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Works Progress Administration (WPA) Statewide Archaeological Project, 1938-1940

MS 2

Historical Note

The Works Progress Administration, Statewide Archaeological Project was initiated in the spring of 1938 by Emil W. Haury, Department of Anthropology and the Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona. In May, 1938, the Arizona Board of Regents appointed a State Committee on Anthropology to draw up a proposal for the project and to recommend supervisory personnel for it. The committee was composed of Emil W. Haury, University of Arizona, Tucson, Chairman; Harold S. Colton, Museum of Northern Arizona, Flagstaff; Harold S. Gladwin, Gila Pueblo, Globe; Byron Cummings, Arizona State Museum, Tucson; and Odd S. Halseth, Pueblo Grande, Phoenix. The committee submitted a project proposal to the WPA in June, 1938. After various bureaucratic delays and a request to rewrite the entire proposal, the WPA approved the original proposal in September, 1938. It was assigned Project no. 1102. Project activities began in October, 1938, and ended in October, 1940.

The Statewide Archaeological Project, as approved by the WPA, was divided into 5 subprojects with Roy Lassetter, Tucson, appointed Project Superintendent (this title varied as did all the titles on this project). Lassetter remained Project Superintendent until July 8, 1940, when he resigned to go into the Army. Irene Vickrey was then appointed Acting Project Superintendent, a position she held until the project was closed.

The subprojects were:

Subproject A, co-sponsored by the Museum of Northern Arizona
and the Arizona State Teachers' College
, Flagstaff, with Harold S. Colton as the sponsors' director. No mention is made of the State Teachers' College sponsorship except in the project proposal. John C. McGregor was the Archaeologist and Milton Wetherill was the Assistant Archaeologist on this subproject. Katharine Bartlett was also actively involved. The proposed activities of Subproject A were to prepare archaeological and ethnological material for publication; restore prehistoric pottery and prepare artifacts for exhibit; upgrade the MNA museum catalog; and excavate Winona Village and Ridge Ruin. Occasional mention is made of a Subproject A-1 located at Tuzigoot with Milton Wetherill as WPA project supervisor. However, Wetherill seems to have ended up working in Flagstaff instead.

Subproject B, sponsored by the City of Phoenix
through Pueblo Grande with Odd S. Halseth as the sponsor's director. WPA project supervisors or foremen were Albert H. Schroeder from October, 1938, to ca. September, 1939, and Paul Ezell from ca. September, 1939, to December, 1939. It is unclear who, if anyone, replaced Ezell when he left. Subproject B's proposed activities were to upgrade Pueblo Grande Museum
storage; conduct an Indian art project; and survey and trench prehistoric sites in the Salt River Valley.

Subproject C, sponsored by the Arizona State Museum
, University of Arizona
, with Emil W. Haury as the sponsor's director. WPA project supervisor was Roy Lassetter from October, 1938 to July, 1940. It is unclear who replaced him; possibly George A. Burns, Senior Typist, was put in charge. Proposed activities of Subproject C were to prepare museum materials and manuscripts for publication; make a bibliographic survey of the library; and the preparation of skeletal material.

Subprojects D and E, co-sponsored by Gila Pueblo and the City of Globe
, with Harold S. Gladwin as the sponsors' director. Irene Vickrey was the WPA supervisor. Subprojects D and E were written up separately in the project proposal but were treated as one project, called Subproject D, in the ensuing material. Proposed activities of Subproject D were the excavation and repair of significant ruins and the preparation of materials collected therefrom. The proposed activity of Subproject E was to excavate a prehistoric ruin near the Inspiration Mine. Besh-ba-gowah, Inspiration I and Inspiration II were excavated and a museum in Globe was maintained under Subprojects D and E.

There is mention of another Subproject E - this one at the Smoki Museum
in Prescott. There is no evidence in this collection that this project ever came to pass.

Funds for the Statewide Archaeological Project were expended by September 27, 1940, and the project was officially closed October 4, 1940.

Scope and Content Note

The collection relates to the administration of the Works Progress Administration, Statewide Archaeological Project, from 1938 when a State Committee of Anthropology was appointed to draw up a proposal for the project until 1940 when the project ended. The project was divided into four subprojects: Subproject A, sponsored by the Museum of Northern Arizona
, Flagstaff, and directed by Harold S. Colton; Subproject B, sponsored by Pueblo Grande and the City of Phoenix and directed by Odd S. Halseth; Subproject C, sponsored by the Arizona State Museum, Tucson, and directed by Emil W. Haury; Subproject D, sponsored by Gila Pueblo and the City of Globe and directed by Harold S. Gladwin. At the beginning of the project there was a Subproject E but it soon became incorporated with Subproject D. Material in this collection relates to the individual subprojects as well as to the project as a whole.

The goals of the project were to upgrade museum storage and cataloguing, prepare material for publication, and conduct archaeological investigations. Significant excavations were done at Winona Village and Ridge Ruin by Subproject A and at Besh-ba-gowah and Inspiration I and II by Subproject D. Field notes and other results of the work done by the Statewide Archaeological Project are not included in this collection except for two bibliographies and lists of donors, materials and books completed by Subproject C. Material on financial and personnel matters can be found in Series 1, Correspondence and Personal Memos, as well as in Series 6, Personnel Records, and Series 7, Financial Records, because that was the way the records were originally ordered. Principal correspondents are Harold S. Colton, Byron Cummings, Paul Ezell, Harold S. Gladwin, Odd S. Halseth, Emil W. Haury, Roy Lassetter, John C. McGregor, Agnes Hunt Parke, Albert H. Schroeder, and Irene S. Vickrey.

Organization

Restrictions

Conditions Governing Access

None.

Conditions Governing Use

The Arizona State Museum may not own copyright to all parts of this collection. It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from the owner of the copyright (the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Arizona Board of Regents for the University of Arizona, Arizona State Museum, its officers, employees, and agents from and against all claims made by any person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.

Related Material

Photographs accompanying this material can be found in the Arizona State Museum Photograph Collections.

Other collections of interest to the researcher might include Arizona State Museum Archives folders A-515, A-1094 and A-1097.

Access Terms

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Works Progress Administation (WPA) Statewide Archaeological Project. MS 2. Arizona State Museum. Archives.

Bibliography

Publications resulting from the work of the Statewide Archaeological Project include:

Gavan, James A. 1940. "The Physical Anthropology of Besh-ba-gowah." The Kiva 6 (3):9-12.McGregor, John C. and Milton Wetherill. 1939. "Winona Village." Museum Notes 11 (7):51-54.

Vickrey, Irene S. 1939. "Besh-ba-gowah." Kiva 4 (5):19-22.

Vickrey, Irene S. 1945. "Inspiration I." Kiva 10 (3):22-28.

Vickrey, Irene. 1939. "Besh-ba-gowah: the Ancient City." Arizona Highways 15 (1):10-11, 32.

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