Smithsonian Institution Archives

Records, circa 1952-1978

Summary

Collection ID:
SIA.FARU0381
Creators:
National Museum of History and Technology. Division of Historic Archeology
Dates:
circa 1952-1978
Languages:
English
Physical Description:
9.58 cu. ft. (9 record storage boxes) (1 tall document box)
Repository:
Smithsonian Institution Archives

Descriptive Entry

Descriptive Entry
Records include correspondence and memoranda between Peterson and George R. Wallace, President and Treasurer of the Explorers Research Corporation; Bertrand Committee; Caribbean Research Institute; professional contacts participating in the Underwater Exploration Project; individuals interested in the History Under the Sea: A Handbook for Underwater Exploration handbook and underwater exploration; and staff of the Department of Armed Forces History.
This collection also includes Bertrand Committee reports and blueprints for the raising of the steamboat Bertrand in 1969; photographs of Peterson, alongside explorer Waldemar A. Ayres, experimenting with the Proton Processing Magnetometer; additional photographs and illustrations of underwater shipwreck sites, artifacts, and preservation methods; original manuscripts and bibliographical information for the publication History Under the Sea: A Handbook for Underwater Exploration; subject files concerning preservation of artifacts and use of electrolytic reduction on metallic objects; information pertaining to cannon markings and their identification; budgetary records; and proposals for the Hall of Underwater Exploration, NMHT.

Historical Note

Historical Note
Specialization within the field of underwater historic archeology was established by Mendel L. Peterson, who served as Head Curator of the Division of Military and Naval History, United States National Museum, 1948-1957; Head Curator and Chairman of the Department of Armed Forces History, National Museum of History and Technology (NMHT), 1958-1968; and Curator of the Division of Historic Archeology, NMHT, 1969-1973.
Peterson began taking an interest in underwater historic archeology in 1952, and thereafter conducted extensive research as well as headed expeditions to underwater shipwreck sites in the Florida Straits, Bahamas, and West Indies. Grants from the Explorers Research Company and National Geographic Society enabled Peterson to engineer his Proton Processing Magnetometer, an electronic searching device used for locating underwater artifacts and tested in the waters of Bermuda. When the Division of Historic Archeology was organized in 1969, emphasis on underwater historic archeology had more focus. Peterson supervised the Division's Underwater Exploration Project which, until his retirement in 1973, involved further exploration of the Caribbean and thorough research of previously discovered underwater sites.
In 1965 Peterson published History Under the Sea: A Handbook for Underwater Exploration, which remains a standard reference source on surveying underwater archeological sites and on laboratory techniques for preserving artifacts from underwater excavations.

Administration

Author
Finding aid prepared by Smithsonian Institution Archives

Using the Collection

Prefered Citation
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 381, National Museum of History and Technology. Division of Historic Archeology, Records

More Information

Notes

SI Records


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Peterson, Mendel Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ayres, Waldemar A. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of History and Technology (U.S.). Division of Historic Archeology Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of History and Technology (U.S.). Department of Armed Forces History Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Caribbean Research Institute Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Explorers Research Corporation Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of History and Technology (U.S.). Underwater Exploration Project Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bertrand (Steamboat) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of History and Technology (U.S.). Hall of Underwater Exploration Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Geographic Society (U.S.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
History Under the Sea: A Handbook for Underwater Exploration (Monograph : 1965) Title Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Underwater archeology Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Archaeology and history Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum exhibits Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum curators Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Museum publications Topic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Color photographs Genre/Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
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Drawings Genre/Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Clippings Genre/Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
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Color transparencies Genre/Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Plates (illustrations) Genre/Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
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