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Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1935-2014

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Thompson, Laurence C.
Title
Laurence C. Thompson papers
Dates
1935-2014 (inclusive)
Quantity
approximately 62.48 cubic feet (81 boxes plus 1 vertical file)
Collection Number
1835
Summary
Papers of Laurence C. Thompson and M. Terry Thompson relating to the study of languages, particularly Salishan languages.
Repository
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions

Access restricted: For terms of access, contact Special Collections.

Some records stored offsite; advance notice required for use.

Request at UW

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Linguist Laurence C. Thompson (1926-) studied Salishan languages, Austroasiatic languages, and Vietnamese. He wrote and co-authored a number of texts including A Vietnamese Grammar (1965), A Vietnamese Reader (1961), and A Fresh Look at Tillamook Phonology (1966). He also worked with his partner M. Terry Thompson on Salishan linguistic research and they co-authored The Thompson Language (1992) and Thompson River Salish Dictionary (1998). The Thompsons studied Nlaka'pamuctsin (Thompson River Salish) for over thirty years and trained a number of graduate students during this fieldwork.

Laurence Cassius Thompson, Jr. was born in Manchester, New Hampshire on May 11, 1926. He received his BA, MA (1950), and PhD (1953) from Yale University. Thompson worked as a linguistics professor at the University of Hawaii for most of his career. Laurence and Maranell Lewise Terry married in Seattle, Washington in 1964.

Linguist M. Terry Thompson (1927-) studied Salishan languages. She co-authored The Thompson Language (1992) and Thompson River Salish Dictionary (1998) with her partner Laurence C. Thompson. M. Terry Thompson also edited Salish Myths and Legends: One People's Stories in 2008.

Maranell Lewise Terry was born in Colorado, Texas to Ross Lewis Terry and Emma Callie Nason. She married Laurence C. Thompson in Seattle, Washington in 1964.

Sources:

Ancestry.com. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1990 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

Jacobs, Travis Beal, and Benjamin R. Dixon. “Laurence Cassius Thompson, Jr.” In General Catalogue of Middlebury College: Bicentennial Edition. Middlebury, Vermont: Middlebury College Press, 2000, p. 363.

Taylor, Allan R. “Review of Thompson River Salish Dictionary.” International Journal of American Linguistics 64, no. 4 (1998): 398–404.

Texas Department of State Health Services. Texas Birth Certificates, 1903–1932. iArchives, Orem, Utah.

Washington State Archives; Olympia, Washington; Washington Marriage Records, 1854-2013; Reference Number: kingcoarchmc275541.

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Content Description

Materials include audio recordings, field notes, language notes, word lists, dictionaries, grammar books, research files, correspondence, video recordings, and scholarly papers. The field notes and interviews were primarily recorded by Laurence C. Thompson and M. Terry Thompson as well as L.C. Thompson’s students. The Thompsons interviewed numerous informants including Mabel Joe, Annie York, Mamie Henry, and others. Materials primarily document Bella Coola, Coast Salish, and Interior Salish--the three main families of Salishan languages.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Copyrights retained by creator. Contact Special Collections for details.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Organized into 11 accessions.

  • Accession No. 1835-001, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1954-1982
  • Accession No. 1835-019, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1968-1978
  • Accession No. 1835-020, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1987-1988
  • Accession No. 1835-021, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1989
  • Accession No. 1835-023, Laurence C. Thompson papers, approximately 1985-1995
  • Accession No. 1835-024, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1956-1986
  • Accession No. 1835-025, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1975-1983
  • Accession No. 1835-026, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1944-1994
  • Accession No. 1835-027, Laurence C. Thompson and M. Terry Thompson papers, 1935, 1950-1990
  • Accession No. 1835-028, Laurence C. Thompson papers, 1939, 1961-2009
  • Accession No. 1835-029, Laurence C. and M. Terry Thompson papers, 1950-2014

Preservation Note

Some records stored offsite; advance notice required for use.

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Detailed Description of the Collection