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Start Over Record Source University of Pennsylvania People Rainey, Froelich, Director of the University Museum

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Froelich Rainey Director's Office records, 1947-1977 (inclusive)

Extent:
25.6 linear feet
Abstract:
Rainey was appointed Director of the University Museum in 1947 and maintained the position until his retirement in 1976. He also served as a Professor of Anthropology at the University. Among his many accomplishments as Director, Rainey is responsible for the institution of Expedition Magazine. He developed and hosted the television show "What in the World?" which ran either locally or nationally for a total of fifteen years. In 1964, he served as a contributor to the show "Sunday" on NBC reporting the "archaeology news." The Froelich Rainey Administrative records consist of sixty-four archival boxes of correspondence divided into two series; alphabetical and chronological. The majority of the letters are in the alphabetical files with the chronological files reflecting the time from February 1968 to November 1969.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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Robert H. Dyson Director's Office records, 1982-1994 (inclusive)

Extent:
15.2 linear feet
Abstract:
Robert H. Dyson, a native of York, PA waa educated in the public schools of Forrest Hills, N.Y. and the Collegiate Institute in Ontario, Canada before enrolling at Harvard University. He graduated from Harvard Magna cum laude with a B.A. in 1950 and completed his Ph.D. there in 1966, specializing in Near Eastern Archaeology. Dyson came to the University of Pennsylvania in 1954 as an Associate in the Anthropology Department and an Assistant in the Near East Section of the University Museum. In 1982, Dyson succeeded Martin Biddle as Director of the Penn Museum. He maintained this position until 1994. The Robert H. Dyson Administrative Records consist of thirty-eight archival boxes of material organized into four series, Alphabetical Correspondence, Chronological Records, Personnel Records and Allocation Records.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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Public Information Office, 1890-1980 (inclusive)

Extent:
4.4 linear feet
Abstract:
The records of the Public Information Office are contained in ten archival boxes spanning the years 1890 to the late 1970s. All records are filed chronologically and include printed material pertaining to Museum exhibits, lectures, tours, and other public functions.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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American Section, 1898-1960 (bulk) 1826-1995 (inclusive)

Extent:
16.0 linear feet
Abstract:
The American Section was one of the first to evolve during the early development of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. The University Archaeological Association established in 1887 and later, the American Exploration Society, established in 1892, exhibited several small collections in College Hall before the building campaign for the museum began. Charles Abbott was the first curator of the section succeeded by Henry C. Mercer and then Stewart Culin who was also named Director in 1899. Each succeeding curator was responsible for adding collections, many of them representing their own expeditions in the United States, Alaska, Mexico, Central America and South America. Records in the files are dated from 1826 through the 1980s. The transfer of materials to the Archives took place piecemeal and without a central organization. The current re-processing placed the files into three series, Deaccessions and Loans, Collectors and Collections and Exhibits.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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Oceanian Section, 1893-1983 (inclusive)

Extent:
1.5 linear feet
Abstract:
What is now known as the Oceanian Section of the Penn Museum was initially a part of the Section of General Ethnology, curated by Stewart Culin. In the early years, artifacts came from donations as well as purchases. Culin himself scoured the exhibits at the 1893 World Columbian Exposition and later George Byron Gordon and Henry Usher Hall bought from the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair and the Panama Pacific Exposition in 1915 to enhance the Ethnology Section. The records of the Oceanian Section consist mainly of information and lists of objects from various donors and patrons. These are placed in the collections series and include extensive communication with dealers, M. Lemaire DeVries and W.O. Oldman. The remainder of the material is divided into four series, three of which represent contributions from staff of the museum, Research Associates Bennet Bronson, D.S. Davidson, and DeVerne Smith.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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Radiocarbon Laboratory records, 1948-1985 (inclusive)

Extent:
9.2 linear feet
Abstract:
The Radiocarbon Laboratory of the University of Pennsylvania was founded in 1951, initiated by Froelich Rainey (Director of the Penn Museum, 1947-1977) who was a member of the original radiocarbon committee. The laboratory was conceived to assist Willard Libby of the University of Chicago by furnishing him with archaeological samples to assess the validity of radiocarbon dating. It was modeled on the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art at Oxford. The Radiocarbon Laboratory records consist of 40 boxes of records divided into seven series. Three of the series, Known Age, Finished Samples and Notebooks contain the data and results of the radiocarbon testing.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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University Museum Expedition to Afghanistan, 1952-1955 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.4 linear feet
Abstract:
The University Museum Expedition to Afghanistan spent six months in 1953 excavating the Bactrian sites of Balkh and Kunduz. The expedition was helmed by Rodney S. Young (Curator of the Mediterranean Section), Schuyler Cammann (Associate Curator in the Oriental Section), and Dorothy Hannah Cox, with additional scouting and surveying work performed by Carlton Coon. Uncovering evidence of the area's pre-Buddhist historical record was this expedition's primary focus. The textual records of the expeditions to Balkh and Kunduz consist of .4 linear feet of correspondence, inventories, preliminary reports, published reports, excavation agreements, field notes, and images. The records have been compiled from two sources: the papers of Dr. Schuyler Cammann (contributed in 1992) and the records of the Asian Section Office at the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania, an ongoing contribution of records to the Archives over time. Because very similar records were found in both sets of source...(see more)

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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Gordion Project records, 1947-2008 (inclusive)

Extent:
7.0 linear feet
Abstract:
The Gordion Project collection documents the University of Pennsylvania survey and excavation of the ancient site of Gordion in central Turkey from 1947 until 2008. Collection series include excavation and conservation records under the authority of project directors Rodney S. Young (1950-1974), Keith R. DeVries (1975-1987) and G. Kenneth Sams (1988-2008) as well as fundraising and publication records during this period. Significant gaps and omissions in documentation occur after about 1990. The textual records are followed by photographs from the excavation site taken mostly between 1950 and 1975. Additional graphic material and field notebooks remain to be added to this collection.

Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Penn Museum Archives [Contact Us]

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