William Henry Holmes
William Henry Holmes (1846 – 1933) was an American anthropologist, archaeologist, geologist and museum director.
Life
William Henry Holmes was born in Harrison County, Ohio, on December 1, 1846. As a small child Holmes developed a passion for art when he discovered he had a genuine talent. His father, a farmer, indulged this talent and did not actively discourage it. At the age of eighteen Holmes entered the McNeely Normal School to become a teacher. He recognized that a teaching career was the only viable option if he was to escape a farmer's life. Holmes graduated from McNeely Normal College in 1870 and briefly went into teaching. In 1871 Holmes moved to Washington,DC, to study under the artist Theodore Kaufman. Holmes began working at the Smithsonian Institute as a sketch artist after a referral by a friend. While working there Holmes met Spencer Baird and Ferdinand Hayden. These men would play a major part in shaping Holmes' scientific career.
Ferdinand Hayden invited Holmes to work as an artist on his 1872 survey of Yellowstone National Park. Haydon's previous expedition to Yellowstone had made him America's most famous geologist and explorer. Once on the survey Holmes worked as a geologist and cartographer as well. He contributed pioneering reports on the terrain and geologic phenomena of Yellowstone Park, and completed early geological reconnaissance work in Colorado. As an artist, he was responsible for illustrative material in an atlas of the Grand Canyon. During these years Holmes traveled widely from the Northern Rockies to the Southwest. After it was absorbed into the U.S. Geological Survey in 1879, he was assigned to work as a geologist in the southwestern United States. In 1875, Holmes began studying the remains of the Anasazi culture in the San Juan River region of Utah. He became particularly interested in prehistoric pottery and shell art, producing published works including "Art in Shell of the American Indians (1883)" and "Pottery of the Ancient Pueblos (1886)". He expanded these studies into textiles, and became well known as an expert in both ancient and existing arts produced by Native Americans of the Southwest.
Holmes left the Geological Survey in 1889 to become an archaeologist with the Smithsonian Institution's Bureau of American Ethnology. He left Washington temporarily, from 1894 to 1897, to serve as curator of anthropology at the Field Columbian Museum. He returned to the Smithsonian in 1897 to serve as head curator of anthropology at the U.S. National Museum. From 1902 to 1909 he served as Chief (i.e. director) of the Bureau of American Ethnology; during this period he studied the Etowah Indian Mounds of the Mississippian culture in Georgia. In 1910, he became chairman of the Division of Anthropology of the U.S. National Museum. In 1920, Holmes became the director of National Gallery of Art (now the Smithsonian American Art Museum), where he assembled exhibits of Indian arts from the Northwest Coast. His books include: "Handbook of Aboriginal American Antiquities" (1919).
Legacy
William Henry Holmes was a significant figure in the evolution of American museology and anthropology. He wrote prolifically on archaeological and anthropological subjects, focusing especially on the origins of Native Americans as well as the evolution of "primitive" art. His work in these areas seriously influenced national debate for some years. He also pioneered the use of diorama in museum exhibits.
Work
He published many works on archæological and anthropological subjects. He edited geological publications including Hayden's Atlas of Colorado and the eleventh and twelfth reports of the Geological Survey.
Publications
- Evidences of the Antiquity of Man of the Site of the City of Mexico (1885)
- Origin and Development of Form and Ornament in Ceramic Art (1886)
- Natural History of Flaked Stone Implements (1894)
- Earthenware of Florida: Collection of Clarence B. Moore (1894)
- Archaeological Studies among the Ancient Cities of Mexico (1895)
- Field Columbian Museum Anthropological Series (1897)
- Stone Implements of the Potomac-Chesapeake Tidewater Province (1897)
- Aboriginal Pottery of the Eastern United States (1903)
- Handbook of Aboriginal American Antiquities (1919)
External links
- Works by William Henry Holmes. Project Gutenberg
Sources/Further Reading
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Fernlund, Kevin J. William Henry Holmes and the Rediscovery of the American West. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press. 2000 ISBN 0826321275
- Meltzer, David J. The Archaeology of William Henry Holmes (Classics of Smithsonian Anthropology). Washington and London: Smithsonian. 1992 ISBN 1560981520
- Sabloff, Jeremy A., and Gordon R. Willey. History of American Archaeology. New York: W.H.Freeman & Co Ltd. 1993 ISBN 0716723719
Credits
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:
The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:
Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.
