Grover Sanders Krantz papers
name: label: Creator
content: Krantz, Grover S.
topic: label: Topic
content: Sasquatch
label: Topic
content: Human evolution
label: Topic
content: Fossil hominids
label: Topic
content: Primates
label: Topic
content: Biological anthropology
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: These papers were donated to the National Anthropological Archives by Grover Krantz's wife Diane Horton and his brother Victor Krantz, a former Smithsonian photographer.
creator: label: Creator
content: Krantz, Grover S.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Grover Sanders Krantz papers
abstract: label: Summary
content: Grover Sanders Krantz was a professor of physical anthropology at Washington State University and was considered a leading authority in hominoid evolution and primate bone structure, specializing in the reconstruction and casting of hominid fossils. Materials include articles, bibliographies, card files, clippings, correspondence, diplomas, computer disks, legal documents, manuscripts, maps, notebooks, notes, programs, school records, sketches, telegrams, transparencies and typescripts.
bioghist: label: Biographical Note
content: Grover Sanders Krantz was born on November 5, 1931, to Swedish immigrants in Salt Lake City, Utah, and spent his childhood in Salt Lake City and Rockford, Illinois. His undergraduate studies began at the University of Utah in 1949 but were postponed in 1951 by 18 months of service in the United States Air Force. After being honorably discharged, Krantz attended the University of California, Berkeley, and earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in Anthropology. In 1970, he earned his doctorate in physical anthropology from the University of Minnesota. 

From 1968-1998, Krantz served as a professor of physical anthropology at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. He was considered a leading authority in hominoid evolution and an expert on primate bone structure, specializing in the reconstruction and casting of hominid fossils. Among his numerous publications are the books Climatic Races and Descent Groups, The Process of Human Evolution, and Geographical Development of European Languages. Publicly known for his interest in cryptozoology, Krantz was one of the first established researchers to pursue the question of Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, from a scientific approach. Other research interests included the origin of language and speech, sex identification of skeletons, and early human immigration into America.

After a battle with pancreatic cancer, Krantz passed away on February 14, 2002. At his request, his remains were sent to the University of Tennessee's Anthropology Research Facility, where scientists performed skeletal research of great forensic value. His bones were processed and sent to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History to be used in an educational capacity. In 2010, Grover Krantz's skeleton and that of his Irish Wolfhound Clyde were mounted in the museum's exhibit, "Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake."

Sources Consulted

"Dr. Grover Krantz." Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Accessed September 30, 2011. http://anthropology.si.edu/writteninbone/grover_krantz.html

"Grover S. Krantz, 70, Port Angeles, Wash." Lewiston Morning Tribune (Lewiston, ID), February 16, 2002.

Krantz, Grover. "Curriculum Vitae."

Ruane, Michael E. "Natural History Museum Grants Professor's Dying Wish: A Display of his Skeleton." Washington Post, August 11, 2012. Accessed April 12, 2012. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/10/AR2009041003357.html.

"Sasquatch expert Grover Krantz dies at age 70." Spokesman-Review (Spokane, WA), February 19, 2002.

Chronology

1931 -- Born November 5 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Carl Victor Emmanuel Krantz and Esther Maria (Sanders) Krantz

1949 -- Begins undergraduate studies at University of Utah

1951-1952 -- Serves in the United States Air Force at Clovis, New Mexico, as a desert survival instructor

1953 -- Marries Patricia Howland Transfers from University of Utah to University of California, Berkeley

1955 -- Receives B.A. in Anthropology from UC Berkeley

1958 -- Receives M.A. in Anthropology from UC Berkeley

1959 -- Marries Joan Brandson

1960-1966 -- Works as Museum Technician, R.H. Lowie Museum of Anthropology, UC Berkeley

1964 -- Marries Evelyn Einstein

1966-1968 -- Works as Visiting Lecturer, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

1968 -- Begins work as Assistant Professor in the Anthropology Department, Washington State University

1971 -- Receives Ph.D. in Anthropology from University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, with the publication of his dissertation "The Origin of Man"

1972 -- Promoted to Associate Professor in the Anthropology Department, Washington State University

1973 -- Starts serving on Editorial Board, Northwest Anthropological Research Notes

1979 -- Starts serving on Editorial Board, Evolutionary Theory

1982 -- Serves as founding member and member of the Board of Directors for the International Society of Cryptozoology (ISC) Marries Diane Horton

1984 -- Due to high scores on the Miller Analogy Test, is accepted into Intertel, an organization that accepts only individuals who have scored at or above the 99th percentile on a standardized IQ test

1987 -- Appears in well-publicized creationism vs. evolution debate with Duane Gish, Washington State University

1988 -- Organizes and chairs Early Man symposium at the American Anthropological Association meeting in D.C.

1994 -- Offered Full Professor title within the Anthropology Department, Washington State University

1998 -- Publishes Only a Dog, a story about the relationship between Krantz and his first Irish Wolfhound Clyde Retires from Washington State University

1999 -- Appears in the documentary "Sasquatch Odyssey"

2002 -- Dies February 14 of pancreatic cancer His remains are processed at the University of Tennessee's Anthropology Research Facility His bones and bones of his Irish Wolfhounds are donated to the Smithsonian Institution for educational purposes

2010-2013 -- His mounted bones and bones of his Irish Wolfhound, Clyde, appear in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History exhibit "Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake"
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 7.38 Linear feet (14 manuscript boxes, 1 oversize box, 1 manuscript folder, 47 floppy disks, and 9 audio cassettes.)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1904-2001
label: Date
content: bulk 1955-2001
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: National Anthropological Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: NAA.2003-21
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
arrangement: label: Arrangement
content: The collection is organized into 9 series: (1) Correspondence, 1964, 1974-2001; (2) Writings, 1955-2001; (3) Research, 1959-2001; (4) Professional Activities, 1958-2001; (5) Sasquatch, 1963-2001; (6) Teaching, 1957-2001; (7) Biographical and Personal Files, 1904-1911, 1931, 1952-2002; (8) Sound Recordings, 1988-1997, undated; (9) Electronic Records, 1987-2001
processinfo: label: Processing Information
content: The papers of Grover S. Krantz were organized by Krantz and his wife Diane Horton before they were deposited at the National Anthropological Archives. They assigned folder numbers, which have been retained along with the original folder titles. Titles assigned by the processing archivist were placed within square brackets. Some of the notes below are based on Krantz and Horton's original inventory. Not all of their notes have been included in this finding aid. Consult with the reference archivist to access their inventory. 

The archivist organized the collection into 9 series. Some folders were moved out of numerical sequence into their appropriate series. Oversized materials were separated and replaced with a note indicating original and new locations. Numerous newspaper prints were also photocopied onto archival paper.  The electronic records are unprocessed.

A later accretion to the collection containing three notebooks, miscellaneous ephemera and photographs, passports, and other documents of Krantz's have not yet been processed.

Processed by Rose Chou and Keeley Kerrins, April 2012

Encoded by Jocelyn Baltz, July 2012
bibliography: label: Selected Bibliography
content: 1968. "Brain Size and Hunting Ability in Earliest Man."  -- Current Anthropology --  9, no. 5 (1968): 450-451.

1976. "On the Nonmigration of Hunting Peoples."  -- Northwest Anthropological Research Notes  -- 10, no. 2 (1976): 209-216.

1980.  -- Climatic Races and Descent Groups -- . North Quincy, MA: Christopher Publishing House, 1980.

1981.  -- The Process of Human Evolution -- . Cambridge, MA: Schenkman, 1981.

1982. "The Fossil Record of Sex." In  -- Sexual Size Dimorphism -- , edited by Roberta Hall, 85-105. New York: Praeger, 1982.

1983. "Anatomy and Dermatoglyphics of Three Sasquatch Footprints."  -- Cryptozoology --  2 (1983): 53-81.

1987. "A Reconstruction of the Skull of  -- Gigantopithecus blacki --  and a Comparison with a Living Form."  -- Cryptozoology --  5 (1987): 24-39.

1988. "Larynx Descent in 40,000 Year-old Fossils." In  -- The Genesis of Language -- , edited by M.E. Landsberg, 173-180. Berlin: Mouton, 1988.

1988.  -- Geographical Development of European Languages -- . New York: Peter Lang, 1988.

1991. "Bipedalism as a Brachiating Adaptation."  -- Human Evolution --  6, no. 3 (1991): 235-239.

1992.  -- Big Footprints: A Scientific Inquiry into the Reality of Sasquatch -- . Boulder, CO: Johnson Books, 1992.

1993. "The Subspecies of Homo erectus."  -- Human Evolution --  8, no. 4 (1993): 275-279.

1995. " -- Homo erectus --  Brain Sizes by Subspecies."  -- Human Evolution --  10, no. 2 (1995): 107-117.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: This collection contains the personal papers of Dr. Grover S. Krantz and documents his research in physical anthropology as well as his 30-year teaching career. The collection also contains materials on Krantz's activities in the field of cryptozoology, especially his investigations of Sasquatch. Materials include his writings, correspondence, notes, sketches, newspaper clippings, sound recordings, photographs, and electronic records. Some materials in the collection are written in code and noospel, a phonetic spelling system he had developed.

Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.
separatedmaterial: label: Separated Materials
content: Film and video, including copies of the Patterson-Gimlin film,  have  been transferred to the Human Studies Film Archives (HSFA accession 2003-04).

Grover S. Krantz's specimens were donated to the National Museum of Natural History's Physical Anthropology Collections.