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
