For those who are searching for anthropologically substantive materials, special note should be made of the Manuscript and Pamphlet File. A potpourri of documents, the file includes correspondence, notes, drawings, maps, photographs, printed and processed materials, paper specimens, reports, writings, catalogs, motion picture film (now in the Smithsonian's Human Studies Film Archives), bibliographies, and other types of documents. Of concern is a wide variety of subjects such as anthropological specimens, museology and museums, Smithsonian history, archaeological and ethnological methods, exhibits, expeditions, history of anthropology, and so forth.
The file seems to have been maintained in the Division of Ethnology — in one document it was referred to as Herbert W. Krieger's morgue — and the subject matter is largely ethnological. Nevertheless, some documents relate to archeology and physical anthropology. The file also contains administrative materials, such as records relating to the Department of Anthropology's use of Work Projects Administration workers during the 1930s. In addition, the file is the main location of materials not generally accepted as being strictly anthropological in the modern sense. It includes, for example, material on period costumes, fish and fisheries, whaling, religions, armor, biblical studies, modern appliances, the seal industry, European music and musical instruments, lace, aeronautics, and other similar subjects. In addition, the file includes sets of papers of Edwin H. Hawley ,Walter Hough, Otis T. Mason, Talcott Williams and Thomas Wilson.
Some documents, both primary and secondary research materials, concern the following cultural groups and geographic areas: Arabs, Bannock, Baubi, Blackfoot, British Columbia, Caddo, Carib, Chinook, Cochiti, Comanche, Cossacks, Cuna, Delaware, Diegueño, District of Columbia, Dyak, Eskimo, Europe, Fox, Goajira, Haida, Hawaii, Hittites, Hupa, India, Innuit, Iran, Ireland, Jamomadi, Japan, Jivaro, Kabyles, Kiowa, Kirghese, Klamath, Korea, Luiseño, Madagascar, Madiera, Maidu, Makah, Maori, Mataco, Maya, Micmac, Micronesia, Mission, Modoc, Mohave, Mongolia, Moro, Morocco, Naltunnetunne, Nanticoke, Narragansett, Navaho, New Guinea, Nez Perce, Nubia, Omaha, Onandaga, Osage, Oto, Papua, Parsee, Pawnee, Peru, Philippines, Pomo, Pueblo, Puerto Rico, Pygmies, Quichua, Quinaielt, Samoa, Sauk, Seminole, Seri, Shoshoni, Spain, Tahiti, Tesuque, Thailand, Texas, Tolowa, Tonga, Tulalip, Utah, Virginia, Washo, Wichita, Wintun, Yavapai, and Zuni.
The manuscript and pamphlet file is virtually a potpourri of documents, including correspondence, notes, drawings, maps, photographs, printed and processed materials, paper specimens, reports, writings, catalogs, motion picture film, bibliographies, and other types of documents. Of concern is a wide variety of subjects such as anthropological specimens, museology and museums, Smithsonian history, archeological and ethnological methods, exhibits, expeditions, history of anthropology, and so forth. The file seems to have been maintained in the Division of Ethnology--in one document it was referred to as being Herbert W. Krieger's morgue--and the subject matter is largely ethnological.
Some documents, however, concern archeology and physical anthropology. The file also contains some administrative materials--records relating to the Department of Anthropology's use of Work Projects Administration workers, for example. In addition, it is the main location of materials not generally accepted as being strictly anthropological in the modern sense. It includes, for example, material on the First Ladies' Gown exhibit now in the National Museum of American History, fish and fisheries, whaling, religions, armour, biblical studies, modern appliances, the seal industry, European music and musical instruments, lace, aeronautics, and other similar subjects.
The file includes the papers of many different persons. The file also includes sets of papers of Otis Tufton Mason, Walter Hough, Talcott Williams, Edwin H. Hawley, and Thomas Wilson. It includes documents, sometimes of a secondary nature, about the following cultural groups and geographic areas; Arabs, Bannock, Baubi, Blackfoot, British Columbia, Caddo, Chinook, Cochiti, Comanche, Cossacks, Cuna, Delaware, Diegueno, District of Columbia, Dyak, Eskimo, Europe, Fox, Goajira, Haida, Hawaii, Hittites, Hupa, India, Innuit, Iran, Ireland, Jamomadi, Japan, Jivaro, Kabyles, Kiowa, Kirghese, Klamath, Korea, Luiseno, Madagascar, Madeira, Maidu, Makah, Maori, Mataco, Maya, Micmac, Micronesia, Mission, Modoc, Mohave, Mongolia, Moro, Morocco, Naltunnetunne, Nanticoke, Narragansett, Navaho,
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
Indians of North America -- California Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographic prints
Photographs
Date:
circa 1870
Scope and Contents note:
Studio portraits of Klamath, Modoc, and Tolowa Indians made by surveyor Alexander W. Chase while working for the US Coast Survey. Also included are photographs of artifacts from his ethnographic and archaeological collection. The photographs are mounted on brown paper with handwritten descriptions; two newspaper articles, including Alexander Chase's own article for the Topeka Daily Capitol, are glued to the back of two of the pages.
Biographical/Historical note:
Alexander W. Chase (1843-1888) worked as a surveyor for the US Coast Survey from 1862-1878, during which time he visited several reservations near the San Francisco Bay area and southern Oregon. As an amateur artist, photographer, and ethnologist, he recorded his observations of the daily life on the reservations in a journal. He published his documentation of a visit to the Alsea Reservation in a newspaper article for the Topeka Daily Capitol, dated Sunday, November 27, 1887. He also published a longer paper on the Siletz Reservation in 1869. Additionally, he contributed ethnographic and archaeological data, photographs, and sketches to Stephen Powers' monograph, Tribes of California.
Local Call Number(s):
NAA Photo Lot 2003-10
Location of Other Archival Materials:
Photo Lot 24 contains four cartes des visite by Chase of Maidu individuals "Captain Tom" and his wife, daughter, and son.
The records of the NMNH Department of Anthropology contain some of Chase's original sketches for Tribes of California.
Additionally, the NAA also holds MS 3230, a manuscript by Chase on the shell mounds of oregon, and the records of the Bureau of American Ethnology contain correspondence between Chase and BAE anthropologists.
Publication Note:
The photographs in this collection are published in
Thomas Blackburn, "Some Additional Alexander W. Chase Materials," Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology 25, no. 1 (2005): 39-54.
Provenance:
Donated by Jean Prentiss through Thomas Blackburn in 2002.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research.
Access to the collection requires an appointment.
Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Genre/Form:
Photographs
Citation:
Photo Lot 2003-10, Alexander W. Chase Photographs of Klamath, Modoc, and Tolowa people and material culture, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Volume 14 was published in 1924 with the title The Kato. The Wailaki. The Yuki. The Pomo. The Wintun. The Maidu. The Miwok. The Yokuts.
Collection Restrictions:
Viewing of the photographic negatives and transparencies requires advance notice and the permission of the Photo Archivist.
Access to the Edward S. Curtis papers and photographs requires an appointment.
Collection Rights:
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Sponsor:
Processing and digitization of parts of this collection was supported by funding from the Smithsonian Women's Committee and the Small Research Grants program of the National Museum of Natural History.
Indians of North America -- Southwest, New Search this
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Place:
Hick's Camp (California)
Argentina
Peru
Mexico
Date:
1919 - 1970
Summary:
The Beals papers in the National Anthropological Archives include field notes, correspondence, printed materials, copies of historical documents, drafts and final manuscripts of writings, photographs, and cartographic materials. Most relate to research projects and sometimes include materials of colleagues and assistants. Especially notable is the abundant material regarding Oaxaca markets. There are some materials relating to aspects of Beals's career other than his research but they are generally widely distributed throughout the collection. Materials relating to events that happened to occur at the time of certain field work are often interfiled with the material relating to that certain field work.
There are also some personal materials included. Conspicuously missing from the papers are notes on Beals's archeological work, which he has retained. There are relatively few materials relating to his teaching career, although some of the letters exchanged with Alfred Louis Kroeber concern the establishment of anthropology at the University of California at Los Angeles; and correspondence with students in the field concerns teaching as well as research activities. A typesript of notes on the Nisenan are at the Bancroft Library of the University of California at Berkeley. Some of the letters concern Elsie Clews Parsons and Carlos Castenada.
Scope and Contents:
These papers reflect the professional and personal life of Ralph L. Beals (1901-1985), author, anthropologist and professor at the University of California. Included are his research files, correspondence, grant proposals, notes, charts, census material, maps, newspaper clippings, appointment calendars, drafts of published and unpublished writings, photographs and card files.
The bulk of the material relate to his research. Major projects documented in the collection include his studies of a Tarascan community; Mexican students in the United States; indigenous market systems in Oaxaca markets; economic systems in Nayón, Ecuador; land utilization by California Indians; and conditions in Hicks Camp in Southern California. The collection also contains his early research in Mexico during the 1930s as well as a study of kinship relationships undertaken by Beals' students during his residency as visiting professor at the University of Buenos Aires in 1962. Absent from the papers are notes from Beals' archeological work in Cobra Head Wash in Arizona.
A portion of the collection also reflects Beals' literary efforts beginning in the 1920s until later in his life. Throughout his adult lifetime Beals had been actively involved with the publishing world, constantly editing, reviewing, revising, rewriting and submitting for publication articles, speeches, lectures, essays, scholarly papers, and textbooks, in addition to contributing to various symposia, scientific associations and journals.
While there is little material regarding his faculty work at UCLA, some of his professional activities are documented in the collection. Of particular interest is his investigation for the American Anthropological Association into the ethics surrounding the use of anthropologists by government security agencies. The collection also contains files pertaining to his work with international professional societies and universities in Latin America and his service as editor of Acta America, the journal for the now defunct InterAmerican Society for Anthropology. His correspondence documents the development and demise of the organization.
The correspondence series is arranged both alphabetically and chronologically. Correspondents whose letters are included are Ellen Waterbury, Ronald Waterbury, Charlotte Stolmaker, Keith A. Dixon, Clark Kerr, R.G. Sproul, George Kennedy, and William Madsen. Correspondence listed chronologically (1928-78) has not been processed. A cursory review reveals that this includes a great deal of information on Beals' days at the University of California: personal and personnel papers and records, vitae, awards and commendations, salaries, positions held, etc. Some of the letters in the series concern Elsie Clews Parsons and Carlos Castenada.
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:
Organization
2. (1) Correspondence, 1928-1980
3. (2) Research proposals, 1936-1977
4. (3) Acta Americana materials, 1942-1963
5. (4) Early Mexican and California studies, 1930-1932, 1936
6. (5) Tarascan project materials, 1939-1941
7. (6) Social science in Latin Amerian materials, 1948-1949
9. (8) Cross-cultural education study materials, 1952-1957
10. (9) California Indians materials, 1945-1955
11. (10) Study of markets in Oaxaca materials, 1938-1973 (most 1960s)
12. (11) Research and ethics materials, 1965-1968
13. (12) Miscellaneous field materials (Hicks Camp and Argentine kinship), 1946-1952, 1963
14. (13) Manuscripts of writings and lectures, 1919-1977
15. (14) Miscellany, 1929-1970
16. (15) Photographs, card files, notebooks, and oversized materials, 1930s-1960s
Biographical Note:
Ralph Leon Beals trained in anthropology at the University of California (Ph.D., 1930) under Robert Lowie, Edward W. Gifford, and Alfred L. Kroeber. After a brief period with the National Park Service, he became an instructor at Berkeley and, in 1936, as an anthropologist, joined the Department of Psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles. He eventually organized the UCLA Department of Anthropology and Sociology and served as its chairman in 1941-1948. He was chairman of the UCLA Department of Anthropology in 1964-1965. In 1969, he became a professor emeritus of the university.
Beals' research focused on California, the American Southwest, and Latin America, especially Mexico. During the summer of 1929, he carried out an ethnological survey of the Southern Maidu (Nisenan), working under Kroeber and partly supported by Bureau of American Ethnology Cooperative Ethnological Research funds. In 1937-1938, he was on the Rainbow Bridge-Monument Valley Expedition under the direction of Ansel F. Hall and excavated an archeological site in Cobra Head Wash in Arizona. In 1948-1949, he investigated conditions at Hicks Camp, a Mexican settlement in southern California; and, in 1945-1955, he headed a project for the United States Department of Justice to study traditional land utilization by California Indians. The study related to Indian land claims cases.
Beals' involvement in Mexico goes back to a youthful tramp through Sonora and Sinaloa in 1918-1919 that included a long sojourn with a Mexican family. In 1930-1932, Beals worked with the Yaqui and Mayo; in 1932, with Elsie Clews Parsons, he worked with the Cora and Huichol found at Tepic, Nayarit; and, in 1933, with the western Mixe of Oaxaca. With these groups and with the tribes of northern Mexico in general, he concerned himself with both the ethnography of exiting cultures and the reconstruction of the cultures at the time of contact with Europeans. Given the currents of anthropology, a family background of social concern, his historical interest in cultures long influenced by Europeans, and his observation of rapid change and strong modern economic influences among Indian tribes, Beals came to treat largely with social anthropology, problems of acculturation, and studies useful in applied aspects of anthropology.
In 1938, with Daniel F. Rubín de la Borbolla, Alfonso Caso, John M. Cooper, and Alfred L. Kroeber, Beals took part in a comprehensive multidiscipline study of the Tarascans to help formulate government policies and programs. Beals and several collaborators and assistants carried out ethnographic and social anthropological studies at Cherán. In 1948-1949, Beals studied the economic systems of Nayón, Ecuador, a Quechua village, and cultural and social changes accompanying the shift from a subsistence to marketplace economy. In Buenos Aires in 1963, he collected kinship data from students at the Institute of Sociology. In 1965, he began a detailed study of the large traditional market system of eastern Oaxaca in Mexico. Over a five-year period, many scholars and students assisted Beals.
Beals had active ties with many organizations and gave some extraordinary service. During 1942-1943, he directed a cooperative social science program between Latin American institutions and the Smithsonian Institution, establishing the InterAmerican Society for Anthropology and Geography. From 1943-1948, he edited the Society's journal Acta Americana, initially fulfilling official obligations but, after 1944 and his return to teaching, donating his time for the work. In 1944-1951, he was a collaborator with the Smithsonian's Institute for Social Anthropology.
As a member of the Social Science Research Council from 1946-1962, Beals undertook to study conditions in Latin American social science. In 1952, for the Council's Committee on Cross-Cultural Education, he and Norman D. Humphrey investigated the experiences of Mexican students in the United States. He also served the American Anthropological Association as a member of its executive council from 1947-1949, vice president in 1949, and president in 1950. In 1965, the AAA, concerned with the use of anthropologists by government security agencies, asked Beals to study the ethics involved. Prepared in cooperation with many research scholars, Beals report became the basis for the work of the AAA's ethics committee.
Beals had many other organizational ties and responsibilities. He served as American technical advisor at the First Inter-American Indianists Conference at Patzcuarol, Mexico, in 1939; chairman of the Social Science Research Council Cross-Cultural Education Committee from 1953 to 1960; member of the Society for American Archaeology executive committee from 1954 to 1957; and president of the Southwest Anthropological Association in 1958. He was an editor with the Handbook of Latin American Studies, American Anthropologist, and Notes on Latin American Studies.
Chronology of the life of Ralph Leon Beals
July 19, 1901 -- Born in Pasadena California
1923 -- Married Dorothy Manchester
1926 -- B.A. University of California, Berkeley
1930 -- Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley
1933-1935 -- Museum technician, National Park Service
1935 -- Lecturer, Department of Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley
1936-1938 -- Instructor, University of California, Los Angeles
1937-1941 -- Assistant Professor
1941-1947 -- Associate Professor
1942-1943 -- Director of Latin American Ethnic Studies, Smithsonian Institution
1947-1969 -- Professor of Anthropology
1944-1951 -- Collaborator, Institute of Social Anthropology
1962 -- Visiting Professor, University of Buenos Aires
1969- -- Professor Emeritus
Ralph Leon Beals was trained in anthropology at the University of California at Berkeley under Robert H. Lowie, Edward W. Gifford, and, especially, Alfred Louis Kroeber. After a brief period of work for the National Park Service following graduation, he became an instructor in anthropology at Berkeley and, in 1936, as an anthropologist, joined the Department of Psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles. There he organized the Department of Anthropology and Sociology and served as its chairman in 1941-1948. He was also chairman of the UCLA Department of Anthropology in 1964-1965. In 1969, he became an professor emertius of the university.
Beals's research has focused primarily on California, the American Southwest, and Latin America, especially Mexico. In California, he carried out an ethnological survey of the Southern Maidu (Nisenan) during the summer of 1929, working under Kroeber and supported in part by funds from the Bureau of American Ethnology's Cooperative Ethnological Research program. In 1937-1938, he was a member of the Rainbow Bridge-Monument Valley Expedition under the direction of Ansel F. Hall and excavated an archeological site in Cobra Head Wash in Arizona. In 1948-1949, he studied conditions at Hicks Camp, a Mexican settlement in southern California, and in 1945-1955 Beals headed a project for the
United States Department of Justice to study traditional land utilization by California Indians. The study was related to Indian land claims cases.
Beals's involvement in Mexico can be traced to a 1918-1919 tramp through Sonora and Sinaloa that included a rather long sojourn with a Mexican family. In his later academic interest in the area, he was at the forefront of a movement of American anthropologists and geographers to fill some of the gaps in the ethnographic and archeological knowledge about northern Mexico, of interest largely because it lay in the way of possible influences passing between the American Southwest and the highly developed cultures of Mesoamerica. In 1930-1932, Beals worked among he Yaqui and Mayo; in 1932, with Elsie Clews Parsons , he worked among the Cora and Huichol found at Tepic, Nayarit; and, in 1933,
among the western Mixe of Oaxaca. With these groups and with the tribes of northern Mexico in general, he concerned himself with both the ethnography of contemporary cultures and the reconstruction of the cultures at the time of contact with Whites. Given the current of anthropology of the time, a family background of social concern, his historical interest in cultures with a long history of influence by Europeans, and his witness of rapid change and strong modern economic influences among Indian tribes, Beals came to treat largely with social anthropology, problems of acculturation, and studies useful in applied aspects of anthropology.
In 1938, Beals took part with Daniel Rubin de la Borbolla, Alfonso Caso, John Montgomery Cooper, and Alfred Louis Kroeber in planning a multidisciplinary study of the Tarascans, a project which aimed at a comprehensive examination useful in formulating government policies and programs. Under its auspices, Beals and several collaborators and assistants carried out ethnographic and social anthroplogical studies at Cheran. In 1948-1949, he studied the economic systems of the Quechua village of Nayon, Peru, and cultural and social changes accompanying the shift from a subsistence to a marketplace economy. In 1963, he collected kinship data from students at the Institute of Sociology in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 1965, he began a detaile.
study of the large, traditional market system of eastern Oaxaca in Mexico. In this latter work, Beals was assisted by many scholars and students over a five-year period.
Beals has had active ties with many organizations concerned with anthropology and the social sciences and to some he has given extraordinary service. During 1942-1943, he was in charge of a program of cooperating in the social sciences between institutions in Latin American and the Smithsonian Institution. In that capacity, he was charged with the establishment of the Inter-American Society for Anthropology and Geography. From 1943-1948, he edited the Society's journal Acta Americana, intially fulfilling official obligations but, after 1944 and his return to teaching, donating his time for the work. He was a collaborator with the Smithsonian's Institute for Social Anthropology in 1944-1951.
A member of the Social Science Research Council from 1946-1962, Beals undertook a study on its behalf of conditions in Latin American social science. In 1952. he carried out a project with Norman D. Humphrey for the Council's Committee on Cross-Cultural Education that involved an investigation of the experiences of Mexican students who were studying in the United States. He also served the American Anthropological Association as a member of its executive council from 1947-1949, vice president in 1949, and president in 1950. In 1965, the AAA, concerned with the use of anthropologists by government security agencies, asked Beals to study the ethics involved in anthropological research and related problems that result from government and.
and other organizational affiliations. Beals's report, prepared with cooperation from many research scholars, became the basis for the work of the AAA's ethics committee.
Beals has had many other organizational ties and responsibilities. He served as technical advisor for the United States delegation to the First Inter-American Indianists Conference at Patzcuarol, Mexico, in 1939; chairman of the Cross-Cultural Education Committee of the Social Science Research council from 1953 to 1960; member of the executive committee of the Society for American Archaeology from 1954 to 1957; and president of the Southwest Anthropological Association in 1958. He also served on several other committees and had editorial duties with the Handbook of Latin American Studies, American Anthropologist, adnNotes on Latin American Studies. He has been honored with several honorary professorhsips at Latin American universities.
Restrictions:
The Ralph Leon Beals papers are open for research. At Ralph Beals' request, his 1930-1933 correspondence were restricted until 2000. These include letters to and from his wife while he was in the field, several letters to his children, and one letter to his mother-in-law. Beals supplied edited copies of the restricted letters for public access. The restrictions have since been lifted, and the edited copies have been retained with the original letters. His field assistants' materials have been restricted for the lifetime of the creators.
Access to the Ralph Leon Beals papers requires an appointment.
