This fonds consists of 163 photographs (47 colour and 11 black and white copy negatives and 105 copy colour transparencies), 111 maps and map fragments and 20 cm of textual material. The 58 copy negatives and Simmons's journal document the construction of a mooseskin boat and its use. The boat was constructed between May 22 and 28, 1968, on the Gravel (Keele) River and taken down to Fort Norman (Tulita). People identified in the images include George and Vivian Pelissey, Gabe Etchinelle, Madeline Karcaji, Fred Andrew, and Jonas McCauley. The 105 colour transparencies date from 1967 through 1980 and depicts aboriginal life in the Mackenzie Mountain region including: caribou hunting, work on a moose hide boat, drying meat, fishing, camps, and Simmons's work with Dall's Sheep. The images includes views of the Moose Horn (Mountain) River, Caribou Flats by the Gravel River, Drum (Wrigley) Lake, and Punk Mountain. Included in the images are views of Gabriel Etchinelle, Jonas McCauley, Vivian McCauley, George Pelissey, Perry Linton, Leon Andrew, Jimmy Mendo, Maurice Mento, Cecile Hatchelle, Madeline Karkagie, Stella Mendo, Joe Blondin, David Yallee, Alfred Lennie and Gordon Yakelaya.
Also included in this fonds are a handwritten and typed English translation of the French article "Les Chitra-Gottineke" by Jean Michea, published in the National Museum of Canada Bulletin No. 190, "Contributions to Anthropology, Part II", 1960. Muriel Cooper, wife of Steve Cooper, Park Warden at Nahanni Butte, did the translation. The 111 maps and map fragments feature communities, lakes, rivers, canyons and mountain ranges from Fort Simpson up to the Mackenzie Delta region, and including the Yukon - NWT border. The field notes that accompany the maps include a 32 page typewritten gazetteer, as well as the handwritten notes for the gazetteer. There are also handwritten lists recording information about traditional place names of features in the Mackenzie Mountains. Simmons informants included Gabriel Etchinelle, Madeline Karkagie, George Pellissey, Vivian McCauley,and Maurice and Stella Mendo. The place names were written in a 'folk' phonetic form but a few are written by the elders are in syllabics. Files include research notes, field notes, drafts of papers and correspondence related to his studies of Dall's sheep in the Mackenzie Mountains in the 1970s, and correspondence with anthropologists such as Beryl Gillespie.
Simmons, Norm, 1934-2016