MS 75 Edward H. Davis Collection

Summary Information

Repository
San Diego History Center Document Collection
Creator
Davis, Edward H., b. 1862
Title
Edward H. Davis Collection
ID
MS 75
Date [inclusive]
1884-1948
Extent
5.5 Linear feet (14 boxes)
Language
English
Abstract
Collection contains Edward H. Davis’ 62 notebooks and pages of field notes as well as drafts of many articles he wrote for publication.

Preferred Citation

Edward H. Davis Collection, MS 75, San Diego History Center Document Collection, San Diego, CA.

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Biographical / Historical Notes

Edward H. Davis (1862-1951) was a ranch owner in Mesa Grande, California. Originally from Brooklyn, New York, he was the son of sea captain Lewis S. Davis and Christine Smith Davis. Davis attended grammar and high school in the Brooklyn public school system and then went on to art school where he developed his sketching and drafting skills. While in New York, he worked in the accounting office of Jonas Smith Co., his family’s shipping company.

At the age of twenty-two, ill with Bright’s disease and wishing to improve his health through a change of climate, Davis headed west. Sailing from the East Coast through the Panama Canal, he arrived in San Diego in January 1885. Davis soon found work as a surveyor with T.S. Van Dyke, running a survey from the San Diego River into El Cajon Valley. He also worked as a draftsman, drawing maps and house plans. He studied architecture in 1887 and helped to draw the plans for the Hotel del Coronado. In October 1885, he returned briefly to New York to marry Anna Marion (Anna May) Wells and returned with her to settle in San Diego. They had four children, Harvey, Stanley, Marion and Irving.

In 1887, Davis made a considerable profit on the sale of a lot in downtown San Diego which he and his father originally purchased for $2,500. This sale allowed him to acquire 320 acres in Mesa Grande, approximately 60 miles northeast of San Diego. In February 1888, Davis moved Anna May, his son Harvey, Anna May’s mother Mrs. Sophronia Bellows Wells, his brother-in-law Benjamin Wells and brother Irving Davis to a small cabin on the property. Davis learned various farm skills and eventually developed the land into a working ranch, raising cattle and growing fruit, notably cherries, on the ranch he named Cereza Loma. Davis also served as Deputy County Assessor in 1902 and Justice of the Peace in 1903.

Fascinated by Indian life and culture, Davis became friends with his neighbors, the Indians of Mesa Grande. In 1907, he became a ceremonial chief of the tribe which allowed him to participate in their meetings and ceremonies.

His interest in Indian culture soon led him to collecting Indian artifacts. Davis was concerned by what he saw as the loss of traditional Indian way of life and the decimation of their population by disease. Convinced that evidence of Indian culture should be preserved for historical, educational, and museum purposes, Davis began collecting mortars, metates, bows, arrows, stone implements and other household items. Davis also did advocacy work on their behalf and ran food and clothing drives, distributing goods during the winter to the most needy.

As a natural hoarder, he filled up the small adobe building he built to store his collection of Indian artifacts. He valued his collection at $6,000 but discovered that it would have no tangible value unless cataloged. He began the work of recording the history of each object. His efforts proved fruitful because in 1915, a representative from the Museum of the American Indian (now part of the Smithsonian) visited Davis and purchased nearly his entire collection.

The following year, George Gustav Heye, founder of the Museum of the American Indian, hired Davis as a field collector of ethnological specimens. Working from 1917 to 1930 on behalf of the Museum, Davis’ collecting duties focused on the Indian tribes of San Diego County/Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, and northwestern Mexico. He would eventually visit over two dozen tribes and travel over tens of thousands of miles by wagon, horseback, boat, train, car and foot. The tribes he visited included the Paipai, Kiliwa, Cora, Huichol, Opata, Mayo, Seri, Apache, Cocopa, Tohono O’odham, Papago, Maricopa, Mojave, Hualapai, Yaqui, and Yuma Indians.

In 1915, Davis built the Powam Lodge, a summer resort designed by Emmor Brooke Weaver. The lodge, whose name means “place of rest,” provided visitors a place to enjoy San Diego’s back country and listen to the tales of Davis’ experiences as a collector. Davis encouraged the neighboring Kumeyaay Indians to make and sell their pottery and basketry at the lodge which served as a showcase for their skills.

Davis’ skills in art and photography allowed him to preserve and capture what he saw to be a disappearing way of life. He was able to document a range of Indian experiences, from the everyday to ceremonial. Also a gifted-storyteller and writer, his adventures were recorded in articles published in Desert Magazine,  The Scientific Monthly,  Touring Topics,  San Diego Business and  Indian Notes and Monographs.

Davis operated the Powam Lodge until it was destroyed by a fire in 1930. He continued to take short trips throughout southern California and to Arizona in his seventies and eighties.

Edward Harvey Davis passed away at the age of 89 in 1951.

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Scope and Content

This collection contains Edward Davis’ 62 notebooks and pages of field notes as well as drafts of many articles he wrote for publication. The notebooks and field notes contain stories, illustrations, observations, expense accounts, and other details from Edward Davis’ life. These primarily relate to the various Indian tribes he visited as well as family life at Powam Lodge, and other trips he made. Some of the Indian tribes mentioned include: Luiseno, Cahuilla, Diegueno, Campo, Cocopah [Cocopa], Papago [Tohono O’Odham], Apache, Yuma, Seri, Yaqui, Cora, Pima, Maricopa, Hualapai, Kiliwa, and Comeyi [Kumeyaay or Kamia]. Also included are transcriptions and photocopies for some of the notebooks and field notes. In addition, two reels of microfilm as well as digital files on CDs contain preservation copies of the notebooks and field notes. The collection also includes drafts of articles, essays, poetry, and notes written by Davis. There are also numerous items of personal correspondence between Davis, his mother, and his father. Also included are hand-drawn maps and sketches, newspaper articles, and receipts. Of note, there is a copy of an article on Edward H. Davis, by Davis as told to John Edwin Hogg, entitled “The Pursuits of a Museum Collector” published in Touring Topics, October 1931.

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Arrangement

Collection is arranged into series:

Series I: Notebooks and Field Notes

Series II: Transcriptions and Photocopies of Notebooks and Field Notes

Series III: Essays, Articles, Notes and Poetry

Series IV: Correspondence

Series V: Miscellanea

Series VI: Preservation Copies of Notebook and Field Notes

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

San Diego History Center Document Collection December 2012

1649 El Prado, Suite 3
San Diego, CA, 92101
619-232-6203

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research. Access to the notebooks and field notes is restricted to the microfilm and digital copies, as the originals are very fragile.

Conditions Governing Use

The San Diego History Center (SDHC) holds the copyright to any unpublished materials. SDHC Library regulations do apply.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Accession number is 860507.

Processing Information

Collection processed by Jane Kenealy and Stephanie Mirkin on December 2012.

Collection processed as part of grant project supported by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) with generous funding from The Andrew Mellon Foundation.

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Related Materials

Related Archival Materials

Edward H. Davis Collection (photographs) can be accessed at: https://sandiegohistory.org/davis/collection.

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Controlled Access Headings

Geographic Name(s)

  • Arizona
  • California
  • San Diego (Calif.)
  • San Diego County (Calif.)

Personal Name(s)

  • Davis, Edward H., b. 1862

Subject(s)

  • Apache Indians
  • Cahuilla Indians
  • Campo Indians
  • Cocopa Indians
  • Cora Indians
  • Diegueno Indians
  • Hualapai Indians
  • Indian reservations
  • Indians — Languages
  • Indians of Mexico
  • Indians of North America
  • Kamia Indians
  • Kiliwa Indians
  • Luiseno Indians
  • Maricopa Indians
  • Pima Indians
  • Seri Indians
  • Tohono O’odham Indians
  • Yaqui Indians
  • Yuma Indians

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Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Notebooks and field notes are very fragile and access is restricted to the microfilm and digital copies.

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Comments

We are assuming that the notebooks and field notes are in the original order made by Edward H. Davis. Folder titles refer to titles visible on the microfilm made presumably by Davis. Scope and content notes refer to notes on the envelopes now housing the notebooks and field notes and made by SDHC at a later date.

State Parks Transcription Project (SPTP): A 2004-2005 project to transcribe some of the notebooks using the microfilm copy.

The majority of the other transcriptions were completed separately by Anita Williams.

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Collection Inventory

 Series I: Notebooks and Field Notes

Box-folder Reel
“Trip to California,” 1884, 1902

Scope and Content:

Trip from the East Coast through the Panama Canal to San Francisco, with visits to Mexican West Coast cities and towns. Desert trip to Borrego and map (1902). (Fragile)

1:1 Reel 1, Notebook 1
“1893 World’s Fair, Fight at Warners & Coyote 1899,” 1893, 1899

Scope and Content:

1893-World’s Fair. Fight at Warners & Coyote 1899. Fight at Warners and Coyote of 1850 as told by Marco, March 1899.

1:2 Reel 1, Notebook 2
“Nov 28 to Jan 30, To Tijuana and back to Mesa Grande, then to Yuma, Indians there, River trip down to Colorado to Col. Lerdo, Hardy River, El Mayor, Cocopa,” 1896, 1897

Scope and Content:

November 28 to January 30. Trip to Tijuana and back to Mesa Grande, then to Yuma, Indians there. River trip down Colorado to Col. Lerdo, Hardy River, El Mayor, Cocopa. (No cover)

1:2B Reel 1, Notebook 2B (no cover)
(no title), 1902, 1903, 1930

Scope and Content:

Clothing to Indians at La Joya and Rincon. (Four loose pages at beginning of notebook – different paper)

Philosophizing on the desert. Description of Desert. Assault of Indian policeman Salvador Duro of Mesa Grande. Attempted robbery of James A. Gadney (Jan 5, 1893) Diegueno Rain Dance. “Tragedy of the boarding school” Indian Funeral. Diegueno Indian Tradition. Eagles, rattlesnakes. Notes on Indian tradition of Capitan Grande. Manner of poisoning arrows. Removal of San Felipe Indians. Fiesta de Los Muertos. Salvador Duro charged with attempted murder. El Dia de los Muertos (Nov 2, 1903)

1:3 Reel 1, Notebook 3
“Vocabulary – Diegueno,” 1903

Scope and Content:

Vocabulary – Diegueno. Artifact drawings. (Very Fragile)

1:4 Reel 1, Notebook 4
(no title), 1903

Scope and Content:

Accounts. Languages. Lithia Mine. Natural foodstuffs of Indians. Loco weed. “My Trip to Coyote Assessing and Collecting.” Drawings of artifacts. John Joe Adams comments on Indian events. Agua Caliente Indian Removal. Indianapolis – comments. Cattle, people – comments. Morton Smith’s house – drawing. Indian place names near Mesa Grande. Story of the mythical being’s footprint. Indian medicine. Toloache fiesta. Wildcat Dance – drawing. Peon game (gesture drawings).

2:5 Reel 1, Notebook 5 (no cover)
“Trip to relieve Campo Indians,” 1904

Scope and Content:

Trip to relieve Campo Indians.

2:6 Reel 1, Notebook 6
“Frank Fox killed – 1890,” 1904

Scope and Content:

Story of Frank Fox killing in 1890, with drawing of burial stones. Indian basketry story. Indian financial and mathematical problems.

2:7 Reel 1, Notebook 7
“Expenses,” 1906

Scope and Content:

Expenses, lists, drawings and diagrams, artifacts mentioned.

2:8 Reel 1, Notebook 8
“Trip through Arizona – East Grand Canyon,” 1906

Scope and Content:

Trip through Arizona – East Grand Canyon. Narrative of Grace G. Harvy, photographer in S.F. Earthquake. Landscape drawings. Acoma.

2:9 Reel 1, Notebook 9
“Image Ceremony Koo-Rook at Wee-a pipa Aug 24-30, 1908. Death Dance Holsh-roy Ne Mulp. Mesa Grande Nov 13-18, 1908,” 1908

Scope and Content:

Image Ceremony Koo-Rook at Wee-a pipa Aug 24-30, 1908. Death Dance Holsh-roy Ne Mulp. Mesa Grande Nov 13-18, 1908. Description and drawings of image manufacture and ceremonial place. Descriptions of trip to Inaja Rancheria with Marion. Information on Indian foods and counting. “Yellow Sky” – description of dance ceremony.

2:10 Reel 1, Notebook 10
“San Francisco Trip, Redwoods, Santa Cruz,” 1909

Scope and Content:

San Francisco Trip, Redwoods, Santa Cruz, Lotario Duro counting, house plans

2:11 Reel 1, Notebook 11
“Mt. San Jacinto Trip, July,” 1911

Scope and Content:

Mt. San Jacinto Trip- July. Drawings of: Warner’s Ranch Old Store, cabin, Maria’s house, San Ygnacio, Sunrise Peaks, acorn storage baskets, Lost Valley, rock formations at top of pass to Chihuahua, rock art in Hemet Valley, Cahuilla Valley, Strawberry Valley, San Jacinto, old pine, cabin, San Jacinto, trees, camp, Hidden Valley. Rough map of trip.

2:12 Reel 1, Notebook 12
“Trip to Stonewall Peak. Some vocabulary words,” 1911-1912

Scope and Content:

Trip to Stonewall Park. Household notes and expense list. Information about Locario Chavish of Rincon. Description of Juan Sotelo Trip to Cuyamaca for Indian things with Jose Agua. Trip to Los Conejos Reservation.

2:13 Reel 1, Notebook 13
“Indian Customs, Words,” 1912, 1916

Scope and Content:

Image in the cave ceremony. Joe Watch, Stonewall Mountain. Word list. Diary of the Great Storm, Jan 14-30, 1916.

2:14 Reel 1, Notebook 14
“Original Indian Catalog, No. 2,” 1913

Scope and Content:

Original Indian Catalog, No. 2. Numbers, drawings and descriptions of many artifacts and their origins. (Fragile)

3:15 Reel 1, Notebook 15
“Desert Notes Oct-Nov 1917, Collecting Trip, Martinez – Toro, Palm Springs, Martinez, Cahuillas,” 1917

Scope and Content:

October Desert Trip. Description of collecting, people, a death ceremony. List of expenditures. Palm Springs, Coachella, Banning, Image Burning ceremony. Lists and catalogue of artifacts. Fig Tree John

3:16 Reel 1, Notebook 16
“Banning – 1917, Palm Springs, Martinez Cahuillas,” 1917

Scope and Content:

Banning, Palm Springs, Martinez Cahuillas. List of purchases, Cahuilla vocabulary.

3:16A Reel 1, Notebook 16A (No number / consecutive to Notebook 16)
“Trip to Salton Sea,” 1912

Scope and Content:

Trip to Salton Sea. Vocabulary. Trip to find ollas near San Felipe Cañon. Drawings of ollas, and of palm leaf skirt. Burial ollas, description of cremation.

3:17 Reel 1, Notebook 17
“Banning, Sobaba, Cahuilla, Willie Boy, Nov 1917,” 1917

Scope and Content:

Banning, Sobaba, Cahuilla, Willie Boy, People, stories, shipping artifacts to Heye.

3:17A Reel 1, Notebook 17A (No number / consecutive to Notebook 17)
“Arizona Collecting Trip,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Arizona Collecting Trip- Dec. 26, 1918. Cocopah, Yuma, Pima, Papago.

3:18 Reel 1, Notebook 18
“Arizona Trip Dec 1918,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Arizona trip, December expenses. Catalog.

3:18A Reel 1, Notebook 18A (No number / consecutive to Notebook 18)
“July 1918 Image Ceremony Wa Koo-Rook, Campo-Yuma, Cremation-Yuma,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Image Ceremony Wa Koo-Rook, Campo-Yuma, Cremation-Yuma. Drawings of: mourning people, images, diagrams of ceremony, “shield man”, “bow man”, “carrying the image”, “end view of funeral pyre”, man chanting and playing a box-drum and rhythm stick.

3:19 Reel 1, Notebook 19
“Dec. 1918 Notes on Arizona Trip,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Notes on Arizona Trip. Cocopah. Description of Frank Tehana, of Yuma/Cocopah living conditions. Drawings of: fishing with net, cradleboard, Somerton, collecting, trip to Casa Grande, mixing bowl and basket, metates, baskets, Pima chin stripes, Casa Grande ruins, Sacaton Flats collecting, Blackwater, Papago village, graves, Swastika on baskets. Pima villages, rock art, history. Casa Blanca.

3:20 Reel 1, Notebook 20
“Campo Ollas. Mar. 1918 Desert Mortuary Ollas. May 1918,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Campo Ollas. Desert + Mortuary Ollas. Drawings of ollas and other artifacts.

4:21 Reel 1, Notebook 21
“Yuma – July 1918. Koo-Rook Ceremony,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Yuma – July 1918. Koo-Rook Ceremony. List of expenditures, list of photos, few notes on Yuma.

4:22 Reel 1, Notebook 22
“Locario Chavish July 2-3-4 1918 Blind Indian,” 1918

Scope and Content:

Blind Indian, Locario Chavish, Rincon. Description of his efficiency in easily gathering wood and known for many other accomplishments.

4:22A Reel 1, Notebook 22A (no cover) (No number / consecutive to Notebook 22)
“Arizona Notes. Sept 6-Nov 24 1919,” 1919

Scope and Content:

Yuma Koo-Rook ceremony, with drawings. Mojave Indian Buckeye, Globe, Tempe Mesa, Prairie Schooner by the Salt River. Rice. White River Agency. Cibique, Grasshopper and Oak Creek, Apache, Malpais Mesa Pictographs.

4:23 Reel 1, Notebook 23
“Papago catalogue (1918-1919). Apache catalogue (1918-1919). San Carlos. Rice, Bylos, Geronimo,” 1919

Scope and Content:

Papago catalogue (1918-1919). Apache catalogue (1918-1919). San Carlos. Rice, Bylos, Geronimo.

4:23A Reel 1, Notebook 23A (No number / consecutive to Notebook 23)
“1920 Mojave, Maricopa,” 1920

Scope and Content:

Mojave, Maricopa. List of purchases and expenses.

4:23B Reel 1, Notebook 23B (No number / consecutive to Notebook 23A)
“July-Aug 1920 Papago Ceremony, Sonoma, Quito Vaca.” (very fragile), 1920

Scope and Content:

Papago Ceremony – Sonora Quito Vaca. Menager store and its surroundings. Ajo. Legend of Quitovaca Ceremony. Ka o ho ta (Rainbow, storyteller). Diagrams of ceremony, drawings of costume, people, paraphernalia, structure for Saguaro fruit harvest.

4:24 Reel 1, Notebook 24
(no title), 1920

Scope and Content:

Dec 30, 1920 Maricopa – Pima Reservation

4:25 Reel 1, Notebook 25 (no cover)
“Arizona 1920-1921. ‘Chimehueva’. Mojave – Hualapai. Mojave – Apache. Maricopa,” 1920

Scope and Content:

Arizona notes

4:25A Reel 1, Notebook 25A (No number / consecutive to Notebook 25)
“Vol. I Yuma ceremony Oct 13-19 1921,” 1921

Scope and Content:

Yuma ceremony Oct 13-19 1921. Koo-Rook Ceremony, description of participants. Killing of the war eagles. Long hair. Images. Mourning procedure.

5:26 Reel 1, Notebook 26 (no number / displayed last)
“Vol. II Oct 1921 Yuma Ceremony,” 1921

Scope and Content:

Yuma Koo-Rook Ceremony: Description and Drawings

5:26A Reel 1, Notebook 26A (no number / displayed consecutive to 26B)
“Vol. III Yaqui Indians Tucson, Arizona March-April 1921,” 1921

Scope and Content:

Yaqui ceremonies at Tucson. Matachina, Coyote dance masks.

5:26B Reel 1, Notebook 26B (no number / displayed first)
“Seri and Yaqui words,” 1922

Scope and Content:

Seri and Yaqui words.

Structure of Yuma images and their design. Illustrations. Purchases and expenditures. Notes on Tepehuanes, arahumares, Cora.

5:27 Reel 1, Notebook 27 (no number / displayed last)
“Vol. II Dec, 1922 Indian Notes. Chemehuevas – Calif and Nevada. Cocopahs – Calif and Sonora,” 1922

Scope and Content:

Chemehuevas – California and Nevada. Cocopahs – California and Sonora. Notes on customs.

5:27A Reel 1, Notebook 27A (no number displayed first)
“Campo trip. Dec. 1923-Fall 1924,” 1923-1924

Scope and Content:

Campo Trip. Word lists. Rosa preparing acorn meal. Campo people: Hilschmeup. December and Fall.

5:28 Reel 1, Notebook 28
“Seri Indians. Yaqui Indians,” 1924

Scope and Content:

Drawings. Vocabulary. Harpooning sea turtles. Seri dress and undress. Tiburon Island. Dwellings. Artifacts. Driving off killer whales, foods. Threshing seaweed. Chief Coyote Iguana. Kids sliding on inverted turtle shells. Pithaya and Saguaro harvest, (some drawings)

5:28A Reel 1, Notebook 28A
(no title), 1926

Scope and Content:

Expenses. Indian place names. Photo list. Paipai and Kil-ewa.

5:28B Reel 1, Notebook 28B (no number / consecutive to Notebook 28A)
“Pima. Story of Lewis Nelson (1924), Diegueno Indian words, Place Names, Cameo of Mesa Grande,” 1924

Scope and Content:

Pima Blackwater, December. Story of Lewis Nelson. Paul Jones, 97 years old. Diegueno Indian words. San Diego County place names.

5:29 Reel 1, Notebook 29
“Trip to Santa Rosalie, La Paz, and Cabo San Lucas,” 1926

Scope and Content:

Trip to Santa Rosalie, La Paz, and Cabo San Lucas. List of photos, expenditures. Cochimi. Addresses. Inventory.

5:30 Reel 1, Notebook 30
“Stone Tubes,” 1927

Scope and Content:

Drawings of stone tubes found near Julian.

5:30A Reel 1, Notebook 30A
“Acomita Track July 1928. (Acct with Geo Heye), Listing of Lots (with acres, number of trees, and prices),” 1928-1929, 1948

Scope and Content:

Acomita Track July 1928. Listing of Lots (with acres, number of trees, and prices). Notes on materials and photos sent to Geo. Heye in New York.

6:31 Reel 1, Notebook 31
(no title), 1908, 1930

Scope and Content:

Expenses, descriptions of artifacts, drawing of (steatite) stone tube. List of old Indians at Rincon reservation. Comments on old things at Pechanga. Use of cahon for fire dance.

6:32 Reel 1, Notebook 32 Large version of drawing of Steatite stone tube also at end of Reel 2 (Consecutive to E.H. Davis Drawings)
“Nate Harrison, Joshua Smith, Bill Nelson. Image ceremony at Palm Springs. Personalities. Palomar 1932,” 1930-1932

Scope and Content:

Image ceremony at Palm Springs. Personalities. Palomar. Nate Harrison, Joshua Smith, Bill Nelson.

6:32B Reel 1, Notebook 32B
“1931 A to Nuck (Puberty ceremony),” 1931

Scope and Content:

Puberty ceremony. Accounts. Campo trip. Diegueno words.

6:33 Reel 1, Notebook 33 (no number / displayed last)
“Vol. II Trip to Arizona,” 1931

Scope and Content:

Trip to Arizona, June. Includes trip to the Shrine of the Martyred Children.

6:33A Reel 1, Notebook 33A (no number / displayed first)
“Poway. Trip to Long Island. Poem ‘Repose,'” 1932

Scope and Content:

Trip to Long Island. Place drawings. Diegueno words. Addresses. Poem “Repose”

6:34 Reel 2, Notebook 34
“Blair Valley rock art. Painted Gorge. Yuha desert. Alverson Canyon. Carriso Gorge. Portrait of Davis by Ivan. Campo Indians. Mission Indian Federation. Spanish shipwreck. Julian. Borrego Palm Canyon. ‘My Philosophy.’ Stoneybrook-Calif. Texas-Phoenix-Long Beach.” 1932-1933

Scope and Content:

Expenses. Addresses. Blair Valley rock art. Painted Gorge. Yuha desert. Alverson Canyon. Carriso Gorge. Portrait of Davis by Ivan. Campo Indians. Barona. Mission Indian Federation. Palomar Mountain. Spanish shipwreck. Julian. Borrego Palm Canyon. “My Philosophy.” Trip from Stony Brook, NY, back to CA, by way of DC and other historic locales. Texas-Phoenix-Long Beach.

6:35 Reel 2, Notebook 35
“Camera Book. Stony Brook & L.I. – 1932, Mesa Grande- Campo – 1933-34, Hermosillo & Seris – 1934, 1936, Cahuilla -1935,” 1932-1936

Scope and Content:

Camera Book. Listing of photos taken. Stony Brook and Long Island 1932. Mesa Grande and Campo 1933-34. Hermosillo and Seris 1934, 1936. Cahuilla 1935.

6:35A Reel 2, Notebook 35A
“Koo-Rook ceremony, Yuma,” 1933, 1934

Scope and Content:

Koo-Rook ceremony at Yuma, (with pencil drawings of ceremony) Inquiry about stolen San Diego Mission Bells. Mr. Gedney, the Italian, and the Monkey. Mountain lion. Rain. Moosa Cañon tragedy. Mesa Grande episode.

6:36 Reel 2, Notebook 36
“Trip to Cahuilla with Jim (July 1934). Moosa Canon tragedy. Palomar telescope. Santa Ysabel bells. Peon Game,” 1934, 1936

Scope and Content:

Trip to Cahuilla with Jim. Moosa Canon tragedy. Palomar telescope. Santa Ysabel bells. Peon Game. Word list. Drawing of rock formation.

6:37 Reel 2, Notebook 37
(no title) (contents description does not appear on any notebook envelope on microfilm copy), 1934-1935

Scope and Content:

Fight at Campo. Santa Ysabel. Accounts. California Institute of Technology Telescope. Visit to Exposition. Various short excursions around Southern California. Fiesta at Barona. Hermosillo, Kino Bay, Tucson. Addresses.

6:38 Reel 2, Notebook 38 (no number of title / consecutive to Notebook 37)
“Death Ceremony – Roncon (sic), Frank Fox killing. Palomar. Chas Cameron. Campo-July 1940,” 1938, 1940

Scope and Content:

Death Ceremony for Juan Sotelo Callac of Rincon. Palomar. Frank Fox killing. Campo. Charles A. Cameron story. Drawings of ceremony and sand painting.

6:39 Reel 2, Notebook 39
“Feb 26 – Nov 1 1938,” 1938

Scope and Content:

Expenses. Local diary. Palomar with drawings of equipment details. Oakland, San Francisco, and Berkeley. Trip to Yuma, Tucson, and Yaqui village of Pascua. Roscoe Hazard trucks transporting heavy telescope parts.

Mr. Harrington’s 600-mile trek over the camino real to visit old missions.

7:40 Reel 2, Notebook 40
“July 26, 1939-March 17, 1940, Nicolas Chuparosa dance. EHD life at Mesa Grande + nearby trips. Cal Tech observatory notes,” 1939, 1940

Scope and Content:

Nicolas Chuparosa dance. EHD’s life at Mesa Grande and nearby trips. California Institute of Technology observatory notes.

7:40A Reel 2, Notebook 40A
“Capt. Chas. Sanford. Bowers museum lecture,” 1940

Scope and Content:

Capt. Charles Sanford. Fort Worth to El Paso. Bisbee. Pascua. Picking apples. Mesa Grande. San Diego Zoo and Belle Benchly. Julian Melodrama.

7:41 Reel 2, Notebook 41
“Aug 1941 Trip to Arizona. Snake Dance,” 1941

Scope and Content:

Trip to Arizona. Poems about Arizona. Prescott. Oak Creek. Mishonganon Snake Dance. Oraibe. “The largest Navajo Rug ever made.” Bryce. A few accounts. Addresses. Pencil drawings of rug and of “Rim”.

7:42 Reel 2, Notebook 42
“Feb 10-Jul 10 1942, Diary,” 1942

Scope and Content:

February 10-July 10, 1942. Accounts. Diary. Pruning trees and milking cows. Trip to Arizona, Pascua and the Matachines. Shrine of the martyred children. Back in Mesa Grande, picking cherries and painting ladders. Cherry Season 1942.

7:43 Reel 2, Notebook 43
Loose Pages (6), 1903

Scope and Content:

Drawings of: wampum, Cahuilla, Chicero sword inlaid with abaloni pearl and finished with rattlesnake rattle, arrow straightener, toloache mortar, and old tortoise shell rattle, perforated stone Aguanga and stone doughnut from Cajon Pass, old clay pipe from Aguanga, rock art figures and map of painted rocks.

7:44 Reel 2, Notebook 44 (no numbers / consecutive to Notebook 43), Part I
Loose Pages (6), 1903

Scope and Content:

Notes on ceremonies, uses of shell, colors, and rock art. Diegueno mountain for dancing. San Pascual and San Bernardo Indians.

7:44A Reel 2, Notebook 44A, Part II
Loose Pages (6), 1903

Scope and Content:

Trip to San Pascual, Oct 9-10, 1903. Drawing of rock from which a San Pascual Indian would call to an Indian from painted rock to come and dance. Drawing of gossiping place and mortars. Santa Ysabel ruins. Drawing of Cienega grass house. Drawing and description of domed house.

7:44B Reel 2, Notebook 44B, Part III
Loose Pages (3), 1903

Scope and Content:

Volcan Mountains. Division of Indian languages and dialects (San Luiseno, Cahuilla, Cupaños, Serraños, and Dieguenos).

7:44C Reel 2, Notebook 44C, Part IV
“Eagle Story, probably Mesa Grande,” undated

Scope and Content:

Eagle Story (probably Mesa Grande). (Fragile)

7:45 Reel 2, Notebook 45 (no number / consecutive to “Loose Pages”)
“S.D.C. Indians,” undated

Scope and Content:

33 loose sheets (66 pages). A treatise on San Diego County Indians written by Edward H. Davis.

7:46 Reel 2, Notebook 46 (no number / consecutive to “Eagle Story”)
“E.H. Davis Drawings July 31, 1930,” 1890, 1936, 1937

Scope and Content:

Pencil drawings. Tepee, Tiburon Isle, San Jacinto, Salton Sea, Cambria, Smithtown (Long Island), Zarbuoso Cactus, Kinot Bay.

7:47 Reel 2, Notebook 47 (no number / consecutive to “S.D.C. Indians”)

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 Series II: Transcriptions and Photocopies of Notebooks and Field Notes

Box-folder
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 2B), 8:1
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 3) 8:2
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 13) 8:3
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 15) 8:4
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 18) 8:5
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 19) 8:6
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 20) 8:7
Photocopy of original notebook from microfilm (see Envelope 21) 8:8
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 1 (State Parks Transcription Project, SPTP), 9:1
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 1 (SPTP) 9:2
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 2 (SPTP) 9:3
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 2B (SPTP) 9:4
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 3 (SPTP) 9:5
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 4 (SPTP) 9:6
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 4 (SPTP) – drawings only 9:7
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 5 (SPTP) 9:8
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 6 (SPTP) 9:9
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 7 (SPTP) 9:10
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 8 (SPTP) 9:11
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 8 (SPTP) – drawings only 9:12
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 9 (SPTP) 9:13
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 10 (SPTP) 9:14
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 11 (SPTP) 9:15
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 12 (SPTP) 9:16
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 12 (SPTP) – drawings only 9:17
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 13 (SPTP) 9:18
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 14 (SPTP) 9:19
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 15 (SPTP) 9:20
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 16 (SPTP) 9:21
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 16A (SPTP) 9:22
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 17 (SPTP) 9:23
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 17A (SPTP) 9:24
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 18A (SPTP) 9:25
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 19 (SPTP) 9:26
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 19 (SPTP) – drawings only 9:27
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 21 (SPTP) 9:28
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 28 (SPTP) 9:29
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 30A (SPTP) 9:30
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 32 (SPTP) 9:31
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 32B (SPTP) 9:32
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 32B (SPTP) – drawings only 9:33
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 33 (SPTP) 9:34
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 33 (SPTP) – drawings only 9:35
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 35 (SPTP) 9:36
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 36 (SPTP) 9:37
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 37 (SPTP) 9:38
Photocopy of notebook in Envelope 37 (SPTP) – drawings only 9:39
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 38 (SPTP) 9:40
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 39 (SPTP) 9:41
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 40 (SPTP) 9:42
Miscellaneous transcriptions and photocopies of drawings of notebook from Envelopes 44 + 44B (SPTP) 9:43
Alphabetical list of names from notebooks – completed as part of State Parks Transcription Project (SPTP) 10:1
2 x CD-R of transcriptions from State Parks Transcription Project (SPTP) 10:2
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 1 (Anita Williams transcription, AW) 10:3
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 1 (AW) 10:4
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 1 (not transcribed in order) (AW) 10:5
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 1 (not transcribed in order) (AW) 10:6
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 2 (AW) 10:7
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 2B (AW) 10:8
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 23 (AW) 10:9
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 24 (AW) 10:10
Transcription of notebook from Envelope 25A (AW) 10:11
Transcription of part of notebook from Envelope 39 (AW) 10:12

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 Series III: Essays, Articles, Notes and Poetry

Box-folder
Cora, Papago, and Pima Indians, undated 11:1
Touring Topics, October 1931. “The Pursuits of a Museum Collector” by Edward H. Davis, 1931 11:2
“The Boy Sacrifice” 11:3
“Mr. And Mrs. Newlin and little girl lived…” 11:4
“Funeral Services for Sotario Duro,” 1941 January 20 11:5
“The Death of Santo” 11:6
“The Men Before the Mast” (poem) 11:7
“Comeyi Indians” 11:8
“Candles” 11:9
“Image Ceremony for the Dead at Yuma” 11:10
“The Concert Musician and the Gestago Agents” 11:11
“Incident at Old Yuma Penitentiary” 11:12
“Secrets of the Desert.” 11:13
“Aw’ Aw Tan – Pima Indian Tale,” 1920 December 11:14
“The Sacrifice.” 11:15
“Notes from a collector.” 11:16
“William Tillman, Cook.” 11:17
“A Forgotten Tragedy.” 11:18
“A Yaqui Raid in 1915.” 1915 11:19
“Last of the Old Desert Cowmen.” 11:20
“The Pima Calendar Stick.” 11:21
“Finding the Lost Diamond Ring” 11:22
“Palomar – the site of the great telescope” 11:23
“The Vanished Tribes of Lower California.” 11:24
“Indian Girls at Boarding School” 11:25
“The Shrine of the Martyred Children.” 11:26
“The Bisnaga or Barrel Cactus.” 11:27
“Tatahuila Dance.” 11:28
“A leaf from the LIfe of Ed. H. Davis.” 11:29
“Legend of the Papagos in Sonora.” 11:30
“Story of the Schooner S. J. Waring.” 11:31
“Yellow Sky: Ami Qut a Qus.” 11:32
“Port Jefferson” 11:33
“The Lost Painting of Lower California.” 11:34
“The Painted Cave of Baja California.” 11:35
“The Fight at Campo.” 11:36
“Pancho Villa – The Scourge of Mexico.” with rejection letter from Touring Topics magazine. 11:37
“The Gestapo” 11:38
“Unpaid Debt of Vengeance Bared by Once-Famous Pilot Left for 16 Days to Perish in Desert Wastes.” 11:39
“La Noche de las Velas,” 1934 September 11:40
“Bill Farre as a Tracker.” 11:41
“Driving Loco Horses.” 11:42
“Petra Cota of Mesa Grande,” 1942 December 11 11:43
“An Incident of the Desert.” 11:44
“Charles H. Cameron: Line Rider” 11:45
“Cattle Stealing at Mesa Grande.” 11:46
“The Last Eviction” 11:47
(How to make) “Riatas” (lariats) 11:48
“Yellow Sky – Last of the Old Desert Indians” 11:49
“Diegueno Tradition of Coo-schle-muk at Capitan Grande, “Heart of the Wild” 11:50
“Old Jose Soliloquizes” plus submission letter to Editor of Sunset Magazine. 11:51
Moving Cattle in the Snow, 1934 11:52
Dr. H.L. Hildreth, 1933 11:53
‘Old Harness Cask’ sailors’ chanty, 1933 11:54
Snow Storm 11:55
Bells of Hermisillo 11:56
A Short History of the Life of Edward H. Davis as recounted by him, from the year 1884… 11:57
Unidentified essays 11:58
“Lost in the Desert” 13:12
“The Blind Bell Ringer of Onavas” 13:13
“The Frazier Sisters of Palomar Mt” 13:14

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 Series IV: Correspondence

Box-folder
Letter: Christine Davis (wife) to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:1
Letter: Irvine Davis (son) to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:1
Letter: Ed Davis (son) to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:1
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:1
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:1
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:1
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:2
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:2
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:2
Letter: Maude (niece) to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:2
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:2
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:2
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:3
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:3
Letter: EH Jones to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:3
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:3
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:3
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1898 12:4
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:4
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:4
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:4
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:4
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:4
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:4
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:5
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:5
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:5
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:5
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:5
Letter: Mame (daughter) Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1899 12:5
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:6
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:6
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:6
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:6
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:6
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:6
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:7
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:7
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:7
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:7
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:7
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:7
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Mrs. L. Case to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1900 12:8
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:9
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:9
Letter: Charles Davis (brother) to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:9
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:9
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:9
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:9
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1901 12:10
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1902 12:11
Letter: CAP??? to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1902 12:11
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1902 12:11
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1902 12:11
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1902 12:11
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1902 12:11
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1903 12:12
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1903 12:12
Letter: Ed Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1903 12:12
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1904 12:12
Letter: Irving Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1904 12:12
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1904 12:12
Letter: BF Jayne to Capt. Lewis Davis, 1904 12:12
Letter: WB Gross to Ed Davis, 1919 12:13
Letter: Roberto to Ed Davis, 1925 12:13
Letter: Edward Davis to Senator Burton K Wheeler, 1933 12:13
Letter: EH Davis to ‘The Misses Putnam,’ 1936 12:13
Letter (partial): LD Corwin to ‘Brother Lewis,’ undated 12:13
Letter: Christine Davis to Capt. Lewis Davis, circa 1950s 12:13
Letter: LD Corwin to ‘Brother Lewis,’ undated 12:13

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 Series V: Miscellanea

Box-folder
Speech: Our Julian Hi School, undated 13:1
Speech: Monument Dedication, 1934 13:1
Speech: at Julian Hi Graduation, undated 13:1
Money receipt for shipment of 3 boxes of Indian ware to New York, 1921 13:2
Receipt for granite board and glass for Mr. and Mrs. Hewlett ‘in account at Powam Lodge’ with notes, 1933 13:2
Receipt of payment from Jonas Smith, Jr., Esq., to William C. Gilman, 1869 July 9 13:2
Letters (2) requesting payment from County Treasurer to Edward H. Davis, 1901 13:2
American Anthropologist Vol. 6 #1 Jan-March: “Notes on the Indians of Sonora, Mexico” by Alex Hrdlicka, 1904 13:3
Hand-drawn map of Nayarit, Mexico, undated 13:4
Drawing of Steatite tube, 1930 July 31 13:4
Sketch: Route traversed by the blind Indian Locario Chavas, 1918 13:4
Sketch: First view of Borrego Valley, 1892 13:4
Sketch: two five-pointed stars, undated 13:4
Newspaper article: “Sacred Festival of Yuma Indians Draws Big Crowd,” Yuma (Arizona) Morning Star, 1918 July 23 13:5
Newspaper photo of Captain Ambrose Snow, undated 13:5
Newspaper article: “Beauty Spots of San Diego County Found by Fair Tourist From the East” San Diego Union, 1917 September 30 13:5
Newspaper article: “Capt. Lewis S. Davis’ Career” Daily Times, 1901 13:5
Newspaper photo of “Recording the Tribal Songs of the White Indians: Dr. Joseph P. Harrington” New York Times, 1925 January 11 13:5
Map: Mission Indian Reservations, California, 1976 13:5
Miscellaneous expenses and calculations, undated 13:6
Miscellaneous notes re: buildings and places, undated 13:6
Miscellaneous notes including some Indian vocabulary, undated 13:6
Miscellaneous note of “The wildman emerges from his hideout…” undated 13:6
“Personal narrative of the Snake Dance of the Hopis” by Ernest V. Sutton as told to Ed. H. Davis (2 copies), 1937 13:7
Narrative: Visit to Mexico (further recollections of trip in Notebook 28A in Box 5), 1923 13:8
Narrative: Visit to Mexico (further recollections of trip in Notebook 28A in Box 5), 1924 13:9
Cover: The Pilgrim Initial, Illuminated Die Stamped Stationary, “Seris – March Dec 1936,” 1936 13:10
Cover: Typewriter Papers, “Diaries of E H Davis 1923,” 1923 13:10
Article: “The Pursuits of a Museum Collector” by Edward H. Davis as told to John Edwin Hogg, Touring Topics, 1931 October 13:11

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 Series VI: Preservation Copies of Notebook and Field Notes

Box
Microfilm: Reel 1 (49 notebooks) CR
Microfilm: Reel 2 (13 notebooks) CR
CD access copy: Notebooks 1-16 14
CD access copy: Notebooks 16A-25A 14
CD access copy: Notebooks 26-35 14
CD access copy: Notebooks 35A-47 14
CD archival copy: Notebooks 1-16 14
CD archival copy: Notebooks 16A-25A 14
CD archival copy: Notebooks 26-35 14
CD archival copy: Notebooks 35A-47 14

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Return to Archival Collections.