This collection documents the work of linguistic anthropologist Nancy Matthews Webb (1922-1984). The collection includes materials on her research and professional activities studying the native languages of California, specifically Pomo and other Hokan group languages, and her broader work as a linguist. The collection includes glossaries and word lists of various central Native Californian languages, research and personal reference files, materials related to Webb's education, publications, language notecards, microfilm, and audio recordings of Webb's interviews with research subjects.

Nancy Mathews Webb was born in Connecticut in 1922, and grew up in West Virginia until she moved to Berkeley, where Webb received her BA in zoology in 1942. After her graduation, Webb moved to Davis to work to work as a Technician and Research Assistant in the Zoology department. While at Davis, Webb met Albert Dinsmoor "Dinny" Webb, who she married in 1943. The couple moved to Tennessee where her husband, a chemist, worked on the Manhattan Project. Meanwhile, Webb served as substitute teacher in English and math rather than in the sciences because she refused to sign a certificate denying evolution, a practiced required by the state of Tennessee as a result of the Scopes Trial.

5.4 linear feet

All applicable copyrights for the collection are protected under chapter 17 of the U.S. Copyright Code. Requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Regents of the University of California as the owner of the physical items. It is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.

Collection is open for research.