Harold Ross Papers
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego
Copyright 2014
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: Harold Ross Papers
Identifier/Call Number: MSS 0733
Physical Description:
4.88 Linear feet
(9.5 archives boxes, 1 flat box)
Date (inclusive): 1962-2010 (bulk 1966-1980)
Abstract: Papers of cultural anthropologist Harold Marion Ross, who was known for his ethnographic studies of the Baegu people of Malaita
in the Solomon Islands. The collection includes correspondence, research files, manuscripts, notebooks, photographs, slides,
and audio recordings.
Biography
Harold Marion Ross was born June 11, 1936 to Gerda and Marion Ross in Kansas City, Missouri. After earning a B.A. magna cum
laude in anthropology from Harvard University in 1958, Ross served as a submarine officer in the US Navy and studied languages
at the University of Indiana. He returned to Harvard in 1962, continuing to serve in the US Naval Reserve until he retired
with the rank of Captain, and earned an M.A. in anthropology in 1964.
In 1966-1968 Ross conducted ethnographic field research for his doctoral dissertation in Malaita, in the Solomon Islands,
accompanied by his wife Kathryn Penstone Ross and their two children. Ross and his family lived with the Baegu, a traditional
agricultural community noted for unilineal descent, limited acculturation, and a shared market economy with a neighboring
fishing population on the Lau Lagoon.
Ross received his Ph.D. in anthropology from Harvard in 1970, and then earned an M.B.A at Eastern Illinois University in 1974.
He joined the faculty at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in 1968 as assistant professor of anthropology, later
becoming associate professor and associate department head. Ross was professor of anthropology at St. Norbert College in Green
Bay, Wisconsin; dean and vice president for academic affairs at Daemen College in Buffalo, New York; and dean of faculty and
vice president for academic affairs at Cottey College in Nevada, Missouri starting in 1990.
Scope and Content of Collection
The papers of anthropologist and professor Harold Marion Ross document his research among the Baegu people of Malaita in the
Solomon Islands and his teaching career in anthropology. The collection dates from 1962-2010 and is arranged in seven series:
1) CORRESPONDENCE, 2) WRITINGS, 3) SUBJECT FILES, 4) RESEARCH PROJECTS, 5) JOURNALS & NOTEBOOKS, 6) IMAGES, AND 7) AUDIO RECORDINGS.
Restrictions
Photographic negatives are restricted. Researchers must request permission to view negatives from the Director of Special
Collections & Archives. Original audio tapes are restricted. Researchers must request user copies be produced. Personally
identifiable medical records are restricted until 2089.
Publication Rights
Publication rights are held by the creator of the collection.
Preferred Citation
Harold Ross Papers, MSS 733. Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.
Acquisition Information
Acquired 2010.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Baegu (Melanesian people)
Ross, Harold M. -- Archives
CORRESPONDENCE
Scope and Content of Series
CORRESPONDENCE (1965-1986) is arranged in two subseries: A) British Solomon Islands Protectorate (BSIP) Business and B) Incoming
& Outgoing Correspondence.
A) BSIP Business: Incoming and outgoing correspondence, arranged by subject, between Ross and businesses and agencies in the
Solomon Islands and the U.S. regarding his 1966-1968 research expedition in Malaita.
B) Incoming & Outgoing Correspondence: Letters in English and Baegu from 1966-1986 between Ross, government agencies, anthropologists,
and Solomon Islanders, particularly regarding his travel and research in the Solomon Islands.
British Solomon Islands Protectorate (BSIP) Business
Box 1, Folder 2
Auki Club & Rest House
1967
Box 1, Folder 4
British Solomons Trading Company
1966-1967
Box 1, Folder 5
Commonwealth Bank of Australia
1966-1968
Box 1, Folder 7
Melan-Chine Shipping & Forwarding Agency
1966-1967
Box 1, Folder 8
Mendana Self-Service Store
1966-1967
Box 1, Folder 10
Preparation & Training
1966
Box 1, Folder 12
Research Grants
1965-1973
Box 1, Folder 15
Supplies - Usage Data
undated
Box 1, Folder 17
Miscellaneous correspondence
1967
Incoming & Outgoing Correspondence
Box 1, Folder 18-19
Incoming correspondence
1966-1986
Box 1, Folder 20
Outgoing correspondence
1967-1978
WRITINGS
Scope and Content of Series
WRITINGS (1962-1989) contains published and unpublished writings by Harold and Kathryn Ross. Files may include correspondence,
notes, data, illustrations, drafts, and reviews related to the manuscripts. Arranged in four subseries: A) Scientific Writings
by Harold Ross, B) Reviews by Harold Ross, C) Collaborative Writings and D) Writing by Kathryn Ross.
A) Scientific Writings by Harold Ross: Articles, essays and reports on anthropology written between 1962 and 1980, particularly
about the Baegu people of the Solomon Islands. Additional topics include archaeology, education, naval science, biogeography,
and animal behavior.
B) Reviews by Harold Ross: Reviews of articles, books, and encyclopedia entries by other writers on Oceania written between
1974 and 1984.
C) Collaborative Writings: Articles co-authored by Harold Ross and other researchers from 1971-1989 on Solomon Islands culture.
D) Writing by Kathryn Ross: Personal narrative by Kathryn Ross, who accompanied her husband to the Solomon Islands, describing
her experiences living among the Baegu from 1966-1968.
Scientific Writings by Harold Ross
Box 1, Folder 21
"Anthropology: Understanding Mankind."
News-Gazette, February 24, 1974
1973-1974
Box 1, Folder 22
"The Anthropology and Economics of Naval Reserve Policies, Command Decisions and Unit Performance: A Case History"
1971-1977
Box 1, Folder 23-24
"Baegu Markets, Areal Integration and Economic Efficiency in Malaita, Solomon Islands."
Ethnology XVII (2): April 1978
Box 1, Folder 25
Baegu: Social and Ecological Organization in Malaita, Solomon Islands (1973)
1968-1972
Box 1, Folder 26
Biogeography essays
1977-1978
Box 2, Folder 1-2
"Bush Fallow Farming, Diet and Nutrition: An Island Melanesian Example of Successful Adaptation" (Howell's Festschrift)
Box 2, Folder 3
"Comparative Ethnography in Malaita." Association for the Social Anthropology of Eastern Oceania Conference, Santa Cruz.
Journal of the Polynesian Society
1969
Box 2, Folder 4-5
"Competition for Baegu Souls: Mission Rivalry on Malaita, Solomon Islands." Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania
(ASAO) Missionary Symposium
Box 2, Folder 6
"Exploratory Study for Research on Culture Change in Melanesia." Center for International Comparative Studies (CICS), University
of Illinois
1972-1973
Box 2, Folder 7
"Interaction Assumptions in Baegu (Malaita) Kin Terms." American Anthropological Association (AAA) Meeting, Seattle, 1968
1968-1970
Box 2, Folder 8
"Leadership Styles and Strategies in a Traditional Melanesian Society." Douglas L. Oliver Festschrift
1975-1977
Box 2, Folder 9
"Maintaining/Increasing Undergraduate Enrollment in University of Illinois Anthropology Courses"
1977
Box 2, Folder 10
Malaita Artificial Islands (Parsonson Rebuttal)
1967-1968
Box 2, Folder 11
Malaita Shell Beadwork
undated
Box 2, Folder 12
"Observer Bias and American Values." Harvard College Honors Thesis
Box 3, Folder 1-2
"The Ocean is a Highway, Too"
1976
Box 3, Folder 3
"The Political Economy of Big-Men and Chiefs in Oceania." American Anthropological Association (AAA), Los Angeles, 1978
1977-1980
Box 3, Folder 4
"Preliminary Behavioral Observations and Gross Anatomical Measurements of the Slow Loris (
Nycticebus coucang coucang) of Malaysia"
1965-1970
Box 3, Folder 5
"Preserving the Cultural Heritage: Archaeology, Law and Business"
1972
Box 3, Folder 6
Rarotonga. Anthropology 217 Seminar Report, Harvard University
1962-1963
Box 3, Folder 7
"Salvage Archaeology at a Mississippian Burial Ground"
1963-1968
Box 3, Folder 8-9
"Siblinghood and Parent/Child Dependency in Baegu (Solomon Islands) Kinship." Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania
(ASAO) Symposium, 1978
1977-1978
Box 3, Folder 10
"Sociocultural Background to Biomedical Studies on Malaita and Nearby Islands"
1980
Box 3, Folder 11
"Stone Adzes from Malaita, Solomon Islands: An Ethnographic Contribution to Melanesian Archaeology."
The Journal of the Polynesian Society 79 (4): December 1970
1970-1971
Box 3, Folder 12-13
"The Sweet Potato in the South-Eastern Solomons."
The Journal of the Polynesian Society 86 (4): December 1977
1976-1977
Box 3, Folder 14
"Comments on Peter Bellwood's 'The Prehistory of Oceania'"
1974
Box 3, Folder 15
The Eighth Land: The Polynesian Discovery of Easter Island (Thomas S. Barthel, 1979) reviewed for
American Ethnologist
1979
Box 3, Folder 16
'Elota's Story: The Life and Times of a Solomon Islands Big Man (Roger M. Keesing, 1978) and
Ongka: A Self-Account by a New Guinea Big-Man (Andrew Strathern, 1979) reviewed for
Ethnohistory
1978-1979
Box 3, Folder 17
Grass Huts and Warehouses: Pacific Beach Communities of the Nineteenth Century (Caroline Ralston, 1978) reviewed for
Pacific Studies
1978-1979
Box 3, Folder 18
Lightning Meets the West Wind: The Malaita Massacre (Roger M. Keesing and Peter Corris, 1980) reviewed for
Pacific Studies
1981-1983
The New Book of Knowledge reviews
Box 3, Folder 23
A New Guinea Landscape: Community, Space, and Time in the Eastern Highlands (K.J. Pataki-Schweizer, 1980) reviewed for
American Ethnologist
1980-1981
Box 3, Folder 24
Slavers in Paradise: The Peruvian Slave Trade in Polynesia, 1862-1864 (H.E. Maude, 1981) reviewed for
American Ethnologist
1984
Box 4, Folder 1
"Baegu Ethnomusicology: The Musical Life of a Melanesian People from Northern Malaita, Solomon Islands." Harold Ross & Martha
Ellen Davis
1971-1974
Box 4, Folder 2
"Ethnographic Description of Survey Groups." Jill Nash, Donald Mitchell, Harold Ross, Eugene Ogan & Jonathan Friedlander
1989
Box 4, Folder 3
"Limited Good, Synergy and Voluntary Associations: Introduction and Abstracts." Harold Ross & James N. Kerri. American Anthropological
Association (AAA), Los Angeles, 1978
1976-1980
Box 4, Folder 4
"Space and Eschatology in the Solomon Islands." Harold Ross & John B. Gatewood
1978
Box 4, Folder 5
Personal narrative
ca.1966-1968
SUBJECT FILES
Scope and Content of Series
Notes and correspondence collected by Ross on Solomon Islands history, culture, and languages; anthropology programs, conferences,
and symposia; and a list of artifacts given by Ross to the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology.
Box 4, Folder 6
Anthropology Curriculum Study Project
1966
Box 4, Folder 7
Artifacts Given to University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology
1966-2010
Box 4, Folder 8
Central States Anthropology Society (CSAS) Ecology Seminar, Brown County State Park, Indiana, 1970
1970-1973
Box 4, Folder 9
East-West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii (Sabbatical)
1974-1975
Box 4, Folder 10
Economic Dependency in Oceania, Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania (ASAO) Symposium, 1979
1978-1979
Box 4, Folder 11
Ethnicity in Oceania (Ogan Symposium)
1976
Box 4, Folder 12
Lau Vocabulary, Solomon Islands
Box 4, Folder 13
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Personality Tests
1966
Box 4, Folder 14
Neo-Melanesian Pidgin
1975
Box 4, Folder 15
Oceanic Data - Melanesia (Solomon Islands)
1972-1977
RESEARCH PROJECTS
Scope and Content of Series
Arranged in three subseries: A) Baegu Project, B) Malaita Bio-Medical Expedition and C) Other Projects.
A) Baegu Project: Notes and data collected by Ross while doing field research among the Baegu people of Malaita in the Solomon
Islands from 1966-1968. The files include information on Baegu social organization, languages, religion, economics, acculturation,
and genealogies. Ross later used this research for his 1970 Ph.D. dissertation in anthropology at Harvard University. The
subseries includes a collection of pressed leaves from the Solomon Islands annotated with the plants' names and uses.
B) Malaita Bio-Medical Expedition: Notes, data, correspondence and proposals regarding a 1968 research project comparing physical
and cultural characteristics of several populations in the Solomon Islands, including the Baegu and Lau.
C) Other Projects: Notes, data, correspondence and proposals. Topics include the Baegu, ethnobotany, biomedical studies, macaques,
tree shrews and education.
Box 4, Folder 17
Generalizations on Change
1966-1967
Box 4, Folder 23-24
Census Data
1967-1971 & undated
Box 4, Folder 26
Child Studies - Cultural Antecedents
1967
Box 4, Folder 28
Climate and Environment
1967
Box 4, Folder 29
Data Collection Plan, Miscellaneous Questions
1968
Box 4, Folder 30
Economic Generalizations
1967
Box 5, Folder 4
General Descriptions - Baegu and Lau Lagoon, Malaita
undated
Box 5, Folder 16
Linguistics - Historical & Comparative
1967
Box 5, Folder 18
Marriage Customs
1966-1967
Box 5, Folder 19
Nativistic Reactions
1966-1967
Box 5, Folder 21
Politics & Leadership
1966-1968
Oversize FB-534
Pressed Leaves - Solomon Islands. Annotated
ca.1966-1968
Box 5, Folder 24
Settlement Patterns
1966-1967
Malaita Bio-Medical Expedition
Box 6, Folder 4
Baegu (Marching Rule Aftermath)
1974
Box 6, Folder 5
Baegu & Solomon Islands Unilineality
1978
Box 6, Folder 6
Betel Nut & Kava in Oceania
1974
Box 6, Folder 7
Bougainville-Kwaio Bio-Medical Study
1965-1966
Box 6, Folder 8
General Anthropology Ideas
1963-1984
Box 6, Folder 9
Macaque Ecology in India (Harvard)
1964-1965
Box 6, Folder 10
Malaita/Bougainville Volume (Damon Memorial)
1971-1980
Box 6, Folder 11
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Values Study
1966
Box 6, Folder 12
Oceanic - Pacific Ideas (Pending)
Box 6, Folder 13
Residence Rules & Settlement Patterns
undated
Box 6, Folder 14
Solomons - Baegu Ideas (Pending)
1968-1974
Box 6, Folder 15
Tobacco Smoking Symposium
1969-1973
Box 6, Folder 16
Tree Shrew Breeding (New England Regional Primate Research Center/NERPRC)
1966
JOURNALS & NOTEBOOKS
Scope and Content of Series
Arranged in two subseries: A) Journals and B) Notebooks.
A) Journals: Ross's bound journals with daily entries describing his travel and research during his 1966-1968 research trip
to the Solomon Islands and a 1972 trip to the Marshall Islands, Guam, Indonesia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, New Hebrides
and Fiji.
B) Notebooks: Ross's notebooks from his 1966-1968 research trip to the Solomon Islands. The notebooks include map and bearing
data for the Baegu village where he worked, weather readings, and medical logs for his family and the villagers. Personally
identifiable medical information is restricted.
Box 6, Folder 17-18
Malaita
June 1, 1966 - July 20, 1968
Box 6, Folder 19
South Pacific
July 15, 1972 - August 21, 1972
Box 7, Folder 1
Map Data & Bearing Book, Baegu Ethnography Project
December 12, 1966 - October 21, 1967
Box 7, Folder 2
Recipes, Vocabulary, Notes
undated
Box 7, Folder 3
Weather Log & Medical Log, Ailali Village, Baegu, Malaita
August 1966 - October 1967
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
IMAGES
Scope and Content of Series
Black and white and color photographic prints, slides and negatives taken or collected by Ross between 1962 and 1976. Arranged
in two subseries: A) Photographs and B) Slides.
A) Photographs: Primarily black and white and color prints taken during Ross's 1966-1968 field work in Malaita, Solomon Islands.
The images include Baegu men, women and children and their daily activities; houses, villages and landscapes; and photographs
of Ross and his family with the Baegu. Many of the photographs were arranged alphanumerically by Ross and include written
descriptions.
This subseries also includes negatives, most of which are represented by prints in the collection. Original negatives have
been separated from the collection for preservation. Researchers wishing to view the negatives must request permission from
the director of Special Collections & Archives.
B) Slides: Color slides taken or collected by Ross in the Solomon Islands and New Guinea from 1966-1972, including images
of the Baegu and of Ross's family. Most of the slides were arranged alphanumerically by Ross and include written descriptions.
The subseries also contains teaching materials on Oceania and Austronesian languages.
Box 7, Folder 4
Aerial photographs, RAF
July 26-27, 1962
Box 7, Folder 5
Baegu color photographs
1966-1968
Baegu black & white photographs
Box 7, Folder 6-18
Rolls B1 - B13
1966-1968
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
General
Original negatives located in AN2/M733/1-13
Box 8, Folder 1-4
Rolls B14 - B17
1968 & undated
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
General
Original negatives located in AN2/M733/14-17
Box 8, Folder 5
Baegu Ethnography Photo Data for Black and White Photos
1966-1968
Box 8, Folder 7
Baegu Polaroids, BP1 - BP6
1966-1967
Box 8, Folder 8
Central States Anthropological Society (CSAS) Ecology Seminar group photograph with Harold Ross
1970
Box 8, Folder 9
Howell's Festschrift illustrations, figures 1-5
undated
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
General
Original negatives located in AN2/M733/18
Box 8, Folder 10
Mississippian Artifacts, Jefferson County, Missouri
1963
Box 8, Folder 11
New Guinea color photographs, NG1 - NG37
1972
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
General
Original negatives located in ANC2/M733/1
Box 8, Folder 12
Pacific color photographs, P1 - P21
1972
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
General
Original negatives located in ANC2/M733/2
Box 8, Folder 13
Stone Adzes, Malaita, Solomon Islands
1970
Box 8, Folder 14
Unidentified photographs
undated
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
General
Original negatives located in AN2/M733/19-20
Box 8, Folder 15
Anthropology 360, Peoples of Oceania
1968-1976
Box 8, Folder 16
Austronesian Languages
undated
Box 8, Folder 21
Baegu Ethnography Photo Data for Color Slides
1966-1968
Box 9, Folder 1
Solomon Islands
1966-1972
AUDIO RECORDINGS
Scope and Content of Series
Undated reel-to-reel audio tapes of the Baegu performing traditional vocal and instrumental music, modern music, and reciting
folklore. The tapes were numbered by Ross and include written descriptions. Original audio tapes are restricted; researchers
may request user copies be produced.
Box 9, Folder 2
Baegu #1. Traditional Vocal Music
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 9, Folder 3
Baegu #2. Folklore
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 9, Folder 4
Baegu #3. Traditional Instrumental Music
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 9, Folder 5
Baegu #4. Modern Music (Acculturation)
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 9, Folder 6
Baegu #5. Ai Ni Mea (Basia's Wedding)
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 9, Folder 7
Baegu #6. Kii Kafo, Church Song, Leleae, Baresile, Ufisuku, Kwadile, Sisili, Slit Gong (Death Rhythm)
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 9, Folder 8
Baegu #7. O'o'afuto, Au Agae Fai Falake, Lauga Sings Ae Ni Mae, Bungu (Helmet Shell Trumpet), Ku-ku-ku (War Cry), Ririi Suli
Ote, Christian School Songs
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 10, Folder 1
Baegu #8. Mao Dance & Agae Dance (Fanga Faakwaimani), Drum Calls (Sedea & Lebefiu)
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 10, Folder 2
Malaita (Solomon Islands). Music of the Fataleka and the Baegu. Tapes A & B
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply
Box 10, Folder 3
Practice Tape
Conditions Governing Access
Restrictions Apply