Kenneth E. Read Papers
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
Copyright 2013
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla 92093-0175
spcoll@ucsd.edu
Descriptive Summary
Languages:
English
Contributing Institution:
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
9500 Gilman Drive
La Jolla 92093-0175
Title: Kenneth E. Read Papers
Identifier/Call Number: MSS 0434
Physical Description:
0.25 Linear feet
(1 archives box)
Date (inclusive): circa 1950-1985
Abstract: The papers of anthropologist and professor Kenneth E. Read contain typescript articles and essays based on his field work
in Papua New Guinea in the 1940s - 1950s, as well as 1981-1982. Also included are three papers written by patrol officers,
during training, at the Australian School of Pacific Administration as part of classes taught by Read.
Biography
Kenneth E. Read was born in Sydney, Australia, in 1917. He obtained his undergraduate degree at the University of Sydney
in 1939. After serving in the Royal Australian Army during World War II, during which he spent time in New Guinea, Read returned
to the University of Sydney where he obtained his MA in Anthropology.
After completing his PhD in Anthropology at the University of London, Read returned to Australia. From 1950-1952 Read worked
as a Research Fellow at the Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University. During this time, he began
research among the Gahuku-Gama people of Goroka District of the Eastern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea.
Read went on to become Senior Lecturer in Anthropology at the Australian School of Pacific Administration in Sydney (1953-56).
He then moved to Seattle, Washington to teach in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Washington. Throughout
his career, Read wrote and published a number of scholarly papers based on his field work in Papua New Guinea. He also published
the books
The High Valley (1965) and
Return to the High Valley (1986), based on his time with the Gahuku.
Read passed away in Seattle on November 13, 1995.
Acquisition Note
Acquired 2013.
Publication Rights
Publication rights are held by the creator of the collection.
Preferred Citation
Kenneth E. Read Papers, MSS 434. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.
Scope and Contents of Collection
The papers of anthropologist and professor Kenneth E. Read contain original typescripts of work by Read and others. The collection
has been arranged in two series: 1) WRITINGS BY READ and 2) WRITINGS BY OTHERS.
SERIES 1: WRITINGS BY READ
The series WRITINGS BY READ includes typescript articles, essays, and surveys written by Read. Many of these papers are based
on field work compiled while living among the Gahuku-Gama people of Goroka District of the Eastern Highlands Province, Papua
New Guinea. One folder of miscellaneous materials includes two agricultural surveys - one detailing yam gardens in Tofmora,
the other describing work performed in banana plantations. Works in this series are undated and have been arranged alphabetically
by title.
SERIES 2: WRITINGS BY OTHERS
The series WRITINGS BY OTHERS contains typescript papers written by patrol officers in training at the Australian School
of Pacific Administration (ASOPA) for classes taught by Read. The folders are arranged alphabetically by author.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Gahuku (Papua New Guinean people) -- Social life and customs -- Archives
Ethnology -- Papua New Guinea -- Eastern Highlands Province -- Archives
Eastern Highlands Province (Papua New Guinea) -- Social life and customs -- Archives
Read, Kenneth E. -- Archives
Box 1, Folder 1
Developmental Prospects in the Central Highlands of New Guinea
[1951]
Box 1, Folder 2
Full Circle: Impressions on Returning to the Guhuku-Gama, Eastern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea
[1980s]
Box 1, Folder 3
Leadership and Consensus in a New Guinea Society
[1959]
Box 1, Folder 4
Notes on Field Work in the Goroka Valley
undated
Box 1, Folder 5
Political System of the Gahuku-Gama
undated
Box 1, Folder 6
The Political System of the Ngarawapum
[1950]
Box 1, Folder 7
Property and Capital in Production
undated
Box 1, Folder 8
Some Aspects of Political Organization in the Markham Valley - Address to the Anthropological Association of New South Wales
undated
Box 1, Folder 9
Miscellaneous surveys & papers
undated
Box 1, Folder 10
Aisbett, R. - The Social Structure of the Tanga
undated
Box 1, Folder 11
Carey, Arthur - An Area study of Goroka Sub-District, Eastern Highlands District of New Guinea, with Special Reference to
Economic Development
undated
Box 1, Folder 12
Smith, E.V. - Social Structure of Peri/Poinchal Village in the Manus District
undated
