Roderick Sprague
| Roderick Sprague | |
|---|---|
| Born | Roderick Sprague III February 18, 1933 Albany, Oregon, U.S. |
| Died | August 20, 2012 (aged 79) Moscow, Idaho |
| Other names | Rick |
| Residence | Moscow, Idaho |
| Nationality | United States |
| Fields |
Anthropology, archeology, and ethnohistory |
| Institutions |
University of Arizona (1960–64) Washington State University (1965–67) University of Idaho (1967–97) |
| Alma mater | Washington State University (B.A.; 1955, M.A.; 1959) University of Arizona (Ph.D., 1967) |
| Known for | Important contributions to anthropology and archeology |
| Spouse | Linda Sprague |
| Children | 3 sons, 1 daughter |
Roderick Sprague III (February 18, 1933 – August 20, 2012) was a renowned American anthropologist, ethnohistorian and historical archaeologist, and the Emeritus Director of the Laboratory of Anthropology at the University of Idaho in Moscow, where he taught for thirty years. He had extensive experience in environmental impact research, trade beads, aboriginal burial customs, and the Columbia Basin area.
In addition to his work in the traditional anthropological fields, he also collaborated with Professor Grover Krantz in an attempt to apply scientific reasoning to the study of Sasquatch.
Sprague received both his bachelor's and master's degrees in anthropology from Washington State University in Pullman, serving in the U.S. Army in between. He received his Ph.D in 1967 from the University of Arizona in Tucson.
As a graduate student in 1964 at Washington State University, he was the field supervisor of a dig at the Palus burial site in Lyons Ferry, Washington when one of only a few known Jefferson Peace Medals was discovered.
Additionally, his dissertation, "Aboriginal burial practices in the plateau region of North America" (1967) is considered one of the best writings on the topic.
Sprague’s career was varied and took him in different directions. He conducted excavations in the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and the Canadian Maritime on Prince Edward Island; and research in the American Southwest and Inner Mongolia. Much of his research was on burial practices and historical archaeology, with a special interest in glass and ceramic trade beads and buttons. He conducted burial research at the request of ten different American Indian tribal governments. Sprague was an early advocate of the importance of repatriation in archaeological and anthropological excavations, long before the enactment of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
...
Wikipedia