National Anthropological Archives

Guide to the Grover Sanders Krantz papers, 1904-2002, bulk 1955-2001

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.2003-21
Creators:
Krantz, Grover S.
Dates:
1904-2001
bulk 1955-2001
Languages:
Collection is primarily in
English
. Some materials are in
French
.
Physical Description:
7.38 Linear feet
14 manuscript boxes, 1 oversize box, 1 manuscript folder, 47 floppy disks, and 9 audio cassettes.
Repository:
Grover Sanders Krantz was a professor of physical anthropology at Washington State University and was considered a leading authority in hominoid evolution and primate bone structure, specializing in the reconstruction and casting of hominid fossils. Materials include articles, bibliographies, card files, clippings, correspondence, diplomas, computer disks, legal documents, manuscripts, maps, notebooks, notes, programs, school records, sketches, telegrams, transparencies and typescripts.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
This collection contains the personal papers of Dr. Grover S. Krantz and documents his research in physical anthropology as well as his 30-year teaching career. The collection also contains materials on Krantz's activities in the field of cryptozoology, especially his investigations of Sasquatch. Materials include his writings, correspondence, notes, sketches, newspaper clippings, sound recordings, photographs, and electronic records. Some materials in the collection are written in code and noospel, a phonetic spelling system he had developed.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is organized into 9 series: (1) Correspondence, 1964, 1974-2001; (2) Writings, 1955-2001; (3) Research, 1959-2001; (4) Professional Activities, 1958-2001; (5) Sasquatch, 1963-2001; (6) Teaching, 1957-2001; (7) Biographical and Personal Files, 1904-1911, 1931, 1952-2002; (8) Sound Recordings, 1988-1997, undated; (9) Electronic Records, 1987-2001

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
Grover Sanders Krantz was born on November 5, 1931, to Swedish immigrants in Salt Lake City, Utah, and spent his childhood in Salt Lake City and Rockford, Illinois. His undergraduate studies began at the University of Utah in 1949 but were postponed in 1951 by 18 months of service in the United States Air Force. After being honorably discharged, Krantz attended the University of California, Berkeley, and earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in Anthropology. In 1970, he earned his doctorate in physical anthropology from the University of Minnesota.
From 1968-1998, Krantz served as a professor of physical anthropology at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. He was considered a leading authority in hominoid evolution and an expert on primate bone structure, specializing in the reconstruction and casting of hominid fossils. Among his numerous publications are the books
Climatic Races and Descent Groups
,
The Process of Human Evolution
, and
Geographical Development of European Languages
. Publicly known for his interest in cryptozoology, Krantz was one of the first established researchers to pursue the question of Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, from a scientific approach. Other research interests included the origin of language and speech, sex identification of skeletons, and early human immigration into America.
After a battle with pancreatic cancer, Krantz passed away on February 14, 2002. At his request, his remains were sent to the University of Tennessee's Anthropology Research Facility, where scientists performed skeletal research of great forensic value. His bones were processed and sent to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History to be used in an educational capacity. In 2010, Grover Krantz's skeleton and that of his Irish Wolfhound Clyde were mounted in the museum's exhibit, "Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake."
Sources Consulted
"Dr. Grover Krantz." Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Accessed September 30, 2011. http://anthropology.si.edu/writteninbone/grover_krantz.html
"Grover S. Krantz, 70, Port Angeles, Wash." Lewiston Morning Tribune (Lewiston, ID), February 16, 2002.
Krantz, Grover. "Curriculum Vitae."
Ruane, Michael E. "Natural History Museum Grants Professor's Dying Wish: A Display of his Skeleton." Washington Post, August 11, 2012. Accessed April 12, 2012. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/10/AR2009041003357.html.
"Sasquatch expert Grover Krantz dies at age 70." Spokesman-Review (Spokane, WA), February 19, 2002.
Chronology
1931
Born November 5 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Carl Victor Emmanuel Krantz and Esther Maria (Sanders) Krantz
1949
Begins undergraduate studies at University of Utah
1951-1952
Serves in the United States Air Force at Clovis, New Mexico, as a desert survival instructor
1953
Marries Patricia Howland
Transfers from University of Utah to University of California, Berkeley
1955
Receives B.A. in Anthropology from UC Berkeley
1958
Receives M.A. in Anthropology from UC Berkeley
1959
Marries Joan Brandson
1960-1966
Works as Museum Technician, R.H. Lowie Museum of Anthropology, UC Berkeley
1964
Marries Evelyn Einstein
1966-1968
Works as Visiting Lecturer, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
1968
Begins work as Assistant Professor in the Anthropology Department, Washington State University
1971
Receives Ph.D. in Anthropology from University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, with the publication of his dissertation "The Origin of Man"
1972
Promoted to Associate Professor in the Anthropology Department, Washington State University
1973
Starts serving on Editorial Board,
Northwest Anthropological Research Notes
1979
Starts serving on Editorial Board,
Evolutionary Theory
1982
Serves as founding member and member of the Board of Directors for the International Society of Cryptozoology (ISC)
Marries Diane Horton
1984
Due to high scores on the Miller Analogy Test, is accepted into Intertel, an organization that accepts only individuals who have scored at or above the 99th percentile on a standardized IQ test
1987
Appears in well-publicized creationism vs. evolution debate with Duane Gish, Washington State University
1988
Organizes and chairs Early Man symposium at the American Anthropological Association meeting in D.C.
1994
Offered Full Professor title within the Anthropology Department, Washington State University
1998
Publishes
Only a Dog
, a story about the relationship between Krantz and his first Irish Wolfhound Clyde
Retires from Washington State University
1999
Appears in the documentary "Sasquatch Odyssey"
2002
Dies February 14 of pancreatic cancer
His remains are processed at the University of Tennessee's Anthropology Research Facility
His bones and bones of his Irish Wolfhounds are donated to the Smithsonian Institution for educational purposes
2010-2013
His mounted bones and bones of his Irish Wolfhound, Clyde, appear in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History exhibit "Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake"

Administration

Author
Rose Chou
Processing Information
The papers of Grover S. Krantz were organized by Krantz and his wife Diane Horton before they were deposited at the National Anthropological Archives. They assigned folder numbers, which have been retained along with the original folder titles. Titles assigned by the processing archivist were placed within square brackets. Some of the notes below are based on Krantz and Horton's original inventory. Not all of their notes have been included in this finding aid. Consult with the reference archivist to access their inventory.
The archivist organized the collection into 9 series. Some folders were moved out of numerical sequence into their appropriate series. Oversized materials were separated and replaced with a note indicating original and new locations. Numerous newspaper prints were also photocopied onto archival paper. The electronic records are unprocessed.
A later accretion to the collection containing three notebooks, miscellaneous ephemera and photographs, passports, and other documents of Krantz's have not yet been processed.
Processed by Rose Chou and Keeley Kerrins, April 2012
Encoded by Jocelyn Baltz, July 2012
Immediate Source of Acquisition
These papers were donated to the National Anthropological Archives by Grover Krantz's wife Diane Horton and his brother Victor Krantz, a former Smithsonian photographer.
Separated Materials
Film and video, including copies of the Patterson-Gimlin film, have been transferred to the Human Studies Film Archives (HSFA accession 2003-04).
Grover S. Krantz's specimens were donated to the National Museum of Natural History's Physical Anthropology Collections.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Use
Contact repository for terms of use.
Conditions Governing Access
Materials that include student grades are restricted until 2081. Nude photographs of Grover were restricted until 2017. Electronic records are restricted due to preservation concerns.
Access to the Grover Sanders Krantz papers requires an appointment.
Preferred Citation
Grover Sanders Krantz papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution

More Information

Selected Bibliography

Selected Bibliography
1968. "Brain Size and Hunting Ability in Earliest Man."
Current Anthropology
9, no. 5 (1968): 450-451.
1976. "On the Nonmigration of Hunting Peoples."
Northwest Anthropological Research Notes
10, no. 2 (1976): 209-216.
1980.
Climatic Races and Descent Groups
. North Quincy, MA: Christopher Publishing House, 1980.
1981.
The Process of Human Evolution
. Cambridge, MA: Schenkman, 1981.
1982. "The Fossil Record of Sex." In
Sexual Size Dimorphism
, edited by Roberta Hall, 85-105. New York: Praeger, 1982.
1983. "Anatomy and Dermatoglyphics of Three Sasquatch Footprints."
Cryptozoology
2 (1983): 53-81.
1987. "A Reconstruction of the Skull of
Gigantopithecus blacki
and a Comparison with a Living Form."
Cryptozoology
5 (1987): 24-39.
1988. "Larynx Descent in 40,000 Year-old Fossils." In
The Genesis of Language
, edited by M.E. Landsberg, 173-180. Berlin: Mouton, 1988.
1988.
Geographical Development of European Languages
. New York: Peter Lang, 1988.
1991. "Bipedalism as a Brachiating Adaptation."
Human Evolution
6, no. 3 (1991): 235-239.
1992.
Big Footprints: A Scientific Inquiry into the Reality of Sasquatch
. Boulder, CO: Johnson Books, 1992.
1993. "The Subspecies of Homo erectus."
Human Evolution
8, no. 4 (1993): 275-279.
1995. "
Homo erectus
Brain Sizes by Subspecies."
Human Evolution
10, no. 2 (1995): 107-117.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Sasquatch Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Human evolution Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fossil hominids Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Primates Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Biological anthropology Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

National Anthropological Archives
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