]> mc2002-18 Guide to the David McAllester Papers, 1940 - 1996 Processed by: Jennifer Miglus; machine-readable finding aid created by: Jennifer Miglus &hdrsca;

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 Machine-readable finding aid derived from XML authoring program. Date of source: TBD Description is in English Finding aid was prepared using DACS Guide to the David McAllester Papers, 1940 - 1996 Special Collections and ArchivesWesleyan University
Middletown, CT, USA

© 2006 Wesleyan University. All Rights Reserved.

 Descriptive Summary Special Collections and Archives, Wesleyan University McAllester, David Park, 1916- David McAllester Papers, 1940 - 1996 2002-18 Material in English 7.0 20 For current information on the location of these materials, please consult Special Collections and Archives staff. David Park McAllester was professor of Anthropology and Music at Wesleyan University from 1947 to 1986. He studied and wrote about the rites and ceremonies of the Navajo Indians and was a co-founder of the Society for Ethnomusicology. This collection contains drafts of published and unpublished writings, extensive correspondence, field notes and one nineteenth century family photograph album. Administrative Information Access Restrictions

No restrictions.

 Copyright Notice

Copyright for Official University records is held by Wesleyan University; all other copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.

Preferred Citation

David McAllester Papers, Special Collections and Archives, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT, USA.

 Acquisitions Information

Collection donated by David McAllester of Monterey, MA, May 3, 2002.

 Processing Information

Processed by Jennifer Miglus, graduate student in Simmons Graduate School of Library and Information Science, December 2005. Correspondence files arranged by Debi Schwartz (Wesleyan class of 2007), December 2005.

Encoded by Jennifer Miglus, March 2006

 Biographical Note

David Park McAllester was born in 1916, the youngest of four children. He grew up in Everett, Massachusetts, where he often accompanied his mother on natural history walks as she collected material for her weekly column in the Boston Sunday Herald. Professor McAllester traces his ultimate career as a specialist in Native American culture to an early exposure to reading animal tracks in the snow as well as to the literature of Ernest Thompson Seton, Bret Harte, James Fenimore Cooper and Henry David Thoreau. He was also musical; he sang as a boy soprano beginning around the age of eight and attended private voice lessons with the original intention of becoming a professional singer.

David McAllester attended Harvard University, entering in 1934 and graduating in 1938. There he continued his dual interests in anthropology and music. He took classes in southwestern ethnology and linguistics with Clyde Kluckhohn and sang as a soloist with the Harvard Glee Club. Music led him to his future wife, Susan Watkins, during a joint performance with the Radcliffe Choral Society. After graduating from Harvard, he started at Juilliard; however, he continued to do field work during the summers at an archaeological dig at the Lindenmeier site in Colorado, an activity he had started while at Harvard. He also started taking classes at Columbia University, notably George Herzog's "Primitive Music" class. By the spring of 1940 he had made the decision not to pursue music as a career and had started in the PhD program in anthropology at Columbia with a focus on American Indian music. In the summer of 1940 he joined a linguistic field study of the Comanche in Oklahoma where he did research on peyote songs and rituals. With the war looming, he and Susan were married in September 1940. He spent academic year 1940-1941 at Columbia where he met such luminaries as Franz Boaz and Margaret Mead.

Although not raised in the Quaker tradition, David McAllester had deeply felt pacifist beliefs and joined the 15th Street Meeting of the Society of Friends while living in New York City. With the entry of the United States into World War II he filed for, and was granted, conscientious objector status. He spent the next two years working with the Civilian Public Service (CPS) in a forestry camp in Cooperstown, NY, and the following two years working with the CPS at the Connecticut State Hospital in Middletown, CT.

When the war ended in 1945 he returned to Columbia where he began work on his dissertation on peyote songs. He had a part-time job in the Archive of Primitive Music there and supplemented this with adjunct teaching at Brooklyn College. He was awarded his PhD from Columbia University in 1950. In 1947 he was invited to join the faculty at Wesleyan University where he remained until his retirement in 1986.

Professor McAllester has been active in the development of the field of Ethnomusicology. When he first came to Wesleyan he had a joint appointment in Psychology and Biology. In 1952, at the American Anthropological Association meeting in Philadelphia, he was introduced to Alan Merriam by Willard Rhodes of Columbia University. These three joined forces with Charles Seeger to create a newsletter focused on ethnomusicology, first published in December 1953. The four men founded the Society for Ethnomusicology in 1955. David McAllester broadened the music curriculum at Wesleyan to include non-European music in 1956 with his course Music 31, Ethnic and Folk Music. The World Music Archives at Wesleyan University developed out of the field recordings of Native American ceremonies that he made in the 1940s and '50s, and it was partly his influence that led to the establishment of the department of Anthropology at Wesleyan in 1967. He was appointed professor of Anthropology and Music in 1972.

Professor McAllester traveled extensively during the course of his professional career. He received a Guggenheim grant in 1957 and spent a year in Arizona studying the Navajo Blessingway ritual. In 1960 he was Carnegie visiting professor at the University of Hawaii. In 1972 he spent a sabbatical visiting Japan, Indonesia, India and Finland. In 1978 he taught as a visiting scholar at the University of Queensland, Australia, as a recipient of the Fulbright-Hays Award. His recordings of Comanche and Navajo music led to the establishment of the World Music Archives at Wesleyan University in 1953. This has grown extensively since then with contributions by Professor McAllester and his colleagues.

Beginning in 1979, Professor McAllester taught one full semester per year at Wesleyan, spending the remaining eight months at his home in the Berkshires. He retired fully in 1986. Since then he has continued to be involved in the Society for Ethnomusicology, writing professional book reviews, and has been very involved in his local newspaper.

Collection Overview

The David McAllester collection documents McAllester's interests in writing, research, music and ritual. Early folders in Series I: Writings, feature short stories and poetry which he submitted for consideration to magazines like The New Yorker. David McAllester also published widely, in scholarly journals, book reviews, encyclopedias of music, and materials for teachers. Drafts of his work and correspondence relating to his writings are contained in Series I.

The bulk of David McAllester's professional life consisted of his long tenure at Wesleyan University. Series II contains field notes and an exhaustive correspondence with colleagues in the fields of anthropology and ethnomusicology. Professor McAllester had close relationships with members of the Navajo Nation whom he worked with during field research. He was interested in the ceremonies of the Navajo people, and did extensive work on the Blessingway healing ceremony. He also had close ties to members of the academic world who either acted as a mentor to him, such as Lee Wyman, or whom he mentored, such as Charlotte Frisbie. His field work was an attempt to understand the differences and find the commonalities between people through music and ritual.

The circle of people in his life expanded ever outward and he kept in touch by voluminous letter writing as evidenced in Series III, Correspondence. This series contains both professional and personal letters since David McAllester never clearly drew the line between the two. In all of his correspondence, he kept carbons of letters he wrote, so the collection is easy to follow and rich in detail.

As a young man at the beginning of his career, his studies in anthropology at Columbia were interrupted by World War II. Documents in the beginning of Series IV, Personal History, show his application for Conscientious Objector status and the activities he was involved in during the four years he was in the Civilian Public Service (CPS). Projects of interest to him after formal retirement in 1986 are found in the second half of this series. His writing and administrative talents were put to use for the Monterey News, a local newspaper, for ten years. His humanism shows itself again in his involvement with the Never Again Campaign, a project between the US and Japan to promote understanding and the prevention of the use of nuclear weapons.

David McAllester was married to his wife Susan from 1940 until her death in 1996. Series V contains letters she wrote to him, correspondence of her own with friends, and papers surrounding her final illness.

Series VI consists of a photograph album, circa 1894 from the family of David McAllester's mother, Maude Helen Park McAllester. The photographs are portraits of family members, individually and in groups. Some are labeled with names. They are mostly tintypes.

Collection Arrangement

Series I: Writings, 1943-1995

Series II: Subject area, research and correspondence, 1946-1996

Series III: Correspondence, 1940-1996

Series IV: Personal history, 1941-1996

Series V: Susan McAllester, 1944-1994

Series VI: Photo album, circa 1894

 Online Catalog Headings

These and related materials may be found under the following headings in online catalogs.

Blessingway (Navajo rite) Cultural property--Repatriation. Ethnomusicology. Frisbie, Charlotte Johnson. Indians of North America--Music. McAllester, David Park, 1916- Mitchell, Frank, 1881-1967. Navajo Indians--Music. Navajo Indians--Religion and mythology. Navajo Indians--Rites and ceremonies. Peyote songs. Wesleyan University--Faculty. World War, 1939-1945--Conscientious objectors. Wyman, Leland Clifton, 1897- Related Material

World Music Archives at Wesleyan University has many recordings made by David McAllester. Listening copies are available although a few recordings require Professor McAllester's permission for listening.

World Music Archives also has approximately six linear feet of transcriptions of chants and field notes, un-cataloged.

Blessingway film (3 reels), in Special Collections & Archives. Access restricted. Please contact SC&A staff for information.

 Separated Material

Books removed from the David McAllester Papers to be cataloged separately:

1. The comprehensive and self-interpreting family Bible and biblical library combined. 1870 2. Holy Bible. 1833 3. Cochrane, W.R. history of the town of Antrim, New Hampshire. 1880 4. Geoffrey, Theodate. An immigrant in Japan, Boston and New York. 1926 5. Suckanesset: wherein may be read a history of Falmouth, Massachusetts. 1930 6. Morrison, Leonard Allison. The history of the Morison or Morrison family…1880 7. The history of Windham in New Hampshire, 1719-1883. 1883 8. Prescott, William. The Prescott memorial…1870 Detailed Description of the Collection Series I: Writings, 1943-1995

This series is arranged chronologically. It traces David McAllester's writings from early short stories and poetry to scholarly journal articles, book reviews and books. The last four folders contain notes for columns for the newspaper Monterey News.

 11 Juvenile Writing, undated 12 Early stories 1., undated 13 Early stories 2., undated 14 Early writings, undated 15 Slim Boy, 1953 16 Turquoise Horse, 1952-53 17 Writings submitted for publication, 1943-48 18 Book reviews and articles, 1950-59 19 Book reviews and articles, 1960-67 21 Book reviews and articles, 1968-69 22 Reprints, 1960s 23 Book reviews and articles, 1970-78 24 Reprints, 1970s 25 Book reviews and articles, 1980-82 26 Book reviews and articles, 1983-89 31 Reprints, 1980s 32 Book reviews and articles, 1991-95 33 Undated writings, CV and list of publications, undated 34 Monterey News, poetry, 1990-91 35 Monterey News,"Who's Who in Monterey", 1990s 36 Monterey News, Wildlife Survey, 1991-94 37 Monterey News, Wildlife Survey, 1995 Series II: Subject area, research and correspondence, 1946-1996

This series contains field notes and correspondence with colleagues in the fields of anthropology and ethnomusicology. It also contains notes for courses and talks given by David McAllester in the United States and abroad. It is arranged alphabetically by topic.

 41 A Hilo Wau, 1964

Newspaper clipping on a federal case involving definition of the uli'uli and whether it is a musical instrument or not.

 42 American Indian Archaeological Institute, 1987-89

Bibliography for Robbins Swamp Project ('82-'88). Research program summer '87-fall '88.

 43 Anthropology, 1965-68

Correspondence relevant to anthropology.

 44 Australia, 1974-79

Correspondence, timetable, extensive handwritten notes for course taught in Australia summer 1978.

 45 Blessingway Film, 1957-64

Correspondence and notes on Blessingway film from its conception to creation.

 46 Blessingway texts, undated

Texts of Blessingway chants.

 47 Blessingway, 1964

25 pages of handwritten notes transcribing interview (with father of Frank Mitchell)?

 48 Brown, Bob, 1965

Correspondence with Bob Brown while he was in India.

 49 Brown University, 1988-97

Brown University: seminars in ethnomusicology taught fall '89 and spring 1990.

 410 Burrows, David, 1990

Galley proofs of Burrows' "Sound, Speech, and Music" Amherst: U Mass Press, 1990. Notes by DM.

 51 Cacioppo, Curt, 1982-85

Curt Cacioppo, composer/pianist. Snake Dance Trio score for flute, cello and piano. Two other compostitions as well.

 52 Chinle, AZ, 1963-68

Correspondence with Irene Mitchell and family.

 53 Chinle, AZ, 1982-99

Correspondence with Irene Mitchell and family.

 54 Coley, Kathleen, 1963

Paper by K. Coley. Editorial marks by David McAllester. His notes in front: list of names with symbols.

 55 Correspondence, 1973-74

Professional correspondence.

 56 Correspondence, 1975-76

Professional correspondence.

 57 Correspondence, 1980-85

Professional correspondence.

 58 Dawn Songs 1., 1963

Musical notations of 12 dawn songs/transcriptions of words plus 'Johnson's guide' (Frisbie). Some notes by D McA.

 59 Dawn Songs 2., undated

27 dawn songs attributed to Ray Winne, notated with words. Extensive handwritten notes by D McA.

 510 Dawn Songs 3., undated

Dawn songs 1-9 (missing #5) attributed to Smith. Accompanying notes by D McA.

 511 de Laguna, Frederica, 1966-68

Frederica de Laguna, Bryn Mawr, PA. Correspondece.

 61 Ethnomusicology, 1967

Correspondence.

 62 Ethnomusicology, 1974-78

Correspondence.

 63 Field study, 1950-52

Proposal for field study. Related subject materials.

 64 First Snake Song, Coyote's Song, 1957

Songs of Ray Winnie Lukachukai, transposed, notated and words transcribed.

 65 Frisbie, Charlotte, 1978-85

Correspondence with Charlotte Frisbie, especially regarding book in honor of Lee Wyman.

 66 Grove's Dictionary, 1982-85

Correspondence and contracts for entries to Groves made by D McA.

 67 Hinton, Leanne, undated

Thesis by Leanne Hinton.

 68 House songs, 1950, 1976

38 pages of handwritten notes on hogan (house) songs. Six pages of typed translations and notes.

 69 Interviews, Ramah, NM, 1950

Field study. Research interviews with 5 people in Ramah, NM. Questions about their songs and instruments.

 610 Isaacs, Tony, 1965

Project report for seminar in ethnomusicology 5/26/65.

 611 Kavasch, Barrie, 1986

Miscellaneous articles and leaflets on plants in American Indian life.

 71 Kelsey, John Russell, 1983-93

John Russell Kelsey, correspondence.

 72 Kudyapi, 1968

Photos taken of the musical instrument (kudyapi), in the Philippines.

 73 Lichtenfeld, Danny, 1993-94

Two papers and bibliography by Danny Lichtenfeld.

 74 Maps, undated

Miscellaneous maps.

 75 Matthews, Washington, c1992

Correspondence w/ Wheelwright Museum re: Matthews' wax cylinder recordings of Navajo music made early 1890's.

 76 Matthews, Washington, undated

"The Treatment of Ailing Gods" manuscript in the W. Matthews collection now in MNCA, Santa Fe, NM. 2 copies.

 77 Mitchell, Frank, 1974-80

"Navajo Blessingway Singer: The Autobiography of Frank Mitchell, 1881-1967". Photographs of Mr. Mitchell.

 78 Navajo poems, undated

Essay concerning 5 different translations of the same Navajo poem.

 79 Navajo specialists, museums, etc., 1967-68

Correspondence.

 710 Navajo specialists, museums, etc., 1969-71

Correspondence.

 81 Navajo specialists, museums, etc., 1972-79

Correspondence.

 82 Navajo Studies Conference, 1986

Navajo Studies Conference, Feb. 20-22, 1986. Albuquerque, NM.

 83 New Indian Music, 1975-76

Correspondence.

 84 New Indian Music, 1976

Field Notes I.

 85 New Indian Music, 1976

Field Notes II.

 86 New Indian Music, 1975-77

Newspaper clippings mostly from Navajo Times, some correspondence, all relating to new Indian music.

 87 New Indians: Brigham Young University, 1982-83

Sessions given at the American Indian National Self-Reliance Conference at Brigham Young University, March 9-11, 1983.

 88 Olin, Caroline, 1984

Olin, Caroline B. "Early Navajo Sandpainting Symbols in Old Navajoland: Visual Aspects of Mythic Images". Autographed

 89 Past jobs I., bulk 1950-65

Correspondence re: guest lectures, symposia, etc.

 810 Past jobs II., 1980-88

Correspondence re: guest lectures, symposia, etc.

 91 Past jobs II., 1980-88

Correspondence re: guest lectures, symposia, etc.

 91 Paul, Maggie, 1999

Correspondence re: recordings of Eastern woodlands native American music recorded by D McA in 1952.

 92 Pequot, 1994

Correspondence with Pequot tribe re:plans for archives for Eastern North American music at the Pequot Museum.

 93 Peyote research, 1946-47

Correspondence relevant to PhD thesis on peyote songs.

 94 Peyote controversy, 1951-56

Newspaper clippings, writings and correspondence.

 95 Peyote paper, 1967

Handwritten notes for paper.

 96 Religious Character of Native American Humanities, 1977

Correspondence and notes for paper given at conference at Arizona State University, April 14-16, 1977.

 97 Repatriation, bulk 1992-94

Correspondence re: repatriation of recordings of Navajo music made by DMcA. Transcription of interview, Jan 1993.

 98 Roberts, Helen, 1979

Bibliography of works by H. Roberts, chronology.

 99 Sacred Mountain Foundation, 1996

Legal paperwork establishing a Massachusetts chapter of this foundation.

 910 Saumaiwai, Chris, 1981-82

Chris Saumaiwai. Music of Fiji.

 911 Sligo Rover, 1993

Janet Whittle, Masters Thesis "The Sligo Rover": copy of paper and correspondence.

 912 Smith, Albert, 1955

Interview with Albert Smith of Navajo Nation. Handwritten field notes, typed notes. Story extracted and typed separately.

 913 Stafford, Evalyn and Gordon, 1987-89

Correspondence.

 101 Stafford, Evalyn and Gordon, 1990-92

Correspondence.

 102 Swing, Pamela, 1978-83

Correspondence with and student papers by Pamela Swing (incl. "Musical Toys in the Alexander Lazar Collection").

 103 Tokyo, 1980

4th International Symposium of the Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Property, Tokyo, August 6-9, 1980.

 104 Tumaco, Columbia, 1953

Transcripts of interviews done in Tumaco, Columbia by Tom _? Pages 1009-1132 plus one page appendix.

 105 World Music Program, history, 1964-75

Documentation, correspondence regarding establishment of World Music Program 1963.

 106 Worlds of Music, 1983-2000

Correspondence regarding publication of "Worlds of Music" edited by J. Titon, Schirmer Books.

 107 Wyman, Lee, 1961-80

Extensive correspondence with Lee Wyman, colleague and mentor. Scholar in Navajo studies.

108 Wyman, Lee, 1981-87

Extensive correspondence with Lee Wyman, colleague and mentor. Scholar in Navajo studies.

111 Wyman estate, 1980-81, 1989

Legal correspondence relating to estates of Lee Wyman and his wife.

 Series III: Correspondence,1940-1996

The correspondence in this series is arranged chronologically. Letters include carbon copies of letters sent by David McAllester as well as letters received by him. Correspondents include family, friends and colleagues.

 112 1940 113 1941 114 1942 115 1943 116 1944 117 1945 118 1946 119 1947 1110 1948 1111 1949 1112 undated, 1940s 1113 1950 1114 1951 1115 1952 1116 1953 1117 1954 1118 1955 1119 1956 1120 1957 1121 1958 1122 1959 121 undated, 1950s 122 1960 123 1961 124 1962 125 1963 126 1964 127 1965 128 1966 129 1967 1210 1968 131 1969, Jan-Apr 132 1969, May-Dec 133 undated, 1960s 134 1970 135 1971 136 1972 137 1973 138 1974 139 1975 141 1976 142 1977, Jan-Mar 143 1977, Apr-Dec 144 1978 145 1979 146 1980 147 1981 148 1982 151 1983 152 1984 153 1985 154 1986 155 1987 156 1988 157 1989 158 undated, '70s and '80s 159 undated, '70s and '80s 161 undated, '70s and '80s 162 1990 163 1991 164 1992 165 1993 166 1994 167 1995 168 1996 171 undated, 1990s Series IV: Personal History, 1941-1996

This series brackets David McAllester's professional life. It documents his time spent in the Civilian Public Service as a conscientious objector during World War II. This series also documents his activities during his retirement from 1986 to the present. Arrangement of this series is chronological.

 172 Conscientious Objector, 1941

Application for CO status.

 173 Cooperstown, NY, 1941-42

Correspondence, minutes of inter-camp meetings.

 174 Cooperstown, Camp Paper, 1941-43

Newsletter of Civilian Public Service (CPS) #12.

 175 Status of CPS #81, 1943-46

Correspondence: withdrawal of CPS#81 from AFSC administration.

 176 Epistles, Reporters et al., 1943-45

Newsletters/bulletins for CPS #81.

 177 Epistles, file copies, 1943-44

Complete sets of newsletters for CPS #81.

 178 Non Compos Mentis, 1943

Manuscript by patient at CT State Hospital.

 179 Creative Patient, 1943

Writings by patients for in house newspaper.

 1710 CT State Hospital, 1943-44

Writings by patients.

 181 Miscellaneous, bulk 1940s

Drawings, partial letters, clippings.

 182 Special treasures, 1952, 1956

Guggenheim fellowship application, misc. photos, etc.

 183 Monterey resources, 1975

Natural Resource Inventory and Land Use Plan for Monterey, Massachusetts.

 184 Celebrating David, 1982, 1986

Exhibit: Navajo Art. Retirement events.

 185 Mosquitoes, 1984

Information on Eastern encephalitis.

 186 Socially responsible investments, 1985-94

General information on topic.

 187 Advisory board, 1986-1996

Monterey News.

 188 Never Again Campaign, 1996

Japanese program promoting peace and cultural understanding.

 Series V: Susan McAllester, 1944-1994

Susan and David McAllester were married for over 50 years. This series contains letters written by Susan to David and also correspondence with her own friends. Some of the correspondence is arranged alphabetically by correspondent. The rest of the correspondence is chronological. This is the way the Folders were originally created.

 189 "Letters from Susan while she's laid up with lung", 1944 1810 Letters to Susan, 1944-1969 1811 Letters to Susan, 1970-75 1812 Letters to Susan, 1976-79 191 Letters to Susan, 1980-84 192 Letters to Susan, 1985-89 193 Letters to Susan, 1990-94 194 Correspondents, A-P 195 Correspondents, R-Z 196 Pancreatic cancer, 1994 Series VI: Photo Album, c1894

The single photograpah album in series VI is from the Park family of David McAllester's mother. Some of the photographs are labelled, but not all. Most of the photographs are tintypes.

 20 Photographs of the family of Maude Helen Park (McAllester)