Waldo R. Wedel
Smithsonian Institution
September 10, 1908 - August 27, 1996
|
Scientific Discipline: Anthropology Membership Type:
Member
(elected 1965)
|
Waldo Rudolph Wedel is regarded as one of the most prominent American archaeologists of the twentieth century. During his career he made significant contributions to Plains archaeology and managed to significantly advance the archaeological efforts of the Smithsonian Institution. His unique style of research provided rich details regarding the agricultural patterns and ethnography of the people of the Plains, information that proved invaluable to academics in a wide range of disciplines. Wedel is cited extensively for the research he conducted on archaeology related to the issue of water resource development as founder and director of the Missouri River Basin Project, a subset of the Smithsonian’s River Basin Survey Program.
Wedel graduated from University of Arizona in 1930 and earned his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in 1936. Immediately after completing his doctorate, Wedel went to work for the Smithsonian. He started in 1936 as an assistant curator of archaeology and retired in 1977 from the position of head curator of archaeology. In addition to his contributions to the Smithsonian Institution, Wedel held the positions of president of the Society of American Archaeology (1948-1949) and president of the Anthropological Society of Washington (1951-1952).
