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Metropolitan Canal Alliance Collection

 Collection
Identifier: MS MSS 26

Scope and Content Note

The Metropolitan Canal Alliance Collection contains over four hundred photographs compiled from various sources for the Scottsdale Center for the Arts Spring 1997 exhibit, Following the Water: Historical and Contemporary Photographs of Salt River Valley Canals. Images date from 1900-1990s. Textual records in the collection include historical research files and project files documenting the activities of the organization.

The collection is divided into twelve series:

  1. Series One: MCA Batch Files
  2. Series Two: Exhibit Working Files
  3. Series Three: Exhibit Source Files
  4. Series Four: Printed Matter
  5. Series Five: Working Prints
  6. Series Six: Canal Photos
  7. Series Seven: Canal Slides
  8. Series Eight: Unused Work Prints
  9. Series Nine: Oversize Photo Prints
  10. Series Ten: Exhibit Prints
  11. Series Eleven: Oversize Exhibit Map
  12. Series Twelve: Project Files

Of particular import are Series Two and Series Three, which document the evolution of the exhibit and the sources for the original photographs which include both public and private repositories as well as private collectors. Series Six and Series Seven provide contemporary photo documentation (1980s-1990s) of historic canal site locations. Series Ten is the collection of black and white photographic prints (still framed) which were used in the Scottsdale exhibit.

Dates

  • Creation: 1900s-2004

Language of Materials

Material in English

Access Restrictions

To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist or calling (480) 965-4932. Appointments in the Design and the Arts Special Collections Reading Room at the Design and the Arts Library on the Tempe campus are available Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Copyright

The Arizona Board of Regents retains copyright to this collection for and on behalf of Distinctive Collections, Arizona State University Library. Requests for permissions to publish, display, or redistribute information from this collection must be submitted via our online application.

Historical Note

The Metropolitan Canal Alliance is a project of the Junior League of Phoenix, an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism and to improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.

Established in the late 1980s, the Metropolitan Canal Alliance (MCA) is dedicated to preservation and enhanced awareness of canals in Arizona's Salt River Valley. This non-profit organization sponsors exhibits, lectures, tours, and research regarding the topic.

Full extent

15 Box(es)

Partial extent

1 Oversize Folders

Full extent

20 Cubic Feet

Abstract

This collection documents the activities of the Metropolitan Canal Alliance, an organization dedicated to preservation and enhanced awareness of canals in Arizona's Salt River Valley, and is arranged in twelve series.

Arrangement

This collection is comprised of 32 boxes and 1 oversize folder and is divided into twelve series:

  1. Series One: MCA Batch Files
  2. Series Two: Exhibit Working Files
  3. Series Three: Exhibit Source Files
  4. Series Four: Printed Matter
  5. Series Five: Working Prints
  6. Series Six: Canal Photos
  7. Series Seven: Canal Slides
  8. Series Eight: Unused Work Prints
  9. Series Nine: Oversize Photo Prints
  10. Series Ten: Exhibit Prints
  11. Series Eleven: Oversize Exhibit Map
  12. Series Twelve: Project Files

Provenance

This collection was donated by Marie Navarre and Sharon Southerland of the Metropolitan Canal Alliance in March 1998 and December 2012.

Title
Metropolitan Canal Alliance Collection
Status
Completed
Author
Processed by Brent Harris in March 1998 and Harold Housley in November 2015.
Date
2016
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding guide encoded in English.

Repository details

Part of the Design and the Arts Special Collections Repository

Contact

Arizona State University
P.O. Box 871705
Tempe AZ 85287-1705 United States
480-965-6370