Guide to the Esther Louise Bock papers
1944-1967
Collection number: HMC-1392.
Creator: Bock, Esther Louise.
Title: Esther Louise Bock papers.
Dates: 1944-1967 inclusive, 1944-1947 bulk.
Volume of collection: 1.15 cubic feet and 67.7 MB.
Language of materials: Materials in the collection are in English.
Collection summary: Documents from a public health nurse who worked for the Indian Health Service in Alaska.
Biographical note:
Esther Louise Bock was a public health nurse who worked in Alaska during the mid-1940’s with the United States Deparment of the Interior. She traveled to Alaska from California in 1944 to work at a variety of hospitals through the Indian Health Servivce until 1947. She notably worked at hospitals in Juneau and Nome.
Collection description:
The collection contains a variety of different materials Bock collected in Alaska including art prints by George Ahgupuk, original art from Marilyn Tingook, other original artwork, personal photographs of community members from the communities Bock worked in, scenic photographs, a photo album scrapbook, multiple postcards, letters, and other personal correspondence. Within the collection are three editions of the Indian Hospital Digest and Bock’s application for a permit to enter Alaska.
Arrangement: Collection materials are sorted by type of document.
Digitized copies: 84 images from the collection have been digitized and placed online in the Alaska’s Digital Archives. For information about obtaining digital copies of any collection materials, please contact Archives and Special Collections.
Digital materials: The digital contents of this collection are not available online. Access may only be provided on-site in the Archives research room. For more information about potential distance access to digital records, please contact Archives and Special Collections.
Rights note: Copyright status of all collection materials is unknown. Consult the Archives for more information.
Preferred citation: Esther Louise Bock papers, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.
Separated materials: Published materials were removed from the collection and placed in the Archives Ephemera collections or other library collections.
Related materials: The Archives has a guide to nursing related collections.
Acquisition note: Rob and Marilyn Boyle donated the collection to the Archives in 2019.
Processing information: This collection was arranged and described by Shu Mayer in 2022. Newspaper clippings were digitized and destroyed. Published materials were removed. Photographs were removed from one of two albums for preservation.
Container list:
| Box/Folder | Description | Date |
| 1/1 | Art prints by George Ahgupuk, original art from Marilyn Tingook, original art from unknown artists | undated, 1945 |
| 1/2 | Personal photographs of people and places | undated, 1944-1947 |
| 1/3 | Postcards and personal photographs removed from an album | undated, 1944-1967 |
| 1/4 | Personal correspondence including postcards, letters, and newsletters | undated, 1945-1947 |
| 1/5 | Personal notes, Alaska salmon can wrappers | undated |
| 1/6 | Indian Hospital Digest, leaflet on how tuberculosis is spread in Alaska Native communities | undated, 1945-1946 |
| 1/7 | Application for permit to enter Alaska. | 1944 August 24 |
| 2/1 | Hand drawn map of Alaska | undated |
| 2/2 | Photo album scrapbook of personal photographs and postcards, including sections from Hoonah, Anchorage, Nome, and other Alaskan locations | undated |
| Server | Newspaper article clippings | undated |