Revisiting the dean: Byron Cummings and southwestern archaeology, 1893--1954 (Arizona, Utah)

Byron Cummings was one of the more influential archaeologists who worked in the Southwest in the early 1900s, yet his long and colorful life had not been examined in a comprehensive biography. This study documents his professional career and chronicles his activities in exploration, education, museum development, administration, and writing. He and his students explored hundreds of miles of Arizona and Utah from 1906 to the early 1940s and excavated more than 150 archaeological sites. Unfortunately, many of those excavations were not reported. Cummings also was a very popular professor of Latin, Greek, and American Archaeology, first at the University of Utah (1893–1915) and then later at the University of Arizona (1915–1937). Many of his students considered Cummings one of the best teachers they had known. He had excellent administrative skills and served as a Dean for several years at both universities, and as President of the University of Arizona from 1927 to 1928. As Director of the Arizona State Museum for 22 years, he acquired more than 25,000 artifacts for its collections through excavations, purchase, and donations. One of the current State Museum buildings was constructed by Cummings using federal New Deal money in the mid-1930s. While President of the University of Arizona, he convinced the State Legislature to pass an Arizona Antiquities Act in 1927, which firmly established control of Arizona archaeology with the Arizona State Museum. That year he also started a graduate program in archaeology. In the 1930s, he clashed with other archaeologists from eastern institutions, as well as with some within the state, as competition for archaeological specimens intensified in Arizona. A tireless promoter and educator, Cummings contributed immensely to the growth of public awareness of Arizona archaeology.