Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T22:00:47.308Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains: Three Decades of Service to the Archaeological Profession

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Fred Wendorf  and
Raymond H. Thompson
Fred Wendorf
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275
Raymond H. Thompson
Affiliation:
Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson AZ 85721-0026
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Today most archaeologists are unaware of the enormous debt we owe to a small group who instigated a massive federal archaeological program to recover the archaeological evidence that was to be destroyed by a public works program involving hundreds of dams on most of the major rivers in the United States and set to begin immediately after World War II. This small group of archaeologists, organized by Frederick Johnson in May 1945, known as the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains (CRAR), consisted of Johnson (secretary), John O. Brew, Alfred V Kidder, and William S. Webb (chair). The CRAR acted independently of the federal government, yet it was the driving force behind the organization of the River Basin Surveys. It stimulated adoption of high professional standards and was largely responsible for public and professional support for protecting archaeological resources that is the basis for our modern cultural preservation efforts.

Résumé

Résumé

Hoy en día la mayoría de los arqueólogos no se dan cuenta de la enorme deuda que tenemos en cuanto al desarrollo de la disciplina, hacia un pequeño grupo de arqueólogos que indujeron un gigantesco programa federal para recuperar la evidencia arqueológica que iba a ser destruida por un programa de infraestructura público que incluía centenares de represas en la mayoría de los ríos grandes de los Estados Unidos, mismo que se iba a emprender inmediatamente después de la segunda guerra mundial. Este pequeño grupo de arqueólogos, organizado por Frederick Johnson en mayo de 1945, conocido como el Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains (CRAR, Comité para la Recuperatión de los Restos Arqueólogicos), incluía a Johnson (Secretario), John O. Brew, Alfred V. Kidder y William S. Webb (Presidente). El CRAR era independiente del gobierno federal, sin embargo fue el ímpetu mayor para la organizatión de los River Basin Surveys (Reconocimientos de las Cuencas de los Ríos). Además de esto, el CRAR estimuló la adoptión de altas normas profesionales y fue en mayor parte responsable por el apoyo público y profesional para la protectión de los recursos arqueológicos, que son la base de los esfuerzos por la preservatión del patrimonio cultural.

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 67 , Issue 2 , April 2002 , pp. 317 - 330
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 2002

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Baerreis, D. A. 1958 Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. American Antiquity 29:215–217.Google Scholar
Baldwin, G. C. 1966 Race Against Time: The Story of Salvage Archaeology. G. P. Putman's Sons, New York.Google Scholar
Banks, K. M. (editor) 1994 40 Something: The River Basin Surveys. North Dakota Archaeology 5.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1947 [Report of the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains.] American Anthropologist 49:356–358.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1948 [Report of the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains.] American Anthropologist 50:391–395.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1951 [Report of the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains.] American Anthropologist 53:457–459.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1952 [Report of the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains.] American Anthropologist 54:307–308.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1959 The Repercussion of Dams on Historic and Archaeological Monuments and Prehistoric Remains. Athens Proceedings of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, Technical Meeting 2: 187–192.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1961 a Emergency Archaeology: Salvage in Advance of Technological Progress. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 105:1–10.Google Scholar
Buffalo News 1961b Salvage in River Basins—A World View. Archaeology 14:232–235 Google Scholar
Buffalo News 1961c The Threat to Nubia. Archaeology 14:268–276.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1962 Introduction. In A Guide for Salvage Archaeology by Wendorf, F., pp. 7–32. Museum of New Mexico Press, Santa Fe.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1966 Saving the Past from the Present. The Nation, 8 August: 117–120.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1968 Foreword. Bibliography of Salvage Archeology in the United States, edited by Jerome, E. Petsche. Publications in Salvage Archeology 10.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1969 A Report on Salvage Archaeology and Historic Preservation in the United States. American Council of Learned Societies Newsletter 20(4): 1–11.Google Scholar
Brew, J. O. 1973 History of the Committee. American Antiquity 38:226.Google Scholar
Brew, J. Strong, O”W. D., Johnson, F., Kahler, H. E., Roberts, F. H. H., Wedel, W. R., Champe, J. L., and Caldwell, J. R. 1947 Symposium on River Valley Archaeology. American Antiquity 12:209–225.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chapman, C. H. 1985 The Amateur Archaeological Society: A Missouri Example. American Antiquity 50:241–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clarke, J. N. 1996 Roosevelt's Warrior: Harold L: Ickes and the New Deal. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.Google Scholar
Corbett, J. M. 1949 River Basin Archeology: A Race Against Time. National Council for Historic Sites and Buildings, Washington, D.C. Google Scholar
Corbett, J. M. 1961 River Basin Salvage in the United States. Archaeology 14:236–240.Google Scholar
CRAR (Committee for the Recovery of Archeological Remains) 1945 Prehistoric America and the River Valleys. Prepared by the Committee for the Recovery of Archeological Remains.Google Scholar
CRAR (Committee for the Recovery of Archeological Remains) 1958 The Inter-Agency Archaeological Salvage Program After Twelve Years. University of Missouri, Columbia.Google Scholar
Fagette, P. 1996 Digging for Dollars: American Archaeology and the New Deal. University of New Mexico Press. Albuquerque.Google Scholar
Giesen, M. J., and J. C. Czaplicki (editors) 2000 Dam Good Archeology. CRM 23.Google Scholar
Givens, D. R. 1992 Alfred Vincent Kidder and the Development of Americanist Archaeology. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque.Google Scholar
Glenn, J. R. 1994 The River Basin Surveys Program. North Dakota Archaeology 5:5–14.Google Scholar
Guthe, C. E. 1939 The Basic Needs of American Archeology. Science 90:528–530.Google Scholar
Haag, W. G. 1965 William Snyder Webb—1882-1964. American Antiquity 30:470–473.Google Scholar
Haury, E. W. 1973 Report of the Representative to the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains. Annual Report 1972:49-50. American Anthropological Association, Washington, D.C. Google Scholar
Haury, E. W. 1975 Report of the Representative to the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains. Annual Report 1974:61-62. American Anthropological Association, Washington, D.C. Google Scholar
Jennings, J. D. 1985 River Basin Surveys: Origins, Operations, and Results, 1945-1969. American Antiquity 50:281–296.Google Scholar
Johnson, A. E. 1977 Report of the Secretary. American Antiquity 42:679–680.Google Scholar
Johnson, F. 1946 Archaeological Work on Sites to be Destroyed by Construction of Dams. American Antiquity 11:206.Google Scholar
Johnson, F. 1947 The Work of the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains: Aims, History, and Activities to Date. American Antiquity 12:212–215.Google Scholar
Johnson, F. 1951 The Inter-Agency Archaeological Salvage Program in the United States. Archeology 4:25–40.Google Scholar
Johnson, F. 1954 Report of the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains. American Antiquity 20:200–202.Google Scholar
Johnson, F. 1966 Archeology in an Emergency. Science 152:1592–1597.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Johnson, R, Griffin, J. B., and Haury, E. W. 1945 The Planning Committee of the Society for American Archaeology: A Preliminary Statement. American Antiquity 10:320.Google Scholar
Johnson, R, Griffin, J. B., and Haury, E. W. 1946 Report of the Planning Committee. American Antiquity 12:138.Google Scholar
Johnson, R, Haury, E. W., and Griffin, J. B. 1945 Report of the Planning Committee. American Antiquity 11:142–144.Google Scholar
Kahler, H. E. 1947 The Role of the National Park Service in River Basin Archaeology with Particular Reference to Inter-Bureau Agreements. American Antiquity 12:215–216.Google Scholar
Lindsay, A. J. Jr., 1961 Saving Prehistoric Sites in the Southwest. Archaeology 14:245–249.Google Scholar
Lyon, E. A. 1996 A New Deal for Southeastern Archaeology. University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa.Google Scholar
MacNeish, R. S. 1996 Frederick Johnson 1904—1996. American Antiquity 61:269–273.Google Scholar
Manners, R. A. 1973 Julian Haynes Steward, 1902-1972. American Anthropologist 75:886–903.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marlowe, G. 1983 Preservation and Profession in American Archaeology: From “Basic Needs” to the Committee on the Recovery of Archaeological Remains, 1939-1945. MS. copy in the Arizona State Museum Archives, University of Arizona, Tucson.Google Scholar
McGimsey, R. C III 1978 Current Affairs Commentary. American Antiquity 43:750–755.Google Scholar
McGimsey, R. C III 1985 “This, Too, Will Pass”: Moss-Bennett in Perspective. American Antiquity 50:326–331.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGimsey, R. C III 1999 Headwaters, Part 2: Tributaries, Archeology Goes to Capitol Hill. Archeology Common Ground and Ethnography in the Public Interest, Winter 1999:8–15.Google Scholar
Petsche, J. E. (editor) 1968 Bibliography of Salvage Archeology in the United States. Publications in Salvage Archeology 10.Google Scholar
Quimby, G. I. 1979 A Brief History of WPA Archaeology. In The Uses of Anthropology, edited by Goldschmidt, W. R., pp. 110–125. American Anthropological Association, Special Publication, No. 11.Google Scholar
Rainey, F. 1965 J. Louis Giddings (1909-1964). American Anthropologist 67: 1503–1507.Google Scholar
Ritchie, W. A. 1961 Highway Construction and Salvage Problems. Archaeology 14:241–244.Google Scholar
Roberts, F. H. H. 1948 A Crisis in U. S. Archaeology. Scientific American, 179(6):12–17.Google Scholar
Rouse, I. 1977a Report of the Representative to the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains. Annual Report 1975-76:42. American Anthropological Association. Washington, D.C. Google Scholar
Rouse, I. 1977b Report of the Representative to the Committee for the Recovery of Archaeological Remains. Annual Report 1976:32 American Anthropological Association, Washington, D.C. Google Scholar
Schumacher, P. S. F. 1962 The Archeological Salvage Program in the United States. In Akten des 34. Internationalen Amerikanistenkongresses (Vienna 1960), pp. 294–297. Verlag Ferdinand Berger. Vienna.Google Scholar
Schwartz, D. W. 1967 Conceptions of Kentucky Prehistory. University of Kentucky Press, Lexington.Google Scholar
Shimkin, D. 1964 Julian H. Steward: A Contribution to Fact and Theory in Cultural Anthropology. In Process and Pattern in Culture: Essays in Honor of Julian H. Steward, edited by Manners, R. A., pp. 1–17. Aldine, Chicago.Google Scholar
Solecki, R., and Wagley, C. 1963 William Duncan Strong \%99-\9b2. American Anthropologist 65:1102–1111.Google Scholar
Spaulding, A. C. 1952 Report of the Secretary. American Antiquity 18:186–187.Google Scholar
Spencer, S. M. 1954 They’re Exposing America's Oldest Secrets. The Saturday Evening Post 226: 28, 29, 98, 99, 100, 103.Google Scholar
Stephenson, R. L. 1967 Frank H. H. Roberts, 1897-1966. American Antiquity 32:84–94.Google Scholar
Strong, W. D., Johnson, F., and Webb, W. S. 1945 National Archaeological Resources: Resolution Concerning the Conservation of National Archaeological Resources in the River Valleys of the United States. Science 102:44Google Scholar
Thiessen, T. D. 1994 The National Park Service and the Interagency Archeological Salvage Program in the Missouri River Mainstream Reservoirs. North Dakota Archaeology 5:15–26.Google Scholar
Thompson, R. H. 2000 An Old and Reliable Authority: Introduction. Journal of the Southwest 42:191–195.Google Scholar
Thompson, R. H. 2001a Ernest Allen Connaly, 1921-1999. The SAA Archaeological Record 1(4):34–41.Google Scholar
Thompson, R. H. 2001b The First Professionals in American Archaeology. The SAA Archaeological Record 1(1): 15–16.Google Scholar
Wauchope, R. 1965 Alfred Vincent Kidder, 1885-1963. American Antiquity 31:149–171.Google Scholar
Wedel, W. R. 1944 Society for American Archaeology Annual Meeting—1944. American Antiquity 10:221–224.Google Scholar
Wedel, W. R. 1945 Report of the Secretary. American Antiquity 11:140.Google Scholar
Wedel, W. R. 1947 Report of the Secretary. American Antiquity 13:193–194.Google Scholar
Wedel, W. R. 1956 George Francis Will, 1884-1955. American Antiquity 22:73–76.Google Scholar
Wendorf, F 1957 The New Mexico Program in Highway Archaeological Salvage. American Antiquity 23:74–79.Google Scholar
Wendorf, F., Fox, N., and Lewis, O. L. (editors) 1956 Pipeline Archaeology: Report of Salvage Operations in the Southwest on El Paso Natural Gas Company Projects. 1950-1953. Laboratory of Anthropology and Museum of Northern Arizona, Santa Fe and Flagstaff.Google Scholar
Willey, G. R. 1988 Portraits in American Archaeology: Remembrances of. Some Distinguished Americanists. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque.Google Scholar
Woodbury, R. B. 1973 Alfred V. Kidder. Columbia University Press. New York.Google Scholar
Woodbury, R. B. 1990 John Otis Brew, 1906-1988. American Antiquity 55:452–159.Google Scholar