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June 20, 2002
UNM LIBRARY OPENS THREE MANUSCRIPT COLLECTIONS
Collection includes 52 oral histories on roadside crosses of NM
The University of New Mexico General Library's Center for Southwest Research
announces the following manuscript collections open and available to researchers:
Roadside Crosses of New Mexico Oral History Project:
This oral-history collection documents reflections and meanings given
to roadside crosses, or "descansos" in New Mexico. The project
brings a deeper awareness of the Spanish descanso tradition to the public
by documenting the historical origins, contemporary cultural history,
and geographical locations of descansos in New Mexico. Traditionally,
the descanso was a cross placed in the ground to mark the spot where
mourners rested the coffin while on the walk from the home of the deceased
person to the cemetery. With the introduction of the automobile, the
tradition evolved to mark the place of death for victims of traffic
or pedestrian accidents. The collection contains 35 interviews with
52 respondents. (MSS 680 BC)
Robert W. Young Papers:
Works and materials written and gathered by UNM Linguistics Professor
Emeritus Robert W. Young, the collection contains published and unpublished
manuscripts, data, handwritten and typed notes, memoranda, news clippings,
papers, court cases and correspondence concerning linguistics (Athabaskan
- Navajo), anthropology, history, BIA relations with the Navajo, and
Navajo Nation Tribal records from 1880 to 1992. The collection is divided
into six overlapping series: linguistics, history/anthropology, Navajo
condition, government relations and other Native American related publications.
(MSS 672 BC).
Witter Bynner Collection:
Generated and gathered by Evelyn Ortner while researching her master's
thesis, "'By Nature a Sociable Fellow' A Study of the Life and
Literary Relationships of Witter Bynner" (Drew University, 1973),
the collection's core consists of correspondence by, about and to Witter
Bynner. Ortner's correspondence with Bynner dates from 1953-1964. Their
conversations shed light on Bynner's writings and writing process, as
well as his personal relationships, health issues, and the literary
and arts scene of the time. Bynner writes to Ortner from his home in
Santa Fe, New Mexico as well as Chapala, Mexico. Ortner's correspondence
with Bynner's friends, colleagues, and acquaintances provides personal
recollections of Bynner and his social circle, which included Haniel
Long, Sara Teasdale, Paul Horgan, D. H. Lawrence and others. (MSS 681
BC)
Finding aids to these collections are available in the Anderson Reading
Room, Zimmerman Library, and will soon be available via the Online Archive
of New Mexico at http://elibrary.unm.edu/oanm/.
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