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George A. Boyce papers
MS 167
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Title: George A. Boyce papers
Date (inclusive): 1936-1971
Date (bulk): 1936-1949
Collection Number: MS 167
Creator:
Boyce, George A., 1898-1976
Source:
United States. Bureau of Indian Affairs
Extent:
1.71 linear feet
(4 boxes, 2 flat file folders)
Repository:
Rivera Library. Special Collections Department.
Riverside, CA 92517-5900
Abstract: The George Boyce papers consists of the professional papers and manuscripts of George Arthur Boyce, a Native American historian
and former Director of Navajo Education for the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs. This collection documents his work
with Navajo education, and includes materials from his research and photographs depicting Navajo schools and students. Additionally,
the collection includes oversize posters of day school budgets and Navajo translated newsletters.
Languages: The collection is in English and Navajo.
The collection is open for research.
Copyright Unknown: Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction,
and/or commercial use, of some materials may be restricted by gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and
publicity rights, licensing agreement(s), and/or trademark rights. Distribution or reproduction of materials protected by
copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. To the extent other restrictions
apply, permission for distribution or reproduction from the applicable rights holder is also required. Responsibility for
obtaining permissions, and for any use rests exclusively with the user.
[identification of item], [date if possible]. George A. Boyce papers (MS 167). Special Collections & University Archives,
University of California, Riverside.
Provenance unknown.
This collection was processed by Celeste Navas, Student Processing Assistant, in 2017.
Processing of the George Boyce papers was completed by undergraduate students from the University of California, Riverside
as part of the Special Collections and University Archives Backlog Processing Project started in 2015. This project was funded
by the UCR Library and administered by Jessica Geiser, Collections Management Librarian.
George Arthur Boyce was born January 20, 1898, in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Boyce received his bachelor's degree at Trinity
College in 1921 and received his master's degree from Cornell in 1926. He would later receive his doctoral degree in Education
at Columbia University where he wrote his doctoral thesis,
Economic Education for the Navajo Indians.
Boyce then took a position at the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs where he would later become the Director of Navajo
Education. Throughout his career he also held positions as Superintendent of the Intermountain Indian School, a member of
the board of directors of Verde Valley School, and as Chairman of Long-range Social Economic Planning on Navajo Reservations
for the U.S. Navajo Services.
Boyce was also a prolific writer, publishing and editing a number of Navajo related books and newspapers throughout his career.
His most notable titles include
When Navajoes Had Too Many Sheep,
Some People are Indians, and
Alcohol and American Indian Students. He believed strongly in nurturing rather than destroying cultural differences, which is evident in his writings.
He married Elizabeth A. Coleman in 1933, and they had two sons, George A. Jr. and Robert. Elizabeth passed away in 1962 and
George remarried in 1964 to Oleta Merry. George A. Boyce died on November 5, 1976.
The collection contains the personal and professional papers of George Arthur Boyce, and consists of government reports on
Navajo education, a manuscript of his doctoral thesis, correspondence, and photographs. Notable files in the collection include
clipping files containing newspaper clippings and related documents covering Boyce's work, as well as "Letters and documents"
files containing correspondence between Boyce and his colleagues with related brochures on Navajo life. Other areas of significance
in the collection include materials documenting the budget of Navajo day schools, auction posters, and items related to his
career as the Director of Navajo Education for the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs, which was chronicled in the
Navajo Language Newspaper and the
Adahooniligi News Series.
The collection is arranged topically, and the original folder titles have been maintained.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
library's online public access catalog.
United States. Bureau of Indian Affairs
Indians of North America -- Education
Navajo Indians -- Education
Navajo language -- Periodicals
Clippings (information artifacts)
Correspondence
Photographs