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Modoc Indian Songs and Documentation, 1934

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Spier, Leslie
Title
Modoc Indian Songs and Documentation
Dates
1934 (inclusive)
Quantity
0.3 linear feet, (1 box)
Collection Number
SHL002 (collection)
Summary
Leslie Spier recorded traditional songs sung by several Modoc tribal members in 1934. The collection consists of two audio tape cassettes of Modoc Indian songs and accompanying documentation.
Repository
Oregon Institute of Technology Libraries, Shaw Historical Library
Oregon Institute of Technology Libraries
3201 Campus Drive
Klamath Falls, OR
97601
Telephone: 5418851772
Fax: 5418851777
libtech@oit.edu
Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research use.

Languages
English, ,
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Biographical Note

Leslie Spier (December 13, 1893 – December 3, 1961) studied the Klamath Indians as well as Plains Indians and Indians of the Southwest during his career as an anthropologist. In 1920 he obtained his doctorate in anthropology from Columbia University and went on to work for the American Museum of Natural History and several major universities, spending the longest part of his career at the University of New Mexico. He conducted extensive field work, authored a number of important monographs, including Klamath Ethnography (1930) and served as editor of several important anthropological publications.

Singers on the recordings include Celia Lynch, Mrs. Usie George, Lizzie Schonchin and Peter Schonchin. Peter Schonchin (ca. 1858-1939) fought in the Modoc War. He was the son of Schonchin John, one of the Modoc leaders executed after the war. Lizzie Robinson Schonchin (1858-1940) was Peter's fifth wife. Celia Lynch (1853-1940) was a Modoc tribal member very knowledgeable about traditional practices.

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Content Description

This collection consists of two audio tape cassettes of Modoc Indian songs recorded by Leslie Spier in 1934 and accompanying documentation. Series I: Modoc Indian Songs includes songs are sung in Modoc, and possibly Paiute, Pit River, Klamath, and Shasta. Song topics include puberty songs, love songs, healing songs, and Ghost Dance songs. A number of song titles are undocumented. Recorded by Leslie Spier, possibly with assistance from Earl W. Count, in California in 1934. The tapes are second generation audio tapes, copies of cylinders. Sound quality is fair to poor.

Both tapes are numbered 54-038-F. One tape is a copy of EC 10" 984.2--41 on Side A and a copy of EC 10" 984.42--67 on Side B. The second tape is a copy of ATL 1124.31-32 on Side A. Side B of the second tape is blank.

Series II: Documentation includes a draft manuscript with English translations of some of the songs prepared by Earl W. Count with handwritten notes by George Herzog. English translations of some songs that were not recorded are also part of the draft manuscript. Musical notations by Earl W. Count of some of the recorded songs and some unrecorded songs are also included.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Before materials from the Shaw Historical Library may be quoted in print or otherwise reproduced in whole or in part in any publication, exhibit, broadcast or other manner, the user must obtain permission from the owner of the physical property and the holder of the copyright. Copyright status for collections in the Shaw Historical Library varies. Reproduction of any item must contain a complete citation to the original. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Preferred Citation

[item identification], Modoc Indian Songs and Documentation, The Shaw Historical Library, Oregon Institute of Technology, Klamath Falls, Oregon.

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Administrative Information

Location of Collection

Shaw Historical Library

Preservation Note

Audio cassette player required. Please contact library prior to visit.

Location of Originals

Leslie Spier deposited a collection of 7 12-inch, acetate, 78 rpm discs with the Archives of Traditional Music at Indiana University in Bloomington. The discs are first generation copies of the original cylinders.

Acquisition Information

Copied for the Shaw Historical Library by the Archives of Traditional Music, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.

Related Materials

A copy of Leslie Spier’s book Klamath Ethnography (1930) is in the holdings of the Shaw Historical Library.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Finding aid prepared by Anne Hiller Clark
2012

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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