Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
Robin MacNab Papers, 1944-1985
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- MacNab, Robin, 1915-1985
- Title
- Robin MacNab Papers
- Dates
- 1944-1985 (inclusive)19441985
- Quantity
- 5.6 linear feet
- Collection Number
- 2354
- Summary
- The Robin MacNab Papers consist of personal and professional papers, and photographs pertaining to MacNab's historical research, civic activities, talk radio program, personal life, interest in nineteenth century Montana history, interest in John Bozeman, bridge, and fishing. The collection also reflects MacNab's travels to historical sites and places of significance to enhance his historical research.
- Repository
-
Montana State University Library, Merrill G. Burlingame Special Collections
Montana State University-Bozeman Library
Merrill G Burlingame Special Collections
P.O. Box 173320
Bozeman, MT
59717-3320
Telephone: 4069944242
Fax: 4069942851
- Languages
- Sponsor
- Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Robin MacNab was born in Portland, Oregon on July 8, 1915. His parents, Robert B. and Melita Roberts MacNab moved to Missoula, Montana when he was in grade school. MacNab attended Shattuck Military School in Fairbault, Minnesota from 1928 to 1932 and received a B.A. in Home Economics emphasizing Hotel Management from Cornell University in 1936. He returned to Montana to manage the Baxter Hotel in Bozeman until 1957. During World War II, MacNab was stationed at Wildwood Naval Air Station in New Jersey. In 1946, he acquired the Edgar Paxon painting entitled "The Death of John Bozeman" which encouraged him to write his own history of John Bozeman. An avid bridge player, MacNab was a member of the World Bridge Federation for ten years, holding the office of president of the WBF in 1965, and served on the board of directors of the American Contract Bridge association for 27 years. In the 1950s, MacNab channeled his interest in national and local politics into a KBMN talk radio program. MacNab was a prolific writer. He wrote both fiction and non-fiction pieces as well as recording his bridge, fishing, and life experiences. As far as can be determined, his works were never published. MacNab died in Bozeman, Montana in March 1985.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
The Robin MacNab papers have been organized according to document type. Series 1 contains MacNab's correspondence and refers to his historical research, his civic activities, his talk radio program, and his personal life. Of particular interest is the correspondence with William Edgar Paxon (E.S. Paxon's son) and the historians Dan Thrapp and Merrill G. Burlingame. Series 2, MacNab's literary manuscripts, is arranged according to genre and reflects his interests in nineteenth century Montana history, John Bozeman, bridge, fishing, and his personal life. MacNab's history, "Execution at Cady Coulee" is found in four drafts. MacNab was most interested in delving into the conflicting accounts of who shot John Bozeman. Series 3, MacNab's collection of printed materials is divided into two subseries: those that relate to his historical research and those that he collected for personal reasons and his short story writings. During the 1970s, MacNab traveled to historical sites and places of significance to enhance his historical research. Series 4 contains the photos and negatives he created in the course of his research.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
Copyright for the literary works of Robin MacNab has been reserved by his son, Duncan MacNab of Bozeman, Montana.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Arrangement
Series 1 Correspondence, incoming and outgoing 1946-1983
Series 2 Literary Manuscripts
Series 3 Printed Materials
Subseries 1 Materials relating to historical research
Subseries 2 Materials relating to short stories and personal interests
Series 4 Photographs
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
1: Correspondence, incoming and outgoing, 1946-1983Return to Top
Personal and professional correspondence received or written by Robin MacNab. Incoming letters refer to MacNab's radio program, his historical research, his acquisition of Edgar Paxon's painting, "The Death of John Bozeman," his bridge playing, and personal letters. Of particular interest regarding his research on John Bozeman and nineteenth century Montana are the letters from historians Dan Thrapp and Merrill G. Burlingame. Of significance regarding the Paxon painting are the letters from and to William Edgar Paxon as well as those from Carl and Ella Gottschalck. MacNab's record of outgoing letters are scant until the 1970s and reflect his continuing interests in history, bridge, fishing and his personal life. Incoming letters are arranged alphabetically. Photocopies of MacNab's outgoing letters are arranged chronologically.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | "A Regular Listener" & "A Disgusted Listener" |
|
| 1 | 2 | Allexis, Alex |
|
| 1 | 3 | American Heritage |
|
| 1 | 4 | American Legion Auxiliary of Gallatin, Unit 14 |
|
| 1 | 5 | American Opinion: In Informal Review |
|
| 1 | 6 | Anderson, Marion |
|
| 1 | 7 | Badgett, Mark |
|
| 1 | 8 | Barkuloo, Laura Lee |
|
| 1 | 9 | Bechtel, Carson E., Mr. and Mrs. |
|
| 1 | 10 | Bendersky, Marion |
|
| 1 | 11 | Board of County Commissioners, Missoula County |
|
| 1 | 12 | Bozeman, C. Howard |
|
| 1 | 13 | Burke, Phyllis |
|
| 1 | 14 | Burlingame, Merrill G. |
|
| 1 | 15 | Burlington Northern Public Relations Department |
|
| 1 | 16 | Butte-Silver Bow Arts Foundation, Arts Chateau |
|
| 1 | 17 | Choate, Mark |
|
| 1 | 18 | Choate, Molly |
|
| 1 | 19 | Choate (MacNab), Robin Gayle |
|
| 1 | 20 | City of Bozeman Methodist Women |
|
| 1 | 21 | Clark, Bud |
|
| 1 | 22 | Clark County Historical Museum |
|
| 1 | 23 | Clark, H.H.H. |
|
| 1 | 24 | Collectors Institute, Ltd. |
|
| 1 | 25 | Corn, Ira G., Jr. |
|
| 1 | 26 | Craney, E.B. |
|
| 1 | 27 | Crosby, M. (Mrs. J.W.) |
|
| 1 | 28 | Dixie |
|
| 1 | 29 | Drew, Doug & Margaret |
|
| 1 | 30 | Duke, Dan |
|
| 1 | 31 | Erickson, Leif |
|
| 1 | 32 | Faylor, Reid |
|
| 1 | 33 | Gallatin County Republican Women's Club |
|
| 1 | 34 | Gannon, Fritz M. |
|
| 1 | 35 | Goldberg, Richard |
|
| 1 | 36 | Goldwater, Barry |
|
| 1 | 37 | Gottschalck, Carl |
|
| 1 | 38 | Gottschalck, Ella |
|
| 1 | 39 | Greater Montana Foundation |
|
| 1 | 40 | Griswold, Ruth M. (Mrs. George G., Jr.) |
|
| 1 | 41 | Hensleigh, Hellen |
|
| 1 | 42 | Hale, Dick |
|
| 1 | 43 | Hamilton, E.E. |
|
| 1 | 44 | Harrisberger, Mrs. W.E. |
|
| 1 | 45 | Hatfield, L. Stevens |
|
| 1 | 46 | Hazen, Lee |
|
| 1 | 47 | Hegland, L.R. |
|
| 1 | 48 | Heil, Yvonne |
|
| 1 | 49 | Historical Society of Montana |
|
| 1 | 50 | Hjelmstad, Agnes (Mrs. John) |
|
| 1 | 51 | Holmes, Jean |
|
| 1 | 52 | Housekeeper's Club |
|
| 1 | 53 | Huntly, Bruce |
|
| 1 | 54 | Jackson, Peter V. |
|
| 1 | 55 | Johnson, Mrs. Willis |
|
| 1 | 56 | Johnson, W.M. |
|
| 1 | 57 | Jones, Jefferson |
|
| 1 | 58 | Jones, Ruth (Mrs. Jefferson) |
|
| 1 | 59 | Khrushchev Visit Protest Committee |
|
| 1 | 60 | Kimmey, Mrs. Chas. F. |
|
| 1 | 61 | Kirby, Jos. W. |
|
| 1 | 62 | Klaboe, Harriet |
|
| 1 | 63 | Kornegay, E.W. Dan |
|
| 1 | 64 | Kuehn, Mrs. W.T. |
|
| 1 | 65 | Labrie, Jack |
|
| 1 | 66 | Ladner, Mildred D. |
|
| 1 | 67 | Leeper, Debbie |
|
| 1 | 68 | Lewis and Clark County Republican Woman's Club |
|
| 1 | 69 | Lightfoot, Anna G. |
|
| 1 | 70 | Lichtenberg, Winnie |
|
| 1 | 71 | Livingston Publishing Company |
|
| 1 | 72 | Louisiana State University Archives |
|
| 1 | 73 | MacCracken, Charles M. |
|
| 1 | 74 | MacGilvra, E.E. ("Boo") |
|
| 1 | 75 | Machlin, Jerome S. |
|
| 1 | 76 | MacNab, Duncan |
|
| 1 | 77 | Maurice |
|
| 1 | 78 | McConnell, Ruth (Mrs. L.W.) |
|
| 1 | 79 | McGeorge, Louisa C. |
|
| 1 | 80 | McLeod, Mary J. |
|
| 1 | 81 | Mills, Della |
|
| 1 | 82 | Mills, Mary |
|
| 1 | 83 | Miracle, Ralph |
|
| 1 | 84 | Missoula Museum of the Arts |
|
| 1 | 85 | Montana Historical Society |
|
| 1 | 86 | Montana State College--Athletic Program |
|
| 1 | 87 | Montana State College--Library |
|
| 1 | 88 | Montana State University, Bozeman--Library |
|
| 1 | 89 | Montana State University, Missoula--Department of History, Helen Autry Conrad |
|
| 1 | 90 | Montana State University, Missoula--Library |
|
| 1 | 91 | Moore, Dorothy Hawkins |
|
| 1 | 92 | Morris, Mrs. R. Wynne |
|
| 1 | 93 | Murphy, Pat |
|
| 1 | 94 | Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Company |
|
| 1 | 95 | Naveh, Yair |
|
| 1 | 96 | Nelson, Paul |
|
| 1 | 97 | Newlon, Harry |
|
| 1 | 98 | Nutter, Donald G. |
|
| 1 | 99 | Oaks, Alan W. |
|
| 1 | 100 | O'Meara, Molly |
|
| 1 | 101 | Paxon, William Edgar |
|
| 2 | 1 | Red Horn, Pete |
|
| 2 | 2 | Reno News Bureau |
|
| 2 | 3 | Republican State Central Committee |
|
| 2 | 4 | Richardson, R.K. |
|
| 2 | 5 | Richards, Colin |
|
| 2 | 6 | Ross, Gayla C. |
|
| 2 | 7 | Rubin, Carl B. |
|
| 2 | 8 | Saron, Bob |
|
| 2 | 9 | Sells, Bertha |
|
| 2 | 10 | Shattuck School |
|
| 2 | 11 | Sherril, Lena |
|
| 2 | 12 | Shields, Robert W. |
|
| 2 | 13 | Shiley Laboratories |
|
| 2 | 14 | Skaarland, June |
|
| 2 | 15 | Skoluik, Ernie |
|
| 2 | 16 | Smith, Mary Ellen |
|
| 2 | 17 | Spier, Julia G. |
|
| 2 | 18 | Stalcup, Delores |
|
| 2 | 19 | Stoddard, Peggy (Mrs. Thomas W.) |
|
| 2 | 20 | Talbot, Norma |
|
| 2 | 21 | Thackrey, Cora (Mrs. W.B) |
|
| 2 | 22 | Theus, Ed |
|
| 2 | 23 | Thrapp, Dan L. |
|
| 2 | 24 | Tillard, Don |
|
| 2 | 25 | Traparish, Teddy |
|
| 2 | 26 | Troy |
|
| 2 | 27 | Turner, James M. |
|
| 2 | 28 | Utter, Fred B. |
|
| 2 | 29 | Vince |
|
| 2 | 30 | Walker, Elizabeth |
|
| 2 | 31 | Whipple, Charles L. |
|
| 2 | 32 | White, I.E. |
|
| 2 | 33 | Wild, John G. |
|
| 2 | 34 | Williams, Albert D. |
|
| 2 | 35 | Wilson, Chris |
|
| 2 | 36 | Woodson, William B. |
|
| 2 | 37 | World Publishing |
|
| 2 | 38 | Wright, Mrs. Bill |
|
| 2 | 39 | Wright, Jean |
|
| 2 | 40 | Yaeger, Tammy |
|
| 2 | 41 | Yale University--Library, (The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library) |
|
| 2 | 42 | Miscellaneous Correspondence--Fragments and List of "People Wanting Book" |
|
| 2 | 43 | Outgoing Letters |
1946, 1959 |
| 2 | 44 | Outgoing Letters |
1962, 1969 |
| 2 | 45-53 | Outgoing Letters |
1972-1983 |
2: Literary manuscriptsReturn to Top
MacNab's history of John Bozeman and nineteenth century Montana, his journal and stories of bridge competitions, his personal journal often in short story format, his fishing stories, and one short history entitled, "The Gallatin Canyon" of unidentifiable authorship. MacNab's writings on John Bozeman are found in four drafts. The first three drafts are titled "High Noon at Mission Creek," MacNab considered changing the title of his third draft to "Incident at Cady Coulee." However, this title appears only on excerpts of his text, Chapters 35 & 71 which he sent to friends and historians requesting feedback and criticism. His fourth and final draft, "Execution at Cady Coulee" is over 1,000 pages long and is nearly 3 times the length of his original draft. "Bridge--Garden of Verse" is MacNab's record of his participation in bridge competitions outside of and throughout the United States. Folders 14-18 of Box 10 contain MacNab's speeches, poetry and short story ideas. The folders containing MacNab's short stories are labeled according to story titles unless otherwise indicated by the general label, "Various Titles." MacNab's detective novel, "The Case of the Discouraged Snake" is separated into folders by page numbers. Each file contains approximately 30 pages. Manuscripts are arranged according to genre. MacNab's historical writings are found in boxes 3-8, his bridge stories and personal notes are arranged chronologically in boxes 9-10, his short stories and detective novel are in box 11.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 3 | 1 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Introduction and Forward |
|
| 3 | 2-21 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Chapters 1-30 |
|
| 4 | 1 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Dedication and Forward |
|
| 4 | 2-25 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Chapters 1-67 and Bibliography |
|
| 5 | 1 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Dedication and Prologue |
|
| 5 | 2-24 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Chapters 1-50 |
|
| 6 | 1-9 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Chapters 51-70 |
|
| 6 | 10-13 | "High Noon at Mission Creek," Appendix to Chapters 2-71 |
|
| 6 | 14 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Acknowledgements & Prologue |
|
| 6 | 15-23 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Chapters 1-23 |
|
| 7 | 1-23 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Chapters-61 |
|
| 8 | 1-5 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Chapters 62-70 |
|
| 8 | 6-14 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Appendix to Chapters 1-70 |
|
| 8 | 15 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Appendix to page 1065 |
|
| 8 | 16 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Notations for correction of second draft |
|
| 8 | 17-19 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Notations for correction of third draft, chapters 1-70 |
|
| 8 | 20 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Notations for correction of third draft, general |
|
| 8 | 21 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Notes for Addendum and Epilogue |
|
| 8 | 22 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Drafts of Epilogue for third revision |
|
| 8 | 23 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," Bibliography |
|
| 8 | 24 | "Execution at Cady Coulee," List of Contributors |
|
| 8 | 25 | "Short History of John Bozeman," published in Bozeman Daily Chronicle |
1979 April 1 |
| 8 | 26 | "The Gallatin Canyon," author unknown |
|
| 9 | 1 | "Bridge--Garden of Verse," Table of Contents |
1950 April-1985 March |
| 9 | 2-19 | "Bridge--Garden of Verse" |
1950 April-1983 March 23 |
| 10 | 1-10 | "Bridge--Garden of Verse" |
1982 March 29-1984 October 19 |
| 10 | 11-13 | "Bridge--Garden of Verse," Notes |
|
| 10 | 14 | Speeches |
|
| 10 | 15 | Humor |
|
| 10 | 16 | Poetry |
|
| 10 | 17 | Phrases |
|
| 10 | 18 | Story Ideas |
|
| 11 | 1 | Short Stories "General Studies," "An Equation," "Priority," and "Side Street Vignette" |
|
| 11 | 2 | "Indictment" and "Dixie" |
|
| 11 | 3 | "Appointment in Bhopal," "Sad Sam," and "Cobb's Cure" |
|
| 11 | 4 | "Rhapsodist," "Club," "Buddy & Diz," and "The Contract" |
|
| 11 | 5 | "Letter to Raymond," "Report to the Board," and "Walter Revisited" |
|
| 11 | 6 | "Invictus, or How to Make Open Heart Surgery Real Fun," pp 1-30 |
|
| 11 | 7 | "Invictus" cont. |
|
| 11 | 8 | "Fishing Experiences," "On Dealing with The Authorities," "Enterprise," and "Peale Island" |
|
| 11 | 9-16 | Short Stories--Various Titles |
|
| 11 | 17-26 | "The Case of the Discouraged Snake" |
3: Printed materialsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | |
| 12 | 1 | Adams, John Quincy to Bozeman, John |
| 12 | 2 | Bozeman |
| 12 | 3 | Bridger, Jim to Constitution |
| 12 | 4 | Cover, Tom to Custer |
| 12 | 5 | Early American Settlement to Grasshopper Invasion |
| 12 | 6 | Gray, Zane to Johnson, Andrew |
| 12 | 7 | Johnson, "Liver Eating" to Louisiana Purchase |
| 13 | 1 | Manhattan to Missouri River |
| 13 | 2 | Montana to Paleontology |
| 13 | 3 | Paxon |
| 13 | 4 | Poker to Wild Horses |
| 13 | 5 | Pictures, Charts, and Maps: Buffalo to Datum |
| 13 | 6 | Pictures, Charts, and Maps: Declaration of Independence to Outlaws |
| 13 | 7 | Pictures, Charts, and Maps: Paxon |
| 13 | 8 | Pictures, Charts, and Maps: Scenery |
| 13 | 9 | Pictures, Charts, and Maps: Sites |
| 13 | 10 | Pictures, Charts, and Maps: Wildlife |
| 13 | 11 | Interviews |
| 14 | 1 | Athletics |
| 14 | 2 | Bridge Oriented |
| 14 | 3 | Cartoons |
| 14 | 4 | Civic Group Pamphlets and miscellaneous |
| 14 | 5 | Comic Strips |
| 14 | 6 | Humor |
| 14 | 7 | Indians |
| 14 | 8 | Investments |
| 14 | 9 | News Stories |
| 14 | 10 | Newsclippings on MacNab |
| 14 | 11 | Odds and Ends |
| 14 | 12 | Peanuts Strip |
| 14 | 13 | Personalities |
| 14 | 14 | Political |
| 14 | 15 | Pornographic |
| 14 | 16 | Publishing Companies |
| 14 | 17 | Quotations |
| 14 | 18 | Talks & Addresses |
4: PhotographsReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | |
| 14 | 20 | Photographs #1-49 |
| 14 | 21 | Negatives #1-27 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Authors, American-Montana-Bozeman
- Bridge players-Montana-Bozeman
- Contract bridge
- Fishers-Montana-Bozeman
- Fishing
- Historians-Montana-Bozeman
- Radio broadcasters-Montana-Bozeman
- Radio programs-Montana-Bozeman
- Talk shows-Montana-Bozeman
Personal Names
- Bozeman, E. S., 1852-1919
- Bozeman, John, 1835-1867
- Burlingame, Merrill G. (Merrill Gildea), 1901-1994-Correspondence
- Paxson, William Edgar-Correspondence
- Thrapp, Dan L-Correspondence
Geographical Names
- Montana--Fiction
- Montana--History--19th century
Form or Genre Terms
- Fiction
- Nonfiction
- Personal papers--Montana--Bozeman
- Short stories
Kim Allen Scott, 2009. Updated by Heather Mulliner, 2022.
2022
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
