Washo Indians Research Papers

Collection

Identifier: 99-20

Staff Only

The John A. Price Papers consists of 0.5 cubic feet of materials, dating from 1961-1988.

The papers include field notes; research notes; correspondence; reprints of some of Price's journal articles; and copies of draft manuscripts related to the Washo monographs. The collection includes field maps containing Luiseno Indian place names compiled when Price was an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at UCLA, 1965-1967. Other manuscripts related to much of his research in areas outside the Great Basin were donated to York University.

Dates

1961-1988

Creator

Price, John A. (Creator, Person)

Restrictions

Collection is open for research. Materials must be used on-site; advance notice suggested. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Extent

0.4 Linear Feet (17 folders)

Additional Description

Abstract

John A. Price was a former student of anthropologist Warren d'Azevedo at the University of Utah, spent his life studying Native Americans in the western United States and Canada. Includes field and research notes on the Washo Indians residing in Nevada and California, correspondence, obituaries, reprints of Price's professional journal articles, and copies of draft manuscripts related to his Washo monographs; field maps with Luiseno Indian place names; and thesis abstract. Notes include Price's copy of the manuscript he typed from Grace Dangberg's field notes on the Washo and his own interviews with Washo Indian Hank Pete. The collection contains a portion of the Washo claims case docket no. 228 entitled "Vocabularies of the North American Indians and field check lists, Pacific Coast region" by C. Hart Merriam (1961-1988).

Biographical Note

John A. Price 1933-1988, former student of anthropologist Warren d'Azevedo at the University of Utah, spent his life studying Native Americans in the western United States and Canada. Considered an expert on the Washo Tribe of Western Nevada, Price wrote his Masters of Arts thesis and many monographs on the Washo way of life and history: Washo Economy, 1962; The Washo Indians: History, Life Cycle, Religion, Technology, Economy and Modern Life, 1980; Washo Cultural Change, 1962; Washo Prehistory: A Review of Research, 1963; and Some Aspects of the Washo Life Cycle, 1963. All of these works were based on his field work done in Nevada and California in 1961.

In 1967, Price received his Ph. D. in Anthropology from the University of Michigan with his research based on Japanese market systems. Price also directed an ethnographic field school on diverse communities in Reno through San Diego State University which resulted in Twelve Doors to Reno, an ethnographic project regarding the city.

Price was a Professor of Anthropology at York University in Toronto, Canada when he died in 1988.

Arrangement

The papers of John A. Price are arranged in the following series:

Series 1: Correspondence, Vita, and Obituary

Series 2: Papers and Working Drafts of Publications

Series 3: Archaeology

Series 4: Reference Material

Series 5: Field Notes

Series 6: Field Maps with Luiseno Indian Place Names

Series 7: Thesis Abstract and Publications

Custodial History

Carolee Price, first wife of John Price, gave the papers to Warren d'Azevedo after Price's death. d'Azevedo subsequently donated the materials to the Special Collections Department.