Ralph and Elizabeth Watson slide collection
Scope and Contents
The Ralph and Elizabeth Watson slide collection consists of 34 35mm color slide transparencies of a Glen Canyon River trip and Escalante River taken by Ralph and Elizabeth Watson in 1959. Locations are noted on the slide casings by Elizabeth Watson and include Smith Fork, Forgotten Canyon, Music Temple, Hole in the Rock, Lake Canyon, Moki house, Hidden Passage, Ticaboo, Hite, and other canyon photos.
Dates
- Creation: 1959
Creator
- Watson, Ralph (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
Conditions Governing Use
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.
Biographical / Historical
Ralph and Elizabeth Watson were a married couple who lived in southern California, where Ralph Watson worked as a dentist. According to their family, Ralph Watson, a dentist, became aware of Glen Canyon and the Colorado River while providing dental care to Indigenous people through a Rotary program. The Watsons took a trip to Glen Canyon in 1959.
Glen Canyon is a 169.6-mile canyon on the Colorado River located primarily in southern Utah and northern Arizona. In the 1950s, plans for a hydroelectric dam on the Colorado River were initiated, causing numerous environmental groups to rally in protection of various canyons along the Colorado River watershed. Beginning in 1963, Glen Canyon and its 125 side canyons were flooded as the Powell Reservoir was created over a period of 17 years. The flooding of Glen Canyon was a seminal event in the life of many American environmentalists, from David Brower of the Sierra Club to author Edward Abbey.
Extent
0.2 Linear Feet (1 archive box) : 34 color slides
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Ralph and Elizabeth Watson slide collection consists of 34 color slides of Glen Canyon and the Escalante River taken by the Watsons during a 1959 trip. The Watsons traveled to the canyon from their home in southern California to view it before it was flooded in the creation of the Powell Reservoir.
Arrangement
Arranged by subject.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Kay Ogden, Frank and Cecilia Watson in 2013.
Processing Information
Processed by Special Collections staff.
Genre / Form
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Ralph and Elizabeth Watson slide collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding aid written by Special Collections staff.
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- The finding aid was written in English.
Repository Details
Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu