MS 4658 Field notes and ethnographic material on Alabama, Choctaw, and Koasati (latter incomplete), plus a partial Southeast comparative ethnology of southeastern U.S.
Indians of North America -- Southern States Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Field notes
Date:
1936-1940 (part)
Scope and Contents:
Shelf list: Box 1. Alabama, Choctaw, and Koasati field notes. Box 2. Ethnographic material on Alabama and Koasati, plus incomplete manuscript on ethnography of southeastern U.S. Box 3. Miscellaneous notes on Alabama and Koasati. Detailed list of contents accompanies main catalog card.
Arrangement:
Divided into 15 series:
(1) Alibamu field notes, miscellaneous subjects July 2 - August 27, 1940;
(2) Alibamu field notes, miscellaneous subjects June 7 - July 28,
(3) Choctaw field notes on native medicinal practices. July 12 - July 17,
(4) Choctaw (at least in part) field notes on medicinal plants July - July 27,
(5) Alabama, Choctaw, Koasati?? field notes, miscellaneous notes from published sources, and questions,
(6) Alibamu? field notes on folktales July 31 - August 11,
(7) Questions,
(8) Alabama ethnographic material ,
(9) Koasati culture summary,
(10) Comparative Southeast ethnographic material ,
(11) Linguistic notes,
(12) Tribal names and kinship charts,
(13) Lyda Averill Taylor Photographs,
(14) Miscellaneous notes,
(15) Indian artifacts from Harrington, Texas,
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 4658
Topic:
Language and languages -- Documentation Search this
Genre/Form:
Field notes
Citation:
Manuscript 4658, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Photographs used to illustrate John Reed Swanton's "The Indians of the Southeastern United States" depicting American Indians of the Southeast and their dwellings, food preparation, and ceremonies.
Biographical note:
John Reed Swanton (1873-1958) was an ethnologist and ethnohistorian with the Bureau of American Ethnology (BAE) from 1900 until his retirement in 1944. Swanton spent his first few years at the BAE studying the Haida and Tlingit groups of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, and published a number of significant articles on the language, ethnography, and folklore of Northwest Coast Indians. His focus then shifted to the American Indians of the Southeastern United States, where his interest remained for the rest of his career. In addition to conducting ethnographic fieldwork in the Southeast, Swanton studied extensively the history of the area in order to better understand its indigenous cultures and is considered a pioneer in the field of ethnohistory. During his career Swanton published numerous articles and several major works on Southeastern American Indians, including the reference work The Indians of the Southeastern United States (1946), a Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin (No. 137).
Local Numbers:
NAA Photo Lot R87-2Q
Location of Other Archival Materials:
Additional photographs published in BAE Bulletin 137 can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 80-39.
Photographs made by Swanton can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 76 and the BAE historical negatives.
The National Anthropological Archives hold more than 200 manuscripts created or collected by Swanton, in the Numbered Manuscripts.
Objects collected by Swanton, including potsherds from various sites in Southeastern United States can be found in the Department of Anthropology in accessions 111748, 113252, 122679, 129788, 165802, and 062577.
Contained in:
Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology photograph collections, undated
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Copy prints in this collection that represent photographs not held by the National Anthropological Archives are for reference only.
Photo Lot R87-2Q, John Reed Swanton photograph collection of illustrations for "The Indians of the Southeastern United States", National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution.
The collection is made up of illustrations prepared for new printings of James Mooneyʹs "Calendar History of the Kiowa Indians," John Reed Swantonʹs "Indians of the Southeastern United States," and John C. Ewers's "The Horse in Blackfoot Indian Culture" in the Classics of Smithsonian Anthropology series. It includes images of maps, Kiowa, Blackfeet, and Native Americans of the American Southeast, and ANative American artwork and other artifacts. Images of Native people include photographs, portraits, and drawings. There are also textual publication materials, including layout and notated reprint, available with the collection.
Biographical/Historical note:
The aim of the Classics of Smithsonian Anthropology series, which is comprised of reprinted BAE publications, was to appeal to a more popular audience. The series began in 1979 with the publication of "Calendar History of the Kiowa Indians" and "Indians of the Southeastern United States." "The Horse in Blackfoot Indian Culture" was published the following year.
Local Call Number(s):
NAA Photo Lot 80-39, NAA Photo Lot 80-6
Reproduction Note:
Copy prints made by Smithsonian Institution, circa 1979.
Location of Other Archival Materials:
Photo Lot 80-6 has been relocated and merged with Photo Lot 80-39. These photographs were also made and collected for the Classics of Smithsonian Anthropology publications and form part of this collection.
Originals for some of these images, as well as additional photographs by John Swanton, can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 76 and 87-2Q.
Originals for some of these images, as well as additional photographs by James Mooney, can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in Photo Lot 74 and 14 as well as NAA MS 2531.
Originals for some of these images, as well as additional photographs by John C. Ewers, can be found in the National Anthropological Archives in the papers of John Canfield Ewers.
