Scholes, France V. (France Vinton), 1897-1979

France V. Scholes was born in Bradford, Illinois, in 1897. He received his degrees from Harvard University. A tuberculosis patient, he came to Albuquerque in 1924. Regaining his health, he taught history at UNM off and on from 1924-1945, and regularly from 1946-1970. In between he received funding to search for colonial documents in the archives of Spain and Mexico, finding many for the history of New Mexico. In addition, he worked for the Library of Congress copying documents in the archives of Mexico. He also headed the Carnegie Post-Columbian History Section and searched for Yucatan and Mayan documents in the archives of Spain, Mexico and Yucatan. The results of these archival searches are evident in his writings and in this collection. In 1946 he was a UNM professor of History, Dean of the Graduate School and the first Academic Vice President. In 1956 he asked to be relieved of administrative duties but continued to teach until retiring in 1970. He continued studying Mexico and Cortes in the archives and was Visiting Professor of History at Tulane University until his death in 1979. A devoted scholar and teacher, he discovered many key documents in the archives, published countless historical pieces, and inspired two generations of new scholars in all three areas of his interest.

France Vinton Scholes came to the University of New Mexico as a History Professor in 1925. He also served as Academic Vice President and Dean of the Graduate School.

France V. Scholes (Pict 000-360-0002)

France V. Scholes was born in Bradford, Illinois, in 1897. He received his degrees from Harvard University. A tuberculosis patient, he came to Albuquerque in 1924. Regaining his health, he taught history at UNM off and on from 1924-1945, and regularly from 1946-1970. In between he received funding to search for colonial documents in the archives of Spain and Mexico, finding many for the history of New Mexico. In addition, he worked for the Library of Congress copying documents in the archives of Mexico. He also headed the Carnegie Post-Columbian History Section and searched for Yucatan and Mayan documents in the archives of Spain, Mexico and Yucatan. The results of these archival searches are evident in his writings and in this collection. In 1946 he was a UNM professor of History, Dean of the Graduate School and the first Academic Vice President. In 1956 he asked to be relieved of administrative duties but continued to teach until retiring in 1970. He continued studying Mexico and Cortes in the archives and was Visiting Professor of History at Tulane University until his death in 1979. A devoted scholar and teacher, he discovered many key documents in the archives, published countless historical pieces, and inspired two generations of new scholars in all three areas of his interest

The majority of the primary documents in this collection were copied at the Archivo General de La Nación (AGN), in Mexico City, between 1927 and 1970, by UNM History professors Lansing Bartlett Bloom and France Vinton Scholes, who used the material for their research and seminars on New Mexican and Mexican history. Other contributors included George P. Hammond and Eleanor Adams. Lesser amounts of documents came from the Archivo Histórico Militar de México, Biblioteca Nacional de México, and Museo Nacional de México, and various archives in Yucatan.

The Archivo General de la Nación de México falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior and is charged with the maintenance, description, and preservation of documents of Mexico. The archive was created in 1792 as the General Archives of New Spain by viceroy Juan Vicente de Guemes Pacheco y Padilla, the second Conde de Revillagigedo, to sort and organize all the viceregal documents. Following independence in 1823 the archive was renamed Archivo General y Público de la Nación. Several times during the nineteenth century Mexico City was occupied by foreign powers and the documents were removed to other locations for safekeeping and later returned. The name of the archive was changed to Archivo General de la Nación de México in 1918. The AGN currently has more than 6 million documents, maps, cartogafías, photographs, audio tapes, videos, manuscripts, etc.

Lansing Bloom came to New Mexico in 1912 and besides teaching at UNM, was involved in a variety of organizations in Santa Fe, including the Museum of New Mexico, the School of American Research and the Historical Society of New Mexico. He was a founder and editor of the New Mexico Historical Review, from its inception in 1926 until his death in 1946. He was responsible for most of the selections in the AGN collection. Knowing that the early documents for New Mexico had been lost during the Pueblo Revolt, he made numerous trips to the archives of Mexico, Spain, and Italy between from 1928 and 1940 to find information. He located and copied thousands of documents that were hitherto unknown to Southwest historians, depositing them at UNM. To understand New Mexico events, he also collected a considerable amount of material on the northern provinces of Mexico and the surrounding Borderlands.

Scholes also added much to this collection. He came to Albuquerque in 1924, teaching at UNM off and on from 1924 to 1954, and regularly from 1946-1970, when he retired. His areas of interest covered colonial New Mexico, Mexico and the Yucatan. He worked for the Library of Congress copying Spanish documents about the U.S. Borderlands in the archives of Mexico. As head of the Carnegie Post-Columbian History Section he searched for Yucatan and Mayan material in the archives of Spain and Mexico. For comparisons, he collected documents about the history of the Caribbean, Central America and Latin America - adding another dimension to this collection. Scholes focused his research on Cortes as he approached retirement. He was Visiting Professor of History at Tulane University until his death in 1979.

Both Bloom and Scholes published scholarly works based on documents from this collection. The New Mexico Historical Review carried articles about their lives and research activities, as well as historical studies by them.

This descriptive guide for the AGN material at the CSWR was the brain child of Robert Himmerich y Valencia, as editor of the New Mexico Historical Review. The initial layout was developed by Felicia Guerra and graduate students from the NMHR office and was later continued by fellows from the CSWR.

The majority of the primary documents in this collection were copied at the Archivo General de Indias (AGI), in Sevilla, between 1927 - 1970 by UNM History professors Lansing Bartlett Bloom and France Vinton Scholes for their research and seminars on New Mexican and Mexican history, as well as related areas. Other contributors included George P. Hammond and Eleanor Adams. Lesser amounts of documents came from the Archivo Historico Nacional, Madrid; the Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid; El Escorial, Madrid; the Archivo de Protocolos, Sevilla; the Archivo de Simancas; the Real Academia de Historia, Madrid; the Propaganda Fide Collection, Vatican Library, Rome; the Bancroft Library; Library of Congress and the Newberry Library. The Archivo General de Indias (AGI), housed in Seville, Spain, is the document repository related to the history of the Spanish Empire in the Americas and the Philippines, hence the volume from there. It was created in 1785 by decree of Charles III in order to bring together under a single roof all the documentation regarding the overseas empire, which until that time had been dispersed among various archives. The other archives held documents related to the broader interests of these scholars.

Bloom came to New Mexico in 1912 and besides teaching at UNM, was involved in a variety of organizations in Santa Fe, including the Museum of New Mexico, the School of American Research and the Historical Society of New Mexico. He was a founder and editor of the New Mexico Historical Review, from its inception in 1926 until his death in 1946. He was responsible for most of the selections in the AGI collection. Knowing the early documents for New Mexico had been lost during the Pueblo Revolt, from 1928-1940 he made numerous trips to the archives of Mexico, Spain, and Italy to find information. He located and copied thousands of documents that were hitherto unknown to Southwest historians, depositing them at UNM. To understand New Mexico events, he also collected a considerable amount of material on the northern provinces of Mexico and the surrounding Borderlands.

Scholes came to Albuquerque in 1924, teaching at UNM off and on from 1924 to 1954, and regularly from 1946-1970, when he retired. His areas of interest covered colonial New Mexico, Mexico and Yucatan. He worked for the Library of Congress copying Spanish documents about the U.S. Borderlands in the archives of Mexico. As head of the Carnegie Post-Columbian History Section he searched for Yucatan and Mayan material in the archives of Spain and Mexico. For comparisons, he collected documents about the history of the Caribbean, Central America and Latin America - adding another dimension to this collection. Toward retirement, Scholes focused his research on Cortes. He was Visiting Professor of History at Tulane University until his death in 1979.

Both Bloom and Scholes published scholarly works based on documents from this collection. The New Mexico Historical Review carried articles about their lives and research activities, as well as historical studies by them.

This descriptive guide for the AGI material at the CSWR was the brain child of Robert Himmerich y Valencia, as editor of the New Mexico Historical Review. The initial layout was developed by Felicia Guerra and graduate students from the NMHR office and was later continued by fellows from the CSWR.