This collection contains 562 photographic slides taken by Payne Johnson during his travels and historical research. The color slides principally document Mesoamerican Mayan sites visited by Johnson primarily from the 1970s to the early 2000s.

Payne B. Johnson was born June 2, 1930, and worked as a child actor in Hollywood in the 1930s. He received a BS from the University of Southern California and an MS from San Diego State University. Johnson worked in corporate advertising and public relations and was the founder and editor of San Diego Home/Garden magazine. He helped form the San Diego Chapter of the Explorers Club and was elected a Fellow of the Explorers Club in 1994 and served as Deputy Director of the San Diego Natural History Museum. Johnson began photographing ruins in Mexico in the 1960s, and subsequently began leading tours and lecturing about Aztec and Mayan ruins. An exhibit of his work "Discovery of the Maya Lost Cities" was put on at the San Diego Museum of Man in 1998.

1.46 Linear Feet 2 boxes

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Department of Special Collections at specol@usc.edu. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Advance notice required for access.