User:Gbern10/Carlyle S. Smith

Carlyle Shreeve Smith (March 8, 1915-December 13, 1993) was an archaeologist and anthropologist at the University of Kansas that specialized in archaeology of the Great Plains. His work also expanded outward towards topics in Polynesia, France, and Italy. He was a professor and researcher at the University of Kansas starting in 1947 and ending in 1981. He held a variety of positions including Assistant Curator of the Natural History Museum and Assistant professor of Anthropology (1947-1954), Associate Curator and Associate Professor (1954-1960), Curator and Professor (1960-1968), Professor and Research Associate (1968-1980), and finally Professor Emeritus and Curator Emeritus (1981). Carlyle Smith was one of the principle members and beginning staff of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Kansas.

Early Life and Education
Carlyle was born in Great Neck, Nassau County, Long Island, New York to Harold William Smith and Lulu Arrandale Allen on March 8, 1915. His mother and father were considered to be a middle class family in Great Neck. Smith's father's parents were Henry C. Smith and Carrie Brandt while his mother's parents were Richard C. Allen, Jr. and Carme Louise Shreeve. Smith lived down the street from F. Scott Fitzgerald, who at the time was writing his classic, The Great Gatsby. The community of Great Neck was based upon "West Egg" of Fitzgerald's book and boasted a very well kept and incredibly well defined lifestyle. According to his own accounts, he was very sheltered at a young age and later recognized the privilege that was given to him based on his community around him. In the early years of his education, Smith enjoyed history, geography, and French and was self-recognized as "gifted" in accordance to the rest of his class. His interest in archaeology began at an early age with hobbies including collecting old coins and antique firearms. He also attributes his interests from reading National Geographic and books on the travels to historical places.

Smith pursued an undergraduate degree at Columbia College because it was a prestigious Ivy League institution, the courses offered, and his strong work ethic. The most influential professors, which advised Carlyle Smith, were William Duncan Strong, Ralph Linton, and Alfred K. Lobeck. The combination of an archaeologist, ethnologist, and geologist influenced Smith’s interest towards New World archaeology. William Duncan Strong brought Carlyle on a tour of archaeological sites throughout the Great Plains, and was a vital aspect in his decision to do archaeology.

Carlyle continued his graduate studies at Columbia in a Ph.D. program in 1938. However, due to archaeological internships, which granted him valuable research experience and field responsibility, he would take an absence from his graduate work. C.S. Smith was also drafted into the U.S Army Air forces in 1943. He would work as a technical instructor who taught map and aerial photograph reading. During this time, he was able to publish three papers pertaining to the archaeology of Long Island. He would soon return to Columbia after being discharged in 1946. After completing a dissertation on “The Archaeology of Coastal New York”, Smith would complete his degree and earn a doctoral degree in Anthropology. Smith would soon arrive at the University of Kansas where he took part in the creation of the University’s Anthropology Department.

Plains Archaeology


Smith’s main interests involved Great Plains Archaeology, specifically, with connections between two tribal groups: Arirkara tribe of South Dakota and the Pawnee of Nebraska. His research concluded that the origins of the Arirkara of South Dakota spurned from the Pawnee of Nebraska. The Pawnee of Nebraska were involved in a much older Central Plains Tradition. Smith used seriation, which compares items from one site of a known date with items of another cultural context to determine the date difference. Another key piece of evidence were ceramic sherds found at the Talking Crow site that connected the cultural contexts of each group. There were many more important Central Plain's traditions sites including the Kansas Monument Site, Kanopolis Site, Spain site, and Stricker site which compiled a context of earth lodges, mounds, ceramics, lithic materials including chipped stone and ground stone. The habitation of these sites along with the migration patterns gave rise to the expansive technological differences throughout time. Carlyle's studies closed the gap through comparing and contrasting intricate technological differences between cultures that lived throughout the Great Plain's Complex. Carlyle’s fascination with flintlock weapon technology and ammunition acted as a tool of studying to signify key differences between the groups. This love of flintlock technology was a hobby since childhood, and a key component to many of Carlyle’s research opportunities.

One such study done by Carlyle Smith in relation to flintlock weapons was Like-A-Fishhook Village and Fort Berthold (32ML2). This study was carried out by the Smithsonian Institution and the State Historical society of North Dakota. The site was excavated in 1954 and proved to be heavily associated with trade goods dating from the early 19th century. The variety of guns pieced together previous unknown gaps of trade routes and goods throughout the United States. There were specifically two types of flintlock weapons found. Ones that were made in Great Britain, and others which were imitations of the British models which were made in the United States. Many of the guns excavated had the primary purpose within the fur trade of the area. Another unique group of weapons found were those of military origins. The primary models of guns were muzzle loading muskets, breech loading rifles, carbines, and a percussion revolver. Carlyle's interest in antique weaponry of the Great Plains coincided directly with cultural relationships and interactions of the time.

Easter Island Project
Carlyle Smith was invited to Easter Island through an expedition led by the famous adventurer, Thor Heyerdahl. Smith was responsible for excavating a number of possible habitation sites located throughout the island. There were three main contributions Smith achieved on Easter Island. The first was the factual evidence that a ditch on the island known as Pioke was man-made. Second, that the obsidian weapon known as a mata’a was learned at a later time period. Third, masonry techniques related to the ahu, stone statuary, can be used to clearly define a chronological timeline. C.S. Smith became an advocate for Easter Island and would be a prominent figure of research due to the number of publications at the time. Smith would return to Easter Island and other Polynesian Islands a total of 13 more times.

Research Projects

 * Kanopolis Reservoir and Rice County, Kansas, Fall 1947.
 * Kansas Monument site, Republic County, Kansas, June-August 1949.
 * Talking Crow site, Fort Randall Reservoir, South Dakota, 1950-1952.
 * Spain, Lyman, King, and Deerfly sites, Fort Randall Reservoir, South Dakota, June-August 1955.
 * Archaeologist, Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and the East Pacific under private sponsorship of Thor Heyerdahl. Excavations on Easter Island, Pitcairn Island, Henderson Island, Rapa Island, Nukuhiva Island, and Cocos Island, September 1955-July 1956.
 * Excavation of certain sites in Tuttle Creek Reservoir, Kansas, June-August 1957.
 * Stricker Site, Big Bend Reservoir, South Dakota, June-August 1959.
 * Surveys of gunflint manufacture sites in France, August 1960.
 * Survey of Logan County Kansas, Summer 1961.
 * Hersch and Wiley sites, Melvern Reservoir, Kansas, June-August 1962.
 * Survey of archaeological resources of Milford Reservoir, Kansas, Spring and Summer 1963.
 * Pekia site, Hiva Oa Island, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia, August 1963-January 1964.
 * Surey of gunflint manufacturing center near Avio in Alto Adige, Italy, August 1964.
 * Survey of Clinton Reservoir, Kansas, Spring 1965.
 * Excavation of Plains Woodland sites in Perry Reservoir, Kansas, June-August 1965.

Later Life and Legacy
C.S. Smith retired from teaching on December 31st, 1980. He did not, however, retire from active research and writing. Carlyle continued to collect and write about flintlock technology as well as published more articles about past studies. Carlyle S. Smith passed away on December 13, 1993.

Carlyle’s legacy left at the University of Kansas is quite exponential. He was the first anthropologist to come to the University in 1947. He fully expressed and supported the values anthropology hold dearly today which promotes racial, ethnic, and sexual equality. He was the first to guide field crews of both men and women including his own wife and children into the field. His work challenged a community that did not hold very much respect for anthropology and did not see the importance of its work. Most importantly, Carlyle helped to carve out the importance and discipline as a whole at the University of Kansas. He recognized the necessity of the discipline and how true anthropologists should have properly taught it.

Publications

 * 1942 Review: Douglas Byers and Frekerick Johnson. “Two Sites on Martha’s Vineyard.” American Anthropologist, 1942, Vol. 44, No. 1, pp. 125-7.
 * 1944a Clues to the Chronology of Coastal New York. American Antiquity, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 87-98.
 * 1944b Notes on the Archaeology of Long Island. Bulletin of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 56-59.
 * 1946a A Stone Effigy from Long Island. American Antiquity, Vol. 11, No. 3, pp. 200-201.
 * 1946b Review: A.A. Prause. "Excavation at the Old Lyme Shell Heap." E.H. Rodgers. "The Indian River Village Site." A.A. Prause. "The South Woodstock Site." American Antiquity, Vol. 11, No. 4, pp.271-3.
 * 1947a Review: William A. Ritchie, "An Early Site in Cayuga County, New York." American Antiquity, Vol. 12, No.3, pp.155-6.
 * A Resume of the Archaeology of Coastal New York. Newsletter of the Archaeological Society of New Jersey, No. 16, pp.15-18.
 * 1947c An Outline of the Archaeology of Coastal New York. Bulletin, Archaeological Society of Connecticut, No. 21, pp. 3-9.
 * 1940 The Sondergaard Burial Site. Manuscript on file at the Nebraska State Historical Society, Lincoln.
 * 1949 Archeological Investigations in Ellsworth and Rice Counties, Kansas. American Antiquity 14(2):292-300.
 * 1950a The Pottery from the Kansas Monument Site. Plains Archaeological Conference Newsletter 3(4):7-9.
 * 1950b European Trade Material from the Kansas Monument Site. Plains Archaeological Conference Newsletter 3(2) :29.
 * 1951a Obituary: Floyd Schultz, 1881-1951. American Antiquity 17(1):49.
 * 1951b Pottery Types from the Talking Crow Site, Fort Randall Reservoir, South Dakota. Plains Archaeological Confer ence Newsletter 4(3):32^11.
 * 1955 An Analysis of the Firearms and Related Specimens from Like-A-Fishhook Village and Fort Berthold I. Plains Anthropologist 4:3-12.
 * 1960a Experiments in Checking Documented Dates Against Dates Derived from Trade Goods. In Indian Trade Guns, edited by T.M. Hamilton, pp. 25-27. Missouri Archaeologist 22.
 * 1960b Cartridges and Bullets from Fort Stevenson. In Archeological Investigations at the Site of Fort Stevenson (32ML1), Garrison Reservoir, North Dakota, by G Hubert Smith, pp. 267-269. River Basin Survey Papers No. 20, Bulletin No. 176, Bureau of American Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
 * 1961a The Poike Ditch. Report 16 in Reports of the Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and the East Pacific, Vall: Archaeology of Easter Island. Monographs of the School of American Research and the Museum of New Mexico 24(1). Stockholm: Forum. pp. 385-391.
 * 1961b A Temporal Sequence Derived from Certain Ahu. Report 2 in Reports of the Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and the East Pacific, Vol 1: Archaeology of Easter Island. Monographs of the School of American Research and the Museum of New Mexico 24(1). Stockholm: Forum. pp. 181-219.
 * 1961c Radio Carbon Dates from Easter Island Report 17 in Reports of the Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and the East Pacific, Vol: Archaeology of Easter Island. Monographs of the School of American Research and the Museum of New Mexico 14(1). Stockholm: Forum. Pp. 393-396.
 * 1962 An Outline of Easter Island Archaeology. Asian Perspectives, Vol 6:239-243. '
 * 1963 Time Perspective Within the Coalescent Tradition in South Dakota. American Antiquity 28(4):489-495.
 * 1965a Text Excavations and Surveys of Miscellaneous Sites on the Island of Rapa Iti. Report 5 in Reports of the Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and the East Pacific, Vol 2: Miscellaneous Papers. Monographs of the School of American Research and the Kon-Tiki Museum 24(2). Stockholm: Forum. pp. 77-87.
 * 1965b The Burial Complex on the Island of Rapa Iti. Report 6 in Reports of the Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and the East Pacific, Vol 2:Miscellaneous Papers. Monographs of the School of American Research and the Kon-Tiki Museum 24(2). Stockholm: Forum. pp 89-95.
 * 1965c An Archaeological Hoax in the Marquesas. American Antiquity, Vol 30(3):355.
 * 1970 Archaeological Investigations at Pekia, Hiva Oa, Marquesas Islands. VII-me Congres Internationale des Sciences Anthropologiques et Ethnologiques,Moscou (3 aout-lO aout 1964), Vol IX, pp 52-55. Academy of Sciences, USSR, Moscow.
 * 1971 Review: Sebastian Englert, Island at the Center of the World: New Light on Easter Island. American Anthropologist Vol 73(6):1416-17.
 * 1972 Firearms, Gunflints, Ammunition, and Military Gear from Like-A-Fishhook Village. In Like-A-Fishhook Village and Fort Berthold, Garrison Reservoir, North Dakota, by G. Hubert Smith, pp. 80-88. Anthropological Papers No. 2, National Park Service, Washington, D.C. *1975 The Stricker Site. Plains Anthropologist 20, Part 1:1-25.
 * 1977 The Talking Crow Site, A Multicomponent Earthlodge Village in the Great Bend Region, South Dakota. Publications in Anthropology No. 9. University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.
 * 1978 Obituary: William Thomas Mulloy, 1917-1978. Plains Anthropologist Vol 23, Pt.l, No. 82:337-339.
 * 1980 Preview: Thomas BartheI;The Eighth Land. "Pacific Affairs, Vol 52(4):766-767.
 * 1983 Review: J. Douglas Porteous, "The Modernization of Easter Island." Pacific Studies, Spring Issue.
 * 1990 The Poike Ditch in Retrospect. Rapa Nui Journal, Vol 4(3):33-37.
 * 1993 The Norwegian Expedition to Easter Island in Retrospect. IN: Steven Roger Fischer, ed. Easter Island Studies, Oxbow Monograph 32, Oxbow Books,.Oxford, England. pp. 79-81.
 * Smith, Carlyle S., and Roger T. Grange, Jr. 1958 The Spain Site (39LM301), A Winter Village in Fort Randall Reservoir, South Dakota. River Basin Surveys Papers No. 11, pp. 79-128. Bulletin No. 169, Bureau of American Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution, Washing ton, D.C.
 * Smith, Carlyle S., and Thor Heyerdahl 1961 Itinerary and Organization of the Norwegian Expedition. In Reports on the Norwegian Archaeological Expedition to Easter Island and East Pacific, Volume 2, edited by Thor Heyerdahl and Edwin N. Ferdon, pp. 15-19. Monographs of the School of American Research and the Kon-Tiki Museum No. 24. Santa Fe, New Mexico.
 * Smith, Carlyle S., and Alfred E. Johnson 1968 Two Teeth Site. Publications in Salvage Archeology No. 8, River Basin Surveys, Smithsonian Institution, Lincoln, Nebraska.