Preliminary Inventory of the James Schoenwetter Papers

Collection

Identifier: 2006-03958-2006-04042

Scope and Content Note

This collection houses research files and correspondence documenting James Schoenwetter's research in palynology between 1956 and 2005. According to Schoenwetter, [t]his archive presents my unpublished professional writings unedited and unchanged ... [h]opefully, the palynological and archaeological information they contain, and the concepts and methods presented in this collection of documents, will prove useful to others researching similar problems and situations. Readers should be warned, however, that these writings have NOT been subject to professional peer review. Therefore, they are not to be recognized as contributions to proper scientific literature. This collection has not been processed in full and can be viewed only by appointment. Contact Archives and Special Collections for more information.

Dates

Creation: 1956-2005

Creator

Schoenwetter, James (Person)

Language of Materials

Material in English

Access Restrictions

To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist. Appointments in the Wurzburger Reading Room at Hayden Library (rm. 138) on the Tempe campus are available Tuesday through Thursday, from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Check the ASU Library Hours page for current availability.

Copyright

The Arizona Board of Regents retains copyright to this collection for and on behalf of the Arizona State University Library. Requests to publish, display, or redistribute information from this collection must be submitted via our online application.

Biographical Note

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James S. Schoenwetter was born on January 2, 1935. His first experience with Archaeology came in a graduate course at the University of Chicago taught by Robert S. Braidwood in 1954. Although he earned a D in the course, he absorbed Braidwood's ideas regarding the value of interdisciplinary approaches to archaeology. During the summer of 1955, Schoenwetter served as a member of the field crew excavating the Modoc Rockshelter in Southern Illinois. Here, he became interested in the use of pollen analysis as a method of dating archaeological finds. He left the University of Chicago in 1956 and entered the University of Arizona, where he completed an M.S. in Botany (1960) before returning to Illinois to complete his Ph.D. in Anthropology at Southern Illinois University (1967).

After working for the Laboratory of Anthropology at Santa Fe, New Mexico for four years, Schoenwetter joined the faculty at Arizona State University in 1967, where he directed the Department of Anthropology's palynology laboratory. During the 1960s, Schoenwetter pioneered the study of pollen records from archaeological site-context deposits in the Southwest and Midwest. In the 1970s, he identified palynological evidence of Archaic Horizon maize cultivation in Arizona, Illinois, and Mexico. Schoenwetter retired from Arizona State University in 2000 but continues to serve as a consultant to students and researchers working to develop methods of pollen analysis.

Full extent

8 Box(es)

Full extent

11 Linear Feet

Additional description

Abstract

This collection houses research files and correspondence documenting James Schoenwetter's research in palynology between 1956 and 2005This collection has not been processed in full and can be viewed only by appointment. Contact Archives and Special Collections for more information.

Arrangement

This collection consists of eight boxes divided into two series:

Series I: Accession #2006-03958
Series II: Accession #2006-04042

Provenance

James Schoenwetter donated these papers to University Archives in 2006 (Accession #2006-03958 and #2006-04042).

Related Materials

A digital collection of James Schoenwetter's unpublished work is available in Arizona State University's digital repository in the James Schoenwetter Research Papers.