Mostly correspondence regarding Cupeno Indians of Pala, California, and Pena Calac's concerns with family, the community, government, Catholic schools, and the military. Also included is school work by her brother, Nicolas J. Pena, while a student at the Sherman Institute.

Donated by Mary Hernandez, Pala, California, September 1996. Processed by Mark G. Thiel, CA (Certified Archivist), 1997.

Biographical Note

Juliana Peña Calac (1893-1967) and her brother, Nicholas J. Peña, were Cupeño Indians from Pala, California. Nicholas attended Carlisle Indian School (Carlisle, Pennsylvania) and the Sherman Institute (Riverside, California).  

Scope and Content

Series 1, Correspondence: Letters regarding Cupeño Indians of Pala, California, and Juliana Pena Calac's concerns with family, the community, government, Catholic schools, and the military. Also included is school work by her brother, Nicolas, while a student at the Sherman Institute. Correspondents include brother Nicolas and other relatives; Ambrosio Ortega (d. 1922), a Cupeño Indian leader; Reverend Florian B. Hahn, Superintendent of St. Boniface School (Banning, California); and various government officials. Notable among the community concerns were issues relating to Cupeño Indian land claims and water rights. A few letters were written in Spanish.

Series 2, Nicholas J. Peña's School Work: Class work by Nicholas at the Sherman Institute. 

Series 3, Note Books: Two volumes of correspondence and minutes of meetings that pertain to family, the community, and schools.

Series 4, Photography: Two black and white prints of unidentified individuals. 

Series 5, Printed Materials: Publications and clippings relating to Indian rights and justice issues of interest to Cupeño Indians. For preservation purposes, The Indian, 1(1921): 4, Riverside, California, was separated from the collection and added to the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions Records, Series 14-1.

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