Archive of Edna Get Robb Webster (1896–1981), Her Daughter Marjorie Ellen Webster (1919–1998), T. A. Willard (1862–1943), and Their Circle, Documenting Travels and Research in Yucatán and Guatemala, with Extensive Photographs of Maya Ruins Before and During Their Early Restoration. Ca. 1920s–1950s, with several later photographs.

Historically significant archive consisting of 224 original photographs, three maps (two hand-drawn and one photographically reproduced), one original pencil drawing of the Wizard of Zacna by T. A. Willard, a photocopied floor plan of the Sayil Apartment House, a printed advertisement of the Autogiro Company advertising gyrocopter flights over Chichén Itzá (May 1932), seven photocopies of T. A. Willard's art depicting the ancient Maya, and one later letter from "Roger" to Marjorie discussing art. The photographic portion comprises 67 large photographs, approximately 18.5 × 25.5 cm (7 ¼ × 10 in); 147 smaller photographs, approximately 16 × 9 cm (6 ¼ × 3 ½ in); and ten later Kodak color photographs of Marjorie's family and artifacts. Approximately half of the photographs have captions written beside them or on the versos. Several photographs are inscribed on the back by Edna with her return address in Ohio; others have Marjorie's California address stamped on the back; and a number bear the stamp of Robert B. Stacy-Judd. The photographs and papers are preserved in loose plastic sleeves and in three folders titled "Jungle Safari II," "Chichen-Itza. Yucatan, Mex." and "Details of Millwork, 1955." The last group appears principally associated with T. A. Willard and includes maps of his travels, examples of his art, and portraits showing him beside different Maya ruins and artifacts. An extensive photographic and research archive documenting an interconnected circle of American travelers, writers, independent researchers, architects and archaeologists interested in Maya civilization during the formative decades of twentieth-century exploration and restoration of the major archaeological sites of Yucatán and Guatemala. Of particular significance are the numerous large and detailed photographs of Maya monuments, individual architectural elements and entire archaeological complexes taken before, or during the early stages of, modern restoration, preserving many of the ruins in conditions substantially different from their appearance today. At the center of the archive are the American writer, lecturer, explorer and independent student of Maya civilization Edna Get Robb Webster (1896–1981) and her daughter Marjorie Ellen Webster (1919–1998). Edna developed a sustained interest in Maya civilization and travelled through Mexico and Guatemala, photographing archaeological sites as well as the lives of contemporary inhabitants. She subsequently lectured and wrote on Maya history and exploration. Marjorie shared these interests and developed a particular fascination with theories proposing a connection between the Maya and the legendary lost continent of Atlantis. The survival of their research papers in an institutional collection further confirms that their involvement with Maya subjects extended considerably beyond conventional sightseeing. A substantial second component of the archive is connected with Theodore Arthur Willard (1862–1943), an inventor, musician, writer and independent researcher of ancient Maya civilization who travelled extensively in Yucatán and Guatemala. Willard became closely associated with the study and popularization of the Maya and published several books on the subject, including The City of the Sacred Well (1926), The Wizard of Zacna (1929), and Bride of the Rain God (1930). The collection is particularly interesting for the way in which it connects the Websters and Willard with a broader circle of individuals concerned with Maya archaeology, travel and interpretation. Photographs include Danish archaeologist and explorer Frans Blom (1893–1964), architect and Maya enthusiast Robert B. Stacy-Judd, and traveler and writer Emma Lindsay Squier. Some photographs were evidently taken during the Websters' own travels, while others appear to have been exchanged among members of this circle. The presence of photographs bearing Stacy-Judd's stamp, Willard's maps and artwork, portraits of Willard himself at Maya sites, ph.