Verne F. Ray Explained

Verne Frederick Ray, (1905 – September 28, 2003) was anthropology professor at the University of Washington, with a B.A. and M.A. in anthropology from Washington and a Ph.D. (in 1937) from Yale. Ray was one of the first anthropologists at UW,^[1] was head of the Department of Anthropology and associate dean of the graduate school.

He is known best for assisting Northwest tribes with tribal land-claim settlements and is viewed as pioneer in the field of ethnohistory.^[2] The Cowlitz tribe, which he helped gain federal recognition, made him an honorary member in 2000.^[3] Some of his papers are held at Gonzaga University.^[4]

He was married to fellow anthropologist and author Dorothy Jean Ray.^[5]

Bibliography

He is the author or editor of 52 books dealing with the anthropology of the American Indians of the Northwest.^[6] In particular, his work with the Interior Salish Tribes of Washington following the passage of the Indian Claims Commission Act in 1946^[1] led to the publication of a number of important articles on the tribes,^[7] including the following:

• Ray, Verne F. "The Columbia Confederacy: A League of Central Plateau Tribes." In Stanley Diamond, editor, Culture in History: Essays in Honor of Paul Radin. Columbia University Press: New York, 1960, pp. 771–789.
• Ray, Verne F. "Cultural Relations in the Plateau of Northwestern America." Publications of the Frederick Webb Hodge Anniversary Publication Fund, Vol. III. Los Angeles, 1939.
• Ray, Verne F. "Ethnohistorical Notes on the Columbia, Chelan, Entiat, and Wenatchee Tribes," Interior Salish and Eastern Washington Indians IV. Garland Publishing Inc.: New York, 1974.
• Ray, Verne F. "Native Village and Groupings of the Columbia Basin," Pacific Northwest Quarterly. Vol. 27 No. 2, April, 1936.
• Ray, Verne F., The Sanpoil and Nespelem: Salishan Peoples of Northeastern Washington (New Haven, Human Relations Area Files, 1954) [Originally published as Vol. V, University of Washington Publications in Anthropology, 1933].

Notes and References

1. Web site: Verne F. Ray 1905-2003. 2008-07-17. University of Washington. March 2004. Lydia. Ratna. Columns.
2. Web site: Anthropologist Aided Land-claim Cases. 2008-07-17. 2004-11-04. The Globe and Mail.
3. "OBITUARIES - Verne F. Ray (1905-2003)" by William R Seaburg American anthropologist. 107, no. 1, (2005): 180
4. Web site: LibGuides: Manuscript Collections: Ray. Plowman. Stephanie. researchguides.gonzaga.edu. en. 2019-05-02.
5. Web site: Dorothy Jean Tostlebe Ray . University of Northern Iowa . Waterloo Courier. December 16, 2007. B5.
6. http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=Verne+F.+Ray&fq=dt%3Abks+%3E+ap%3A%22ray%2C+verne+frederick%22&qt=facet_ap%3A Worldcat
7. Web site: UW Anthropologist Helped Tribes Win Land-Claim Suits. 2008-07-17. 2003-10-22. John Iwasaki. Seattle Post-Intelligencer.