predominant languages used in his correspondence, but there are also letters in German, Italian and Russian. The bulk of his correspondence may be found in Series I --Correspondence which mostly consists of his communications with former classmates from the University of Chicago, colleagues in the United States and abroad, and former students. Series IV --Biographical and Series VII --Graduate School and Teaching contain a significant amount of material pertaining to Murra's studies at the University of Chicago and his lawsuit for naturalization. Correspondence and newspaper editorials from F. C. Cole and Robert Redfield as well as oral history transcripts of Murra's personal reminiscences are among the items found in these series. For many years, Murra also kept personal diaries, originally intended as records of his dreams, which form Series III --Dream Archives. Although this collection is primarily textual in nature, there are also a photograph and an audio-visual series. The later includes recordings of Murra's Lewis Henry Morgan lectures. The occasional photograph also appears throughout other series.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
Arranged in 12 series and 1 accretion: (I) Correspondence (1927-1998, 2004) [Bulk 1950-1990], (II) Chronological Correspondence (1953-1991), (III) Dream Archives [Diaries] (1951-1996) [Bulk: 1951-1983], (IV) Biographical (1937-1995), (V) Subject and Publications (1922-1996), (VI) Archival Documents, (VII) Graduate School and Teaching (1936-1992) [Bulk: 1936-1982], (VIII) J. V. M. Publications (1959-1993), (IX) Photographs (1937-1988), (X) Audio Visual Materials (1964-1998), (XI) Maps, (XII) Artwork, Accretions.
Biographical Note:
John Victor Murra was born Isak Lipschitz on August 24, 1916 in Odessa, Ukraine. He spent his childhood and adolescence in Bucharest, Romania where he passed his baccalaureate examinations in 1933. Following high school, he worked as an apprentice in paper factories in Romania and Croatia.
In December 1934, Murra immigrated to Chicago, Illinois, where his uncle lived, to escape the worsening political turmoil in Romania. Shortly after his arrival in the United States, Murra enrolled at the University of Chicago where he completed a Bachelor of Arts in sociology in 1936. He then enlisted in the International Brigade and served as an infantry corporal in the 58th battalion, 15th brigade in the Spanish Republican Army. At the end of the Spanish Civil War, he spent almost six months (February-June 1939) in refugee internment camps, most notably the camp at Argèles-sur-Mer, France. In 1939, Murra returned to Chicago to continue his studies and it was about this time that he started to use the name Murra in official documents. He completed his Master of Arts degree in Anthropology at the University of Chicago in 1942.
The war injuries sustained by Murra during the Spanish Civil War exempted him from military service during the Second World War. Between 1941 and 1942, Murra traveled to Ecuador as the assistant to Donald Collier, Conservator at the Field Museum of Chicago, on an archaeological project sponsored by the Institute of Andean Research. His work with Collier ultimately led him to contribute to the Handbook of South American Indians. Between 1942 and 1943, he worked as an interviewer for John Dollard and Ruth Benedict in their work for the United States Department of War to survey Abraham Lincoln Brigade veterans. In 1943, Murra was appointed Instructor in Anthropology at the University of Chicago to fill in for Fred Eggan, who entered military service. In addition to instructing at the University of Chicago during the mid-1940s, Murra also served as editor on the topic of anthropology for the Encyclopedia Britannica (1945-1946).
The decade or so following the Second World War was often extremely frustrating for Murra as he pursued his quest for American citizenship. In 1946, the U.S. government denied his applications for naturalization and travel papers on the grounds that he had served in the Spanish Republican Army. Consequently, Murra was unable to accept a fellowship from the Social Science Research Council that would have funded his travel to Ecuador to pursue his doctoral research. Although he finally won his lawsuit for citizenship in 1950, Murra did not receive a passport until 1956 and was ultimately forced to change thesis topics in order to continue his doctoral studies without field work. To support himself during this difficult period, Murra taught at several American institutions—most notably at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras (1947-1950) and Vassar College (1950-1961), and supervised a number of field work programs in the Caribbean for Columbia University, Vassar College, Yale University and the University of Montreal. He also served briefly as a regional specialist on African land tenure for the United Nations.
In 1955, Murra defended his Ph.D. dissertation, The Economic Organization of the Inca State and he was awarded a Ph.D. in Anthropology the following year from the University of Chicago. Shortly thereafter he took a sabbatical from Vassar College to teach in Peru (1958-1960) at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima and pursue research at the archives of Cuzco.
In the 1960s, Murra turned his attention towards pursuing research interests and cultivating the anthropological training of South American graduate students. He left Vassar College in 1961 and spent time teaching as a visiting professor, first for the Organization of American States at the Escuela Nacional de Antropología y Historia, Mexico (1961) and then at Yale University (1962). Murra received in 1963 a three-year National Science Foundation grant for his well known study of Huánuco, Peru. During his fieldwork for this project, he continued to teach at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos in Lima, Peru (1965-1966) and the Universidad de Chile (1965). He also worked to improve the educational opportunities for South American students by supporting efforts to establish a graduate school at the Universidad de La Plata. Upon returning to the United States, Murra was a National Academy of Sciences postdoctoral associate at the Smithsonian Institution (1966-1967).
From 1968 to 1982, Murra served as Professor of Anthropology at Cornell University. He continued to travel extensively to archives in Spain and South America during this period and held a number of academic posts at other institutions including Yale University (1970-1971), the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University (1974-1975), l'Université Paris X Nanterre (1975-1976), the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico (1977) and John Hopkins University (1981). He also served as the president of the American Society of Ethnohistory (1970-1971), the American Ethnological Society (1972-1973), and the Institute of Andean Research (1977-1983). Murra's efforts to cultivate educational opportunities for South American graduate students and promote international dialogue among students from different nationalities produced three well known programs: the comparative seminar on the Andes and Mesoamerica that he organized with Angel Palerm (1972), the Lake Titicaca field project he ran with Luis G. Lumbrebas (1973) and the Otoño Andino held at Cornell University (1977). In 1969, he received the honor of being the Lewis Henry Morgan Lecturer at the University of Rochester.
Following his retirement from Cornell University (1982), Murra served as a consultant to the Banco Nacional de Bolivia at the Museo Nacional de Etnografía, La Paz (1982-1983). He received a Guggenheim Fellowship (1983-1984), that enabled him to pursue research at the Archivo Nacional and the Academia de la Historia in Madrid and the Archivo General de Indias in Seville. During his time in Spain, he also taught at the Universities of Madrid and Seville and at the Institut Catalá d'Antropologi in Barcelonia (1985-1986). The following year, he was a Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics and was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of the Sun, Peru. He then pursued research at the Instituto de Antropologia de Buenos Aires (1988-1989) and then returned to Spain, where he was a fellow at the Archivo de Indias (1990-1991). In 1993, the Universidad de Barcelona awarded him the honor of Doctor Honoris Causa.
Murra was married and divorced twice; neither marriage produced any children. He first married Virginia Miller in 1936; the date of their divorce is unknown. His second marriage to Elizabeth "Tommy" Sawyer lasted thirteen years (1945-1958).
Bibliography of Selected Publications
1943 -- Survey and Excavations in Southern Ecuador. Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History, Publication 528, Anthropological series volume 35, May 15, 1943. Co-authored with Donald Collier.
1948 -- "The Cayapa and Colorado" in the Handbook of South American Indians. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office
1951 -- Soviet Linguistic Controversy, translated from the Soviet Press. New York: King's Crown Press. Co-authored with Robert M. Hankin and Fred Holling.
1956 -- The Economic Organization of the Inca State. Chicago: University of Chicago.
1962 -- Cloth and its Functions in the Inca State.
1964 -- Visita hecha a la Provincia de Chucuito por Garci Diez de San Miguel en el año 1567. Lima: Casa de la Cultura del Perú. Co-authored with Waldemar Espinoza Soriano and Frey Pedro Gutiérrez Flores.
1966 -- New Data on Retainer and Servile Populations in Tawantinsuyu.
1967 -- Visita de la provincia de León de Huánuco en 1562. Iñigo Ortiz de Zúñiga, visitador. Huánuco, Peru: Universidad Nacional Hermilio Valdizán, Facultad de Letras y Educación. Contains articles by several authors.
1970 -- Current Research and Prospects in Andean Ethnohistory. Ithaca: Cornell University.
1975 -- Formaciones económicas y políticas del mundo andino. Lima: Instituto de Estudios Peruanos.
1976 -- American Anthropology, the Early Years. St. Paul: West Publishing Co. Edited for the American Ethnological Society
1978 -- La organización económica del Estado inca. México: Siglo Veintiuno. Murra's Ph.D. thesis translated from English to Spanish by Daniel R. Wagner.
1980 -- Formazioni economiche e politiche nel mondo andino: saggi di etnostoria. Torino: Giulio Einaudi. Primer nueva corónica y buen gobierno Guamán Poma de Ayala (Waman Puma). Co-authored with Rolena Adorno and Jorge L. Urioste. Republished in 1987. The Economic Organization of the Inca State. Greenwich, Conn.: JAI Press.
1981 -- The "Vertical Control" of a Maximum of Ecologic Tiers in the Economies of Andean Societies. The Mit'a Obligations of Ethnic groups to the Inka State. Las etnocategorías de un Khipu estatal.
1983 -- Los Olleros del Inka: Hacia una Historia y Arqueología del Qollasuyu. La Paz: Centrol de Investigaciones Históricas.
1986 -- Anthropological History of Andean Polities. New York: Cambridge University Press. Edited with Nathan Wachtel and Jacques Revel. Originally published in French in 1978 as Anthropologie historique des sociétés andines by Editions de la Maison des science de l'homme in Paris.
1987 -- La teoría de la complementariedad vertical eco-simbiótica. La Paz: Hisbol. Co-authored with Ramiro Condarco Morales. Civilizatie inca: organizarea economica a statului incas. Bucharest: Editura Stiintifica si Enciclopedica. Murra's Ph.D. thesis translated from English to Romanian by Murra's sister, Ata Iosifescu.
1991 -- Visita de los valles de Sonqo en los yunka de coca de La Paz (1568-1570). Madrid: Instituto de Cooperación Iberoamericana: Quinto Centenario: Instituo de Estudios Fiscales.
1996 -- Las cartas de Arguedas. Lima: Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Fondo Editorial. Co-authored with Mercedes López-Baralt.
1999 -- Historia general de América Latina / 1. Las sociedades originales. Madrid: Editorial Trotta. Co-authored with Teresa Rojas Rabiela.
2002 -- El mundo andino: población, medio ambiente y economía. Lima: Instituto de Estudios Peuanos: Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú.
2000 -- Nispa ninchis/decimos diciendo : conversaciones con John Murra. Lima: IEP –Instituto de Estudios Peruanos and IAR – Institute of Andean Research. Edited by Victoria Castro, Carlos Aldunate and Jorge Hidalgo Los esfuerzos de Sísifo, coversaciones sobre las ciencias sociales en América Latina. Heredia, Costa Rica: EUNA. A collection of interviews of John Victor Murra and others conducted by Fernando Calderón.
Related Materials:
National Anthropological Archives holds additional materials related to Murra in the American Ethnological Society records, the American Society for Ethnohistory records, and the Handbook of South American Indians records.
The New York University Libraries, Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives holds materials related to Murra in Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archive (ALBA), John Dollard Research Files for Fear and Courage under Battle Conditions, and James Lardner Papers.
The Truman Presidential Museum and Library holds Records on the President's Committee on Civil Rights Record Group 220.
\:
In 2008, the VHS videos in the collection were transferred to the Human Studies Film Archives. Additional videotapes were sent to the NAA and transferred to HSFA.
Provenance:
The John Victor Murra papers came to the National Anthropological Archives in several installments over three decades. David Block of Cornell University assisted Murra in selecting and identifying materials for the installment of the collection which arrived at the Smithsonian Institution in September 2003.
Restrictions:
The John Victor Murra papers are open for research. Some materials are restricted for privacy reasons.
Access to the John Victor Murra papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Diaries
Correspondence -- 1927-1998
Notes
Citation:
John Victor Murra papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Indians of North America -- Great Basin Search this
Indians of North America -- Northwest Coast of North America Search this
Indians of North America -- Great Plains Search this
Indians of North America -- Southwest, New Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
undated
Scope and Contents:
On page 129-134, there is a Comanche vocabulary alongside with Spanish and Luiseno. Follows items called for in Smithsonian Institution Comparative Vocabulary. Some Comanche terms lacking.
Contents: Bartlett, John R. "Cochimi language of Lower California obtained through Mr Robinia of Guaymas, Sonora." No date. [post 1852] Autograph document. pages 215-218 in bound volume of vocabularies. Vocabulary written in "American Ethnological Society Circular Number 1, Indian Languages of America, June, 1852," a printed outline of 200 words. Negative microfilm on file. Heintzelman, Major S. P. Vocabulary of the Cocopa language. Fort Yuma, Colorado, April 19, 1854. Copy by Bartlett, pages 165-166. Heintzelmam, Major S. P. Vocabulary of the Mohavi or Hum-mock-havy taken by Major Heintzelman. Copy by Bartlett, pages 167-176. Copy in another hand in printed outline published by American Ethnological Society, pages 177-180. On negative Microfilm reel #37. Comanche San Luis Rey [Bartlett, John R.] San Luis Rey- Comanche comparative vocabulary. No informant or date is recorded for the Comanche vocabulary of about 150 words, pages 129-135. All pages are in the handwriting of George Gibbs, here not specifically attributed to Bartlett. However, penciled note on another copy of the Comanche vocabulary (Bureau of American Ethnology Manuscript Number 762) states "probably of J. R. Bartlett." Approximately 5 extra Comanche terms are listed in 1627 which were not copied into the manuscript filed under 762.
Contents: San Luis Rey Comanche [Bartlett, John R.] San Luis Rey- Comanche comparative vocabulary. San Luis Rey vocabulary of about 180 words, pages 128-135. May 10, 1852. All pages are copies in handwriting of George Gibbs, here not specifically attributed to Bartlett, but so attributed to Bartlett, but so attributed in another copy, namely, Bureau of American Ethnology Manuscript Number 772. According to the discussion, pages 128 and 135, vocabulary was recorded from Pedro Cawewas, an old man called the captain or chief of his tribe, about 150 of which now live where the mission of San Luis Rey is situated. Tiwa: Piro [Bartlett, John R.] Piro vocabulary of about 180 words, pages 53-54, and another copy, pages 67-68. "Language of the Piros," discussion, pages 55-59. No date. [Ca. October 2, 1852: date on "Tigua" (Piro ?) vocabulary immediately following on pages 63-65.] All pages are copies in handwriting of George Gibbs, here not specifically attributed to Bartlett, but so attributed in other copies, namely, Bureau of American Ethnology Numbers 458-b and 458-c. According to discussion, page 55, vocabulary was recorded from Hieronymo Peraza and Marcus Alejo, principal men of the pueblo of "Sinecu" [Senecu del Sur, Chihuahua] a few miles below El Paso de Norte, on the western bank of the Rio Grande. Tiwa: Senecu del Sur (Piro ?) [Bartlett, John R.] "Tigua" vocabulary of about 200 words, pages 63-65. October 2, 1852. Copy in handwriting of George Gibbs, here not specifically attributed to Bartlett, but was so attributed in other copies, namely, Bureau of American Ethnology Numbers 458-a and 458-c. Note following heading: "[Language of ?] Indians of Taos, in New Mexico (pronounced Tee-wa) [sic] taken from Santiago Ortiz (A-he-ba-tu) head chief of Senecu, Isleta, etc. [i. e. Senecu del Sur, Chihuahua; see Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 30, II, 509.]" Bartlet's Vocabularies ? 1. Pages 17-19 Sioux vocabulary, translated into Sioux by Bruce Husband, Fort Laramie, February 26, 1849. 2 pages. 2. Pages 21-24 Kiowa vocabulary, from Esteban, a Mexican captive for 7 years among the Comanches and Kiowas in Texas. 5 pages. 3. Pages 25-27 cf. Manuscript 1139- a copy of this. Ceris (Seri) vocabulary taken from a native at Hermosillo, January 1, 1852 (note by Gatschet says 1853). Informant- Colusio. 3 pages. 4. Pages 31-34 Yaqui vocabulary by Fr. Encinas of Ures, December 1851. 4 pages, including notes. 5. Pages 37-39 Opate (Nahuatlan) vocabulary, taken at Ures, Sonora. 3 pages. 6. Pages 43-45; 49-51. Apaches of the Coppermine, taken from Mangus Colorado July, 1851. 3 pages. (also duplicate copy). 7. Pages 53-59; 57 Piro (Tanoaan) vocabulary, taken from two Indians, Hieromymo Peraza and Marcus Alejo. 2 pages. Notes 5 pages. 8. Pages 63-65 "Tigua " [Tiwa] Indians of Taos in New Mexico vocabulary, taken from Santiago Ortiz, head chief of Senecu, Isleta, etc. 3 pages.
Contents: 9. Pages 71-73 Vocabulary of the language of the Coco-Maricopas of the river Gila (Yumian). 3 pages. 10. Pages 77-81; 85-92; Reel #21 Vocabulary of the Diegueno tribe, vocabulary, 8 pages; and 11. Los Angeles Indians, Diegueno tribe, vocabulary, 8 pages. 12. Pages 93-103 Yuman or Cuchan and Comiya (Comeya) vocabulary and notes, 11 pages, including extract from Lt Whipple's diary, October 7, 1849. 13. Pages 105-6; 109-10 13. Vocabulary in the Digger (Pujunan) [Maidu] language, from manuscript in the possession of J. B. Moore obtained by H. B. Brown. 4 pages. 14. Pages 113-116 Napa Valley (Digger) [Pujunan] vocabulary. 3 pages. 15. Pages 117-123 Makah of Cape Flattery and Diggers [Pujunan] of Napa Valley- vocabulary. 6 pages. 16. Pages 125-128 Kechi (Mission of San Luis Rey) vocabulary. Taken from Pedro Cawenas, May 10, 1852, San Luis Rey. Notes. 17. Pages 129-35 San Luis Rey and Comanche vocabulary. 7 pages. Taken from Pedro Cawewas. Includes notes. 18. Pages 137-39. San Luis Obispo vocabulary. 3 pages. 19. Pages 141-144 San Jose Indian vocabulary. 4 pages including notes.
Contents: Bartlett's vocabularies. 20. Pages 145-152 H'hana of Sacramento (Kulanapan) vocabulary, 6 pages. 21. Pages 155-159 Coluse (between Sacramento River and Clear Lake), vocabulary- 6 words only. Erroneously marked Athapaskan in Hewitt's hand. Actually Patwin and Wintun; see word for "Indian"- Note by M. R. Haas. 11/58. Items 21 ans 22: See Pitkin, Harvey and William Shipley, Comparative Survey of California Penutian, IJAL, Volume 24, Number 3, July, 1958, pages 174-88. (Reference from MRH). 22. Coluse and Noema vocabulary. 3 pages. 23. Page 163 Tehama vocabulary. 1 page. 24. Pages 165-66 Cocopa vocabulary. (Fort Yuma, Colorado, Mouth of the Colorado River). 2 pages. April 19, 1854. 25. Pages 167-180 Mohave vocabulary. Major Heintzelman. 14 pages including notes. 26. Pages 181-84 Otomi (Mexico) vocabulary. 3 pages. (1767 and 1826). 27. Pages 186-201 Chitimacha and Attacapa vocabularies and notes. 15 pages. (1848) 28. Pages 203-206 Maya vocabulary. From manuscript dictionary in possession of John Carter Brown. 3 pages. 29. Pages 207-210 Tarahumara vocabulary. 3 pages. (1787 and 1826). 30. Pages 211-214 Cahita (Sonora) vocabulary. 3 pages. 31. Pages 215-18 Cochimi (of Lower California), vocabulary. 3 pages. 32. Pages 219-221 Nevome (Pima of Sonora) vocabulary. 2 pages. (printed). 33. Pages 223-224 Letter to John R. Bartlett from George Gibbs re. to vocabularies. 3 pages.
Contents: Smith, Buckingham. "Vocabulary of the Nevome, As Spoken by the Pima of Moris, A Town of Sonora." 1861, and prior. Printed document. 2 pages. On pages 219 and 221 of this Manuscript. Published excerpt from History Magazine, July, 1861, pages 202-203. Contains grammatical notes, general vocabulary, and the Lord's Prayer in the Nevome dialect of Piman.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 1627
Local Note:
Manuscript document
Topic:
Dakota language; Mayo dialect (Piman); Kumiai language; Central Pomo language Search this
Ethel Cutler Freeman was an amateur Seminole specialist and research associate with the American Museum of Natural History. Her papers also reflect field work among the Arapaho, Shoshoni, Navaho, Pueblo, Hopi, Kickapoo, and people of the Virgin Islands, the Bahama Islands, and Haiti, and the music and chants of Africa, including those of the Maasai, Zulu, and Pygmies. A small amount of material relates to the Hoover Commission on Indian Affairs, of which Freeman was a member. Correspondents include several Seminole Indians and government officials, personal acquaintances, organizations, and associates of the American Museum of Natural History.
Scope and Contents:
These papers reflect the anthropological interests of Ethel Cutler Freeman. The papers in this collection include her notes and diaries, published articles, unfinished manuscripts, and source materials. The bulk of the collection is material relating to the Seminole Indians of Florida.
Mrs. Freeman also made several trips to the Southwest and Mexico to study such tribes as the Arapaho, Shoshone, Navajo, Pueblo, and Hopi. There is substantial information from these studies included in this collection. She also made less extensive studies of various other cultures in the Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, and Haiti. In 1950, she studied tribal music and chants of several African tribes and the material from these studies forms the major portion of Series 7.
The collection also contains several sound recordings made by Freeman and numerous photographs, negatives, and slides. During rehousing, additional materials including index cards and notebooks from field trips were located and incorporated into the collection. A small amount of material relates to the Hoover Commission on Indian Affairs, of which Freeman was a member.
Correspondents include several Seminole Indians and government officials, personal acquaintances, organizations, and associates of the American Museum of Natural History as well as Dean Amadon, Richard Archbold, Conrad M. Arensberg, Dana W. Atchley, Jacques Barzun, Ruth Benedict, Leonard J. Brass, Louis Capron, Frances Densmore, Margery S. Douglas, John W. Griffin, A.J. Hanna, Ronald F. Lee, Margaret Mead, Robert Cushman Murphy, Kenneth W. Porter, Harry L. Shapiro, Howard Sharp, Frank Speck, Charlton W. Tebean, and Clark Wissler.
Although the majority of the collection spans the years 1934 to 1972, there are some items with dates that fall outside of this range. Some published materials are dated as early as 1822 and one note is dated 1975 and was added to the collection after Freeman's death in 1972. The folders containing these items have been dated accordingly, but these outlier dates have not affected the dates of the sub-series or series.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into 15 series: (1) Biographical information and miscellaneous personal papers, 1939-1971; (2) Correspondence, 1936-1972; (3) Manuscripts, 1936-1971; (4) Source Material, 1934-1970; (5) Seminole Indians, 1934-1972; (6) North American Indians, 1936-1971; (7) Cultures other than North American Indian, 1943-1970; (8) Meetings, 1956-1968; (9) Printed materials, 1936-1972; (10) Pamphlets, 1935-1970; (11) Population and Material Culture, 1939, 1951-1963; (12) Sound recordings, 1940-1958, 1969-1970; (13) Lists of Photographs, 1939-1970; (14) Photographs, 1936-1971; (15) Index Cards, undated
Biographical Note:
Ethel Cutler Freeman was born in 1886 in Morristown, New Jersey. Freeman was the daughter of a prosperous family, which gave her the opportunity to study abroad in England at Mademoiselle Marie Souvestre's Academy for girls. After studying in England, Freeman returned to the United States and was married to Leon S. Freeman, a New York broker, in 1909.
By 1934, Freeman had become bored with the typical social activities available to her; while discussing the matter with a friend, Marcellus Hartley Dodge, she described herself as having a "brain full of cobwebs." Dodge, a former trustee at Columbia University, suggested that Freeman enroll in some courses at Columbia. Acting on Dodge's advice, Freeman started taking graduate courses in psychology and sociology at Columbia University, but soon became fascinated with anthropology. During her studies at Columbia, Freeman spent time in the western United States studying the Arapaho and Shoshone while her husband recuperated from a horse riding accident; it was at this point that she developed a taste for field work and an interest in Native American cultures. After completing her studies, Freeman decided that she wanted to study the Seminole people of Florida, near whom she and her family owned a winter home in Naples.
Back on the East Coast, Freeman met Dr. Clark Wissler, then Curator of the Indian Division of the American Museum of Natural History. Wissler was supportive of Freeman's aspirations to continue her anthropological studies, but balked at her expressed interest in the Seminole, whom at that time had a reputation for not being open to contact with outsiders. Undaunted, Freeman contacted W. Stanley Hansen, the man in charge of Seminole settlement; after repeated correspondence with Hansen convinced him she was no mere hobbyist, he agreed to help her make connections within the Seminole community.
Freeman made two visits to the Big Cypress Reservation for the American Museum of Natural History with a government representative before taking her 14-year-old daughter, Condict, and 12-year-old son, Leon Jr., for an extended stay with a group of Seminoles at the heart of the Everglades in February of 1940. After that first winter stay with the Seminoles, Freeman spent virtually every winter living within their remote communities and studying their culture. Over time, Dr. Wissler became impressed by Freeman's thorough and insightful reports and analysis of her findings among the Seminoles and got the American Museum of Natural History to back her winter field studies. Eventually Freeman's work gained her a reputation for being an expert on Seminole culture, which often placed her in the role of consultant to government agencies on issues dealing with Seminole and broader Native American concerns.
As a result of her long acquaintance with the Seminoles, Freeman also became interested in how different groups of Native Americans and other cultures adapted to changes brought about by contact with modern society. Freeman made several trips to the Southwestern United States and Mexico to study such tribes as the Arapaho, Shoshone, Navajo, Pueblo, Choctaw, and Hopi; she also made less extensive studies of various other cultures in the Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, and Haiti. In 1950, Freeman went to Africa to study tribal music and chants of several tribes. Much later, in 1968, the American Museum of Natural History sent Freeman to Portugal to study local costumes.
In the 1940s, Freeman took part in publishing studies for the Department of Agriculture about the Seminoles and worked as an advocate for the Navajo, who at that time were in tense relations with the United States government over their living conditions. From 1947 to 1957, Freeman worked as a representative for the American Civil Liberties Union on the National Coordinating Committee for Indian Affairs; she also was a member of the Indian Rights Committee for the American Civil Liberties Union from 1946 to 1966. From 1948 to 1950, Freeman served as a member of the Hoover Commission for Reorganization of Government within the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Throughout her studies in the field and her activities as an advocate for Native American rights, Freeman published her work frequently and gave many talks at a variety of conferences and special events. In 1964, Freeman traveled to Moscow to deliver her paper, "The Correlation between Directed Culture Change and Self Determination," at the 7th International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences; she attended the same conference series the following year in Japan to deliver another paper, entitled "Lawlessness in an Indian Tribe as a Microcosm of a World Trend." Freeman continued visiting and studying the Seminoles in Florida late into her career, making her last visit the year before her death.
Ethel Cutler Freeman died on July 14th, 1972.
Sources Consulted
Letter to Mrs. Margaret Blaker, Archivist at the Smithsonian Institution's Anthropological Archives; Washington, D.C. from Ethel Cutler Freeman. Dated April 24, 1972. Located in vertical files, folders on Ethel Cutler Freeman, in the reading room of the National Anthropological Archives.
"Morristown Anthropologist; Mrs. Leon Freeman Likes Seminole Indians." Newark Sunday News, February 16, 1947.
"New Vernon Woman, Indian Authority." The Morris Observer, October 13, 1955.
"She's 'Hooked' On Seminole Indians: Leading Authority On That World." Daily Record, March 6, 1970.
"The Sentinel Visits--Indian Authority Mrs. Leon Freeman: Who Is Now Working To Rescue A Nation." Sunday Sentinel, February 2, 1947.
Chronology
1886 -- Born in Morristown, New Jersey.
1909 -- Married Leon S. Freeman.
1934 -- Began taking graduate courses at Columbia University in philosophy before changing to anthropology.
1936 -- Field work with the Arapaho and Shoshone.
1938 -- Joined American Anthropological Association. First became associated with American Museum of Natural History.
1939-1943 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1940-1948 -- Special Field Assistant, American Museum of Natural History.
1943 -- Joined American Ethnological Society.
1944 -- Field work in Mexico searching for a lost tribe of Seminoles; studied the Mascogas, Papagos, and Kickapoo.
1945 -- Field work in New Mexico, studying the Pueblo and Navajo.
1946 -- Joined the Society of Women Geographers. Field work with the Navajo, Papago, and Hopi.
1946-1948 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1947 -- Field work with the Navajo, Papago, and Pueblo.
1947-1957 -- Represented the American Civil Liberties Union on the National Coordinating Committee for Indian Affairs.
1947-1966 -- Member Indian Rights Committee, American Civil Liberties Union.
1948 -- Appointed first female trustee of the American Institute of Anthropology. Became Field Associate, American Museum of Natural History.
1948-1950 -- Member Hoover Commission for Reorganization of Government – Bureau of Indian Affairs.
1949 -- Field work in the Bahamas, studying native culture.
1950 -- Field work in Africa, studying the Zulu, Masai, and pygmy peoples.
1951 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1952 -- Field work studying native cultures of the Virgin Islands and Haiti.
1953-1955 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1955-1957 -- Acting Chairman, American Civil Liberties Union.
1957 -- Field work studying Mexican Seminoles.
1957-1958 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1959 -- Attended annual meeting of American Anthropological Association in Mexico City.
1960-1965 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1963 -- Field work in Oklahoma, studying Seminoles.
1964 -- Presented paper, "The Correlation between Directed Culture Change and Self Determination" VII International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, Moscow.
1968 -- Studied costumes of Portugal for American Museum of Natural History.
1965 -- Presented paper, "Lawlessness in an Indian Tribe as a Microcosm of a World Trend" VIII International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan.
1970-1971 -- Winter field work with Florida Seminoles.
1972 -- Field work in Portugal and the Azores. Died, July 14.
Selected Bibliography
1942 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "We Live with the Seminoles," Natural History 49, no. 4 (April 1942): 226-236.
1944 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "The Seminole Woman of the Big Cypress and Her Influence in Modern Life," América Indígena 4, no. 2 (April 1944), 123-128.
1960 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "Culture Stability and Change among the Seminoles of Florida." In Men and Cultures: Selected Papers of the Fifth International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, Philadelphia, September 1-9, 1956, edited by Anthony F.C. Wallace, 249-254. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1960. Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "Directed Culture-Change and Selfdetermination in Superordinate and Subordinate Societies," Proceedings of the 7th International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences 4, Moscow (August 1964), 85-90.
1961 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "The Happy Life in the City of Ghosts: An Analysis of a Mikasuki Myth," The Florida Anthropologist 14, nos. 1-2 (March-June 1961), 23-36.
1964 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "Directed Culture-Change and Selfdetermination in Superordinate and Subordinate Societies," Proceedings of the 7th International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences 4, Moscow (August 1964), 85-90.
1965 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "Two Types of Cultural Response to External Pressures Among the Florida Seminoles," Anthropological Quarterly 38, no. 2 (April 1965), 55-61.
1968 -- Freeman, Ethel Cutler. "Lawlessness in an Indian Tribe as a Microcosm of a World Trend," Proceedings of the VIIIth International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, 1968, Tokyo and Kyoto (Tokyo: Science Council of Japan, 1968) 191-193.
Related Materials:
Photo lot 62, W. Stanley Hanson photographs of Seminole Indians in Florida, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution.
Objects donated by Ethel Cutler Freeman held in Department of Anthropology collections in accession 319549.
The Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum on the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation also holds an Ethel Cutler Freeman collection.
Separated Materials:
Film materials were transfered to the Human Studies Film Archive under the accession numbers HSFA 1986.11.8 (African footage) and HSFA 1986.11.9 (Seminole footage).
Provenance:
The papers of Ethel Cutler Freeman were left to the National Anthropological Archives by the terms of her will. Her son, Leon Freeman, Jr., donated the collection to NAA in August 1972.
Restrictions:
By Ethel Freeman's instructions, the collection was restricted for ten years dating from the receipt and signing of the release forms on October 12, 1972. Literary property rights to the unpublished materials in the collection were donated to the National Anthropological Archives.
Access to the Ethel Cutler Freeman papers requires an appointment.
Seminole recordings cannot be accessed without the permission of the Seminole Tribe.
Indian Personality, Education and Administration Research Project Search this
Saint Mary's University (Halifax, N.S.). Institute of Human Values Search this
United States. Office of Indian Affairs Search this
Extent:
73 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Place:
Fiji
Iceland
Guam
Germany
Date:
1834-1964
Summary:
The records of the American Ethnological Society (AES) document its activities from its founding in 1842 through the mid-1960s. The American Ethnological Society is the oldest anthropological association in America. It has been interested in publishing and promoting study of different cultures in the Americas from its founding in 1842 to the present. Materials include correspondence, reports, and financial records relating to the administrative functions of the organization.
Scope and Contents:
The records of the American Ethnological Society (AES) document its activities from its founding in 1842 through the mid-1960s.
The early years of the AES (1840s to 1880) are documented through correspondence, newspaper clippings, and proceedings. The bulk of the collection relates to the administrative functions of the AES from its reorganization in 1906 through 1965 including changes to the constitution and the elections of officers. The offices of Secretary-Treasurer and Editor are well documented through correspondence and reports. There is also a significant amount of correspondence to and from members, financial records, and information on the AES‟ interactions with other organizations such as the American Anthropological Association and the New York Academy of Sciences.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
Arrangement:
The material is arranged in the following series: (1) Early records, 1834-1886; (2) AES Meetings, 1910-1964; (3) Reports of the officers, 1925-1964; (4) Election records: Officer lists, constitutions, and amendments, 1917-1959; (5) Office correspondence, 1924-1956; (6) Membership records, 1862-1960; (6) Publication records, 1934-1962; (7) Financial records, 1902-1962; (8) Miscellany, 1860-1957.
Historical Note:
The American Ethnological Society is the oldest anthropological association in America. It has been interested in publishing and promoting study of different cultures in the Americas from its founding in 1842 to the present.
The American Ethnological Society was founded in 1842 by Albert Gallatin, Secretary of the Treasury under Thomas Jefferson and founder of New York University. Early members were doctors, lawyers, businessmen and included Henry Schoolcraft, William Prescott and Theodore Dwight. Meetings were usually held at the home of the President and accounts of missionaries and explorers, who were "corresponding" members, were read. Local papers frequently covered these meetings. The Society published three periodicals in its early years including Transactions which first appeared in 1845. Interest in the Society declined after the Civil War. In 1906 a group of professional anthropologists led by Franz Boas joined the Society and reorganized it, adding the Office of Editor. Since then, the Society has been very active and has had a strong publications program, beginning with a linguistic series begun by Franz Boas. The Society holds annual meetings, usually in the spring at which prominent anthropologists present their findings. In addition to Franz Boas, the Society has included among its members such famous anthropologists as Ruth Benedict, E. Adamson Hoebel, Margaret Mead and Ward Goodenough.
Provenance:
The treasurer's records dating from 1916 to 1924 were transferred to the archives by the American Museum of Natural History. All other records came to the archives from the American Ethnological Society.
Restrictions:
The American Ethnological Society records are open for research.
Access to the American Ethnological Society records requires an appointment. Advance notice must be given to view materials stored off-site.
