At the turn of the twentieth century, academic programs in anthropology in America were flourishing in Cambridge, Chicago, New York and Philadelphia. There was intense interest in the extraordinary anthropological riches of California but no academic program dedicated to discovering, interpreting, and curating them.
The Foundations of Anthropology at the University of California, based on an exhibit in the Bancroft Library Gallery, January 21 – April 29, 2002, tells the story of the key individuals and events driving the establishment of an academic program in 1901 that within a few decades achieved worldwide stature. The exhibit draws on the extensive collection of records, documents, and images held by The Bancroft Library including departmental records and faculty papers. A few items have been lent by other institutions, most notably — a special feature of the online exhibit — several audio and video clips provided by the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology.
The online exhibit was created by David Farrell and Andrew Hon, with special technical assistance provided by Gary Handman in the Library’s Media Resources Center, Erica Nordmeier in Bancroft’s Photographic Duplication division, and Sally Thomas in the University of California History Digital Archive.