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 As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today.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.
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:
27 Linear feet (50 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Place:
Germany
Guam
Fiji
Iceland
Date:
1905-1997
Summary:
The papers of Laura Thompson reflect the professional and personal life of an active and pioneering anthropologist. In the 1930s, Thompson began her work in applied anthropology, producing studies of Fiji, Guam and Hawaii intended to aid administrators of economic, educational and political development and pioneering approaches now known as "administrative" and "educational" anthropology. In the 1940s, Thompson applied her skills to the Indian Personality, Education and Administration Research Project, a study of eleven communities of five Native American tribes. From the 1950s until the end of her career, Thompson sought to formulate and demonstrate a theoretical anthropological synthesis of man and culture, while pursuing fieldwork in Iceland and Germany, teaching, and consulting for numerous institutions.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Laura Thompson reflect the professional and personal life of an active and pioneering anthropologist. In the 1930s, Thompson began her work in applied anthropology, producing studies of Fiji, Guam and Hawaii intended to aid administrators of economic, educational and political development and pioneering approaches now known as "administrative" and "educational" anthropology. In the 1940s, Thompson applied her skills to the Indian Personality, Education and Administration Research Project, a study of eleven communities of five Native American tribes. From the 1950s until the end of her career, Thompson sought to formulate and demonstrate a theoretical anthropological synthesis of man and culture, while pursuing fieldwork in Iceland and Germany, teaching, and consulting for numerous institutions.
Included in this collection are field diaries, numerous manuscripts and lectures, research materials, correspondence, sound recordings and ethnographic photographs. Also included are various subject and index files maintained by Thompson for her many research projects. The collection is particularly rich in unpublished manuscripts that Thompson created from 1950 to the mid 1990s. Manuscript topics include particular field sites, such as Fiji and West Germany, as well as Thompson's critical and theoretical exposition regarding the future of applied anthropology, variously titled "Clinical" and "Holistic Anthropology."
Numerous materials pertaining to Thompson's personal life are also located in the collection, including personal diaries and professional awards, correspondence with friends and family, and personal photographs of Thompson from infancy to old age. Located in Thompson's personal papers are her writings from late in life, in which she addressed aging through her anthropological sensibilities, recorded formative memories from her youth, and projected the future of a world rife with injustice and environmental destruction.
A large portion of the Laura Thompson papers include documents from the Indian Personality, Education and Administration (IPEA) Project, initiated by the Office of Indian Affairs and the University of Chicago Committee on Human Development. This investigation of five Native American tribes includes the results of over 1000 psychological studies of native children. Materials included encompass the protocols for and implementation of the project, as well as field reports, psychological tests, correspondence, worker supervision reports and final analyses of findings. Included is a copy of the project's published final report, Personality and Government (1951). The bulk of the records date between 1941and 47; related material spans as late as 1992. Correspondents primarily include project members and consultants, particularly: John Collier, A. I. Hallowell, Maud Hallowell, Royal Hassrick, Robert Havinghurst, Alice Joseph, Bruno Klopfer, Clyde Kluckhohn, Dorothea Leighton, D'Arcy McNickle, Trude Schmidl-Waehner, Heinrich Schultz, Ruth Underhill, and W. Lloyd Warner. The papers of the IPEA Project are restricted in use.
Additional material in the NAA relating to the IPEA Research Project can be found in the following collections: Indian Personality and Administration Research Project Papers, donated by Robert J. Havighurst, and the Dorothea Cross Leighton papers. A list of publications resulting from findings of the project can be found in the Thompson collection accession folder.
Nearly absent from the collection are materials reflecting Thompson's fieldwork in Hawaii, her marriages to Bernhard Tüting and John Collier, and manuscripts of her early publications.
Correspondents in Thompson's papers include:
Ruth BENEDICT,
Charles W. COLLIER,
John COLLIER,
Malcolm COLLIER,
Cora DUBOIS,
Fred EGGAN,
Alfred EMERSON,
Kenneth EMORY,
Frederick V. FIELD,
Roland W. FORCE,
Derek FREEMAN,
Ann Pinson GILL,
Peggy GOLDE,
A. I. HALLOWELL,
Maude HALLOWELL,
Royal HASSRICK,
Robert HAVINGHURST,
Alice JOSEPH,
Felix KEESING,
Lawrence KELLY,
Bruno KLOPFER,
Clyde KLUCKHOHN,
A. L. KROEBER,
Harry S. LADD,
Bruno LASKER,
Dorothy LEE,
Dorothea LEIGHTON,
Charles F. LOOMIS,
Katherine LOUMALA,
Robert H. LOWIE,
John R. MACCORMACK,
Bronislaw MALINOWSKI,
D'Arcy MCNICKLE,
Margaret MEAD,
Robert REDFIELD,
Trude SCHMIDL-WAEHNER,
Heinrich SCHULTZ,
Leslie SPIER,
George D. SPINDLER,
Rebecca STEVENSON,
Ratu J. L. V. SUKUNA (District Commissioner of Lau),
Alfred TOZZER,
W. Lloyd WARNER and
Alvin WOLFE.
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 11 series: (1) Fiji, 1933-1995; (2) Germany, 1934-1991; (3) Guam, 1938-1996; (4) Indian Personality, Education and Administration Research Project, 1941-1992; (5) Iceland, 1952-1981; (6) Institute of Human Values, 1973-1982; (8) Manuscripts and research, 1935-1994; (9) Professional correspondence, 1943-1992; (10) Publications, 1932-1991; (11) Personal Papers, 1905-1997.
Biographical Note:
Laura Thompson (1905-2000) conducted fieldwork in Oceania, the Southwestern United States and Europe; she taught at numerous institutions and served as a consultant for many organizations, including the Naval Government of Guam and the Office of Indian Affairs, throughout her career. Thompson's papers reflect her involvement in each of these activities as well as her desire to formulate a unifying theory of applied anthropology that would address issues including environmentalism and overpopulation.
1905 -- Born in Honolulu, Hawaii on January 23.
1923 -- Graduated from Punahou Academy, Hawaii.
1927 -- Bachelor of Arts, Mills College, California.
1928 -- Graduate studies in anthropology, Radcliffe College and Harvard University, Massachusetts.
1929-33 -- Graduate studies in anthropology, University of California, Berkeley.
1942-44 -- Consultant, U. S. Office of Indian Affairs.
1946 -- Papago Indians, fieldwork.
1946-54 -- Research consultant, Institute of Ethnic Affairs (Washington DC and New York).
1952 -- Iceland, fieldwork.
1954-56 -- Professor of Anthropology, City College of New York.
1957-58 -- Visiting Professor of Anthropology, University of North Carolina.
1958-59 -- Research fellow, Laboratories of Anthropology, University of North Carolina.
1959-60 -- Visiting Professor, North Carolina State College.
1960 -- Iceland, fieldwork.
1961 -- Visiting professor, Utah State University (summer). Distinguished Visiting Professor, Pennsylvania State University.
1961-62 -- Professor of Anthropology, University of Southern Illinois.
1962 -- Visiting Professor, University of Hawaii (summer).
1962-63 -- Professor of Anthropology, San Francisco State College.
1964 -- Lecturer, Brooklyn College, CUNY.
1974 -- Honorary Ll.D., Mills College, CA.
1976 -- Board of Governors, Institute of Human Values, St. Mary's University, Halifax.
1977 -- Ancient Order of the Chammori (Honor for public service in Guam).
1979 -- Malinowski Award, Society for Applied Anthropology.
1985 -- Returned to Hawaii.
2000 -- Died January 29.
Related Materials:
Additional material in the NAA relating to the IPEA Research Project can be found in the following collections: Indian Personality and Administration Research Project Papers, donated by Robert J. Havighurst, and the Dorothea Cross Leighton papers. A list of publications resulting from findings of the project can be found in the Thompson collection accession folder.
Provenance:
Thompson's papers were donated to the National Anthropological Archives by the creator periodically over 25 years.
Restrictions:
Portions of the collection, in particular materials from the Indian Personality, Education and Administration Research Project, are restricted in use.
Access to the Laura Thompson papers requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact repository for terms of use.
Citation:
Laura Thompson papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
The Indian Personality, Education and Administration Research Project was supported jointly by the Office of Indian Affairs and the University of Chicago Committee on Human Development. Initiated in 1941 by Indian Affairs Commissioner John Collier, the study investigated eleven communities of five Native American tribes: Hopi, Navaho, Papago, and United Pueblos. The project studied Native Americans as both individuals and as tribal societies, with the aim of increasing the effectiveness of Indian Service policies and programs, improving Indian welfare and developing local autonomy. Thompson coordinated the project; at Chicago, the Indian Education Research Committee, headed by W. Lloyd Warner, was charged with the investigation's scientific work. When the University of Chicago withdrew from the program, they were replaced by the Society for Applied Anthropology. This series reflects much of the work of the IPEA project from its inception in 1941 through its termination in 1947; also included are materials that post-date the study as participants collaborated on investigational analyses. Materials are divided into the following subseries, based upon Thompson's original arrangement of the materials: general correspondence; subject file; interviews; Rorschach monograph; free drawing test; pilot study - Papago Reservation; Hopi materials; publications; and retrospective manuscripts and correspondence. All but the last subseries are restricted. See each subseries section for a description of contents.
Arrangement note:
Materials divided into subseries based upon document type, alphabetically therein. Correspondence and publications filed chronologically. Dates non-inclusive.
Restrictions:
Restricted
Collection Rights:
Contact repository for terms of use.
Collection Citation:
Laura Thompson papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
