Frank Latta Papers, 1797-1980, undated (bulk dates: 1930-1970)

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Summary

Creators:
Abstract:
Extent:
34 LF
Language:
Preferred citation:

Frank Latta Papers. Yosemite National Park Archives

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains the research of Frank Latta on Native American life in central California. Materials include field notes, correspondence, research materials, photographs, and manuscripts. The collection dates from 1797 to 1980. Some of the material is undated. The bulk of the material dates from 1930 to 1970.

Biographical / historical:

Frank Forest Latta was born in Orestimba, California on September 18, 1892 to Presbyterian minister Eli C. Latta and teacher Harmonia Campbell. Latta married Jeanette “Jean” Allen in 1919, and they had four children together. From 1915-1945, Latta worked as a teacher in the southern San Joaquin Valley, teaching mechanical drawing and agriculture. However, his true passion lay in the study of California history, a curiosity which began when he interviewed early pioneers for a school project in 1906. Latta continued interviewing and researching the history of the San Joaquin Valley as an adult. This work led him to the story of Thomas Jefferson Mayfield, an old white pioneer who had been raised by the Yokuts, the Native Americans of central California. Latta published his findings as a series of newspaper articles, but they would later become the basis of his first book, “Uncle Jeff’s Story: A tale of a San Joaquin Valley pioneer and his life with the Yokuts Indians,” in 1929. Latta’s interviews with Mayfield led to a lifelong interest in the native peoples of the central and southern San Joaquin Valley, particularly the Yokuts and the Miwok. In order to better understand Yokuts culture, Latta studied different dialects and supplemented his knowledge by corresponding with anthropologists of his day. This included linguist and ethnologist John P. Harrington, with whom he formed a close friendship. Latta also interviewed many members of the Yokuts and Miwok tribes, spending many years tracking down individuals with first-hand knowledge of important events and stories. He took meticulous notes and eventually developing his own system to record the particular speech and memory of his interviewees. Some of his most important books, “California Indian Folklore” (1936) and “Handbook of Yokuts Indians” (1949), drew directly from this work. Latta contextualized his interviews with the Yokuts and Miwoks by studying early California and San Joaquin Valley settler history. He read personal papers, corporate papers, and newspapers. Latta then indexed and sorted the relevant information, allowing him to publish well-researched historical accounts of the area including “El Camino Viejo a Los Angeles” in 1936 and “Black Gold in the Joaquin” in 1949. Latta’s interest in the history of the San Joaquin Valley extended far beyond academic research. In 1952, for example, he learned that some of the Yokuts’ allotments were about to be sold by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This prompted him to organize people to try and stop the sale. He believed that the problems faced by Yokuts in the twentieth century were directly related to the 1815 treaties and reservation system in the southern San Joaquin Valley. He thought that greater understanding of the causes of these problems would lead to possible solutions. In order to achieve this goal, he helped found the Kern County Museum in Bakersfield in 1941to teach people the history of the place in which they lived. Latta retired from teaching and worked as the museum curator and director from 1945-1956, allowing him to focus on history full time. While at the Kern County Museum, Latta also established the Bear State Museum and Bear State Books, the first to house his collections and the later to publish his works. In 1946, Latta and his family moved to Santa Cruz, California, where he established the Rancho Gazos Historical Indian and Early Californian Museum. He continued to write and publish books about the San Joaquin Valley. Towards the end of his life, Latta wrote prolifically, publishing “Dalton Gang Days,” “Saga of El Rancho Tejon,” and “Tailholt Tales” in 1976, “Death Valley ‘49ers” in 1979, and “Joaquin Murrieta and His Horse Gangs” in 1980. Even with all these publications, Latta left behind a wealth of unpublished information when he died in 1983. Fortunately, his papers have been housed and protected at several institutions. In 1987, with the financial assistance of the Yosemite Fund, the ethnographic papers of Frank Latta came to the Yosemite National Park Archives. These papers are only a piece of Latta’s incredible legacy.

Acquisition information:
The materials in this collection were created by Frank Latta. They were first donated by his daughter, Monna Latta Olson to the Yosemite Association who in turn donated them to Yosemite National Park.

Access and use

Restrictions:

While this collection is open to the public, sensitive materials have been flagged and require appropriate permission through the Yosemite archivist to access.

Preferred citation:

Frank Latta Papers. Yosemite National Park Archives

Location of this collection:
5083 Foresta Road
El Portal, CA 95318, US
Contact:
(209)379-1282
Paul_Rogers@nps.gov
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