James L. Swauger
Encyclopedia
James L. Swauger was an archaeologist known for his work on the petroglyph
s of the Ohio River
valley of the United States
. A native of West Newton
in Westmoreland County
, Pennsylvania
, he moved to the Pittsburgh suburb of Edgewood
in his youth; there he lived for most of the rest of his life.
At the age of 22, Swauger began working for Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History
; he started as an archaeology and ethnology assistant. Swauger was awarded a bachelor's degree in zoology
in 1941 from the University of Pittsburgh
. During World War II
, he served in the U.S. Army
with the rank of First Lieutenant
; after his 1946 discharge, he resumed his position at the Carnegie Museum, and he returned to the University of Pittsburgh to earn an M. Litt
in history. Swauger was promoted to the position of archaeology and ethnology curator
in 1949; as his career progressed, he became an associate director of the museum in 1955, received the title of "Senior Scientist" in 1976, and was made a curator emeritus
in 1981.
Swauger was largely responsible for the modern anthropology
program at the Carnegie Museum, which had fallen into abeyance in the early twentieth century. After conducting research in locations as varied as Nebraska
and southern Yemen
, he received significant grants in the 1950s to begin the excavation of Fort Pitt
and Fort Duquesne
at the present site of Point State Park
in downtown Pittsburgh. In connection with these excavations, Swauger helped to found the Upper Ohio Valley Archaeology Survey.
During the 1950s, Swauger began to be professionally interested in the study of Native American rock art
; he concentrated on the upper Ohio River valley region, although his studies also encompassed some of the petroglyphs of the northeastern United States. As a part of this specialty, he aided in founding multiple academic conference
s on the subject of rock art, including a 1970 conference in Virginia
that was the first of its kind anywhere in the eastern part of the United States. Among his writings was a book known as Rock Art of the Upper Ohio Valley, which has been regarded as a leading work in the archaeology of the region. This book was one of nearly three hundred works on anthropology and museology
that Swauger published; additionally, he produced extensive notes, amounting to at least nineteen volumes by 1979. Although he retired in 1981, he continued to work actively as late as 1996, both visiting petroglyph sites and publishing new writings. Besides his work in archaeology, he was known as a master organizer; soon after taking the assistant director position at the Carnegie Museum, he personally reorganized a massive collection of entomological
information that had previously been in disarray, and this pattern he continued throughout the rest of his life.
In late 2005, Swauger died of pneumonia
at a nursing home in Johnston, Rhode Island
, aged ninety-two. He was survived by his son and two daughters, along with multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren. In the aftermath of his death, he was recalled as an "ageless" figure who had created a benchmark for every other archaeologist working in western Pennsylvania.
Petroglyph
Petroglyphs are pictogram and logogram images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...
s of the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
valley of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. A native of West Newton
West Newton, Pennsylvania
West Newton, located southeast of Pittsburgh, is a borough in Westmoreland County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Formerly, the manufacture of radiators and boilers were the chief industries. In 1900, the people living there numbered 2,467. In 1910, 2,880 people lived there...
in Westmoreland County
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 369,993 people, 149,813 households, and 104,569 families residing in the county. The population density was 361 people per square mile . There were 161,058 housing units at an average density of 157 per square mile...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, he moved to the Pittsburgh suburb of Edgewood
Edgewood, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Edgewood is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, adjacent to the city of Pittsburgh. The population was 3,118 at the 2010 census.-History:Edgewood was incorporated on December 1, 1888...
in his youth; there he lived for most of the rest of his life.
At the age of 22, Swauger began working for Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
Carnegie Museum of Natural History, located at 4400 Forbes Avenue in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, was founded by the Pittsburgh-based industrialist Andrew Carnegie in 1896...
; he started as an archaeology and ethnology assistant. Swauger was awarded a bachelor's degree in zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
in 1941 from the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he served in the U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
with the rank of First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
; after his 1946 discharge, he resumed his position at the Carnegie Museum, and he returned to the University of Pittsburgh to earn an M. Litt
Master of Letters
The Master of Letters is a postgraduate degree.- United Kingdom :The MLitt is a postgraduate degree awarded by a select few British and Irish universities, predominantly within the ancient English and Scottish universities.- England :Within the English University system MLitts are not universally...
in history. Swauger was promoted to the position of archaeology and ethnology curator
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
in 1949; as his career progressed, he became an associate director of the museum in 1955, received the title of "Senior Scientist" in 1976, and was made a curator emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
in 1981.
Swauger was largely responsible for the modern anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
program at the Carnegie Museum, which had fallen into abeyance in the early twentieth century. After conducting research in locations as varied as Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
and southern Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
, he received significant grants in the 1950s to begin the excavation of Fort Pitt
Fort Pitt (Pennsylvania)
Fort Pitt was a fort built at the location of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.-French and Indian War:The fort was built from 1759 to 1761 during the French and Indian War , next to the site of former Fort Duquesne, at the confluence the Allegheny River and the Monongahela River...
and Fort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the junction of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers in what is now downtown Pittsburgh in the state of Pennsylvania....
at the present site of Point State Park
Point State Park
Point State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Downtown Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA, at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, forming the Ohio River....
in downtown Pittsburgh. In connection with these excavations, Swauger helped to found the Upper Ohio Valley Archaeology Survey.
During the 1950s, Swauger began to be professionally interested in the study of Native American rock art
Rock art
Rock art is a term used in archaeology for any human-made markings made on natural stone. They can be divided into:*Petroglyphs - carvings into stone surfaces*Pictographs - rock and cave paintings...
; he concentrated on the upper Ohio River valley region, although his studies also encompassed some of the petroglyphs of the northeastern United States. As a part of this specialty, he aided in founding multiple academic conference
Academic conference
An academic conference or symposium is a conference for researchers to present and discuss their work. Together with academic or scientific journals, conferences provide an important channel for exchange of information between researchers.-Overview:Conferences are usually composed of various...
s on the subject of rock art, including a 1970 conference in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
that was the first of its kind anywhere in the eastern part of the United States. Among his writings was a book known as Rock Art of the Upper Ohio Valley, which has been regarded as a leading work in the archaeology of the region. This book was one of nearly three hundred works on anthropology and museology
Museology
Museology is the diachronic study of museums and how they have established and developed in their role as an educational mechanism under social and political pressures.-Overview:...
that Swauger published; additionally, he produced extensive notes, amounting to at least nineteen volumes by 1979. Although he retired in 1981, he continued to work actively as late as 1996, both visiting petroglyph sites and publishing new writings. Besides his work in archaeology, he was known as a master organizer; soon after taking the assistant director position at the Carnegie Museum, he personally reorganized a massive collection of entomological
Entomology
Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...
information that had previously been in disarray, and this pattern he continued throughout the rest of his life.
In late 2005, Swauger died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
at a nursing home in Johnston, Rhode Island
Johnston, Rhode Island
Johnston is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 28,769 at the 2010 census. Johnston is the site of the Clemence Irons House a stone-ender museum and the only landfill in Rhode Island...
, aged ninety-two. He was survived by his son and two daughters, along with multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren. In the aftermath of his death, he was recalled as an "ageless" figure who had created a benchmark for every other archaeologist working in western Pennsylvania.