Stuart Struever
Encyclopedia
Stuart McKee Struever is an American archaeologist and anthropologist best known for his contributions to the archaeology of the Woodland Period in the US midwest and for his leadership of archaeology research & education foundations. He was a professor of anthropology at Northwestern University
.
on August 4, 1931, the son of manager of the American Nickeloid Company. He attended Dartmouth College
, majoring in English and graduating in 1959. His graduate work was done at the University of Chicago
, where he pursued his interests in the Hopewell Tradition of the Middle Woodland period in the American midwest. He was a well-published researcher before he earned his PhD in 1968 under the supervision of Lewis Binford
.
where he taught for most of his career and served as chairman for many years. Into the early 1970s he continued to be an active researcher, publishing on topics including settlement pattern, early agriculture, and trade. By the mid-1970s he had begun to focus mainly on leadership of the Center for Illinois Archeology (later renamed the Center for American Archeology
or CAA), headquartered in Kampsville, Illinois
. (This center used the "archeology" spelling although the conventional spelling is "archaeology.") The CAA grew rapidly throughout the 1970s, converting many buildings in Kampsville into archaeology laboratories and offices.
With the CAA Struever developed the model of using archaeological education to generate funding to support a large multi-disciplinary archaeology research center. Education was provided mainly through numerous field schools, including a university-level field school operated in conjunction with Northwestern University
and programs for high-schoolers and adults. The profile of the foundation was raised enormously with its large-scale excavation at the Koster Site in Greene County, Illinois. Initial research at this site was focused on Woodland period
remains near the surface, but test pits encountered fourteen cultural levels or "horizons", dating back to the early Archaic period. Beginning in 1968, excavations at the Koster Site expanded into one of the largest archaeological projects in the country by the mid-1970s. Several hundred college students worked at the site. It was featured in various national magazines and documentaries before excavations ended in 1979.
In the 1980s Struever retired from Northwestern and the CAA and moved to Colorado, becoming president of the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
in Cortez
. He retired from this institution until 1992, and remained in Colorado.
After a lifetime of accomplishments, Struever received a Distinguished Service Award in 1995, followed by a Presidential Recognition Award in 2003, from the Society for American Archaeology
.
Dr. Struever currently resides in Santa Fe
with his wife, Indian art dealer and scholar, Martha Hopkins Struever
.
Struever was a graduate student in the Dept. of Anthropology at University of Chicago
when a sea change was occurring in anthropological archaeology; in a movement that came to be called the New Archaeology, the prevailing concern with prehistoric culture history was being replaced with more theoretical concerns about ancient societies (Willey and Sabloff 1974). The New Archaeology was spearheaded by Lewis Binford
, who was Struever's dissertation advisor. Struever was an active and innovative contributor to this body of research, with publications such as "Woodland subsistence-settlement systems in the lower Illinois Valley" (Struever 1968a).
Struever excavated several Woodland period sites in the Lower Illinois Valley and wrote extensively on this period in prehistory. His topics included culture history (Struever 1965), ancient agriculture (Struever and Vickery 1973), and methods of recovering small scale remains through flotation (Struever 1968b),
Struever realized that the more intellectually ambitious questions being asked by the New Archaeology could not be answered without much broader and richer data on ancient life than archaeologists usually collected, including analyses of ancient plant and animal use, soils, and climate. He made this case in an important 1971 article (Struever 1971), and at the same time he was actively working to build the Center for Illinois Archeology into the sort of large-scale multi-disciplinary research program that he had advocated. Struever had in effect given up his career as a researcher within a few years, in order to devote his time to directing the CIA and later the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center. These centers both generated funding through field schools and a range of other educational programs.
A charismatic personality, Struever was an accomplished fund-raiser and spokesman for American archaeology during the 1970s and 1980s; he appeared in national media, wrote widely-read books for the public (Struever and Holton 1979) and produced documentaries (Struever 1970).
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
.
Early life and education
Struever was born in Lima, IllinoisLima, Illinois
Lima is a village in Adams County, Illinois, United States. The population was 159 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Quincy, IL–MO Micropolitan Statistical Area...
on August 4, 1931, the son of manager of the American Nickeloid Company. He attended Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
, majoring in English and graduating in 1959. His graduate work was done at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, where he pursued his interests in the Hopewell Tradition of the Middle Woodland period in the American midwest. He was a well-published researcher before he earned his PhD in 1968 under the supervision of Lewis Binford
Lewis Binford
Lewis Roberts Binford was an American archaeologist known for his influential work in archaeological theory, ethnoarchaeology and the Paleolithic period...
.
Career
After completing his doctorate at the University of Chicago, Struever joined the Dept. of Anthropology at Northwestern UniversityNorthwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
where he taught for most of his career and served as chairman for many years. Into the early 1970s he continued to be an active researcher, publishing on topics including settlement pattern, early agriculture, and trade. By the mid-1970s he had begun to focus mainly on leadership of the Center for Illinois Archeology (later renamed the Center for American Archeology
Center for American Archeology
The Center for American Archeology, or CAA, is an independent non-profit 501 research and education institution located near the Illinois River, in Kampsville, Illinois, USA...
or CAA), headquartered in Kampsville, Illinois
Kampsville, Illinois
Kampsville is a village in Calhoun County, Illinois, United States, located on the west bank of the Illinois River. The population was 350 at the 2000 census.-General information:...
. (This center used the "archeology" spelling although the conventional spelling is "archaeology.") The CAA grew rapidly throughout the 1970s, converting many buildings in Kampsville into archaeology laboratories and offices.
With the CAA Struever developed the model of using archaeological education to generate funding to support a large multi-disciplinary archaeology research center. Education was provided mainly through numerous field schools, including a university-level field school operated in conjunction with Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
and programs for high-schoolers and adults. The profile of the foundation was raised enormously with its large-scale excavation at the Koster Site in Greene County, Illinois. Initial research at this site was focused on Woodland period
Woodland period
The Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures was from roughly 1000 BCE to 1000 CE in the eastern part of North America. The term "Woodland Period" was introduced in the 1930s as a generic header for prehistoric sites falling between the Archaic hunter-gatherers and the...
remains near the surface, but test pits encountered fourteen cultural levels or "horizons", dating back to the early Archaic period. Beginning in 1968, excavations at the Koster Site expanded into one of the largest archaeological projects in the country by the mid-1970s. Several hundred college students worked at the site. It was featured in various national magazines and documentaries before excavations ended in 1979.
In the 1980s Struever retired from Northwestern and the CAA and moved to Colorado, becoming president of the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
Crow Canyon Archaeological Center is an archeological center of training programs for students and teachers, located in Southwestern Colorado, USA...
in Cortez
Cortez, Colorado
The city of Cortez is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 8,482 at the 2010 census...
. He retired from this institution until 1992, and remained in Colorado.
After a lifetime of accomplishments, Struever received a Distinguished Service Award in 1995, followed by a Presidential Recognition Award in 2003, from the Society for American Archaeology
Society for American Archaeology
The Society for American Archaeology is the largest organization of professional archaeologists of the Americas in the world. The Society was founded in 1934 and today has over 7000 members. The Society holds an annual conference and publishes the flagship journal of American archaeology,...
.
Dr. Struever currently resides in Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
with his wife, Indian art dealer and scholar, Martha Hopkins Struever
Martha Hopkins Struever
Martha Hopkins Struever is an American Indian art dealer and author, and is regarded as a leading scholar on historic and contemporary Pueblo Indian pottery and Pueblo and Navajo Indian jewelry.-Early life and education:...
.
Contributions
Struever is best known for accomplishments in three areas:- The New Archaeology
Struever was a graduate student in the Dept. of Anthropology at University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
when a sea change was occurring in anthropological archaeology; in a movement that came to be called the New Archaeology, the prevailing concern with prehistoric culture history was being replaced with more theoretical concerns about ancient societies (Willey and Sabloff 1974). The New Archaeology was spearheaded by Lewis Binford
Lewis Binford
Lewis Roberts Binford was an American archaeologist known for his influential work in archaeological theory, ethnoarchaeology and the Paleolithic period...
, who was Struever's dissertation advisor. Struever was an active and innovative contributor to this body of research, with publications such as "Woodland subsistence-settlement systems in the lower Illinois Valley" (Struever 1968a).
- Woodland Period Archaeology
Struever excavated several Woodland period sites in the Lower Illinois Valley and wrote extensively on this period in prehistory. His topics included culture history (Struever 1965), ancient agriculture (Struever and Vickery 1973), and methods of recovering small scale remains through flotation (Struever 1968b),
- Large-Scale, Public-Oriented Archaeology
Struever realized that the more intellectually ambitious questions being asked by the New Archaeology could not be answered without much broader and richer data on ancient life than archaeologists usually collected, including analyses of ancient plant and animal use, soils, and climate. He made this case in an important 1971 article (Struever 1971), and at the same time he was actively working to build the Center for Illinois Archeology into the sort of large-scale multi-disciplinary research program that he had advocated. Struever had in effect given up his career as a researcher within a few years, in order to devote his time to directing the CIA and later the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center. These centers both generated funding through field schools and a range of other educational programs.
A charismatic personality, Struever was an accomplished fund-raiser and spokesman for American archaeology during the 1970s and 1980s; he appeared in national media, wrote widely-read books for the public (Struever and Holton 1979) and produced documentaries (Struever 1970).