Barbara Drake Collection
Front matter written by Ciara Hernandez, Daniel Talamantes, and Lisa Crane.
Special Collections, Honnold/Mudd Library
800 North Dartmouth Avenue
Claremont, CA 91711
Email: specialcollections@claremont.edu
URL: https://library.claremont.edu/scl/
© 2023
The Claremont Colleges Library. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Barbara Drake Collection
Dates: 1951-2006 and undated
Bulk Dates: 1970-1999
Collection number: H.Mss.1122
Creator:
Drake, Barbara
Extent:
14 Linear Feet
(9 records boxes + 1 document box + 1 flat box + 1 oversized
folder)
Repository:
Claremont Colleges. Library. Special Collections, The Claremont
Colleges Library, Claremont, CA 91711.
Abstract: Assembled by Barbara
Drake (1940-2020), Gabrieleño/Tongva Elder, cultural ambassador, and educator, this
collection contains Barbara Drake's personal files including biographical information and
documents from her many speaking/teaching engagements at local schools, museums, and other
community events, as well as her educational materials and research materials. Included in
her papers are the curriculum and teaching materials she developed and used for her many
workshops and classes as she worked tirelessly for the revival of reciprocal relations with
the land and played a key role in Tongva cultural revitalization. One of the founding
members of Mother Earth Clan, Cultural Keepers, and the Chia Cafe Collective, Barbara was
known as "Auntie Barbara" by students, faculty, and staff at The Claremont Colleges and was
instrumental in fostering collaboration between the local Tongva community and
Claremont.
Physical Location: Please consult
repository.
Language of Material: Languages represented in the
collection: English.
Administrative Information
Access
Collection open for research.
Publication Rights
All requests for permission to reproduce or to publish must be submitted in writing to
Special Collections.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Barbara Drake Collection (H.Mss.1122). Special Collections and
Archives, The Claremont Colleges Library, The Claremont Colleges Services, Claremont,
CA.
Provenance/Source of Aquisition
Gift, Gary Drake (spouse) and Lori Reisbig (daughter), 2021.
Accruals
No additions to the collection are anticipated.
Processing Information
Processed by Ciara Hernandez (Claremont Graduate University) and Daniel Talamantes
(Claremont Graduate University) in Fall 2022 in the Claremont Center for Engagement with
Primary Sources (CCEPS), with funding from Claremont Graduate University's 2021 BLAIS
Challenge Grant Program.
Collection was minimally processed at the folder level. Most materials were removed from
binders, rehoused in acid free folders and placed within archival storage boxes.
Biography / Administrative History
Born in West Los Angeles in 1940 to Tongva mother Dolores Lola Lassos and Anglo father
Charles Milton Scott, Barbara Drake (née Barbara Ann Scott), was an enrolled member of The
Gabrieleño/Tongva San Gabriel Band of Mission Indians and served as Tribal Secretary for
many years and she worked in Indian Education Title VII for San Bernardino Schools. She gave
lectures on ethnoecology at Pitzer College since 1993.
Barbara was dedicated to introducing people of all ages "to seeing the natural world in
different ways—as the center of all life, as cultural history, as storytelling, as
tradition, as part of holistic community building," and it was important to her to convey
these ideas to children and attendees at her many teaching/speaking engagements.
Barbara was cultural ambassador and visiting educator in Southern California Schools,
museums, and cultural heritage organizations where she worked tirelessly for the revival of
reciprocal relations with the land and played a key role in Tongva cultural revitalization.
Included in her papers are the curriculum and teaching materials she developed and used for
her many workshops and classes, such as a Native Plants class that she taught for 25 years
at Idyllwild Arts' Summer Program, and Pitzer's Leadership in Environmental Education
Program (LEEP), where Barbara introduced hundreds of children to Tongva perspectives on the
environment. And she served as consultant on many botanical gardens, notably the Autry
Museum of the American West and at Pitzer College.
One of the founding members of Mother Earth Clan, Cultural Keepers, and the Chia Cafe
Collective, Barbara was known as "Auntie Barbara" by students, faculty, and staff at The
Claremont Colleges and was instrumental in fostering collaboration between the local Tongva
community and Claremont. She will always be remembered for her boundless care, mentorship,
joy, wisdom, and knowledge by her students, friends, and family. Barbara Drake passed away
in November 2020.
Scope and Contents of the Collection
The collection contains a wide variety of printed matter and artifacts that range from
articles on Indigenous knowledge and customs to personal clippings of recipes selected by
Barbara Drake. Her pedagogical practices are documented in Education Materials with arts and
craft projects, worksheets, templates and other materials used to teach children and
attendees at her many teaching and speaking engagements. Articles and other printed matter
comprise Barbara's research interests which then informed her pedagogy. Her Personal Files
includes correspondence, invoices and payments which document her work with local schools,
museums, and cultural heritage organizations. Also included in Personal Files are personal
recipes and other items of interest to Barbara on a personal level.
The collection does not contain just Tongva history and customs, but material from other
American Indigenous tribes as well. While the bulk of the collection centers on Los Angeles,
the scope extends to Central America and all of North America. Within the Research Materials
are materials concerning art, music, ceremony, and performance; ecology; cosmology, history,
biography, and mythology; and tribe-specific content.
Organization and Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series:
- Series 1: Education Material
- Series 2: Research Material
- Series 3: Personal Files
Folders are arranged alphabetically by folder title within each series.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the
library’s online public access catalog.
Subject Terms
Animals
Drake, Barbara
Ecology
Gabrielino/Tongva Nation
Geography
Indigenous peoples
Medicinal plants
Native Americans
Native Americans-Educators
Native Americans-History
Native Americans-Music
Native Americans-Study and teaching
Plants
Plants, Edible
Genre and Form of Materials
Articles
Artifacts
Correspondence
Recipes
Teaching-Aids and devices
Series 1:
Education Materials
Scope and Contents
This series contains primarily articles, books, curriculum guides, and craft
instructions for children and adult education. The range of subjects include indigenous
biographies, regional indigenous nations, plants and plant-based skills, and
animals.
Box 10
Artifacts: mineral and rock specimens
Note
Barbara Drake labeled these items: "Rocks used by the Indians."
Box 1, Folder 17
California coast
1995-2000
Box 1, Folder 4
Curriculum: astronomy and time
1970-1988
Box 2, Folder 23
Curriculum: humanities and social sciences
1987-1996
Box 2, Folder 24
Curriculum: humanities and social sciences
1985-2006
Box 2, Folder 25
Curriculum: humanities and social sciences
1986-1991
Box 1, Folder 1
Curriculum: mathematics and sciences
1980-1999
Box 1, Folder 2
Curriculum: mathematics and sciences
1974-1986
Box 1, Folder 7
Curriculum: Southern California
1979-1987
Box 1, Folder 5
Curriculum: values and philosophies
1969-2017
Box 1, Folder 6
Curriculum: values and philosophies
1988-2014
Box 11, Folder 1
Exhibit signage
Notes
Folder contains two laminated ledger-sized sheets of paper laminated. One shows the
cover of William McCawley's "The First Angelinos: the Gabrielino Indians of Los
Angeles," and is signed by McCawley dated May 1997. The second contains a photograph
of Barbara Drake accompanied by four paragraphs of biographical information.
Folder Oversize 1
"Autumn Harvest" poster
Note
Plexiglass poster measuring 40 x 32 inches shows the various steps for harvesting
acorns and preparing them for food.
Box 1, Folder 15
Northwest Nations
1972 April-1977
April
Box 1, Folder 16
Northwest Nations
1975
January-1986 December
Box 1, Folder 21
Plains and Mid-West Nations
Box 1, Folder 22
Plains and Mid-West Nations
Box 2, Folder 16
Snakes and lizards
1975-1980
Box 2, Folder 15
Turtles and tortoises
1963-1987
Series 2:
Research Materials
Scope and Contents
This is a wide-ranging series containing the research files of Barbara Drake and
includes postcards, newspapers, prints, illustrations, photographs, articles, and other
printed ephemera. The range of subjects cover regional Indigenous nations, Tongva
research, Indigenous skills, Indigenous ethnohistory, news clippings, ecology, and
animals.
Box 3, Folder 1
Alaskan Nations
1983
February
Box 3, Folder 2
Alaskan Nations
1983
February-1985
Box 3, Folder 3
Alaskan Nations
1976 May-1983
March
Box 3, Folder 4
Anasazi - Apache
1979 June-
1997
Box 6, Folder 5
Animals: insects and reptiles
Box 6, Folder 4
Animals: mammals and marine animals
Box 4, Folder 27
Archaeology and distant history
Box 6, Folder 1
Archaeology and distant history
Box 6, Folder 2
Archaeology and distant history
Box 6, Folder 3
Archaeology and distant history
Box 4, Folder 24
Channel Islands, Catalina Island, and California islands history
Box 4, Folder 25
Channel Islands, Catalina Island, and California islands history
Box 4, Folder 26
Channel Islands, Catalina Island, and California islands history
Box 6, Folder 7
Ecology/flora: acorns and dogbane
Box 6, Folder 12
Ecology/flora: agriculture
Box 6, Folder 27
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based foods and ingredients
Box 6, Folder 28
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based foods and ingredients
Box 6, Folder 29
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based foods and ingredients
Box 8, Folder 1
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based foods and ingredients
Box 6, Folder 21
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based skills
Box 6, Folder 22
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based skills
Box 6, Folder 23
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based skills
Box 6, Folder 24
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based skills
Box 6, Folder 25
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based skills
Box 6, Folder 26
Ecology/flora: basic plant-based skills
Box 6, Folder 8
Ecology/flora: elderberry and oak
Box 6, Folder 16
Ecology/flora: medicinal plant uses
Box 6, Folder 17
Ecology/flora: medicinal plant uses
Box 6, Folder 18
Ecology/flora: medicinal plant uses
Box 6, Folder 19
Ecology/flora: medicinal plant uses
Box 6, Folder 20
Ecology/flora: medicinal plant uses
Box 6, Folder 9
Ecology/flora: pine, bark, and yucca
Box 5, Folder 13
Ecology/flora: plant-based food and ingredients
Box 6, Folder 13
Ecology/flora: vocabulary lists and references
Box 6, Folder 14
Ecology/flora: vocabulary lists and references
Box 6, Folder 15
Ecology/flora: vocabulary lists and references
Box 5, Folder 14
Ecology/geography: chaparral and coastal
Box 5, Folder 15
Ecology/geography: chaparral and grasslands
Box 5, Folder 16
Ecology/geography: chaparral and grasslands
Box 5, Folder 18
Ecology/geography: Claremont and Pitzer College
Box 5, Folder 19
Ecology/geography: mountains
Box 5, Folder 20
Ecology/geography: oak trees
Box 5, Folder 17
Ecology/geography: rivers and desert
Box 5, Folder 22
Food recipes: Indigenous recipes and ingredients
Box 5, Folder 23
Food recipes: Indigenous recipes and ingredients
Box 5, Folder 24
Food recipes: Indigenous recipes and ingredients
Box 5, Folder 25
Food recipes: Indigenous recipes and ingredients
Box 4, Folder 7
Indigenous biographical material and literature
Box 5, Folder 2
Indigenous crafts, games, and activities
Box 5, Folder 3
Indigenous crafts, games, and activities
Box 5, Folder 4
Indigenous crafts, games, and activities
Box 5, Folder 5
Indigenous crafts, games, and activities
Box 5, Folder 6
Indigenous crafts, games, and activities
Box 5, Folder 7
Indigenous crafts, games, and activities
Box 4, Folder 22
Indigenous culture and customs: ceremonies, spirituality, and
principles
Box 4, Folder 23
Indigenous culture and customs: utility and skills
Box 4, Folder 11
Indigenous ethnohistory: cosmology and astronomy
Box 4, Folder 15
Indigenous ethnohistory: cosmology and astronomy
Box 4, Folder 16
Indigenous ethnohistory: legends and geography
Box 4, Folder 17
Indigenous ethnohistory: legends and stories
Box 4, Folder 8
Indigenous ethnohistory: origins, manners and customs, and
anthropology
Box 4, Folder 9
Indigenous ethnohistory: origins, manners and customs, and
anthropology
Box 4, Folder 10
Indigenous ethnohistory: origins, manners and customs, and
anthropology
Box 4, Folder 12
Indigenous ethnohistory: origins, manners and customs, and
anthropology
Box 4, Folder 13
Indigenous ethnohistory: origins, manners and customs, and
anthropology
Box 4, Folder 14
Indigenous ethnohistory: origins, manners and customs, and
anthropology
Box 5, Folder 21
Indigenous ethnohistory: Tongva
Box 4, Folder 3
Indigenous manners and customs: animal tracking, hunting behavior
Box 4, Folder 4
Indigenous manners and customs: animal tracking, hunting behavior
Box 4, Folder 18
Indigenous music: "Form in Primitive Music" (Roberts, 1993)
Box 4, Folder 21
Indigenous music: instruments
Box 4, Folder 19
Indigenous music: lyrics and musical history
Box 4, Folder 6
Indigenous trading customs: beads
Box 4, Folder 5
Indigenous trading customs: shells
Box 5, Folder 8
Language: pictographs and petrogylphs
Box 3, Folder 22
Tongva culture and language
Box 3, Folder 23
Tongva culture and language
Box 3, Folder 24
Tongva culture and language
Box 3, Folder 25
Tongva culture, legends, literature, and music
Box 3, Folder 26
Tongva culture, legends, literature, and music
Box 3, Folder 27
Tongva culture, legends, literature, and music
Box 3, Folder 28
Tongva culture, legends, literature, and music
Series 3:
Personal Files
Scope and Contents
This series includes Barbara Drake's personal files which cover recipes, arts and
crafts, legal documents, her personal projects, community events, projects and
educational programming, and correspondence.
Box 7, Folder 6
Arts and crafts: household
Box 7, Folder 10
Barbara Drake in the news
Box 8, Folder 2
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 3
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 4
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 5
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 6
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 7
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 8
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 9
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 10
Community events, projects, and programming
Box 8, Folder 23
Educational correspondence
Box 9, Folder 5
Educational correspondence
Box 8, Folder 13
Educational correspondence: Barstow School District
Box 9, Folder 2
Educational correspondence: certificates of appreciation
Box 9, Folder 3
Educational correspondence: contracts and invoices
Box 9, Folder 4
Educational correspondence: contracts and invoices
Box 8, Folder 20
Educational correspondence: invoices
Box 8, Folder 21
Educational correspondence: invoices
Box 8, Folder 12
Educational correspondence: letters of recommendation and other
letters
Box 8, Folder 16
Educational correspondence: letters of recommendation and other
letters
Box 8, Folder 11
Educational correspondence: personal academic records
Box 8, Folder 24
Educational correspondence: thank you letters and other letters
Box 8, Folder 25
Educational correspondence: thank you letters and other letters
Box 9, Folder 1
Educational correspondence: thank you letters and other letters
Box 8, Folder 18
Educational programming: "Indian Consulting"
Box 8, Folder 14
Educational programming: contacts and invoices
Box 8, Folder 15
Educational programming: contacts and invoices
Box 7, Folder 11
Legal documents: ACLU vs CSULB (Puvunga)
1993-1995
