Parker M. Nielson papers

Collection

Identifier: ACCN 1642

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Parker M. Nielson papers (1928-1996) consist of records concerning the termination of the mixed-blood Utes pursuant to the Ute Termination Act of August 27, 1954 (25 U.S.C., 677, et. seq). The collection documents the events leading up to termination and the representations made to the Indians by tribal attorneys and officials of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It holds correspondence to and from various attorneys, government officials, and tribal representatives; and reports and other documents prepared by the U. S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, other federal agencies, and their state and local counterparts. Included are miscellaneous personal papers of the mixed-blood Utes themselves, many of which were written by the Indians during the time when the termination program was in progress, documenting their experiences and understanding, which were given Nielson in connection with various lawsuits concerning rights arising out of termination, notably litigation before the U. S. Supreme Court, entitled, Affiliated Ute Citizens v. United States (406 U.S. 128, 1972), and related litigation before the U. S. Court of Claims and the U. S. District Court for the District of Utah. Present are depositions and transcripts of trial testimony of the Indians, their attorneys, and advisers, (including officials of First Security Bank who acted as their trustee) which describe the events of termination and the subsequent loss of the Indians' property. Documentary evidence from the trial of the cases and certified documents from the National Archives are included, as are a variety of other documents: court documents and trial records, news clippings, tribal records, reservation records, maps, meeting records, and additional documents.

The inventory that follows this introduction is based on that provided by Parker M. Nielson. The documents, which were organized by Nielson and his staff, who assigned "AUC" (Affiliated Ute Citizens) numbers to those housed in boxes 3-36. A card-file index to these "AUC" documents, prepared by Nielson's staff, is housed in boxes 1 and 2. These index terms, where provided, are reproduced in this inventory following the item description. For example, the text that accompanies the item description for AUC 565, "1) Reed, Cordie May, Franklin Terry, Lawanna Kay and Margaret Sue; 2) First Security Bank Trust records," indicates the index terms used for that document. Some "AUC" documents, due to their size or format, have been removed from their original order and have been so noted. Missing AUC numbers were not used by Nielson or were not included in the collection's content. Boxes 26-32 hold depositions taken for a variety of court cases. Box 36 and one map folder hold oversize "AUC" documents. Boxes 37 and 38 hold minutes for meetings of the Affiliated Ute Citizens, while box 39 holds miscellaneous documents regarding the Affiliated Ute Citizens that were not assigned an "AUC" number.

Dates

1928-1996

Creator

Nielson, Parker M., 1932- (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 Note

Parker M. Nielson (b. 1932) received his J.D. from the University of Utah College of Law and practices in Salt Lake City. He has represented "mixed-blood" Ute Indians and is the author of The Dispossessed: Cultural Genocide of the Mixed-Blood Utes.

Extent

30.25 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Parker M. Nielson in 1997.

Separated Materials

Audio recordings of interviews with the Indians, tape and wire recordings of actual meetings during the decade of the 1950s when termination was being discussed and their property divided, and films and photographs have been transferred to the Multimedia Division of Special Collections (P0758 and A0429). These materials were designated AUC 468, AUC 842, and AUC 844 through AUC 892.