Contains files pertaining to Robert J. Theodoratus' time as a professor of anthropology at Colorado State University. The majority of the collection focuses on his studies of Father Stephanos Phoutrides. Files include personal notebooks, correspondence, paper drafts, research material, and cassette tapes. Materials are in English and Modern Greek. 1924-2015

Professor Robert James Theodoratus (1928-2019) lived a life dedicated to his work and community. Born into a mixed family of English and Greek ancestry, Robert liked to compare his heritage to the growth of America. In 1961, he earned a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Washington with a dissertation on the Greeks of Tacoma, Washington, entitled "The Influence of the Homeland on the Social Organization of a Greek Community in America". During his time as a doctoral student Robert met Kathleen Uribe (1934- 2021), an activist from Sacramento with similar interests in anthropology. They married on August 11th, 1962 and had three children together: Sarah, Mia, and Demetri. He began teaching anthropology at Colorado State University in 1966 and would remain there until his retirement in 1998. During his tenure at Colorado State University, Robert served as a general editor of the series Immigrant Communities & Ethnic Minorities in the United States and Canada, published by AMS Press, which emphasized the power that small ethnic communities have to effect social change. He also authored multiple publications including "Europe: A Selected Ethnographic Bibliography" (1969) and "A Greek Community in America: Tacoma Washington" (1971). Robert also spent time conducting research for a publication on Stephanos Phoutrides (1891-1946), a priest in the Greek Orthodox Church considered controversial in his time but now seen as pioneering. Robert was also interested in Greek cuisine and foodways and how immigrant culinary practices changed upon living in the US. Robert passed away on August 22nd, 2019.

1.75 Linear Feet (1 record carton, 1 manuscript box)

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