National Anthropological Archives

Guide to the Frank H. H. Roberts Jr. photographs in MS 4851

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.PhotoLot.4851
Creators:
Roberts, Frank H. H. (Frank Harold Hanna), 1897-1966
Dates:
1921-1941
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
ca 3100 Photographs
Prints: 8 boxes; Nitrate negatives: 15 boxes, 1 MS folder; Acetate negatives: 8 boxes; Glass negatives: 2 boxes plus sink-mats; Lantern slides: 4 trays
Repository:
This material forms the photographic component of MS 4851, the Frank H.H. Roberts, Jr. papers. The bulk of the photographs document Pueblo and Basketmaker period sites excavated by Roberts, particularly in Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico, and Paleo-Indian sites including Lindenmeier in Colorado and San Jon in New Mexico. In addition there are photographs of the Shiloh Mound site in Tennessee. Other sites studied by Roberts around the United States are represented to a smaller degree. There is also a small series that relates to sites outside the United States. The collection includes images of human remains.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The Frank H.H. Roberts, Jr. photographs document the early years (1921-1941) of Roberts' career - first as a graduate student in archaeology and then as an archaeologist with the Bureau of American Ethnology. There are over 3100 images, the bulk of which relate to Pueblo and Basketmaker period sites excavated by Roberts, particularly in Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico and Paleo-Indian sites including the Lindenmeier site in Colorado and San Jon in New Mexico. In addition there are photographs of the Shiloh Mound site in Tennessee. Other sites studied by Roberts around the United States are represented to a smaller degree. There is also a small series that relates to sites outside the United States.
Site images show excavations, artifacts and human remains in situ, workers and their camps, and the general area surrounding the excavations. There is a large series showing artifacts including pottery and stone and bone tools from various sites. Many of the site and artifact photographs appear in Roberts' and others' publications. Some of the published photographs are arranged as such however most are filed in site or artifact series. Also in the collection is a small number of Roberts' personal photographs and several images of the Smithsonian Institution buildings and grounds.
The collection also contains several photographic reproductions of maps used in publication, but more cartographic material can be found in MS 4851.
The collection contains images of human remains.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is organized into the following series:
  • Archaeological sites, chronological
  • Archaeological sites, alphabetical
  • Artifacts
  • Maps
  • Foreign travels and sites
  • Miscellaneous
  • Publications
  • Lantern slides
Each photograph has a unique identifier which is a combination of the collection number, series or subseries abbreviation, and an item number. For instance, "4851SJ34" is item 34 in the subseries San Jon; 4851AF129 is item 129 in the series Artifacts.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Frank H. H. (Harold Hanna) Roberts (1897-1966) was an archaeologist with the Smithsonian Institution's Bureau of Ethnology from 1926 until his retirement in 1964. See Judd, Neil M. "Frank H.H. Roberts, Jr, 1879-1966," American Anthropologist 68, 1966, for a comprehensive biography and bibliography.
August 11, 1897
Born in Centerburg, Ohio
1919
BA, University of Denver
1921
MA, University of Denver
Summer, 1921
Student archaeologist on expedition to Pagosa Springs, CO sponsored by the State Historical Society of Colorado and the University of Denver
1921-1924
Instructor, University of Denver
Summer, 1923
Archaeological reconnaissance to the Piedra District in SW Colorado for the State Historical and Natural History Society of Colorado
1923-1924
Assistant Curator of Archaeology, Colorado State Museum, Denver
1925-1926
Assistant in anthropology, Harvard University
Summers, 1925-1926
At Chaco Canyon, NM; worked with Monroe Amsden on Pueblo pottery study for the National Geographic Society's Pueblo Bonito Expedition led by Neil M. Judd
1926
MA, Harvard University
Summers, 1926-1927
At Chaco Canyon, NM in conjunction with the National Geographic Society's Pueblo Bonito Expedition; discovered and excavated Shabik'eschchee Village
1926-1944
Archaeologist for the Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology
1927
PhD, Harvard University
Summer, 1928
Directed expedition to early Pueblo site in Piedra District, Co
Summer, 1929
Directed expedition to early Pueblo site at Kiathuthlanna, AZ on the Long H Ranch between St. Johns and Houck
Summer, 1930
Directed expedition to Village of the Great Kivas, NM
Summers, 1931-1933
Directed expedition to Whitewater District, AZ
Winter, 1933-1934
Expedition to Shiloh National Military Park at Pittsburgh Landing, TN
Summers 1934-1940
Directed expeditions to Lindenmeier site, CO
1937
US representative to the International Congress of Archaeologists in Cairo, Egypt
August 1940 and 1941
Directed expeditions to Bc-53 site in Chaco Canyon, NM for the University of New Mexico Field School
May, 1941
Reconnaissance expedition to Mons site near Peaks of Otter, VA
Summer, 1941
Directed expedition to San Jon site, NM
1943
Reconnaissance expedition to Clear Fork site near Abilene, TX
1944-1946
Assistant Chief, Bureau of American Ethnology
1946-1964
Director, Smithsonian Institution River Basin Surveys
1947-1958
Associate Director, Bureau of American Ethnology
1958-1964
Director, Bureau of American Ethnology
1964
Retired
February 23, 1966
Died

Administration

Author
Gina Rappaport
Custodial History
Some prints in the Lindenmeier series had been loaned to Edwin Wilmsen and were subsequently absorbed into the collection Frank H.H. Roberts, Jr., and Edwin N. Wilmsen's Papers Concerning the Lindenmeier Site, Larimer County, Colorado in the archives; these prints were reunited with Photo Lot 4851. The Shiloh Mound series also had prints separated and formed into Photo Lot 137; these prints were reunited with Photo Lot 4851 and Photo Lot 137 dissolved.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Roberts deposited his papers and photographs with the Bureau of American Ethnology archives in 1964, prior to his retirement from the BAE.
Existence and Location of Copies
Roberts photographs relating to Chaco Canyon have been digitized and are available via the Chaco Research Archive website.
Processing Information
The collection was processed by Gina Rappaport in 2009-2011. Previous processing of the photograph component of MS 4851 included imposing a basic arrangement; this was maintained to some degree but with some re-arrangement to restore some original order. To the extent possible, all negatives and prints were matched, with a single identifier given to each image in the format 4851[series.item]. Roberts' numbering of the Lindenmeier subseries was maintained. It should be noted that not all negatives have associated prints, and some prints do not have associated negatives; therefore, both the prints and the negatives may need to be consulted to view all of the images.
Collection and image descriptions provided in this finding aid were compiled using the best available sources of information. Such sources may include the creator's annotations or descriptions, collection accession files, primary and secondary source material (i.e. documents, publications, and websites), and subject matter experts. While every effort is made to provide accurate information, it is understood that errors may reveal themselves following review by other subject experts, and new information is welcome.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Use
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Conditions Governing Access
Access to the Frank H. H. Roberts Jr. photographs requires an appointment.
Original negatives are in special storage and require advance notice for viewing.
Preferred Citation
Photo Lot 4851, Frank H. H. Roberts Jr. photographs in MS 4851, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution.

Related Materials
Other collections and manuscripts in the NAA that include material by Roberts, document Robert's work, or pertain to subjects in this collection can be found in the Records of the Bureau of Ethnology, the BAE Numbered Manuscripts, the Records of the Department of Anthropology, and the papers of John P. Harrington, Esther S. Goldfrank, Neil M. Judd, Herbert W. Krieger, Donald J. Lehmer, Frank M. Setzler, and William Duncan Strong. The Human Studies Film Archives (HSFA) holds a number of Roberts' films.
The anthropology collections of the National Museum of Natural History hold artifacts collected by Roberts.

More Information

Selected Publications

Selected Publications
Selected publications by Roberts
1927. "A late basket maker village of the southwest" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1929. "Shabik'eshchee Village: a late basket maker site in the Chaco Canyon, New Mexico," Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 92
1929. "Recent archaeological developments in the vicinity of El Paso, Texas," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections Vol. 81
1929. "Two ancient Indian cultures in eastern Arizona" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1930. "Early pueblo ruins in the Piedra District, southwestern Colorado," Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 96
1930. "A Prehistoric village on the Zuñi reservation" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1931. "The ruins at Kiatuthlanna, eastern Arizona," Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 100
1931. "An important archaeological site in eastern Arizona" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1932. "The Village of the Great Kivas on the Zuñi reservation, New Mexico," Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 111
1932. "Some early pueblo remains in eastern Arizona" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1933. "An Arizona village of a thousand years ago" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1934. "Indian mounds on Shiloh battlefield" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1934. "A Folsom camp site and workshop" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1935. Further investigations at a Folsom campsite in Northern Colorado" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1935. "A survey of southwestern archaeology" Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution
1936. "New developments in the problem of the Folsom Complex" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1936. "A Folsom complex: Preliminary report on investigations at the Lindenmeier site in northern Colorado," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections Vol. 94, No. 4
1937. "The Lindenmeier site in Northern Colorado contributes additional Data on the Folsom complex" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1937. "Additional information on the Folsom complex: Report on the second season's investigations at the Lindenmeier site in northern Colorado," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections Vol. 95, No. 1
1938. "On the trail of ancient hunters in western United States and Canada" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1938. "The Folsom problem in American archaeology" Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution
1939. "Archaeological remains in the Whitewater District, Eastern Arizona, Part I: House types." Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 121
1939. "Excavations at the Lindenmeier site contribute new information on the Folsom complex" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1940. "Archaeological remains in the Whitewater District, Eastern Arizona, Part II: Artifacts and burials." Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 126
1940. "Latest excavations at Lindenmeier site add to information on the Folsom complex" Explorations and Field-Work of the Smithsonian Institution
1943. "Archaeological and geological investigations in the San Jon district, eastern New Mexico," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections Vol. 103, No. 4
1944. "The New World Paleo-Indian" Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution
"Egypt and the Suez Canal," Smithsonian Institution War Background Studies No. 11
Selected Publications
Selected publications by others
Bryan, Kirk, and Ray, Louis L. "Geologic Antiquity of the Lindenmeier site in Colorado," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, Vol. 99, No. 2, 1940.
Judd, Neil M. "The Material Culture of Pueblo Bonito," Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, Vol. 124, 1954
Welch, Paul B. Archaeology at Shiloh Indian Mounds, 1899-1999. University of Alabama Press: Tuscaloosa, 2006
Wilmsen, Edwin N. and Roberts, Frank H.H. "Lindenmeier, 1934-1974: concluding report on Investigations," Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropology Vol. 24, 1978

Other Finding Aids

Other Finding Aids
A guide to MS 4851, the Frank H. H. Roberts Jr. papers, is available in the repository.
A container list for the negatives is available in the repository.
Item-level descriptions for the Shiloh Mound photographs are available in the collection.


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