John Joseph Mathews Papers
Collection
Identifier: 2014-029
Scope and Contents
Collection contains correspondence to and from John Joseph Mathews. Correspondence subjects range from personal correspondence, book review requests, publication requests, and presentation requests. Collection also includes some correspondence to and from Mathews' wife, Elizabeth Mathews. Also included in this collection are three manuscripts by John Joseph Mathews: "The Osages: Children of the Middle Waters," "Talking to the Moon" (copy of the first draft with handwritten corrections by Mathews), and "Flute on the Plains." There is also a manuscript of a play by Kermit Hunter, titled "The Trail of Tears."
Dates
- 1960 - 1972
Creator
- Mathews, Elizabeth Hunt, 1903-1982. (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Access to this collection is unrestricted.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright held by the Mathews estate. Permission from the estate is needed for use.
Biographical Sketch
John Joseph Mathews (1895-1979) was born in Pawhuska, OK, to William and Eugenia Mathews. His grandfather was Bill Williams, the legendary mountain man. Mathews was one-eighth Osage. During World War I, Mathews enlisted and served in the cavalry before serving as a pilot in the Twenty-fifth Squadron. He graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1920 with a degree in geology. He attended Oxford University and graduated in 1923. Mathews published his first novel, WahKon-tah: The Osage and the White Man's Road, in 1932. It was followed by Sundown in 1934 and Talking to the Moon in 1945. His biography, Life and Death of an Oilman: The Career of E. W. Marland was published in 1951 and his oral history project, The Osages: Children of the Middle Waters, was published in 1961.
Mathews was also heavily involved in collecting, preserving, and restoring Osage culture. He served on the Osage Tribal Council from 1934-1942 and was instrumental in developing the tribal museum in Pawhuska. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame in 1996.
Mathews married Virginia Winslow Hopper, with whom he had two children, John and Virginia, in 1924. The couple later divorced. Mathews then married Elizabeth Hunt, and considered her son, John Hunt, as a stepson.
More about Mathews can be found at the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture here: http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/M/MA037.html
Mathews was also heavily involved in collecting, preserving, and restoring Osage culture. He served on the Osage Tribal Council from 1934-1942 and was instrumental in developing the tribal museum in Pawhuska. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Historians Hall of Fame in 1996.
Mathews married Virginia Winslow Hopper, with whom he had two children, John and Virginia, in 1924. The couple later divorced. Mathews then married Elizabeth Hunt, and considered her son, John Hunt, as a stepson.
More about Mathews can be found at the Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture here: http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/M/MA037.html
Extent
1.2 Linear feet (3 letter size document boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
Arranged into two series.
Location
For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Library's online catalog or contact the Special Collections and University Archives Reference staff.
Provenance
Gift of Richard W. Plute, March-July 2014. Plute purchased the letters and manuscripts at Mathews' estate sale in 1993.
Processing Information
Processed by Sarah Coates, May-June 2014.
Updated by Sarah Coates and Amanda McCrossen, July 2014
Updated by Sarah Coates and Amanda McCrossen, July 2014
Creator
- Mathews, Elizabeth Hunt, 1903-1982. (Person)
- Mathews, John Joseph, 1895-1979. (Person)
- Title
- John Joseph Mathews Papers Collection Number 2014-029
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Sarah Coates
- Date
- June 2014
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Oklahoma State University Archives Repository
Contact:
204 Edmon Low Library
Oklahoma State University
Stillwater 74078-1071 USA
libscua@okstate.edu
204 Edmon Low Library
Oklahoma State University
Stillwater 74078-1071 USA
libscua@okstate.edu