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Claude and Catherine Simpson Papers, circa 1900-1988

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Simpson, Claude and Catherine
Title
Claude and Catherine Simpson Papers
Dates
circa 1900-1988 (inclusive)
Quantity
5 cubic feet
Collection Number
MG 115 (collection)
Summary
Correspondence, taped interviews, and photographs used for the Simpson's books on Priest Lake, Idaho history, North of the Narrows and Panhandle Personalities.
Repository
University of Idaho Library, Special Collections and Archives
Special Collections and Archives
University of Idaho Library
875 Perimeter Drive
MS 2350
Moscow, ID
83844-2350
Telephone: 2088850845
libspec@uidaho.edu
Access Restrictions

The collection is open to the public. Researchers must use the collection in accordance with the policies of the University of Idaho Special Collections and Archives.

Languages
This collection is in English.
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Biographical Note

Claude Lewis Simpson was born in Colton, Washington on December 15, 1906. He received a B.A. degree from Eastern Washington University and a B. Ed. and a M.A. degree from Washington State University (WSU). He taught eight years in public schools in Washington. In 1943, he was appointed Specialist in School Services at WSU. He was appointed the first Director of Admissions at WSU in 1946. In 1953 he became Registrar and Editor of the University Catalog. He was a founding member of the Priest Lake Coalition, Inc. He died in Spokane, Washington, in November 1999.

Catherine Diener Simpson was born near Wilbur, Washington. She attended grade schools in Alberta (Canada) and Washington. She is a graduate of Newport High School, Newport, Washington. She received a teaching certificate from Eastern Washington University and a B.A. degree from Washington State University. She taught grade school in Washington, Alaska, and New South Wales (Australia). During World War II she was secretary to the Dean of Men at WSU. For fourteen years she was Director of the Pullman Private Kindergarten and for three years was Kindergarten Coordinator for the Pullman Public Schools.

Claude and Catherine married on June 13, 1936. They had three children: Jack Simpson, Charles Simpson, and Peggy Simpson Yates, who preceded her father in death.

Claude and Catherine Simpson co-authored two books published by the University of Idaho Press entitled North of the Narrows: Men and Women of the Upper Priest Lake Country, Idaho (1981) and Panhandle Personalities: Biographies from the Idaho Panhandle (1984).

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Content Description

The research material of Claude and Catherine Simpson for their book about Priest Lake entitled North of the Narrows is contained in three archival file boxes which occupy approximately three linear feet of shelf space. They were donated to the University of Idaho Library by the Simpsons in October 1982.

The items in the collection include research notes, newspaper clippings, correspondence, several drafts of the manuscript and many photographs. Also included are 14 cassette tapes of interviews with six families closely associated with Priest Lake and 25 cassette recordings which were made in connection with Mr. Simpson's current project, a book to be entitled "Panhandle Personalities," which he hopes to complete in 1983. The photographs in the collection include many of the illustrations in North of the Narrows as well as related photographs which were not used.

The final series contains 15 notebook diaries (1943-1962) and five photograph albums which belonged to Warren P. Upham, a Forest Service timber cruiser in the Priest Lake region.

The contents of this archival group are related in more detail in the following Description of Series.

See the addendum at the end of this finding aid.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Claude and Catherine Simpson Papers, MG 115. Special Collections and Archives, University of Idaho Library, Moscow, Idaho.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Maintaining a regard for provenance, the basic research materials were left in their original order, i.e., the material in Series I is in alphabetical order, the printer's copy of the manuscript in Series II is in publication order. The remaining material in Series II has been arranged according to the type of material, e.g., correspondence, notes, clippings, reviews.

The first 113 photographs were numbered in accordance with the "figure" numbers in the book, therefore if no picture is available for a particular illustration the number has not been used. The remaining photographs were arranged by subject and numbered consecutively from 114 to 317. There are some prints and negatives which were not identified or did not relate to the Priest Lake area; these were left uncataloged and were placed at the end of the numbered photographs.

See the addendum at the end of this finding aid.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Detailed Description of the Collection

Finding aid prepared by Judith Nielsen. Updated by Laura Guedes
1983, 2013

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

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