The Fifth Eileen J. Garrett Library Fellow, Dr. James G. Matlock, conducted research in the archives of the Garrett Library this past May. Jim, who is also a Research Fellow of the Parapsychology Foundation, is writing a book about the nature, reception, and legacy of Ian Stevenson’s reincarnation studies. Dr. Ian Stevenson (1918-2007) who founded the Division of Perceptual Studies in the Department of Psychiatry in 1967.
Long known as a careful and systematic researcher of various seemingly psychic phenomena, Stevenson focused mainly on cases of children who reported memories of previous lives. Stevenson’s sustained interest in these types of cases led to an exhaustively researched and painstakingly analyzed body of evidence for the existence of reincarnation.
Jim Matlock obtained a BA in English from Emory University in 1977, an MLS fom the University of Maryland at College Park in 1986, and a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Southern Illinois at Carbondale in 2002. Over his long career in parapsychology, he worked at the American Society for Psychical Research in New York City, and at the Rhine Research Center in Durham, North Carolina before becoming a Research Fellow at the PF. In the early part of his career, he contributed articles on archives and the history of parapsychology but in recent years he has come to specialize in reincarnation research.
Jim is a regular contributor to the Society for Psychical Research’s online Psi Encyclopedia with ten entries on the topic of reincanation. He is the co-author (with PF International Affiliate Dr. Erlendur Haraldsson) of the recent book, I Saw a Light and Came Here: Children’s Experiences of Reincarnation, as well as the author of dozens of academic papers and book chapters concerning reincarnation and related areas. He did 12 inteviews with Jeffrey Mishlove for his New Thinking Allowed video series on YouTube.
In addition, Jim has developed and taught a graduate level, 15-week adult education online course on reincarnation research, Signs of Reincarnation, which has, in turn, given rise to the forthcoming book of the same name based on the lectures of that course. He has also set up a Facebook group, also called Signs of Reincarnation, which is an extraordinary effort at bringing together researchers, experiencers and the general public. The group’s 4800+ members hail from all over the world, and the discussions are of a high level, with Jim providing ideas and recommending materials from the research literature while moderating a discussion that is lively, nuanced and informative.
Given his deep knowledge of the area and his expertise in archival research, the next step for Jim was, of course, to write a book about Stevenson’s work. It was for this reason that he contacted me about coming to Greenport in late May, and spending a few days at the Garrett Library.
In anticipation of Jim’s visit, Anna Damalas and I combed through many of our archival materials, including correspondence between Eileen J. Garrett and Stevenson from the 1950s and 1960s. Having known Stevenson from childhood, I was, of course, available at the Library throughout his stay as well. In addition to giving Jim access to the materials he found relevant, Anna and I also provided him with PDFs of the correspondence — we’ve been systematically scanning Garrett’s correspondence for some time now — as well as a bit of a stipend to defray his expenses and, of course, an experience of the beautiful seaside town that is Greenport.
While Jim was in residence at the Garrett Library, he also was gracious enough to sit for a Face to Face interview with me that will appear on the Parapsychology Foundation YouTube Channel in the future. The interview was filmed by Anna Damalas, as was the first episode of the new PF YouTube series, Psi Bytes, that features brief videos on a single subject. The episode, called What Evidence Do We Have of Reincarnation by Dr James G. Matlock, was published on June 8th, 2018, and is available here. For further information on reincarnation, Jim’s own website contains links off to principal researchers in the area, recommended books, a guide for self-investigating and evaluating past-life memories, and more on his “Resources” page.
The Parapsychology Foundation developed the Eileen J. Garrett Library Fellowship to allow serious students or teachers, researchers and other professionals to take advantage of the unique collection assembled at the Eileen J. Garrett Library in Greenport, New York. Housed in its welcoming facility on the North Fork of Long Island, the holdings of the Library include 12,000 titles, over 100 journals, and over 500 audio/video tapes on topics related to the scientific study of psychic phenomena. For more information on the Library Fellow program, click here.