Vance Haynes
Encyclopedia
Caleb Vance Haynes Jr. known as Vance Haynes or C. Vance Haynes Jr., is an archaeologist, geologist and author who specializes in the archaeology
of the American Southwest
. Haynes "revolutionized the fields of geoarchaeology and archaeological geology." He is known for unearthing and studying artifacts of Paleo-Indians including ones from Sandia Cave
in the 1960s, work which helped to establish the timeline of human migration through North America
. Haynes coined the term "black mat" for a layer of 10,000-year-old swamp soil seen in many North American archaeological studies.
Haynes was elected in 1990 to the National Academy of Sciences
. From 1996 to 2004, Haynes worked to keep the Kennewick Man
discovery available for science. Currently an emeritus
Regents' professor at the University of Arizona
, Haynes is still active in the School of Anthropology.
. He was the only child
of his parents, Marjory McLeod and Caleb Vance Haynes
, an air officer, commander of a military airfield, who would later rise to the rank of major general in the United States Air Force
(USAF).
One of Haynes's grandfathers was Caleb Hill Haynes Jr., a Democrat
in the North Carolina General Assembly
. Haynes's most famous great-grandfather was Chang Bunker
, a twin of the first pair of conjoined twins
to be called "Siamese Twins".
Haynes enrolled in the Colorado School of Mines
, studying Geologic Engineering (with the Mining Option) for two years. Like his father, Haynes entered the USAF; he served for almost four years 1951–1954. During this time, he was posted to air bases in Fairbanks
, Austin
, El Paso
and in Albuquerque
. At each station he indulged his interest in archaeology, and sought contact with some of the early researchers studying Paleoindian traces. He was interested in rocketry and guided missiles, and was posted to special weapons units, including a stint at Sandia Base
adjoining Albuquerque. In the Albuquerque area on his days off, he explored early human settlement sites with an Air Force colleague. After his military stint, Haynes returned to the Colorado School of Mines, earning his Bachelor of Science
degree in geology and archaeology in 1956.
, Haynes entered the University of Arizona at Tucson for graduate study. As well, he was drawn by the Paleoindian research being performed by Emil Haury
. Under Haury, Haynes and professor George Agogino began in 1960 to gather charcoal samples from many sites of ancient human activity in the Great Plains
, returning to the university's new radiocarbon dating
equipment to process the samples and establish as narrow a time range as possible. From this work, Haynes established the first reliable dates for the Folsom tradition
and the Clovis culture
.
He earned his PhD in 1965, and joined in archaeological digs at Hell Gap
and Sister's Hill in Wyoming. Fred Wendorf
invited Haynes to join the High Plains Paleoecology Project (HPPP), an association which led to his first work at the Clovis archaeological dig, Blackwater Draw Locality 1. His careful dating of Clovis carbon traces provided Haynes with one of the most significant advances in the understanding of early human activity and migration in North America.
Haynes has primarily been interested in determining how the New World
was populated by humans. Other interests of his include studies of the Quaternary extinction event
, the Pleistocene
–Holocene
transition in which megafauna
died off in great numbers. Haynes has studied both modern and historic climate change, human occupation of the Sahara
, and battlefield archaeology.
Haynes has studied the disappearance from Earth of its largest animals approximately 11,000–10,900 years ago. Using contrary evidence, he questions the theorists who say that humans killed off the large mammals by predation, as well as the theorists who look to an asteroid impact. Haynes notes that the extinction period could have been as short as one century—he concludes that too little is known, and more research must be undertaken to achieve complete understanding.
In 1997, Haynes co-authored a memorial of his teacher Emil Haury
, an article written with Raymond Harris Thompson and James Jefferson Reid which appeared in Biographical Memoirs, Volume 72, of the National Academy of Sciences.
On September 28, 1999, some 90 former students of Haynes converged at the University of Arizona to honor him during a two-day symposium.
The Argonaut Archaeological Research Fund (AARF) was the recipient in Fall 2002 of Haynes's extensive collection of 800 acrylic casts made from Paleoindian weapon and projectile points. The collection is housed at the School of Anthropology at the University of Arizona.
In 2003–2004, Haynes submitted arguments to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
with other scientists to question various tribal claims to the remains of the Kennewick Man
, estimated to be 8,340 to 9,200 years old, in order to determine which tribe, if any, it could be identified with. The remains in question were ones that Haynes said predated any organized tribes currently known, and as such could not be considered the direct ancestor of any of the tribes who sought to have the bone fragments immediately reburied. Writing to the Army Corps of Engineers on October 3, 1996, Haynes was one of the first scientists to question the rights of the several Native American tribes
wishing to take possession of the skeleton and to rebury it—he argued that the skeleton should be studied by qualified scientists. In mid-October, he and seven other scientists sued to gain access to the skeleton, and to prevent its "repatriation" with Indian tribes. The court concluded that the Kennewick Man could not be considered "Native American" as defined by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
.
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
of the American Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
. Haynes "revolutionized the fields of geoarchaeology and archaeological geology." He is known for unearthing and studying artifacts of Paleo-Indians including ones from Sandia Cave
Sandia Cave
Sandia Cave is an archaeological site near Bernalillo, New Mexico that is open to the public. It is rather difficult to reach, as it is located high up on the steep wall of Las Huertas Canyon on the north end of the Sandia Mountains....
in the 1960s, work which helped to establish the timeline of human migration through North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Haynes coined the term "black mat" for a layer of 10,000-year-old swamp soil seen in many North American archaeological studies.
Haynes was elected in 1990 to the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
. From 1996 to 2004, Haynes worked to keep the Kennewick Man
Kennewick Man
Kennewick Man is the name for the skeletal remains of a prehistoric man found on a bank of the Columbia River in Kennewick, Washington, USA, on July 28, 1996...
discovery available for science. Currently an 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:...
Regents' professor at the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
, Haynes is still active in the School of Anthropology.
Early life
Caleb Vance Haynes Jr. was born in 1928 on February 29, Leap Day, in Spokane, WashingtonSpokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. He was the only child
Only child
An only child is a person with no siblings, either biological or adopted. In a family with multiple offspring, first-borns, may be briefly considered only children and have a similar early family environment, but the term only child is generally applied only to those individuals who never have...
of his parents, Marjory McLeod and Caleb Vance Haynes
Caleb V. Haynes
Caleb Vance Haynes was a United States Air Force major general. The grandson of a famous Siamese Twin, he was used by the Air Force as an organizer, able to create air units from scratch...
, an air officer, commander of a military airfield, who would later rise to the rank of major general in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
(USAF).
One of Haynes's grandfathers was Caleb Hill Haynes Jr., a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
in the North Carolina General Assembly
North Carolina General Assembly
The North Carolina General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The General Assembly drafts and legislates the state laws of North Carolina, also known as the General Statutes...
. Haynes's most famous great-grandfather was Chang Bunker
Chang and Eng Bunker
Chang and Eng Bunker were the conjoined twin brothers whose condition and birthplace became the basis for the term "Siamese twins".-Life:...
, a twin of the first pair of conjoined twins
Conjoined twins
Conjoined twins are identical twins whose bodies are joined in utero. A rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 50,000 births to 1 in 100,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in Southwest Asia and Africa. Approximately half are stillborn, and a smaller fraction of...
to be called "Siamese Twins".
Haynes enrolled in the Colorado School of Mines
Colorado School of Mines
The Colorado School of Mines is a small public teaching and research university devoted to engineering and applied science, with special expertise in the development and stewardship of the Earth's natural resources. Located in Golden, Colorado, CSM was ranked 29th, in America among national...
, studying Geologic Engineering (with the Mining Option) for two years. Like his father, Haynes entered the USAF; he served for almost four years 1951–1954. During this time, he was posted to air bases in Fairbanks
Fairbanks, Alaska
Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...
, Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, El Paso
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
and in Albuquerque
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
. At each station he indulged his interest in archaeology, and sought contact with some of the early researchers studying Paleoindian traces. He was interested in rocketry and guided missiles, and was posted to special weapons units, including a stint at Sandia Base
Sandia Base
Sandia Base was, from 1946 to 1971, the principal nuclear weapons installation of the United States Department of Defense. It was located on the southeastern edge of Albuquerque, New Mexico...
adjoining Albuquerque. In the Albuquerque area on his days off, he explored early human settlement sites with an Air Force colleague. After his military stint, Haynes returned to the Colorado School of Mines, earning his Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in geology and archaeology in 1956.
Archaeology
Attracted by the school's program in geochronologyGeochronology
Geochronology is the science of determining the age of rocks, fossils, and sediments, within a certain degree of uncertainty inherent to the method used. A variety of dating methods are used by geologists to achieve this, and schemes of classification and terminology have been proposed...
, Haynes entered the University of Arizona at Tucson for graduate study. As well, he was drawn by the Paleoindian research being performed by Emil Haury
Emil Haury
Emil Walter "Doc" Haury was an influential archaeologist who specialized in the archaeology of the American Southwest....
. Under Haury, Haynes and professor George Agogino began in 1960 to gather charcoal samples from many sites of ancient human activity in the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
, returning to the university's new radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating is a radiometric dating method that uses the naturally occurring radioisotope carbon-14 to estimate the age of carbon-bearing materials up to about 58,000 to 62,000 years. Raw, i.e. uncalibrated, radiocarbon ages are usually reported in radiocarbon years "Before Present" ,...
equipment to process the samples and establish as narrow a time range as possible. From this work, Haynes established the first reliable dates for the Folsom tradition
Folsom tradition
The Folsom Complex is a name given by archaeologists to a specific Paleo-Indian archaeological culture that occupied much of central North America...
and the Clovis culture
Clovis culture
The Clovis culture is a prehistoric Paleo-Indian culture that first appears 11,500 RCYBP , at the end of the last glacial period, characterized by the manufacture of "Clovis points" and distinctive bone and ivory tools...
.
He earned his PhD in 1965, and joined in archaeological digs at Hell Gap
Hell Gap complex
Hell Gap complex is a Plano culture from 10,060 to 9,600 before present that is named after the archaeological site in Hell Gap, Wyoming. Hell Gap points are long stemmed, convex blades....
and Sister's Hill in Wyoming. Fred Wendorf
Fred Wendorf
Fred Wendorf is Henderson-Morrison Professor of Anthropology at Southern Methodist University. He received his Ph.D. in 1953 from Harvard University, and founded the anthropology department at SMU along with founding the Fort Burgwin Research Center in Taos, New Mexico.Dr...
invited Haynes to join the High Plains Paleoecology Project (HPPP), an association which led to his first work at the Clovis archaeological dig, Blackwater Draw Locality 1. His careful dating of Clovis carbon traces provided Haynes with one of the most significant advances in the understanding of early human activity and migration in North America.
Haynes has primarily been interested in determining how the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
was populated by humans. Other interests of his include studies of the Quaternary extinction event
Quaternary extinction event
The Quaternary period saw the extinctions of numerous predominantly larger, especially megafaunal, species, many of which occurred during the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene epoch. However, the extinction wave did not stop at the end of the Pleistocene, but continued especially on...
, the Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
–Holocene
Holocene
The Holocene is a geological epoch which began at the end of the Pleistocene and continues to the present. The Holocene is part of the Quaternary period. Its name comes from the Greek words and , meaning "entirely recent"...
transition in which megafauna
Megafauna
In terrestrial zoology, megafauna are "giant", "very large" or "large" animals. The most common thresholds used are or...
died off in great numbers. Haynes has studied both modern and historic climate change, human occupation of the Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
, and battlefield archaeology.
Haynes has studied the disappearance from Earth of its largest animals approximately 11,000–10,900 years ago. Using contrary evidence, he questions the theorists who say that humans killed off the large mammals by predation, as well as the theorists who look to an asteroid impact. Haynes notes that the extinction period could have been as short as one century—he concludes that too little is known, and more research must be undertaken to achieve complete understanding.
In 1997, Haynes co-authored a memorial of his teacher Emil Haury
Emil Haury
Emil Walter "Doc" Haury was an influential archaeologist who specialized in the archaeology of the American Southwest....
, an article written with Raymond Harris Thompson and James Jefferson Reid which appeared in Biographical Memoirs, Volume 72, of the National Academy of Sciences.
On September 28, 1999, some 90 former students of Haynes converged at the University of Arizona to honor him during a two-day symposium.
The Argonaut Archaeological Research Fund (AARF) was the recipient in Fall 2002 of Haynes's extensive collection of 800 acrylic casts made from Paleoindian weapon and projectile points. The collection is housed at the School of Anthropology at the University of Arizona.
In 2003–2004, Haynes submitted arguments to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Alaska* District of Arizona...
with other scientists to question various tribal claims to the remains of the Kennewick Man
Kennewick Man
Kennewick Man is the name for the skeletal remains of a prehistoric man found on a bank of the Columbia River in Kennewick, Washington, USA, on July 28, 1996...
, estimated to be 8,340 to 9,200 years old, in order to determine which tribe, if any, it could be identified with. The remains in question were ones that Haynes said predated any organized tribes currently known, and as such could not be considered the direct ancestor of any of the tribes who sought to have the bone fragments immediately reburied. Writing to the Army Corps of Engineers on October 3, 1996, Haynes was one of the first scientists to question the rights of the several Native American tribes
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
wishing to take possession of the skeleton and to rebury it—he argued that the skeleton should be studied by qualified scientists. In mid-October, he and seven other scientists sued to gain access to the skeleton, and to prevent its "repatriation" with Indian tribes. The court concluded that the Kennewick Man could not be considered "Native American" as defined by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act , Pub. L. 101-601, 25 U.S.C. 3001 et seq., 104 Stat. 3048, is a United States federal law passed on 16 November 1990 requiring federal agencies and institutions that receive federal funding to return Native American "cultural items" to...
.
Personal life
While stationed with the USAF in Fairbanks, Alaska, Haynes met and married Elizabeth "Taffy" Hamilton (1925–2003). She was previously working as a code breaker for the U.S. Army in California, then moved to Fairbanks to continue her work as a civil servant for the Air Force. In 1955 while living in Denver, the couple produced a daughter, Elizabeth Anne "Lisa" Haynes. In the late 1960s, Taffy Haynes earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Arizona. Taffy Haynes died in 2003, survived by her husband and her daughter, who memorialized her with a leaf tile and a brick paver at the University of Arizona's Women's Plaza of Honor.Writings
- Haynes, C. Vance Jr. (August 13, 1982) "Great Sand Sea and Selima Sand Sheet, Eastern Sahara: Geochronology of Desertification." Science, Volume 217, Number 4560, pages 629–633.
- Haynes, C. Vance Jr. (September 1985) Mastodon-Bearing Springs and Late Quaternary Geochronology of the Lower Pomme de Terre Valley, Missouri. ISBN 9780813722047
- Haynes, C. Vance Jr. and George A. Agogino (1986) Geochronology of Sandia Cave. Smithsonian contributions to anthropology, Number 32. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.
- Haynes, C. Vance Jr. (1995) General Custer and His Sporting Rifles. Tucson: Westernlore Publications.
- Haynes, C. Vance Jr., editor. (February 2007) Murray Springs: A Clovis Site with Multiple Activity Areas in the San Pedro ValleySan Pedro Valley (Arizona)The San Pedro Valley of western Cochise County Arizona is a 50 mile long, mostly north-south valley, trending northwesterly. It drains from Sierra Vista Southeast north towards I-10, Benson, and the southeast of the Rincon Mountains....
, Arizona. ISBN 9780816525799
External links
- Dr. C. Vance Haynes Jr., University of Arizona
- Brief bio hosted by Minnesota State University, Mankato