Paul Davis Riley, 1936
HISTORY NEBRASKA MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID RG0949.AM: Paul Davis Riley, 1936-1981 Papers: 1866-1982, mostly 1870-1900Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska: Research Associate, Nebraska State Historical SocietySize: 6.5 cu.ft.; 7 boxes + oversize BIOGRAPHICAL […]
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History Nebraska
HISTORY NEBRASKA MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID

RG0949.AM: Paul Davis Riley, 1936-1981

Papers: 1866-1982, mostly 1870-1900

Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska: Research Associate, Nebraska State Historical Society

Size: 6.5 cu.ft.; 7 boxes + oversize

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Paul Davis Riley was born May 2nd, 1936, in Trenton, Nebraska, to William E. and Grace Davis Riley. After graduating from Trenton High School in 1954, Riley attended the University of Nebraska and began working for the Nebraska State Historical Society. Riley was an active member of such organizations as the Western History Association and the Western Writers’ Guild. Riley died in Lincoln, Nebraska, on August 9, 1981.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Riley collection contains large amounts of material related to the history of Nebraska and its people. There are four series: 1) Research Materials; 2) Correspondence, 1973-1975; 3) Vertical File Materials; and 4) Miscellaneous Materials.

Series 1, Research Materials, encompasses over half of the entire collection. Included here are mainly transcriptions of newspaper clippings organized by subject. Substantial material can be found specifically relating to Webster County history, Willa Cather, cattle ranching, various forts, the Pawnee tribe, and the genealogy of many pioneering families.

Series 2, Correspondence, 1973-75, is a small series of Riley’s letters to and from individuals regarding research he had helped them with or vice versa. The last folder of the series contains letters written by Riley to friend and former colleague, John Irwin. The letters to Irwin document activities at the Nebraska State Historical Society. A number of the letters also provide a detailed description of gay life in Lincoln. An introduction to the letters and reminiscences about Paul Riley and the Nebraska State Historical Society staff by John Irwin are also included. Paul Riley’s mother wrote the last letter in the folder from 1982 after Paul’s death.

Series 3, Vertical File Materials, contains newspaper clipping transcriptions Riley had kept chronologically organized in binders. The bulk of the articles originate from the 1870s-80s. Riley appears to have cross-referenced these files with an index card collection also included in this series. The index cards are alphabetized by subject. See also Box 7.

Series 4, Miscellaneous Materials, consists of additional materials regarding the Cather family, research papers written by Riley, a copy of his obituary, and scrapbooks of political material from the 1950s.

INVENTORY

Series 1 – Research materials

Box 1

Folder

Cather Family Materials

Webster County History pt. 1

Webster County History pt. 2

Webster County Pioneer History pt. 1

Webster County Pioneer History pt. 2

Webster County Records pt. 1

Webster County Records pt. 2

Driftwood Creek Flood

Frontiersman Materials

Alaska Wanderers

Anderson, John Foster

Arapahoe, Nebraska

Assault Crimes

Ballantine, David and John

Battle of the Arickaree, 1868

Beauvais Family History

Black Hills

Blizzards

Bookwalter, John Wesley

Boyd, James

Buffalo Bill and Texas Jack

Buffalo and Buffalo hunting

Buffalo Hunters

Buck, Nelson

Buck, Royal

Bridgeport, News-Blade articles

Brouhard Family

Burlington Railroad

Burress Family

Butler, John Paul

Byfield, John and William

Camp Red Willow

Carter Family

Cass County

Cather, Willa

Cattle Ranching pt. 1

Cattle Ranching pt. 2

Cattle Ranching pt. 3

Box 2

Folder

Cattle Ranching pt. 4

Census materials, 1860

Cheyenne Indians

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Clifford Family

Coad/Coe Family

Cody, Buffalo Bill

Colorado

Coolidge Manuscript

Corruption

Cotton Wood Springs

Cram Family

Crawford, Captain Jack

Crimes, misc

Dauchy Family

Daugherty, William E.

Didier, John

Dillard, George

Disorderly Conduct

Doc Middleton

Dodge-McGuire case

Dorsey, Stephen

Druery Family

Dundy County

Early Nebraska Towns

Elwood, Nebraska

Estey Family

Executions

Fighters

Forts-General Info

Fort Kearney/Lowell

Fort Laramie

Fort McPherson

Fort Niobrara

Fort Omaha

Franklin County

Freighting

Frontier County

Furnas County

Gammil Family

General Brisbin

Gillett Family

Gold Rush Trails

Grand Island, Nebraska

Grant Family

Green Family

Guerrier, Edward

Harlan County

Harmon, William J.

Harvey Family

Hayes, Edward

Hitchcock County

Hoel, Aaron

Homan, Henry

Horse Thefts

Hunter, Gallant

Ilgenfritz Family

Indians

Indianola, Nebraska

Ireland Family

Jefferson County, Nebraska

Julesburg, Colorado

Kearney, Nebraska

Kennison, David

Lambert, Martha E.

Loomis Family

Lynch Family

Lynchings

McCook, Nebraska

McDonald, Charles

Marshall, Francis

Matlock Family

Massacre Canyon

Meinhold, Charles

Metcalf, George

Miles, Lorena Wellman

Military pt. 1

Military pt. 2

Military pt. 3

Minden Murders

Morris, B.P.

Morrow Family

Murders

Mushroom

Box 3

Folder

Nemaha County

Nichols Family

North Platte, Nebraska

Old Settlers

Overland Trails

Pawnee Agency pt. 1

Pawnee Agency Pt. 2

Pawnee Agency Pt. 3

Pawnee Agency Pt. 4

Pawnee Agency Pt. 5

Pawnee Agency Pt. 6

Pawnee Agency Pt. 7

Pawnee Agency Pt. 8

Pawnee Agency Pt. 9

Pawnee Agency Pt. 10

Pawnee Agency Pt. 11

Pawnee Agency Pt. 12

Pawnee Agency Pt. 13

Paxton, William

Phillipsburg, Kansas

Pine Ridge Reservation

Plains

Plattsmouth, Nebraska

Pioneer Stories

Powell Family

Plum Creek Massacre

Prostitution

Rainmaking

Red Cloud Spotted Tail

Red Willow County

Reid, William A.

Box 4

Folder

Relief aid for disasters

Republican River pt.1

Republican River pt. 2

Republican Valley

Richardson County

Robberies

Roper Family

Royal Buffalo Hunt

Sanders Family

Schwatka Family

Shelly Family

Sioux Indians

Sidney, Nebraska

Speer, Olive Baldwin

Stearns Family

Suicides

Sun Dance

Surveying pt. 1

Surveying pt. 2

Surveying pt. 3

Suspicious Characters

Sutton, Everette S.

Sweitzer Family

Sydenham, Moses

Taylor, William Z.

Texas Jack

Thayer County

Umland-Wimberly

Vigilantes

Waits Family

Ward, Aaron

Warner Family

Webster County

Whistler Murder

Williams-Castleman Journey Cake

Williams, Robert H.

Wood Family

Yager, James Pressley

Yake, James

Wyoming Territory

Misc. Clippings

Series 2 – Correspondence

Box 4

Folder

Correspondence, 1973

Correspondence, 1974

Correspondence, 1975

Correspondence to John Irwin, 1971-1982

Series 3 – Vertical file materials from Riley binders

Box 4

Folder

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1866-1870

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1870-1871

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1872

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1873

Box 5

Folder

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1874, pt. 1

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1874, pt. 2

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1875, pt. 1

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1875, pt. 2

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1876, pt. 1

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1876, pt. 2

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1876, pt. 3

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1876, pt. 4

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1878

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1879-1880

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1881-1882

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1883-1885

Newspaper Article Transcriptions, 1885-1910

Red Willow County Federal Land Office Records

Hitchcock County Court Case Transcriptions

Article Index Note cards by alphabetized subjects (see also Box 7)

Series 4 – Miscellaneous

Box 6

Folder

Event Programs

Local Political Material

Miscellaneous Material regarding Willa Cather

Transcriptions of Cather Family Correspondence, 1870s-1890s

Willa Cather Pioneer Memorial Newsletters

Photocopy of My Mother’s Story

Miscellaneous, pt. 1

Miscellaneous, pt. 2

Box 7 Article Index Note cards alphabetized by subjects

Volume 1 – Scrapbook of political materials, 1950s (see oversize)

Volume 2 – Scrapbook of political materials regarding Dwight Griswold (see oversize)

Volume 3 – Scrapbook of political materials regarding Eva Bowring (see oversize)

Subject headings:

Anderson, John Foster

Ballantine, David Coulter, 1876-1959

Ballantine, John

Bookwalter, John Wesley, 1839-1915

Bowring, Eva Kelly, 1892-1985

Boyd, James Edward, 1834-1906

Brisbin, James Sanks, 1837-1892

Buck, Nelson, -1869

Buck, Royal, 1820-1890

Butler, John Paul

Byfield, John

Byfield, William

Cather, Willa Sibert, 1873-1947

Cody, William Frederick “Buffalo Bill,” 1846-1917

Crawford, John Wallace “Captain Jack”

Daugherty, William E.

Didier, John B.

Dillard, George

Dorsey, Stephen

Griswold, Dwight Palmer, 1893-1954

Guerrier, Edmund, 1840-1921

Harmon, William Julius, 1849-1921

Hayes, Edward

Hoel, Aaron

Homan, Henry

Hunter, Gallant V.

Irwin, John

Kennison, David

Lambert, Martha E.

Marshall, Francis

McDonald, Charles

Meinhold, Charles, 1812-1877

Metcalf, George Stephen, 1900-1975

Middleton, David Cherry “Doc”, 185?-1913

Miles, Lorena (Wellman)

Morris, B.P.

Omohundro, John Baker “Texas Jack,” 1846-1880

Paxton, William A., 1837-1907

Reid, William A.

Riley, Paul Davis, 1936-1981

Speer, Olive N. (Baldwin), 1870-1965

Sutton, Everette Samson, 1893-1987

Sydenham, Moses Henry, 1835-1907

Taylor, William Z., 1845-1913

Ward, Aaron

Williams, Robert H.

Yager, James Pressley

Yake, James K., 1845-1902

Arapahoe (Nebraska) — History

Battle of Arikaree, 1868

Beauvais family

Blizzards — Nebraska

Brouhard family

Buffalo hunting

Burlington Railroad

Burress family

Camp Red Willow

Carter family

Cass County (Nebraska) — History

Cather family

Cattle ranching — Nebraska

Cheyenne Indians

Clifford family

Coad family

Coe family

Cottonwood Springs (Nebraska) — History

Cram family

Crime — Nebraska

Dauchy family

Drury family

Dundy County (Nebraska) — History

Elwood (Nebraska) — History

Estey family

Fort Kearny

Fort Laramie

Fort Lowell

Fort McPherson

Fort Niobrara

Fort Omaha

Franklin County (Nebraska) — History

Freighting — Nebraska

Frontier County (Nebraska) — History

Furnas County (Nebraska) — History

Gammil family

Gays — Nebraska — Lincoln

Gillett family

Grand Island (Nebraska) — History

Grant family

Green family

Harlan County (Nebraska) — History

Harvey family

Hitchcock County (Nebraska) — History

Homosexuality

Ilgenfritz family

Indianola (Nebraska) — History

Indians of North America — Reservations

Indians of North America — Wars

Ireland family

Julesburg (Kansas) — History

Kearney (Nebraska) — History

Loomis family

Lynch family

Massacre Canyon, Battle of

Matlock family

McCook (Nebraska) — History

Minden (Nebraska) — History

Morrow family

Murders — Nebraska

Nemaha County (Nebraska) — History

Nichols family

North Platte (Nebraska) — History

Overland trails

Pawnee Agency

Phillipsburg (Kansas) — History

Pine Ridge Reservation

Plattsmouth (Nebraska) — History

Plum Creek Massacre

Powell family

Red Willow County (Nebraska) — History

Republican River (Nebraska)

Richardson County (Nebraska) — History

Roper family

Royal Buffalo Hunt

Sanders family

Schwatka family

Sexual minorities — Nebraska — Lincoln

Shelly family

Sidney (Nebraska) — History

Sioux Indians

Stearns family

Sweitzer family

Thayer County (Nebraska) — History

Waits family

Warner family

Webster County (Nebraska) — History

Wood family

Revised TMM 12-26-2006; 12-23-2021