Setzler, Frank Maryl (1902 - 1975)

Summary

Frank Setzler was an anthropologist who, for over 20 years, was Chief Curator of the Department of Anthropology, United States National Museum. His main interest was Indian burial mounds in the U.S.A., especially of the Hopewell culture. During the 1930s he participated in archaeological projects in Texas, Colorado, Utah, and Coahuila, Mexico. In 1948 Setzler was appointed Deputy Leader of the American-Australian Expedition to Arnhem Land, despite having no previous experience of Australia. His relations with the leader of the Expedition, Charles Mountford, were tense. During the Expedition he was most interested in collecting Aboriginal remains, often digging up graves and stealing bones. After returning to the U.S.A. at the end of the Expedition, Setzler published a number of papers resulting from the Expedition, but did not return to Australia.

Details

Chronology

1928

Education - Bachelor of Philosophy (PhB), University of Chicago, U.S.A.

1928 - 1930

Career position - State archaeologist of Ohio

1930 - 1935

Career position - Assistant Curator, Division of Archaeology, United States National Museum, Smithsonian Institution

1935 - 1937

Career position - Chief Curator, Division of Archaeology, United States National Museum

1937 - 1960

Career position - Chief Curator, Department of Anthropology, United States National Museum

February 1948 - November 1948

Career position - Deputy Leader, American-Australian Expedition to Arnhem Land

1960

Life event - Retired

1971

Award - Honorary Doctorate, University of Indiana, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.A.

Related entries

Archival resources

National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection

• Frank Maryl Setzler - Records, 1948 - 1973, MS 5230; National Library of Australia Manuscript Collection. Details

Published resources

Books

• Thomas, Martin, Clever men: how worlds collided on the scientific expedition to Arnhem Land of 1948 (Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin, 2025), 452 pp. Details

Book Sections

• McCarthy, F. and Setzler, F., 'The archaeology of Arnhem Land' in Records of the American-Australian Scientific Expedition to Arnhem Land, volume 2, Mountford, C. P., ed. (Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne University Press, 1960), pp. 215-95. Details

Journal Articles

• Setzler, F. M. and McCarthy, F. D., 'A unique archeological specimen from Australia', Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences, 40 (1950), 1-5. Details

Resources

• Wikidata, http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q15455902. Details
• VIAF - Virtual International Authority File, OCLC, https://viaf.org/viaf/2580581. Details
• 'Setzler, Frank M (1902-1975)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1055397. Details