Robert Moody Laughlin was an American ethnologist specializing in the study of Mayan language, history, customs, and folklore. He spent the majority of his career working for the Smithsonian Institution, first with the Bureau of American Ethnology, then with the Department of Anthropology. He was a curator emeritus with the department from his retirement in 2006 until his death in 2020. The Robert Moody Laughlin papers (1899-2016, bulk 1954-2016) document his research and professional activities and primarily deal with language and folktales he recorded and studied, as well as the culture and history of the Tzotzil and other Mayan groups in the Chiapas region. His involvement in language education and training, advocacy for the Tzotzil and language and cultural revitalization, and administrative matters at the Smithsonian are also represented. The collection consists of materials created for books and other publications, field notes, research materials, correspondence, administrative files, sound recordings, video recordings, photographs, and electronic records.

This collection contains the professional papers of Conrad M. Arensberg, anthropologist, university professor, and anthropological consultant. Included are correspondence; published and unpublished writings; research materials, including notes, correspondence, diaries, charts, drafts, interviews, research plans, reports, project proposals, and bibliographic cards; speeches; pamphlets; articles from newspapers and periodicals; course materials, including bibliographies, lecture notes, reading lists, assignments, exams, project proposals, and syllabi; curriculum vitae; date books; scholarly papers and publications of other scholars; and photographs.

This microfilm collection of William Arthur Cooper papers contains biographical materials; correspondence conerning portrait commisions, art lectures, and exhibitions; financial records including account books and receipts; notes and a report concerning Cooper's "good will" tour; Cooper's publication Educating Through Fine Arts, and his book A Port...

This accession consists of the records of Susan Ostroff, Museum Specialist, documenting her exhibition activities in the Division of Cultural History and, prior to joining that Division, as museum specialist in the Collections Support Office at the National Museum of American History (NMAH). Ostroff participated in exhibition planning tea...

The Smithsonian Institution Archives began its Oral History Program in 1973. The purpose of the program is to supplement the written documentation of the Archives' record and manuscript collections with an Oral History Collection, focusing on the history of the Institution, research by its scholars, and contributions of its staff. Program ...

This accession consists of records documenting the curatorial and professional activities of photographic history collection staff in the Division of Culture and the Arts at the National Museum of American History (NMAH), with earlier records dating back to when the staff was in the Division of Information Technology and Society, the Division ...

This accession consists of records documenting staff exhibition planning, development, and production of photographic history collections, as well as works by renown contemporary American photographers, at the National Museum of American History (NMAH) and the Arts and Industries Building. Earlier records date back to when the photographic ...

The research material of Connecticut artists and authors Nelson and Henry C. White, measures 4.5 linear feet and dates from circa 1851-1961. The bulk of the collection consists of Nelson C. White's correspondence, writings, and research, primarily related to J. Frank Currier and Abbott Handerson Thayer, and referencing Thomas Wilmer Dewing. Also found are the correspondence, writings, and research files of Nelson's father, Henry C. White, primarily relating to Dwight W. Tryon. Research files include artist correspondence, writings and notes, printed material, photographs of the artists, and photographs of artwork and exhibition installations.

For a brief history of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU), see Record Unit 7150, American Ornithologists' Union Collection, 1883-1977. These records supplement Record Unit 7150, both in extending coverage in early records and providing records from the mid-1970s. Particularly noteworthy are early records of presidents - especially Joel ...

The Smithsonian Institution Festival of American Folklife, held annually since 1967 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was renamed the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 1998. The materials collected here document the planning, production, and execution of the annual Festival, produced by the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (1999-present) and its predecessor offices (1967-1999). An overview of the entire Festival records group is available here: Smithsonian Folklife Festival records.