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Series 2: Corinne Locker Papers, 1947-1972

12 boxes
Collection Creator:
Princeton University. Library. Special Collections
Dates:
1947-1972
Extent:
12 boxes
Languages:
English
Scope and Contents

This collection of manuscript materials documents a significant part of the history of an important land title dispute between the Taos Pueblo Indians of northern New Mexico and the federal government. in creating tie Carson National Forest in 1906, Pr esident Theodore Roosevelt carved away thousands of acres of Taos Pueblo land. This land, viewed as sacred by the Indians, surrounded and included Blue Lake: a vital religious shrine in Pueblo religion. Sixty-four years passed before the United States ret urned the land to the Indians.Instrumental in the fight for the return of Blue Lake and the surrounding wilderness was Corinne Locker (1927 - ). Locker became involved in the Blue Lake case while serving as secretary to Oliver La Farge (1901-1963) in Santa Fe, during La Farge's tenure as President of the Association on American Indian Affairs (AAIA). At La Farge's death, Locker became Southwest Field Secretary for the Association and stepped up her involvement in the Blue Lake fight. in doing so, she worked closely with the members of Taos Pueblo, most notably Paul Bernal. When, in 1966, disputes arose between the Pueblo and its attorneys, Locker filed a report with the AA1A that addressed possible conflict of interest existing among lawyers for the tribe who also served on AAIA decision-making bodies. The report resulted in Locker's dismissal from her AAIA position.Shortly thereafter, Locker formed the National Committee for the return of the Blue Lake Lands in conjunction with Rufus Q. Poole, an Albuquerque attorney, Paul Bernal, and others. As Coordinator of the organization, Locker operated as an effective liaison from the tribe to the non-Taos world. The National Committee lobbied for congressional and administration support of Blue Lake's return to the Indians; it also engineered a fundraising and publicity drive. Locker also worked closely with William C. Schaab (1927- ), special attorney to the Pueblo in the Blue Lake campaign. Much of the work of the committee involved attempts to mitigate the opposition of New Mexico Senator Clinton P. Anderson (1895-1975) and the United States Forest Service.The Nixon administration endorsed Blue Lake restoration legislation in the summer of 1970. Later that year, a bill returning 48,000 acres of land, including Blue Lake, was signed into law. Corinne Locker was honored for her efforts on behalf of Taos Pueblo at a subsequent ceremony in New Mexico.The Corinne Locker Papers, originals and copies alike, include the correspondence of Oliver La Farge in regards to AAIA involvement with the Blue Lake case; correspondence and documents relating to Locker's involvement as Southwest Field Secretary; materials in regards to Locker's report addressing possible conflict of interest among Pueblo attorneys; correspondence regarding the founding and functioning of the National Committee for the Restoration of the Blue Lake Lands; considerable correspondence r elating to proposed Blue Lake Legislation; materials related to the opposition of Senator Clinton P. Anderson, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Forest Service. There are also folders that pertain to miscellaneous activities of the AAIA in New Mexico and among the Pueblo Indians in particular. Locker's files were "working files," and their organization, for that purpose, has been largely been maintained. Readers will perhaps find it helpful to first read through the entire guide.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, any copyright vested in the donor has passed to The Trustees of Princeton University and researchers do not need to obtain permission, complete any forms, or receive a letter to move forward with use of donor-created materials within the collection. For materials in the collection not created by the donor, or where the material is not an original, the copyright is likely not held by the University. In these instances, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have a question about who owns the copyright for an item, you may request clarification by contacting us through the Ask Us! form.

Credit this material:

Series 2: Corinne Locker Papers; Taos Blue Lake Collection, MC106, Public Policy Papers, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Storage Note:
  • Mudd Manuscript Library (mudd): Box 2-13
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Processing Information

This collection is an amalgamation of four smaller unprocessed collections all pertaining to the Taos Blue Lake land dispute. There was no further processing of the material after their transfer to Mudd Library. The contents list was created in Archivists' Toolkit and provides a preliminary inventory.

Collection Overview

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

This collection of manuscript materials documents a significant part of the history of an important land title dispute between the Taos Pueblo Indians of northern New Mexico and the federal government. in creating tie Carson National Forest in 1906, Pr esident Theodore Roosevelt carved away thousands of acres of Taos Pueblo land. This land, viewed as sacred by the Indians, surrounded and included Blue Lake: a vital religious shrine in Pueblo religion. Sixty-four years passed before the United States ret urned the land to the Indians.Instrumental in the fight for the return of Blue Lake and the surrounding wilderness was Corinne Locker (1927 - ). Locker became involved in the Blue Lake case while serving as secretary to Oliver La Farge (1901-1963) in Santa Fe, during La Farge's tenure as President of the Association on American Indian Affairs (AAIA). At La Farge's death, Locker became Southwest Field Secretary for the Association and stepped up her involvement in the Blue Lake fight. in doing so, she worked closely with the members of Taos Pueblo, most notably Paul Bernal. When, in 1966, disputes arose between the Pueblo and its attorneys, Locker filed a report with the AA1A that addressed possible conflict of interest existing among lawyers for the tribe who also served on AAIA decision-making bodies. The report resulted in Locker's dismissal from her AAIA position.Shortly thereafter, Locker formed the National Committee for the return of the Blue Lake Lands in conjunction with Rufus Q. Poole, an Albuquerque attorney, Paul Bernal, and others. As Coordinator of the organization, Locker operated as an effective liaison from the tribe to the non-Taos world. The National Committee lobbied for congressional and administration support of Blue Lake's return to the Indians; it also engineered a fundraising and publicity drive. Locker also worked closely with William C. Schaab (1927- ), special attorney to the Pueblo in the Blue Lake campaign. Much of the work of the committee involved attempts to mitigate the opposition of New Mexico Senator Clinton P. Anderson (1895-1975) and the United States Forest Service.The Nixon administration endorsed Blue Lake restoration legislation in the summer of 1970. Later that year, a bill returning 48,000 acres of land, including Blue Lake, was signed into law. Corinne Locker was honored for her efforts on behalf of Taos Pueblo at a subsequent ceremony in New Mexico.The Corinne Locker Papers, originals and copies alike, include the correspondence of Oliver La Farge in regards to AAIA involvement with the Blue Lake case; correspondence and documents relating to Locker's involvement as Southwest Field Secretary; materials in regards to Locker's report addressing possible conflict of interest among Pueblo attorneys; correspondence regarding the founding and functioning of the National Committee for the Restoration of the Blue Lake Lands; considerable correspondence r elating to proposed Blue Lake Legislation; materials related to the opposition of Senator Clinton P. Anderson, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Forest Service. There are also folders that pertain to miscellaneous activities of the AAIA in New Mexico and among the Pueblo Indians in particular. Locker's files were "working files," and their organization, for that purpose, has been largely been maintained. Readers will perhaps find it helpful to first read through the entire guide.

Arrangement

The materials in this series have been maintained in the order in which they were transferred to the Mudd Library.

Collection History

Appraisal

No information about appraisal is available for this collection.

Processing Information

This collection is an amalgamation of four smaller unprocessed collections all pertaining to the Taos Blue Lake land dispute. There was no further processing of the material after their transfer to Mudd Library. The contents list was created in Archivists' Toolkit and provides a preliminary inventory.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, any copyright vested in the donor has passed to The Trustees of Princeton University and researchers do not need to obtain permission, complete any forms, or receive a letter to move forward with use of donor-created materials within the collection. For materials in the collection not created by the donor, or where the material is not an original, the copyright is likely not held by the University. In these instances, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have a question about who owns the copyright for an item, you may request clarification by contacting us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Credit this material:

Series 2: Corinne Locker Papers; Taos Blue Lake Collection, MC106, Public Policy Papers, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Location:
Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library
65 Olden Street
Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
(609) 258-6345
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Storage Note:
  • Mudd Manuscript Library (mudd): Box 2-13

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Related Materials

Readers should be aware of other Princeton collections pertaining to the Blue Lake case, including the Association on American Indian Affairs Archive, which in turn includes the Oliver LaFarge Papers, Hildegarde B. Forbes Papers, and the Alden Stevens Papers.See also -- "The Return of Blue Lake to the Taos Pueblo" by William F. Deverell in the Princeton University Library Chronicle, Vol. XLIX, no. 1, Autumn 1987.

Names:
Association on American Indian Affairs
United States. Indian Claims Commission
Taos Pueblo Council