These papers reflect the professional lives of Alice Cunningham Fletcher (1838-1923), an ethnologist with the Peabody Museum of Harvard and collaborator with the Bureau of American Ethnology, and Francis La Flesche (1856-1923), an anthropologist with the Bureau of American Ethnology. Due to the close professional and personal relationship of Fletcher and La Flesche, their papers have been arranged jointly. The papers cover the period from 1874 to 1939. Included in the collection is correspondence, personal diaries, lectures, field notes and other ethnographic papers, drafts, musical transcriptions, publications by various authors, maps and photographs.
Scope and Contents:
These papers reflect the professional lives of Alice Cunningham Fletcher (1838-1923), an ethnologist with the Peabody Museum of Harvard University and collaborator with the Bureau of American Ethnology, and Francis La Flesche (1856-1923), an anthropologist with the Bureau of American Ethnology. Due to the close professional and personal relationship of Fletcher and La Flesche, their papers have been arranged jointly. The papers cover the period from 1874 to 1939. Included in the collection is correspondence, personal diaries, lectures, field notes and other ethnographic papers, drafts, musical transcriptions, publications by various authors, maps and photographs.
The papers have been divided into three general categories: the papers of Alice Cunningham Fletcher, the papers of Francis La Flesche, and the ethnographic research of Fletcher and La Flesche. The first two categories represent personal and professional materials of Fletcher and La Flesche. The third section holds the majority of the ethnographic material in the collection.
Of primary concern are Fletcher and La Flesche's ethnological investigations conducted among the Plains Indians, particularly the Omaha and Osage. Fletcher's Pawnee field research and her allotment work for the Bureau of Indian Affairs among the Omaha, Nez Perce, and Winnebago are represented in the collection. A substantial portion of the ethnographic material reflects Fletcher and La Flesche's studies of Native American music. Much of the correspondence in the papers of Fletcher and La Flesche is rich with information about the situation of Omaha peoples in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Also included in the collection are documents related to Fletcher's work with the Archaeological Institute of America and the School for American Archaeology. Additionally, substantial amounts of Fletcher's early anthropological and historical research are found among her correspondence, lectures, anthropological notes, and early field diaries. La Flesche's literary efforts are also generously represented.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into the following 3 series: 1) Alice Cunningham Fletcher papers, 1873-1925; 2) Francis La Flesche papers, 1881-1930; 3) Papers relating to the anthropological research of Alice Fletcher and Francis La Flesche, 1877-1939.
Series 1: Alice Cunningham Fletcher papers is divided into the following 10 subseries: 1.1) Incoming correspondence, 1874-1923 (bulk 1882-1923); 1.2) Outgoing correspondence, 1873-1921; 1.3) Correspondence on specific subjects, 1881-1925; 1.4) Correspondence between Fletcher and La Flesche, 1895-1922; 1.5) Publications, 1882-1920; 1.6) Organizational records, 1904-1921; 1.7) General anthropological notes, undated; 1.8) Lectures, circa 1878-1910; 1.9) Diaries, 1881-1922; 1.10) Biography and memorabilia, 1878-1925.
Series 2: Francis La Flesche papers is divided into the following 6 subseries: 2.11) General correspondence, 1890-1929; 2.12) Correspondence on specific subjects, 1881-1930; 2.13) Publications, 1900-1927; 2.14) Literary efforts, undated; 2.15) Personal diaries, 1883-1924; 2.16) Biography and memorabilia, 1886-1930.
Series 3: Papers relating to the anthropological research of Alice Fletcher and Francis La Flesche is divided into the following 12 subseries: 3.17) Alaska, 1886-1887; 3.18) Earth lodges, 1882, 1898-1899; 3.19) Music, 1888-1918; 3.20) Nez Perce, 1889-1909; 3.21) Omaha, 1882-1922; 3.22) Osage, 1896-1939; 3.23) Pawnee, 1897-1910; 3.24) Pipes, undated; 3.25) Sioux, 1877-1896; 3.26) Other tribes, 1882-1922; 3.27) Publications collected, 1884-1905, undated; 3.28) Photographs, undated.
Biographical / Historical:
Alice Cunningham Fletcher (1838-1923) was an ethnologist with the Peabody Museum of Harvard and collaborator with the Bureau of American Ethnology. Francis La Flesche (1856-1923) was an anthropologist with the Bureau of American Ethnology.
Chronology of the Life of Alice Cunningham Fletcher
1838 March 15 -- Born in Havana, Cuba
1873-1876 -- Secretary, American Association for Advancement of Women
1879 -- Informal student of anthropology, Peabody Museum, Harvard University
1881 -- Field trip to Omaha and Rosebud Agencies
1882 -- Assistant in ethnology, Peabody Museum, Harvard University
1882 -- Helped secure land in severalty to Omaha Indians
1882-1883 -- Begins collaboration with Francis La Flesche on the Peabody Museum's collection of Omaha and Sioux artifacts
1883-1884 -- Special Agent, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Omaha Agency
1886 -- Bureau of Education investigation of Alaskan native education
1887-1888 -- Special Disbursing Agent, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Winnebago Agency
1889-1892 -- Special Agent for allotment, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Nez Perce Agency
1890-1899 -- President, Women's Anthropological Society of America
1891-1923 -- Mary Copley Thaw Fellow, Peabody Museum, Harvard University
1892-1893 -- Department of Interior consultant, World's Columbian Exposition
1896 -- Vice-President, Section H, American Association for the Advancement of Science
1897 -- Collaborator, Bureau of American Ethnology
1899-1916 -- Editorial board, American Anthropologist
1900 -- Published Indian Story and Song from North America
1901-1902 -- Advisory committee, Anthropology Department, University of California at Berkeley
1903 -- President, Anthropological Society of Washington
1904 -- Published The Hako: A Pawnee Ceremony with James Murie
1908-1913 -- Chair, Managing Committee of School of American Archaeology
1911 -- Honorary Vice-President, Section H, British Association for Advancement of Science
1911 -- Published The Omaha Tribe with Francis La Flesche
1913 -- Chair Emeritus, Managing Committee of School of American Archaeology
1915 -- Published Indian Games and Dances with Native Songs Arranged from American Indian Ceremonials and Sports
1923 April 6 -- Died in Washington, D.C.
Chronology of the Life of Francis La Flesche
1857 December 25 -- Born on Omaha Reservation near Macy, Nebraska
1879 -- Lecture tour, Ponca chief Standing Bear
1881 -- Interpreter, Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
1881-1910 -- Clerk, Bureau of Indian Affairs
1891 -- Informally adopted as Fletcher's son
1892 -- LL.B., National University Law School
1893 -- LL.M., National University Law School
1900 -- Published The Middle Five: Indian Boys at School
1906-1908 -- Marriage to Rosa Bourassa
1910-1929 -- Ethnologist, Bureau of American Ethnology
1911 -- Published The Omaha Tribe with Alice Fletcher
1921 -- Published The Osage Tribe, Part One
1922 -- Member, National Academy of Sciences
1922-1923 -- President, Anthropological Society of Washington
1925 -- Published The Osage Tribe, Part Two
1926 -- Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Nebraska
1928 -- Published The Osage Tribe, Part Three
1932 -- Published Dictionary of the Osage Language
1932 September 5 -- Died in Thurston County, Nebraska
1939 -- Posthumous publication of War Ceremony and Peace Ceremony of the Osage Indians
Related Materials:
Additional material related to the professional work of Fletcher and La Flesche in the National Anthropological Archives may be found among the correspondence of the Bureau of American Ethnology (BAE) and the records of the Anthropological Society of Washington.
Sound recordings made by Fletcher and La Flesche can be found at the Library of Congress. The National Archives Records Administration hold the Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), including those relating to allotments in severalty for the Nez Perce by Alice Fletcher. The Nebraska Historical Society has diaries, letters and clippings regarding the La Flesche family, including correspondence of Francis La Flesche and Fletcher. The Radcliffe College Archives holds a manuscript account of Alice Fletcher's four summers with the Nez Perce (1889-1892). Correspondence between Fletcher and F. W. Putnam is also located at the Peabody Museum Archives of Harvard University.
Separated Materials:
Ethnographic photographs from the collection have been catalogued by tribe in Photo Lot 24.
Glass plate negatives from the collection have been catalogued by tribe in the BAE glass negatives collection (Negative Numbers 4439-4515).
Provenance:
The papers of Alice Cunningham Fletcher and Francis La Flesche have been received from an undocumented number of sources. Portions of Fletcher's ethnographic papers were donated to the archives by Mrs. G. David Pearlman in memory of her husband in 1959.
Restrictions:
The Alice Cunningham Fletcher and Francis La Flesche papers are open for research.
Access to the Alice Cunningham Fletcher and Francis La Flesche papers requires an appointment.
Contents: Box 1 Unpublished material (pink slips show parts xeroxed for U. Chodowiec). Box 2 Published and unpublished material. Box 3 Published material (32 AR Bureau of American Ethnology). Box 4 Non Iroquois and miscellaneous material. Box 5 Material identified by Chodowiec: "mostly Curtin's myths rewritten and corrected by Hewitt."
Seneka historical legends and mythic tales in English only, collected on the Cattaraugus Reservation, N. Y., during the summer of 1883 and 1886. 1. The Boy Cared for by a Bear. 18 pages. 2. The Man with the Panther-skin Coat. 10 pages. 3. Hi'-non' Ho-ha-waqk, i. e., The Son of Thunder. 7 pages. 4. The Vampire. 3 pages. 5. The Uncle and his Nephew. 27 pages. 6. A Hunter Persued by a Stone-Coat. 6 pages. 7. The Orphan. 5 pages. 8. The Potent Boy. 8 pages. 9. The Seven Maidens Making Wampum. 7 pages. 10. The Man who was aided by Ga-cyen-de-tha' (Fire-dragon). 15 pages. 11. An Uncle and his Nephew (Second Story). 9 pages. 12. Hi'-non' (Thunder) and the Rattlesnakes. 4 pages. 13. Hagowanen and O-the-gwen'-da' (Flint). 33 pages. 14. Two Boys Carried Off by the Cheroki. 1 1/2 pages. 15. Uncle and Nephew. 7 pages. 16. Netyogwesuk. (? Delaware Story). 5 pages. 17. A Woman's Bear Lover. 7 pages. 18. The Two Brothers. 9 pages. 19. Ga-na, The Seneca War Chief. 7 pages. 20. Twelve Brothers and their Uncle (Great-Head). 6 pages. 21. The Woman who married the Great Snake. 5 pages. 22. Hat-hon-das (The Listener). 13 pages. 23. On-gweq i-as (Man he eats) and his Brother. 7 pages. 24. The Man-eating Wife, the Old Woman and the Morning-Star. 8 pages. 25. Dhadyoendzadases and the Old Woman's Grandson. 7 pages. 26. Ga-no-gwi-o-eon, a War-chief. 6 pages.
27. Bloody-Hand Offered Food to the Animals. 3 pages. 28. The Horned-Snake and the Young Woman. 6 pages. 29. The Great Worm and Grandfather, Thunder. 3 pages. 30. The Senecas at War with the Cheroki. 3 pages. 31. An Owl Story. 5 pages. 32. A Young Man pursued by his Sister-in-law. 5 pages. 33. The Dry Village in the Flood. 7 pages. 34. Ha-tci-non-don, a Chief. 35. The Daughters of Owee Ye-gen-djiq (Swan Mother) and the Son of Doen-djo-wens. 5 pages. 36. The Woman turned into a Snake from eating too much Fish. 2 pages. 37. The Two Sisters Captured by the Cheroki. 3 pages. 38. The Man killed by three Hunters. 4 pages. 39. Grandmother and Grandson. 11 pages. 40. The Race between the Turtle and the Fox. 3 pages. 41. A Dead Man speaks out of the Fire, whereat his mother becomes a bear and pursues his murderer. 8 pages. 42. Da-gwa-no-en-yent and her husband. 7 pages. 43. Ho-da-den-on (Hodadeion). 55 pages. 44. Bald Eagle Sends Mud-turtle around the World. 4 pages. 45. The Grandmother and her Granddaughter. 1 page. 46. Dzogeon and his Uncle. 4 pages. 47. Porcupine's Grandson and the Bear. 11 pages. 48. The Hatiwen-non-da-dye's (Thunders) rescue a woman from Antropophagi. 6 pages. 49. Sha-go-dyo-weq-go-wa. No 1. 3 pages. 50. The Murderous Crow. 4 pages.
74. Seneka Superstitions. 1 page. 75. The Man who became a fish and a Nya-gwai-e-he'. 76. Charm broken by eating an Otter's heart. 4 pages. 77. The Squeezed heart and the Naked Dance. 3 pages. 78. The Poor Hunter and the Little Man. 3 pages. 79. The Owl and the Two Sisters. 3 pages. 80. The Battle With the Great Snake. 2 pages. 81. The Fox and the Rabbit. 2 pages. 82. Da-gwa-no-en-yent. 2 pages. 83. Ongwe i-as and his Brother Dagwano-en-yent. 5 pages. 84. Gen-non' sgwa' (Stone Coat). 1 page. 85. The Gen-non' s-gwa' (Stone Coat) 2 pages. 86. The Gen-non' s-gwa' (Stone Coat). 3 pages. 87. Medicine Men. 2 pages. 88. The Snake with two heads. 2 pages. 89. The Turtle and his forces on the warpath. 5 pages. 90. The Red people and the Senekas. 1 page. 91. Seneka Ghost Story. 1 page. 92. Seneka Witch Story. 1 page. 93. Seneka Witchcraft. 1 page. 94. The Two Brothers. 3 pages. 95. Hotho' (Cold). 1 page. 96. The Story of the Boy and the Chestnuts. 5 pages. 97. Gaq-ga and Sga-ge-diq. 4 pages. 98. The Man who married a Buffalo Woman. 8 pages. 99. Wishakon and his Grandfather Visit Plethoak. 8 pages. 100. Ha-den-the-ni and Ha'-ni-gon-gen-da-tha'. 21 pages. 101. Ho-di-on-skon. 102. The Creation of Man. 2 pages. 103. The Great Bear and the Six Hunters, or the Great Dipper (Constellation).
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 3860
Local Note:
Examined 1971 by Urszula Chodowiec (student of W. N. Fenton and Claude Levi-Strauss) and left with her notes attached in the 5 boxes.
Other Title:
The Boy Cared for by a Bear
The Man with the Panther-skin Coat
Hi'-non' Ho-ha-waqk, i.e., The Son of Thunder
The Vampire
The Uncle and his Nephew
A Hunter Persued by a Stone-Coat
The Orphan
The Potent Boy
The Seven Maidens Making Wampum
The Man who was aided by Ga-cyen-de-tha' (Fire-dragon)
An Uncle and his Nephew
Hi'-non' (Thunder) and the Rattlesnakes
Hagowanen and O-the-gwen'-da' (Flint)
Two Boys Carried Off by the Cheroki
Uncle and Nephew
Netyogwesuk
A Woman's Bear Lover
The Two Brothers
Ga-na, The Seneca War CHief
Twelve Brothers and their Uncle (Great-Head)
The Woman who married the Great Snake
Hat-hon-das (The Listener)
On-gweq i-as (Man he eats) and his Brother
The Man-eating Wife, the Old Woman and the Morning-Star
Dhadyoendzadases and the Old Woman's Grandson
Ga-no-gwi-o-eon, a war-chief
Bloody-Hand Offered Food to the Animals
The Horned-Snake and the Young Woman
The Great Worm and Grandfather, Thunder
The Senecas at War with the Cheroki
An Owl Story
A Young Man pursued by his Sister-in-law
The Dry Village in the Flood
Ha-tci-non-don, a Chief
The Daughters of Owee Ye-gen-djiq (Swan Mother) and the Son of Doen-djo-wens
The Woman turned into a Snake from eating too much Fish
The Two Sisters Captured by the Cheroki
The Man killed by three Hunters
Grandmother and Grandson
The Race between the Turtle and the Fox
A Dead Man speaks out of the Fire, whereat his mother becomes a bear and pursues his murderer
Da-gwa-no-en-yent and her husband
Ho-da-den-on (Hodadeion)
Bald eagle Sends Mud-turtle around the World
The Grandmother and her Granddaughter
Dzogeon and his Uncle
Porcupine's Grandson and the Bear
The Hatiwen-non-da-dye's (Thunders) rescue a woman from Antropophagi
Sha-go-dyo-weq-go-wa
The Murderous Crow
Seneka Superstitions
The Man who became a fish and a Nya-gwai-e-he'
Charm broken by eating an Otter's heart
The Squeezed heart and the Naked Dance
The Poor Hunter and the Little Man
The Owl and the Two Sisters
The Battle With the Great Snake
The Fox and the Rabbit
Da-gwa-no-en-yent
Ongwe i-as and his Brother Dagwano-en-yent
Gen-non' sgwa' (Stone Coat)
The Gen-non' s-gwa (Stone Coat)
Medicine Men
The Snake with two heads
The Turtle and his forces on the warpath
The Red people and the Senekas
Seneka Ghost Story
Seneka Witch Story
Seneka Witchcraft
The Two Brothers
Hotho' (Cold)
The Story of the Boy and the Chestnuts
Gaq-ga and Sga-ge-diq
The Man who married a Buffalo Woman
Wishakon and his Grandfather Visit Plethoak
Ha-den-the-ni and Ha'-ni-gon-gen-da-tha'
Ho-di-on-skon'
The Creation of Man
The Great Bear and the Six Hunters, or the Great Dipper (Constellation).
Also Meeker to Bureau of American Ethnology, Winnebago, Nebraska transmitting this syllabary October 29, 1895. Autograph letter signed. 3 pages. Presents the native Winnebago syllabary with corresponding transcriptions in a phonetic system improvised by Meeker, and in the Bureau of American Ethnology system. Meeker attempts to establish a root meaning for each syllable. The manuscript has marginal notes in the hand of J.N.B. Hewitt dated November 22, 1896.
Local Numbers:
NAA MS 229
Local Note:
autograph document signed
Topic:
Language and languages -- Documentation Search this