486:—making connections between an artifact in one collection to another artifact he may have examined many years earlier at another institution. His ability to make these connections across space and time often yielded dramatic insights from a single photographic slide or presented paper. He was also known for his a sharp wit and his devastatingly sarcastic and thoroughly non-PC sense of humor, which he used to great effect. He could be a merciless critic of what he considered poorly done archaeology or sloppy scholarship, both verbally and in print. Most notably, he was embroiled in a long and antagonistic intellectual relationship with the next reigning lion in American archaeology,
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prehistory are linked to
Griffin or one or more of his students in some way. Those who knew him personally said he had an extraordinary ability to teach, and that his students worked hard to gain his respect. In addition to his teaching at Michigan, he served as a visiting professor at many schools,
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on the start of a Lower
Mississippi survey project. In 1945, he was appointed Associate Professor of Archaeology at Michigan. Four years later, he became a full professor. Between 1940 and 1946, Griffin spent nearly three field seasons working on surface surveys, while his partner Phillips worked on
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Though
Griffin is known as a superb field and technical research archaeologist, he was also a distinguished professor whose teaching abilities inspired many of his students throughout the years to become archaeologists as well. He helped train dozens of North American archaeologists, many of whom
560:. He was considered the premier Eastern North American ceramics expert by many of his colleagues. He wrote more than 260 articles and eight books about ceramics and applying other sciences to archaeology. Altogether, Griffin was among the most honored archaeologists of his generation.
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Griffin’s primary involvement in field activities shifted to a broader synthetic study and overview of archaeology itself. However, he still was involved with fieldwork. Between the years of 1963 and 1964, Griffin supervised an excavation at the
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went on to prominence themselves. His legacy as a professor was that in the 1970s and 1980s, many of the major archaeological graduate programs in North
America were staffed by Griffin’s students. Even now, most archaeologists who focus on
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in 1937). He highly sought after by symposium organizers as a presenter or discussant. Griffin was well known for his extraordinary memory of the tens of thousands of artifacts he had seen in collections from all over
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717:“James Bennett Griffin." eMuseum at Minnesota State University, Mankato. 2003. Students in an Introduction to Anthropology Class, Minnesota State University, Mankato, Minnesota 2003. 8 Mar 2008
361:. The following season, the project had to be postponed due to budget cuts caused by the depression. Griffin spent the season writing a manuscript about the summer spent excavating the
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Throughout his career, Griffin was a regular participant at conferences and meetings of numerous professional organizations. His record of attendance was extraordinary at both the
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in 1923 where he initially planned on studying
Business Administration. After two years in the BA program, he transferred to the program of General Science. He graduated with his
417:. These projects continued for a few more years, but Griffin stepped down as the leader of them in the mid-1950s. Griffin also conducted work in Europe, Mexico, and the former
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and
Anthropology. In 1936 he was awarded a special Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Michigan, as the department there did not yet have a formal Ph.D. program.
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Griffin attended and graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School where he became a champion swimmer, as well as cheer leader. He then enrolled into the
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stratigraphic excavations at sites in the southeast, work published in 1951 in a monograph that has come to be regarded as a classic in
American Archaeology,
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project in southeast
Missouri (1968–1972). The involvement with this site helped graduate students gain experience in new collecting and field techniques.
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Griffin, James
Bennett 1936 The Cultural Significance of the Ceramic Remains from the Norris Basin. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
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Griffin retired from
Michigan in 1976, but eight years later, he moved to Washington D.C. to become associated with the Department of Anthropology at the
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707:"Anthropology and Archaeology." Bentley Historical Library University of Michigan. 2008. Bentley Historical Library. 8 Mar 2008
575:(1937) The Chronological Position and Ethnological Relationships of the Fort Ancient Aspect (American Antiquity, Vol. 2, No. 4)
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He met Mary Dewitt there and soon married her. They spent twelve years together living in Washington before Griffin’s death in
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was born through reading as a child and his love for visiting museums. When Jimmy was eleven his family moved to
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Ford, Richard. "James Bennett Griffin." American Anthropologist Vol. 104, No. 202 DEC 2004 635-637. 08 MAR 2008.
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Williams, Stephen. "James B. Griffin (1905-1997)." Society for American Archaeology. SAA. 8 Mar 2008
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for excellence in interdisciplinary research in 1980 and the Distinguished Service Award in 1984.
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590:(1945) An Interpretation of Siouan Archaeology in the Piedmont of North Carolina and Virginia
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a few years earlier. However, this manuscript was not published until 1991 by the
585:(1942) On the Historic Location of the Tutelo and the Mohetan in the Ohio Valley
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313:, but later returned to the University of Chicago. In 1930, he graduated with a
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615:(1969) Identification of the Sources of Hopewellian Obsidian in the Middle West
600:(1953) Archeological Survey In the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley, 1940-1947
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in 1927. After graduating, Griffin took a brief break from school to work for
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Laboratory that was in operation from 1949-1970. He served many years in the
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Council of the International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences
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620:(1985) An Individual's Participation in American Archaeology, 1928-1985
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for several years. His wife died in 1979, and in 1984, he moved to
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Bentley Historic Library (University of Michigan) James B. Griffin
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233:. He is regarded as one of the most influential archaeologists in
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Ford, Richard I. (2002-01-01). "James Bennett Griffin, 1905-97".
610:(1967) Eastern North American Archaeology: A Summary. Science...
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Anthrosource: American Anthropologist: James B. Griffin 1905-97
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eMuseum @ Minnesota State University Mankato: James B. Griffin
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625:(1985) The Formation of the Society for American Archaeology
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Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
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Society for American Archaeology: James Bennett Griffin
595:(1945) The Box Elder Mound in la Salle County, Illinois
570:(1937) The Archaeological Remains of the Chiwere Sioux
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531:Henry Russell Lectureship for Outstanding Research
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519:University of Michigan's Faculty Achievement Award
229:(January 12, 1905 – May 31, 1997) was an American
473:meetings (which he helped found in 1934) and the
732:National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoir
550:Ceramic Repository for the Eastern United States
509:Award and Medal in Archaeology in 1957 from the
548:from 1946-1975. He organized and managed the
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373:. In the fall of 1939, Griffin accompanied
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405:in 1950. Fieldwork was done in southeast
69:Learn how and when to remove this message
32:This article includes a list of general
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521:in 1971; the same year he received an
475:Southeastern Archaeological Conference
267:Oak Park and River Forest High School
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787:20th-century American archaeologists
605:(1955) Chronology and Dating Process
546:Museum of Anthropology of Michigan
456:University of California, Berkeley
38:it lacks sufficient corresponding
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544:He served as the director of the
388:Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley
269:. At school in Oak Park he met
168:Eastern North American prehistory
535:Society for American Archaeology
471:Society for American Archaeology
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409:and at the Roots site near the
767:University of Michigan faculty
413:, but the main project was at
367:Center for American Archeology
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782:University of Michigan alumni
772:People from Atchison, Kansas
762:University of Chicago alumni
515:National Academy of Sciences
178:National Academy of Sciences
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501:Accomplishments and awards
464:Louisiana State University
403:Central Mississippi Survey
658:10.1525/aa.2002.104.2.635
517:in 1968. He received the
513:. He was elected to the
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351:Upper Susquehanna Valley
646:American Anthropologist
511:Wenner Grenn Foundation
497:until he died in 1997.
495:Smithsonian Institution
477:(which he founded with
53:more precise citations.
747:Pre-Columbian scholars
460:University of Colorado
435:Grand Rapids, Michigan
335:University of Michigan
210:University of Michigan
158:University of Michigan
16:American archaeologist
564:Selected publications
505:Griffin received the
484:Eastern North America
303:University of Chicago
237:in the 20th century.
223:James Bennett Griffin
155:, (BA, 1927; MA 1930)
153:University of Chicago
85:James Bennett Griffin
580:(1942) Adena Pottery
537:awarded Griffin the
384:Archeological Survey
371:Kampsville, Illinois
363:Parker Heights Mound
339:Parker Heights Mound
345:, a project led by
331:research fellowship
329:Griffin accepted a
325:Professional career
527:Indiana University
523:Honorary Doctorate
431:Hopewell Tradition
427:Norton Mound group
397:2013-05-21 at the
359:Tioga Point Museum
291:Bethesda, Maryland
263:Oak Park, Illinois
132:Bethesda, Maryland
451:Eastern Woodlands
433:-related site in
307:bachelor's degree
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186:Scientific career
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343:Quincy, Illinois
247:Atchison, Kansas
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110:January 12, 1905
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379:Philip Phillips
347:William Krogman
333:in 1933 at the
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287:Washington D.C.
275:Wendell Bennett
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212:, Ann Arbor USA
176:Elected to the
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196:anthropology
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126:(1997-05-31)
124:May 31, 1997
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757:1997 deaths
752:1905 births
554:Radiocarbon
507:Viking Fund
259:archaeology
200:archaeology
139:Citizenship
51:introducing
741:Categories
631:References
357:, for the
317:Degree in
271:Fred Eggan
160:(PhD 1936)
106:1905-01-12
34:references
466:in 1971.
319:Sociology
297:Education
293:aged 92.
283:Ann Arbor
59:June 2011
407:Missouri
395:Archived
255:Colorado
245:Born in
143:American
415:Cahokia
401:on the
386:In the
180:in 1968
47:improve
666:684012
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251:Denver
192:Fields
173:Awards
36:, but
662:JSTOR
525:from
341:near
311:Amoco
429:, a
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