Colonel Accessed 29-Mar-2013. James D. Stevenson (1840–1888) was an executive officer of the

U.S. Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...

and a

self-taught Autodidacticism (also autodidactism) or self-education (also self-learning and self-teaching) is education without the guidance of masters (such as teachers and professors) or institutions (such as schools). Generally, autodidacts are individu ...

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

, naturalist and

anthropologist An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...

. His

geological surveys A geological survey is the systematic investigation of the geology beneath a given piece of ground for the purpose of creating a geological map or model. Geological surveying employs techniques from the traditional walk-over survey, studying outc ...

included

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

and

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

. Stevenson Island in Wyoming was named after him as a result of his assistance to Dr. Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden in the

Hayden Geological Survey of 1871 The Hayden Geological Survey of 1871 explored the region of northwestern Wyoming that later became Yellowstone National Park in 1872. It was led by geologist Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden. The 1871 survey was not Hayden's first, but it was the first ...

. Stevenson's wife was the American

ethnologist Ethnology (from the grc-gre, ἔθνος, meaning 'nation') is an academic field that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology) ...

Matilda Coxe Stevenson Matilda Coxe Stevenson (''née'' Evans) (May 12, 1849 – June 24, 1915), who also wrote under the name Tilly E. Stevenson, was an American Ethnology, ethnologist, geologist, explorer, and activist. She was a supporter of women in science, helpi ...

(1849-1915, m. 1872). She helped James prepare reports, analyses, and catalogs of the collection that were later published in the

Bureau of Ethnology The Bureau of American Ethnology (or BAE, originally, Bureau of Ethnology) was established in 1879 by an act of Congress for the purpose of transferring archives, records and materials relating to the Indians of North America from the Interior D ...

Annual Reports, as James disliked writing reports and was described as lacking the creative mind and discipline needed for writing. Together, the Stevensons formed the first husband-wife team in anthropology. James Stevenson died due to Rocky Mountain fever. At the time of his death, the couple had been preparing an

ethnography Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject o ...

of the Zia people of New Mexico. Some accounts report Stevenson asked to buy the Zia tribe's sacred pot, which was decorated the tribe's Zia symbol, which the tribe declined. The ceremonial pot then disappeared and reappeared in a museum collection. Stevenson's own book, now out of print, apparently referenced the theft. Leslie A. White wrote a book, Zia: The Sun Symbol Pueblo, which also documented the theft of the pottery.

References

4. White, Leslie A. Zia: The Sun Symbol Pueblo. Albuquerque, N.M. : University of Albuquerque, in collaboration with Calvin Horn Publisher, 1974. Series: Indian classics series (Albuquerque, N.M.), 3.; Bulletin (Smithsonian Institution. Bureau of American Ethnology), 184.

External links

* * 1840 births 1888 deaths American geologists United States Geological Survey personnel American naturalists American anthropologists {{US-geologist-stub