Anthropologist Profile: Bertha Parker, First American Indian Archaeologist

Bertha c. 1930 at Gypsum Cave, Nevada, with throwing sticks. Source: Acc. 90-105 Science Service Records, Smithsonian Institution Archives via Flickr

Today’s blog post is dedicated to exploring the amazing accomplishments of the first American Indian woman archaeologist, Bertha Parker.  This, however, is not her only claim to fame as she attained her position through unconventional means, as well as further the discipline of archaeology and anthropology through her discoveries and methods.  In this blog post both her personal life (as relevant to her career) and professional accomplishments will be discussed.

Bertha Parker was the daughter of Arthur C. Parker, archaeologist and anthropologist of Seneca descent, and Beulah Tahamont, actress of Abenaki descent.  It is rumored that she was born at an archaeological site where her father was working, and she spent much of her childhood shadowing her father through his archaeological fieldwork.  It would seem that this destined her to become an archaeologist but that is actually not how it happened.  Bertha’s father never formally trained his daughter in archaeological inquiry as her parents divorced when she was seven years old, and she moved with her mother to Los Angeles with her maternal grandparents, who were actors in Hollywood.  Bertha joined her mother’s family’s business, acting in various film productions and in the circus.  She met her first husband around this time and had a daughter, Billie.  Unfortunately, the marriage was tumultuous and abusive.  Bertha attempted to leave her husband, but ultimately she was not successful until her uncle, archaeologist M.R. Harrington, intervened.  He offered Bertha work at his archaeological site as both a secretary and cook, and this is where she got her start in archaeology.

M.R. Harrington taught his niece, Bertha, how to excavate because she demonstrated amazing analytical skills that exceeded those of many trained archaeologists at the site.  Bertha enthusiastically took to her lessons and applied them during her free time, excavating at the site of Gypsum Cave.  Due to her small size she was able to access portions of the cave site that her male counterparts could not, which led to one of the biggest discoveries in archaeological history.  In a small crevice of a cave that Bertha crawled through she discovered the remains of a giant sloth skull and man-made artifacts.  The artifacts were later dated to 10,000 years in the past, which settled the debates that existed at that time about humans traveling over the Beringia land bridge to the Americas.  While additional discoveries on this topic have since been made Bertha’s discovery was revolutionary because it demonstrated that American Indian history was far longer than originally believed by the (white) anthropological community.

Bertha’s discoveries did not end at Gypsum Cave, however.  While walking through the desert with her daughter, she discovered the site of Scorpion Hill, which she excavated and documented solely on her own.  She was uncovered the Corn Creek campsite based on identifying fossilized camel bones in a lake bed.  It was during this time that she met and married her second husband, but the marriage ended a year later when he died during fieldwork from a heart attack.

It was from here that Bertha moved onto employment at the Southwest Museum in Los Angeles, where she was quickly promoted to assistant archaeologist and ethnologist.  This position enabled her to visit various American Indian groups throughout the Western United States, where she documented important cultural traditions, histories, and folklores.  Because of her status as an Abenaki and Seneca individual she was able to gain access to information that other non-American Indian anthropologists could not.  This was also due to her respect and sensitivity to American Indians’ concerns about preserving and sharing their cultural knowledge and heritage, which led to redacting names as requested and sharing credit appropriately with specific American Indian individuals and groups.

Bertha worked for the Southwest Museum until 1941, leaving the position and the field of archaeology when she met her third (and final) husband, Iron Eyes Cody.  They worked together in film, including hosting a television series that showcased American Indian heritage and culture.  Bertha advocated for the rights of American Indian actors, as well as greater representation of American Indians in film and television.

Unfortunately, much about Bertha’s life has been overlooked over time, and many of her accomplishments have been attributed to her male colleagues.  This is due in part to prevailing attitudes of her time (as well as today) that favored males’ contributions over those of women, as well as the name changes from her three marriages that make it difficult to track her accomplishments.  Despite these challenges, Bertha Parker is now recognized for her amazing accomplishments and contributions as the first American Indian archaeologist and for her contributions to American Indian ethnography.

Works Cited

Birch, S. (2019). Bertha “Birdie” Parker . Retrieved from Trowelblazers: https://trowelblazers.com/bertha-birdie-parker-also-known-as/

Marranzino, A. (2019, June 6). Bertha Parker, the first Native American archaeologist, taught herself how to excavate a site. Retrieved from Massive Science: https://massivesci.com/articles/bertha-parker-pallan-archaeology-native-american-abenaki-seneca/

Utacia Krol, D. (2017, September 1). Bertha Parker Pallan Cody: Taking A Scientific Approach to The Ancestral Record. Retrieved from American Indian Science and Engineering Society: https://woc.aises.org/content/bertha-parker-pallan-cody-taking-scientific-approach-ancestral-record