MS 7886
National Library of Australia
View Catalogue Record
Collection Summary
- Creator
-
Oskar Spate
- Title
-
Papers of Oskar Spate
- Date Range
-
1934-1989
- Collection Number
-
MS 7886
- Extent
-
4.5 metres (21 boxes, 2 folio items)
- Language of Materials
-
English
- Repository
-
National Library of Australia
Introduction
Scope and Contents
The National Library took custody of this collection in March 1989. Series 2-9 were transferred to the Library in a total of 32 labelled box files. The contents of these box files have been removed into files without disturbing the order of the papers therein. The three part numbering system used in this list (eg: File 3/1/2) consists firstly of the series number, secondly of the box file number within that series, and thirdly the file number within that box file. The full collection as sorted and listed consists of sixteen manuscript boxes (2.24 metres).
Conditions Governing Access
Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn2645399).
Conditions Governing Use
Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.
Preferred Citation
Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Oskar Spate, National Library of Australia, MS 7886, [box number and series and/or file number]'.
Bibliography
T. M Perry, "Oskar Spate: a personal impression", in Jennings, J. N and Linge, G. J. R, Of Time and place: essays inhonour of OHK Spate, Canberra, 1980, pp. xiii-xix.
Biographical Note
Oskar Spate was born in England in 1911 and spent some childhood years in the USA. Back in London, he attended St Clement Dane's Grammar School and was taught geography by Leonard Suggate. In 1930 he moved to Cambridge University and achieved honours in geography. In 1937 he completed his Phd. on the development of London. After a year at Reading he moved to Burma, joined the Army in late 1941, and was wounded in a Japanese bombing raid on Rangoon. After the war he combined lecturing in England with writing a regional geography on the Indian sub-continent.
In 1951 he arrived in Canberra to take up the post of Foundation Professor of Geography at the ANU Research School of Pacific Studies, a position he held until 1967. In 1953 he advised the Australian Minister for Territories on the future economic development of Papua and New Guinea. In 1954 his landmark text India and Pakistan was published, the culmination of nearly ten years work. In 1958-9 he conducted a crucial survey of the economic problems of the Fijian people, his report guiding the colonial administration's economic preparations for Fijian independence. He returned to Fiji in 1969 as a member of the Commission on Education in Fiji, having previously fulfilled a similar role in Papua New Guinea as a member of the Commission on Higher Education (1963-65). This New Guinea Commission recommended a qualified shift away from the sole aim of achieving mass literacy, to one of incorporating access to higher education.
As a result of these reports he subsequently became a member of the councils of the University of Papua New Guinea and the University of the South Pacific.
From 1967 to 1972 he was Director of the ANU Research School of Pacific Studies, and in 1972 moved to the Department of Pacific History. Upon his retirement in 1976 he devoted most of his energies to researching and writing his three volume history The Pacific since Magellan. Throughout his career Oskar Spate has published a wide diversity of papers and essays on the geography of Europe, South Asia and Australia, the exploration of Australia and the Pacific and many other subject areas.
Item Descriptions
Series 1. Diaries, 1942-May 1960, 1965-88
1942-54 (File [unnumbered]) - Box 1
1955-May 1960 (File [unnumbered]) - Box 2
1965-69 (File [unnumbered]) - Box 3
1970-75 (File [unnumbered]) - Box 4
1976-82 (File [unnumbered]) - Box 5
1983-88 (File [unnumbered]) - Box 6
Series 2. Family and Personal Correspondence, 1941-45
Correspondence with mother, 1941-45 (Burma and India) (File 2-1-1) - Box 7
Correspondence with L.S Suggate, geography teacher, 1942-44 (File 2-1-2) - Box 7
Series 3. Professional/Academic Career, 1950-89
Correspondence re appointment to ANU, 1950-51 (File 3-1-1) - Box 7
Offer from Leeds University, 1957 (File 3-1-1) - Box 7
Study leave report, 1961 (File 3-1-1) - Box 7
Offer from Toronto University, 1962 (File 3-1-1) - Box 7
Correspondence re Cambridge Chair in Geography, 1964-65 (File 3-1-1) - Box 7
Correspondence re Directorship of ANU Research School of Pacific Studies, 1967-80 (File 3-1-2) - Box 7
Correspondence re RGS Victoria Medal, 1971 (File 3-1-2) - Box 7
Correspondence re Of Time and place festschrift, 1980 (File 3-1-2) - Box 7
D. Litt. Citation, 1984 (File 3-1-2) - Box 7
Papers re ANU Coat of Arms, 1952-53 (File 3-2-1) - Box 7
Study leave reports, 1956-76 (File 3-2-1) - Box 7
Memos re ANU Deanery, 1955-57 (File 3-2-1) - Box 7
Correspondence, etc. re H.C Brookfield, 1968-69 (File 3-2-1) - Box 7
Correspondence re Richard Feachem, 1968-70 (File 3-2-2) - Box 7
Papers re Coombes Building, ANU, 1970-71 (File 3-2-2) - Box 7
Report on Council debate on Research School of Earth Sciences proposal, 1971 (File 3-2-2) - Box 7
Memos re North Australian Research Unit, 1971-74 (File 3-2-2) - Box 7
"Early days at ANU: an anecdote" - photocopy, (n.d) (File 3-2-2) - Box 7
Academic references, 1965-84 (File 3-3-1) - Box 7
Papers re the beginnings of the University of PNG the University of the South Pacific, 1962-80 (File 3-4-1) - Box 7
"Early days of UPNG" - seminar paper, 1989 (File 3-4-1) - Box 7
Series 4. Scholarly Papers, Essays and Reviews, 1934-88
Miscellaneous writing (pre-ANU), 1934-65 (File 4-1-1) - Box 8
Published papers, 1938-45 (File 4-2-1) - Box 8
Published papers, 1947-52 (File 4-2-2) - Box 8
Published papers, 1953-56 (File 4-2-3) - Box 8
Published papers, 1957-64 (File 4-2-4) - Box 8
Published papers, 1965-68 (File 4-3-1) - Box 8
Published papers, 1971-77 (File 4-3-2) - Box 8
Published papers, 1977-88 (File 4-3-3) - Box 9
Miscellaneous writing: ABC talks, early 1950s (File 4-4-1) - Box 9
Miscellaneous writing: Historical geography, 1950s-1972 (File 4-4-1) - Box 9
Miscellaneous writing: Education, early 1950s (File 4-4-1) - Box 9
Controversies, 1953-87 (File 4-5-1) - Box 9
Literary and facetiae, 1940s-1988 (File 4-5-1) - Box 9
ANU memos and other papers, 1959-88; Travels, 1967-70 (File 4-5-2) - Box 9
Papers on the Pacific, 1959-86 (File 4-6-1) - Box 9
Papers on geography, 1940-78 (File 4-6-2) - Box 9
Papers on South Asia, 1943-81 (File 4-6-3) - Box 9
Miscellaneous papers, 1957-77 (File 4-6-4) - Box 10
Papers on Australia, 1957-84 (File 4-6-4) - Box 10
Reviews: geography and miscellaneous, 1950-86 (File 4-7-1) - Box 10
Reviews: Asia and Australia, 1950-78 (File 4-7-2) - Box 10
Reviews: Pacific, 1963-78 (File 4-7-3) - Box 10
Series 5. Miscellaneous Correspondence, 1944-88
Australian geographical correspondence, T. G Birtles, 1985-8; R. H Greenwood, 1966-68; Ann Marshall, 1952-58; RGSA (Qld), 1952-87 (File 5-1-1) - Box 10
Archie Price, 1951-83; Griffith Taylor, 1951-63; Text book scandal, 1944-53 (File 5-1-2) - Box 10
University of W.A., 1953-4; Webster/Peter Ryan re Moon man, 1983-84; Arthur Wilcock, 1951-54 (File 5-1-3) - Box 10
Australian correspondence - general, 1953-88 (File 5-2-1) - Box 11
UK correspondence, 1951-88 (File 5-3-1) - Box 11
Correspondence with A. J Toynbee and other papers re Toynbee, 1950-62 (File 5-3-2) - Box 11
USSR correspondence, mainly A. M Ryabchikov and I. Fyodorovna, 1963-88 (File 5-4-1) - Box 11
USA correspondence, 1950-70 (File 5-5-1) - Box 11
USA correspondence, re Francis Drake, 1976-80 (File 5-5-2) - Box 11
USA correspondence, 1947-88 (File 5-5-3) - Box 11
Series 6. India and Pakistan, 1946-87
Papers re Punjab boundary dispute (Lahore), 1947 (File 6-1-1) - Box 12
Correspondence with Survey of India, 1950-52 (File 6-2-1) - Box 12
India and Pakistan maps - correspondence re battle with Indian bureaucracy, 1966-67 (File 6-2-1) - Box 12
Correspondence re attempted banning of India and Pakistan, 1961-70 (File 6-2-2) - Box 12
Correspondence with A. T. A Learmouth, 1971-76 (File 6-2-2) - Box 12
Correspondence re changing map of Asia, 1966-70 (File 6-2-2) - Box 12
Indian correspondence, 1946-87 (File 6-3-1) - Box 12
Indian correspondence, including re National Atlas of India, 1956 (File 6-3-2) - Box 12
Series 7. Australia and the Pacific: Papers re Geography, History and Exploration, 1947-88
Papers re Portuguese discovery of Australia, including correspondence with Armando Cortesao, 1947-79 (File 7-1-1) - Box 13
Papers re Portuguese discovery of Australia - miscellaneous, 1956-83 (File 7-1-2) - Box 13
Correspondence with WA Richardson, 1984-8 (File 7-2-1) - Box 13
Correspondence with K. G McIntyre and others re The Secret discovery of Australiam, 1978-88 (File 7-2-2) - Box 13
reviews, etc., 1978-85, notes and correspondence re "Luso-Australia", 1978-81 (File 7-2-3) - Box 13
Notes and correspondence re George A Collingridge, 1978-82 (File 7-2-4) - Box 13
Correspondence re de Lozier Bouvet, 1962-64 (File 7-3-1) - Box 13
Reviews, notes, correspondence, pictures, etc. re Peter Dillon, 1974-75 (File 7-3-2) - Box 13
Portuguese translations for Australian Commonwealth Investigation Service, 1957-63 (File 7-4-1) - Box 14
Correspondence with Dr Claudio Veliz (Chile), 1971 (File 7-4-1) - Box 14
Meanjin and Quadrant correspondence, 1954-60 (File 7-4-1) - Box 14
Papers re death of J. W Davidson, 1973 (File 7-4-2) - Box 14
Papers re Cook commemoration, Bega High School, 1969-70 (File 7-4-2) - Box 14
Correspondence with Lord Casey re proposed book on exploration and discovery of Australia, 1966-70 (File 7-4-3) - Box 14
Correspondence and reviews re Australia (Ernest Benn), 1967-68 (File 7-5-1) - Box 14
Typescript of report on development in PNG, 1953 (File 7-6-1) - Box 14
Typescripts, drafts and other papers re Pacific history, 1965-85 (File 7-6-2) - Box 14
Papers re Pacific history, 1986-88 (File 7-6-3) - Box 14
Miscellaneous Pacific correspondence, 1976-86 (File 7-7-1) - Box 15
Miscellaneous Pacific correspondence, 1967-88, including with Frank Horner, 1982-87 (File 7-7-2) - Box 15
Pacific since Magellan - drafts, correspondence, progress notes, 1970-83 (File 7-8-1) - Box 15
Correspondence and reviews re The Spanish Lake, 1979-83 (File 7-9-1) - Box 15
Correspondence and reviews re Monopolists and freebooters, 1983-84 (File 7-9-2) - Box 15
Series 8. Fiji, 1955-70
"The Fijian political scene: some reflections", 1959 (File 8-1-1) - Box 15
Correspondence with H. P Ritchie and P. MacDonald, 1957-67 (File 8-1-1) - Box 15
Correspondence with R. W Robson, 1958-60 (File 8-1-2) - Box 15
Broadcasts, texts of talks, correspondence, clippings, 1958-61 (File 8-1-2) - Box 15
Correspondence with Stuart Inder (Pacific Islands monthly), 1959-60 (File 8-1-2) - Box 15
Miscellaneous papers re 1959 Fiji report, 1957-74 (File 8-1-3) - Box 15
Correspondence with R. R Nayacakalou, 1958-64 (File 8-1-4) - Box 15
Notes on village visits, 1958 (File 8-1-4) - Box 15
"Personalia", fragments, etc. 1955-58 (File 8-1-4) - Box 15
Papers re Fiji Education Commission, 1968-70 (File 8-2-1) - Box 16
Printed copy of Education for modern Fiji, 1969 (File 8-2-1) - Box 16
Series 9. Scandals, 1954-79
UNESCO questionnaire, 1966 (File 9-1-1) - Box 16
Institute of British Geographers "Letter from afar" - correspondence etc, 1964-65 (File 9-1-1) - Box 16
Correspondence with Flinders University re symposium and book on Matthew Flinders, 1974-79 (File 9-1-2) - Box 16
Correspondence with the University of WA, re attack on geography, 1958, re L. A Noonan Phd, 1969 - 71 (File 9-1-3) - Box 16
Correspondence with International Institute of Arts and Letters, 1962 (File 9-1-4) - Box 16
Clippings and correspondence re Francis West's article on ANU, 1954-70 (File 9-1-4) - Box 16
Clippings and correspondence re Daniel Bennett's Canberra times letter on the House of Representatives, 1978-79 (File 9-1-4) - Box 16