Abstract
The Richard and Sheilagh Brooks Papers (1919-2003) are comprised of materials collected during their tenure as professors of Anthropology and Archaeology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Included are correspondence, research papers, photographs, reports, books, article reviews, and student scholarship. There is also a file on reburial issues that contains correspondence and an amendment to Nevada State law regarding the handling of exhumed bodies.
Finding Aid PDF
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Scope and Contents Note
The Richard and Sheilagh Brooks Papers (1919-2003) are comprised of materials collected during their tenure as professors of Archaeology and Anthropology, respectively, at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Material contains biographical files, correspondence, research papers, photographs, and reports. Also included are books, article reviews written by Richard and Sheilagh Brooks, student scholarship, two VHS recordings, and two Betamax recordings about pottery and weaving. There is also a file on reburial issues that contains correspondence and an amendment to Nevada State law regarding the handling of exhumed bodies. The bulk of the collection dates between 1970 and 1990 and centers on the Archaeological work done by the Brooks in Nevada and the Death Valley, California region.
Access Note
Collection is open for research with the exception of material that is restricted to protect student records and will be open for research use on January 1, 2050.
Publication Rights
This material is made available to facilitate private study, scholarship, or research. The donor, Kathleen M. Brooks, transferred all right, title and interest they had in the Richard and Sheilagh Brooks Papers (MS-00885) to UNLV. However, some material may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by UNLV. Users are responsible for determining whether permissions are necessary from rights owners for any intended use and for obtaining all required permissions. Acknowledgement of the UNLV University Libraries is requested. For more information, please see the UNLV Special Collections policies on reproductions and use or contact us at special.collections@unlv.edu.
Arrangement
These materials were roughly grouped into three series. Materials within each series remain in original order:
Series I. Subject files, 1924-2003;
Series II. Reports, 1939-1992;
Series III. Books, reviews, and student scholarship, 1919-1990.
Biographical / Historical Note
Archaeologist Richard Howard Brooks was born in Big Pine, California on July 5, 1926. He joined the Navy at age 15 and began his college education after his military service. Brooks earned a Ph.D. in archaeology from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He married Sheilagh Thompson in 1951 and the couple had two daughters, Kathleen and Carolyn.
Richard Brooks began working at Nevada Southern University (the future University of Nevada, Las Vegas) in 1966 as an archaeologist and research associate for the Desert Research Institute. He later became director of the Desert Research Institute and was instrumental in the creation of the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Natural History, where he also served as director. He also co-founded Archeo-Nevada in Las Vegas and the Nevada Archeological Association. Richard and Sheilagh worked together on several archaeological digs, including Tule Springs and the Stewart and Kiel Ranch burial sites. Richard Brooks passed away on June 24, 2011.
Source:
”Richard Brooks Obituary.” Las Vegas Review-Journal, July 30, 2011.
Forensic anthropologist Sheilagh Thompson Brooks was born in California on December 10, 1923. She completed her doctorate in physical sciences at the University of California, Berkeley in 1951, becoming the first woman to do so. She married archaeologist Richard Brooks in 1951 and the couple had two daughters, Kathleen and Carolyn.
Sheilagh Brooks taught at various colleges throughout the western United States, including teaching summer courses at Nevada Southern University (later the University of Nevada, Las Vegas). She began teaching full-time at the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1963. In 1966, the Brooks family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada where Sheilagh became the first full-time professor of anthropology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).
In addition to teaching, Brooks was involved in historic and archaeological preservation efforts in Nevada. She is noted for leading a forensic study in the 1970s of the Kiel Ranch murders. Brooks became a board member of the Nevada Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology in 1978. She received both the Distinguished Faculty Award and Distinguished Professor Award from UNLV in the 1980s. Sheilagh Brooks died on February 3, 2008. UNLV honored her by creating the Sheilagh Brooks Osteology Research Laboratory in 2011.
Sources:
Women in Nevada History. “Sheilagh Brooks.” Accessed September 18, 2025. https://womennvhistory.org/portfolio/sheilagh-brooks/
Preferred Citation
Richard and Sheilagh Brooks Papers, 1919-2003. MS-00885. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
Materials were donated in 2018 by Kathleen Brooks and additional materials were donated in 2025 by the Clark County Museum; accession numbers 2018-028 and 2025-091.
Processing Note
In 2018, Joyce Moore processed the collection and wrote the finding aid. In 2025, Landon Paljusaj processed the 2025-091 addition and updated the finding aid in ArchivesSpace.
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Appraisal Note
Acquired by Peter Michel, former Director of Special Collections and Archives, as part of UNLV Special Collections and Archives holdings on the history of Southern Nevada. The original acquisition included periodicals that were discarded in 2018.
Separated Materials
Some of the books and publications in this acquisition were removed from the collection and cataloged separately.