A Guide to the W.E. Manis Collection
Finding aid prepared by Daniel A. Reboussin
University of Florida Smathers Libraries - Special and Area Studies Collections
August 2004
Descriptive Summary |
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| Provenance: | Manis, W.E. (Wallace Eugene) | |
| Title: | W.E. Manis Collection | |
| Dates: | 1939-1941 | |
| Abstract: | Includes photographic prints, letters and ephemera collected or created by W. E. Manis. The collection pertains to the collector's life and work as a Rubber Planter and later in change of the research department of Firestone Plantations Co. in Liberia, West Africa (1940-41). Manis took the photographs and selected items for inclusion in the two scrapbook albums that constitute this gift, complete in 80 pages of 224 black and white photographs, with about 133 sheets of mostly unpublished typescript letters, manuscripts, mimeos and telegrams. | |
| Extent: | 2 Albums | |
| Identification: | MS Group 143 | |
Biographical/Historical Note
Wallace Eugene ("Gene") Manis was born in Lewiston, Montana on May 20, 1913. He attributed his interest in international travel to the stamp collection hobby that his stepfather, Carl E. Magni, shared with him. He became interested in a career in science by volunteering at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton. He studied horticulture at the University of Montana, earning an AB degree in 1935 and completing a Master's (AM) degree at the University of Michigan in 1936.
Manis was working in the doctoral program at the University of Wisconsin School of Forestry when Firestone Plantations Co. offered him a position in November 1939. He accepted the position of Rubber Planter in the Research Department of Firestone Plantations Co. and traveled to Monrovia, Liberia on a freighter in December 1939. He returned to the US in November 1941.
His subsequent career included employment with several other commercial rubber interests as well as with the USDA in Brazil (1942-43), as a pathologist with the US-Costa Rican Cooperative Rubber Plant Program (1943-44) and in Uraba, Colombia (1944-46). He was in charge of the US-Costa Rican Cooperative Rubber Plant Experiment Sub-Station (1947-54) and was a hybrid seed and ornamental plant producer with Linda Vista, Ltd. in Costa Rica (1955-57). He was a plant breeder with the Rubber Research Institute and with USAID in Ceylon (1958-60).
He returned to Africa as rubber research officer with the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources in Western Nigeria and with USAID (1961-63). His professional service continued as a research horticulturist in charge of the US plant introduction station, New Crops Research Bureau (1964-73) and as Agricultural Research Officer with the International Programs Division, Agricultural Research Service of the USDA (1974-77). He was a consultant to the UN in Thailand and Burma in 1973, where he worked with the United Nations Program for Drug Abuse Control in Chiang Mai.
A member of the Society for Economic Botany, he held concurrent positions as Adjunct Associate Professor (1966) and as Adjunct Professor with the University of Miami (1967-77). He and his wife, Rosemary, moved to Gainesville, Florida in 1977, and he died the following year.
Scope and Content
The collection consists of two scrapbook albums, dating from November 1939 to November 1941. Materials included begin chronologically with business correspondence by telegram and regular mail relating to his job offer and contract with Firestone Plantations Co., as well as a handful of personal letters prior to his travel, letters offering travel advice for living in the tropics, company manuals and policies, and personal photographs. A 22-page transcribed letter that he wrote to his mother, Mrs. Elsa Magni [his mother's name after remarriage], and his sister, Beth, soon after arriving in Monrovia is also included.
Several examples of informal typescript pamphlets from the company's Overseas Club recreational organization are included (excerpts from several newsletters, a play script, entertainment programs, etc.). Ephemera, mementos and scrapbook items include a small number of manuscript notes or letters from Liberian laborers under his supervision, offering a glimpse of the personal relationships established in the context of this global horticultural and industrial enterprise. Another example, rare in library collections, is a small pamphlet on Kroo (Kru) ethnic history published in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Other examples include two Bank of Monrovia checks with revenue stamps, luggage tags with a customs stamp and the S.S. Acadia ship's menu for Thanksgiving dinner. An official letter on company letterhead confirms to Mrs. Magni the departure of her son on Nov. 7, 1941. A Playbill and program for Olsen and Johnson's New Hellzapoppin revue represent the collector's arrival in New York during November 1941.
The photographs are a rich source of visual information, but captions were not included. Descriptive information has been interpreted from the photographs themselves, from a letter written by Manis to his family in Montana (1940), from interviews with Manis and other knowledgeable persons, and from various reference sources. Subjects include scenes encountered and people met on the trans-Atlantic freighter S.S. Cathlamet (December 2-24, 1939), upon Manis's arrival in Monrovia on Christmas Eve Day, during his establishment as a staff member on the Firestone plantation, through his work and recreational activities while working there, and finally at his departure back to New York on November 7, 1941.
Approximately 48 prints are of Americans (ship passengers, plantation staff). About 112 prints depict Africans (primarily Liberians, either as plantation laborers or depicted in a variety of village-based activities such as cooking, construction, childrearing, but also as marketers, craftspeople, and celebrants in several kinds of ceremonial activities). Approximately 64 prints depict plantation or urban landscapes (Monrovia, [Harbel?], [Kakata?]) and a few residential interiors (the latter are presumably of Manis's bungalow, including the masks that served as its decor).
The majority of the photographs are of Liberian men, women and children at work or posing for the camera. Manis himself appears in a few of the photos. He identifies the primary Liberian ethnic groups with which he worked as Gio (who call themselves Dan), Mono (Mano, Ma) and Bassa. The Bassa people are Kruan speakers, like the Kru, while the Dan and Ma people are Mande speakers, as are the Mendingo (Manding), who Manis points out are mostly traders in this area.
Access or Use Restrictions
Access
The collection is open for research, with access restriction applied only for a Firestone Plantations Company employee handbook ("General information for the information and guidance of staff and families of Firestone Plantations Company and affiliated companies in Liberia." June 15, 1941). Users with legitimate research interests should contact the Department of Special and Area Studies Collections to apply for research access to this item. This item may be quoted and cited, but it may not be reproduced until further notice. Patrons seeking access to the item must sign a copy of a restriction statement, confirming that they have read and understood the restrictions, and that they intend to comply with these terms.
Related or Separated Material
The Firestone Tire and Rubber Company's archives are held at the University of Akron, where access may be restricted. For more information on the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company's official corporate archives, please contact: John V. Miller, Director of Archival Services, The University of Akron University Libraries, Polsky Building, 225 South Main Street, Room LL10, Akron, OH 44325-1702, (330) 972-7670
In addition, a portion of the Akron archives was photocopied with permission and deposited as a part of the Liberian Collections Project at Indiana University's Archives of Traditional Music. Information on these materials, identified as the Svend E. Holsoe Collection, is available at: http://www.onliberia.org/collections.htm (e-mail: liberia@indiana.edu).
W.E. Manis and his wife, Rosemary, donated several important art objects from Liberia to the Harn Museum of Art at the University of Florida, including a Deangle masquerade ensemble pictured in the field at the time of its acquisition.
Administrative Information
Alternate Form of Material
Digital reproductions of the photos and documents in the W.E. Manis albums are available online via the University of Florida Digital Collections (UFDC) Africana Collection.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], W.E. Manis Collection, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Acquisition Information
The W. E. Manis Collection was donated by Will and Jean Manis of Sammamish, Washington in June 2003. The collection was acquired through the assistance of Rosemary Manis, Robin Poynor, Susan Cooksey and Dan Reboussin.
Processing Information
These materials were described in 2003 by Dan Reboussin. The following individuals provided assistance in administrative matters and descriptive work: Susan Cooksey, Svend Holsoe, Mandelyn Hutcherson, Erich Kesse, Fredline McCormack, Rosemary and Will Manis, John V. Miller, John Nemmers, Tim Nevin and Robin Poynor.
Scrapbook Album 1 |
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| One handbook for employees of the Firestone Plantations Company. View Page | |||||||||||||
| "Handbook for Employees of Firestone Plantations Company." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Job offer via telegram and contract letter. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Western Union job offer telegram stamped Nov. 17, 1939. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Firestone Plantations Co. contract for Junior Planter position. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three telegrams with envelopes. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Telegram 1: personal note from Mother (Mrs. Elsa Magni). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Telegram 2: personal note from Betty. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Telegram 3: personal note from Beth (Manis's sister). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three letters from Health Service scientists whom Manis met while volunteering at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton, Montana. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Personal ms. letter from Cornelius B. Philips on US Public Health Service letterhead. Nov. 26, 1939. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Typescript letter from Dr. Gordon E. Davis, US Public Health Service. Nov. 26, 1939. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Ms. letter from H.R. Herman dated "Tuesday noon." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photographic prints. S.S. Cathlamet freighter, passengers, tugboats, etc. The ship left Pier 17 in Brooklyn on Dec. 2, 1939. Ports of call were Dakar on the 18th and Freetown on the 21st, arriving at Monrovia on the 24th. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: S.S. Cathlamet from shore or dock (small lighter boats are alongside). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: View of tugboat from aboard S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three passengers on deck of S.S. Cathlamet. Mac, a West Highland Terrier, belongs to Perry and Olive Jester View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: View of S.S. Cathlamet's tugboat from aboard ship. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Crewman on deck of S.S. Cathlamet freighter. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Passenger on deck of S.S. Cathlamet freighter. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: S.S. Cathlamet freighter. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photographs of passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Olive and Perry Jester, Fran and John Diefenback, Dewey and Mary Miller, Eddie and Helen Kloke, Gravey and Kit Graves, "Mac." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Four passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A passenger on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A passenger on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photographs of S.S. Cathlamet and the passengers on board. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Six passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet (with Mac). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: One passenger on board S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three passengers on board S.S. Cathlamet (with Mac). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Crew and laborers on deck of S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: S.S. Cathlamet from shore or dock (lighters pulled alongside). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photograph of ship, a Kroo pamphlet, and a postcard of African woman. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Ship arriving in port (taken from S.S. Cathlamet). View Item | |||||||||||||
| "Reasons why Kroo people were never slaves: an historiette of the Kroo Confederacy." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Postcard portrait of African woman in traditional dress. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Bank of Monrovia check with Firestone watermark, 2 one cent revenue stamps. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Bank of Monrovia check with Firestone watermark, 2 one cent revenue stamps. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photographs of an African crewman and an urban street scene. Also a folded letter to Elsa Magni. View Page | |||||||||||||
| An African crewman poses in dress whites on board the S.S. Cathlamet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Typescript letter dated 12/27/1939 advising Mrs. Elsa Magni that her son arrived in Liberia on Dec. 24. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Monrovia (Water Street?). Many pedestrians, African man in white suit, pith helmet. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of palm trees. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Palm trees bordering a rural road. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Top of a palm tree against the sky (showing rows of many bird nests on the fronds?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Letter dated Feb. 21, 1940 to Manis from Johnny Cooper requesting work. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Ms. letter dated Feb. 21, 1940 to Manis from Johnny Cooper requesting work. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Seven photos on grounds of plantation guest house with portraits of Liberian servants or workers. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Stone guest house with galvanized roof, elevated first floor. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in white shirt and shorts posing with long handled brush and shoes. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in white shirt and pants posing. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in white shorts and t-shirt posing. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in khaki shorts and white t-shirt posing. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young boy in shirt and shorts posing in front of a plantation pickup truck. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adolescent boy in Western clothes posing with foot on running board of pickup truck. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Letter dated Feb. 19, 1940 to Mr. Manis from "Momo" requesting a job. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Ms. letter dated Feb. 19, 1940 to Mr. Manis from "Momo" requesting a job. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four photos with Liberian children depicted. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two Liberian children, one in Western and another in local dress. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian boy with tethered monkey. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two Liberians posing in front of elevated (guest house?) residence. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young Liberian displaying underwing plumage of an African Harrier-hawk. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Letter dated March 21, 1940 from R. F. Nyan. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Ms. letter dated March 21, 1940 requesting transfer to another position. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Eight photographs of plantation laborers and one of a plantation office building. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian rubber tappers with latex collection buckets. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation building (divisional office?) View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation workers in front of collection station. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation workers in open building (divisional collection station?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young Liberian man in Western clothing and with glasses. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in white shirt and overalls. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Rubber tapping, or possibly tapper training. Tappers appear to be practicing on the stumps of thinned trees. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: About 15 rubber tappers sitting on bench in front of tapping buckets at collection station. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Note dated Feb. 9, 1940 ("Dear Boss, Please come help immediately..."). View Page | |||||||||||||
| Ms. note requesting medical help for a fellow worker wounded by a razor in a fight. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Five photos of the rubber plantation depicting a road, tapping techniques and saplings. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Rubber tree with 30 degree, 1 mm. cut for tapping, porcelain collection bowl attached (cuts deeper than a millimeter may damage the tree). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Rubber tree and tree stump with cuts in bark (possibly the result of test tapping and thinning or an example of a training tool for tappers?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Dirt road through new plantations of rubber saplings. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation of small rubber trees. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A sapling (2 year old trees are 12-14' tall). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Ms. letter from Henry Cooper dated Feb. 26, 1939 (sic--must have been 1940). View Page | |||||||||||||
| Letter from Henry Cooper requesting a pass for his wife to leave the hospital and return home. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Five photos of plantation office buildings in a cleared area. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation office buildings. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation building. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Possibly nursery areas? (Thousands of acres between Du and Farmington Rivers felled, cleared, burned in mid-1930s). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation office building. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation office buildings on ridge above cleared area. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Letter dated March 13, 1940 from Henry Cooper. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Letter from Henry Cooper, begins "Dear Boss..." Requests help after "a Vai man" named Boymah beat writer's wife. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four landscape photos. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Falls on a river in the bush. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Dirt track road with apparently abandoned building (roof has no thatch). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Clearing a forested area. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Reed or cane screens erected on three sides of a leveled earthen floor. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Ms. letter dated Sept. 26, 1941 to W.E. Manis from Edward Urey. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Letter from Edward Urey regarding his pay. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four photos depicting plantation landscapes. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation landscape with buildings in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation landscape with road, building in background on a hill. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Wide plantation landscape with fence in foreground, buildings behind. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation landscape with large executive residential building on hill in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Typescript: "Staff assignments. June 2, 1941." View Page | |||||||||||||
| Staff assignments June 2, 1941 (p. 1 shows Manis in change of research dept.) View Item | |||||||||||||
| Ms. Letter dated Feb. 21, 1940. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Ms. Letter from "Fireman" requesting a hospital pass for his daughter. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Five photos of small round houses in different settings. All appear to be built by Firestone rather than indigenous construction. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Set of ten or twelve houses set close together on cleared hillside. Apparently company housing or work camp buildings? View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in Western clothes posing in front of a round thatched house. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Twenty five or more round thatched houses closely set together on flat, cleared land with three Liberians standing. Good example of company built housing, almost military in its straight lines. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Several open, round, thatched buildings (palaver houses or "plava huts"). These outbuildings or kitchens traditionally use "river thatch." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Eighty+ small round thatched houses on cleared hillside (possibly a Firestone plantation work camp?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Five images of house construction. Apparently these are not residences but "plava huts" or kitchens, employing "river thatch." View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Four men in Western clothes sitting and making construction materials. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: House frame without thatch or wall covering. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two houses, background house framed only, foreground example is thatched. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Thatching the roof on a house. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Man posing in front of a house with frame completed. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Five river and landscape photos, two with construction project. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: River rapids with American man standing in khakis. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: River rapids from above, tree stumps in foreground, three figures by the bank. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Construction project behind earthen dam (possibly a dam or bridge?) with a crane and truck. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two Liberian men entering a cleared area. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Construction project on bank of large river. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Six photos of Manis's residence in Liberia, two of exterior and four of interior. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Exterior photo (bungalow house as provided for American staff at Firestone Plantations). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Exterior photo of residence (pickup truck in front). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis residence interior with 15+ masks (shows Deangle costume for masquerade now in Harn collections). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis residence interior with 12+ masks, Deangle costume for masquerade (now in Harn collections). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis residence interior with mask over fireplace, carved figures and other objects on mantle. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis residence interior with 19+ masks, Deangle costume for masquerade (now in Harn collections). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photograph of two American women inside a residence. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Portrait of two women, one seated other standing holding carved figure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Portrait and two small photos with newsletter clipping from "Planter's Punch" Dec. 15, 1940. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Portrait of an American woman in a lounge chair holding a cocktail. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Letter to "Dear Miss Fortune" from "Senorita", Research, printed in "Planter's Punch" Dec. 15, 1940. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Plantation guest house with elevated first floor. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Small photo of kitchen items (canned ham and other goods, sliced bread) on a table. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of termites: the queen, a mound and surface tube across a road. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Large termite mound. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Termite queen held up for camera on a light colored piece of paper. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Termite surface tube crossing a dirt road. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four photos of Americans posing with animals. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American man in hunting khakis and pith helmet with rifle, posing with a large unidentified bird. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis on boat posing with a barracuda. He loved fishing, but wasn't very interested in hunting. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American man with two young chimpanzees. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two young chimpanzees hugging photographer's pant leg. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos, primarily Liberian men. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young Liberian man posing in front of a Traveller's palm in residential garden. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Roadside group of Liberian and American men with two pickup trucks near thatched roof houses. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Americans. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two American men and a woman, seated. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: An American man and woman, standing. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two American men and a woman, seated. Manis is on the right. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four photographs: three of land clearing and one of an American couple. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American woman posing on a Caterpillar Diesel bulldozer. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: An American man and woman, standing at top of a steep hill. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A bulldozer, parked in felled and cleared area. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Bulldozers and other heavy equipment for clearing, with a few Liberian workers. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four photos of Americans at the beach. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three American men and an American woman at a picnic on the beach, three wear pith helmets. Manis is in left foreground. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: An American man and woman in pith helmets and bathing suits at the beach. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three Americans at the beach. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Four Americans, three men and a woman picnic on the beach, all wearing pith helmets or a hat. View Item | |||||||||||||
| "Planter's Punch, Firestone Overseas Club newsletter. Harbel, Liberia. Vol. 2, No. 4." View Page | |||||||||||||
| "Planter's Punch, March 1 and 15, 1941." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos and a clipping. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Street scene, African urban buildings (possibly Kakata, site of the Booker Washington Institute vocational and agricultural school). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Newsletter clipping: "New Kakata Road Open" from Division 26 to Kakata. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Landscape photograph with forest, plantation building in background with water tower. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos and a cover of minstrel show program. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American men and women seated separately on small set of bleachers (at a sporting event?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| "Minstrel show" program: "Firestone Overseas Club presents the Greater Minstrel Shows 9:30 p.m. Sept. 27, 1941. Clubhouse." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo. American woman on porch of a plantation building, two Liberian employees in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of rubber plantation laborers. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Long line of Liberian men entering a plantation building. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Large group of Liberian plantation workers with rubber saplings behind them. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Several Liberian men display cloth, other items for sale in front of field of rubber saplings. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of a public event (on the Firestone plantation parade grounds or athletic fields?). View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A large group of Liberians and Americans surrounds a group of Liberian women. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Acrobats of the Snake Society toss a child between them. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A large group of Liberians and Americans watches a Snake Society acrobat toss child above his head. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photographs of Liberians. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian couple stands for (wedding?) portrait in front of round thatched roof house, man in Western suit. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: 31 Liberian men pose for group portrait, three at center in western dress (for wedding?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Eight photographs: return from the hunt. A forest buffalo (Syncerus caffer nanus) trophy is displayed. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American man with rifle poses over "bush cow" or buffalo trophy. Note Liberian man in hammock, who died, as Will Manis recalled, when the buffalo charged and gored him. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Second American man with rifle poses over buffalo trophy. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two American men (Manis is on the right) pose over trophy, Liberian men and boys, American woman and children in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three American men, two women, two children in fore with Liberians behind (one in uniform). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American girl about 6 years old in pith helmet stands on carcass holding rifle (with her mother?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: The hunting trophy displayed on ground. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American woman and two children pose in front of raised trophy supported by Liberian men. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian men supporting the trophy. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Snapshot of an American woman standing at a tourist site. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American woman standing with river falls in background, cabana with hammock, leans on chain fence. View Item | |||||||||||||
| A newsletter clipping announcement and a script for "The bride wore red pyjamas." View Page | |||||||||||||
| "One act play Sunday." Dec. 15, 1940 newsletter clipping. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Play script: "The bride wore red pyjamas." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photograph of two American women walking along a dirt road. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two American women walking along a dirt road, Plantation residence in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Pamphlet entitled: "General Instructions" View Page | |||||||||||||
| Typescript: "General information for the information and guidance of staff and families of Firestone Plantations Company and affiliated companies in Liberia. View Item | |||||||||||||
Scrapbook Album 2 |
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| Three photos of Liberians in local dress. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian woman carrying a baby on her back, row of houses in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Man in Muslim clothing, probably of Mandinka ethnicity, with white turban or head covering and white robe. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three Liberians, a woman and two men with baby in older man's arms and on woman's back. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberian adults and children. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two women, an adult man and three children in a cleared forest area. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two children and an infant in a recently cleared area. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Man in Muslim clothing poses with a woman in local dress (same people as on previous page). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of Liberian men performing traditional tasks. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man making "men's weave" strip cloth with a traditional loom. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man cutting strips of reed or palm (for house construction?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of women and children in village. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Seated woman beside a sleeping infant and dog. She wears chalk on her face, which is used as a traditional cure and after Sande initiations. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Child with distended belly standing with a crying toddler. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Woman bathes baby in enamel bowl, preadolescent child stands nearby. Houses, mortar, pestles behind. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberians gathering (for market?) in village. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian group in village on market day. Women seated with baskets under tree at center. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian group in village. Men seated on cloths spread on ground in foreground. Houses behind. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian group in village. Most people in this image are standing or walking except for two sitting children. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberian men manually sawing planks from large timber. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two men use a large saw to cut a log set in a lashed wooden frame to allow saw to work vertically. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Four men operating two-man saw with large cleared area in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Close up view of lashed frame apparatus for sawing timbers into planks. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberian women making crawfish trap baskets and carrying them to market. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young woman emptying crawfish from her traps, long narrow baskets, into a bucket. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two women carrying crawfish traps on their heads, and holding bouquets of flowers. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two women and a child seated in front of a house. Younger woman tends a cooking pot while the older woman makes a large flat basket, shares stool with child. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of young Liberians working. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Five young Liberian men and women carrying goods on roadside. Several use handmade back packs. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three young men appear to be carrying bundles or sheaves of rice on their heads. Possibly to shade the sun? View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of adult Liberians at work. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian woman tends a market stall in village or work camp. She has bitter ball, cola and rice among other things for sale. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young men sewing with a treadle sewing machines on a porch. Note ceiling mats above. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Seated man at work, perhaps making shoes. He has a kit of leather material at his side. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberian men and women using mortars and pestles. Apparently posed. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Young Liberian woman pounds grain in front of house. Two women stand behind, one with winnowing basket. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two Liberian men using a mortar, each with a pestle. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two Liberian women using a mortar, each with a pestle. They are posed in front of a reed or bamboo fence. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberians in village setting. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Four Liberian adult men eat cassava from a bowl. Cooking fire with pot suspended from tripod is nearby. Underexposed image. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two Liberian men and a woman holding an infant surround a cooking fire with several metal pots. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Five Liberian men sit on a mat around a bowl. Two houses, a cooking pot, sandals are nearby. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Single closeup portrait of a Liberian woman. Her face is adorned with white powder. She wears a batik dress and a plaid headscarf. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Portrait of Liberian woman in batik dress with plaid headscarf. She wears chalk on her face, which is worn for Sande Society initiation ceremonies and as a traditional cure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of Liberian women. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian woman with an enamel bowl balanced on her head, carrying an infant on her back. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Portrait of a Liberian woman standing with arms folded. She is in front of a house and smiles broadly. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of Liberians. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man posing along a path in the bush, with several women standing in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adolescent girl in ceremonial dress. She may be dressed for a Sande initiation ceremony. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of Liberian men in village. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man displays scarification pattern on his back. Possibly a Poro Society marking? View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Two seated Liberian men playing Mancala or "Poo" with pebbles or seeds placed in holes in the ground. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of Liberians in village setting. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man and woman pose standing up for portrait in front of a house. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man standing with two young women and two older women in front of a house. Possibly the women are this man's wives? View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of houses and people in a Liberian village. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Large house with a thatched roof, with two women in front. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A group of nine children in the village. Small photo is damaged in lower left. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A group of three young boys in the village, with a preadolescent boy. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Americans and Liberians handling snakes. Members of the Snake Society keep snakes in their villages. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American man in short khakis and pith helmet handles a large snake. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American man in short khakis and pith helmet poses with a large snake. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis poses with a Liberian man and woman, each of whom holds a snake. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Liberians and an American in pith helmet handling snakes. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: American man in pith helmet and with a holstered pistol poses with several Liberians handling two large snakes. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in ceremonial Snake Society dress holds a snake's head in his mouth. American man holds a second snake. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Liberian man in ceremonial Snake Society dress handles a snake. Three musicians with small slit drums, rattles, play amongst several observers. Houses apparently "Gio" or Dan. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Four photos of acrobats of the Snake Society performing. Young girls typically are the ones tossed. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adult in ceremonial costume stands over two children performing backbends. Drummers are nearby. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Snake Society acrobatic performance accompanied by several musicians amongst the audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Acrobatic performance attended by a group of Americans standing in front of their pickup trucks. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Acrobatic performance with drummers and observers. African and Western style buildings behind. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of Snake Society acrobatic performances. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adult acrobat raises one hand to support a child standing on one leg. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Acrobatic performance with child standing on adult's shoulders. African and Western style buildings behind. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Acrobatic performance with child sitting on adult's shoulders. African and Western style buildings behind. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of an acrobatic Snake Society performance. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adult acrobat prepares to catch a child performer. Drummers are behind with a small audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adult acrobat prepares to catch a child performer. He holds a large knife in one hand. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Adult acrobat prepares to catch a child performer. Drummers are behind with a small audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Single photo of W. E. Manis standing with Mano performer, who wears a Deangle mask and costume. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Manis purchased this Deangle mask and costume after the wearer performed in it for a boys' initiation ceremony. Manis and his wife Rosemary donated it to the Harn Museum of Art in 1978. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of a masked and costumed dancer known as a "Country Devil" or "Bush Devil." View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A masked and costumed dancer. Thatched buildings are visible in background. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Dancer in mask and costume. Thatched building behind, with photographer's shadow visible on ground. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of a dancer in masquerade. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Thirteen men and boys pose behind seated masquerade, one with a drum. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Dancer in masquerade performs in front of a male audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of a masqueraded dancer, one with a group of Liberian men, women and children behind. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Nine Liberian men, women and children pose with drum, flag, other objects behind a masquerade. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masquerade sitting in front of a small thatched structure (kitchen or shrine?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Standing masquerade posed in front of a small structure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of a masked, costumed dancer. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A masked and costumed dancer performs in front of drummers and an audience of mostly young men. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A masked and costumed figure performs (possibly a dancer supporting another on his shoulders). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos of a masked, costumed dancer (or dancers). View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A masked and costumed figure performs. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A masked and costumed dancer performs in front of drummers and an audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photograph of a masked performer on tall stilts. The "stilt devil" is associated with Snake Society ceremonies. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: A masked figure on stilts performs in front of a large male audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of a masked dancer performing on tall stilts before a large audience of 70 or more men. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer performs on tall stilts in front of a large audience of more than 70 young men. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer performs on tall stilts. An American squats in the foreground. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer performs on tall stilts. An American man squats in the foreground. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos of a masked dancer on tall stilts. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer performs on tall stilts in front of a large audience. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer performs on tall stilts. One leg is raised up. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer performs on tall stilts. Performer is bending low or kneeling on the stilts. View Item | |||||||||||||
| One photo of masked dancer on stilts, resting against a thatched roof. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Masked dancer on stilts, resting against a thatched roof. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Six photos of masks (objects on plain white background). View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 1. Tufted figure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 2. Figure with two horns. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 3. Figure with short curved horns. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 4. Bird figure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 5. Monkey figure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 6. Figure with six protruding teeth. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Six photos of masks (objects on plain white background). View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 1. Almond-shaped figure with six teeth. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 2. Mustached figure with tusks. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 3. Almond-shaped figure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 4. Mustached figure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 5. Figure with crocodile shaped mouth. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Mask 6. Figure with bird beak shaped mouth. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Two photos, one depicting three masks and the other with four masks. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Four bearded or mustached masks appear to be suspended from nails on a white wall. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Three masks, one with a long beak, another with four sharp metallic teeth, are suspended on a white wall. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Travel mementos: luggage tag and customs stamp. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Luggage tag for stateroom passage on S. S. Acadia. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Customs stamp and round luggage sticker. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Three photos, ship's dinner menu and a typescript letter. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Passenger ship (S.S. Acadia ?) from lighter with Liberian oarsmen. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Group of American men, women and Liberian men (departing passengers, those awaiting arrivals?). View Item | |||||||||||||
| Photo: Departure of lighter, ferrying passengers from shore to moored ship. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Ephemera. S.S. Acadia menu for Thanksgiving dinner, en route to New York. Nov. 20 1941. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Typescript letter dated Nov. 7, 1941 to Mrs. Elsa Magni advising her that W.E. Manis sailed from Liberia on Nov. 6. View Item | |||||||||||||
| "The Playbill for the Majestic Theatre" (describing "Olsen and Johnson's New Hellzapoppin") View Page | |||||||||||||
| "The Playbill for the Majestic Theatre." View Item | |||||||||||||
| Brochure for "Olsen and Johnson's New Hellzapoppin" View Page | |||||||||||||
| "Olsen and Johnson's New Hellzapoppin" brochure. View Item | |||||||||||||
| Transcribed letter that Manis wrote after arriving in Monrovia. View Page | |||||||||||||
| Transcribed letter that Manis wrote to his mother, Elsa Magni, and his sister, Beth, soon after arriving in Monrovia (22 pages, dated January 1940). View Item | |||||||||||||
For further information, please contact: Special Collections Access Services.
