Gerrit Smith Miller, Jr., Papers, 1908-1940

Object Details

Notes

Gerrit Smith Miller, Jr., (1869-1956) was born in Peterboro, New York, and grew up on a large estate in central New York. In this relatively isolated setting and through the influence of his great uncle, an ornithologist, Miller developed an early interest in natural history. Following his graduation from Harvard in 1894, Miller joined the Biological Survey in the Department of Agriculture and worked under Clinton Hart Merriam. In 1898 he joined the United States National Museum as Assistant Curator of Mammals and in 1909 became Curator of that Division. He continued in that position until 1940 when he retired and remained as an Associate in biology at the Smithsonian Institution until his death.

Miller's major contributions to mammalogy were his series of checklists of North American mammals, 1901, 1912, and 1924; The Families and Genera of Bats, 1907; and the Catalogue of the Mammals of Western Europe in the Collection of the British Museum, 1912. He also was an early critic of the claimed discovery of the Piltdown Man in England. He published several papers on the controversy and corresponded with many of the principal investigators. Another of his fields of interest was primate behavioral patterns and their possible influence on the beginnings of human social development.

Organization

(1) Personal correspondence, photographs, and related material, 1914, 1918, 1922-1929, 1934; (2) correspondence and manuscripts concerning mammalogy, 1908-1924, 1927-1930, 1933; (3) correspondence, notes, photographs, manuscripts, and related materials concerning primates, 1914-1919, 1929-1940

Summary

Gerrit Smith Miller, Jr.'s papers include personal material concerning awards and his investigation of Christian Science; material on mammalogical research including extensive correspondence with Michael Rogers Oldfield Thomas of the British Museum; and material on Miller's research with primates, especially the Piltdown Man and primate behavioral patterns.

Repository Loc.

Smithsonian Institution Archives, Capital Gallery, Suite 3000, MRC 507; 600 Maryland Avenue, SW; Washington, DC 20024-2520

Data Source

Smithsonian Institution Archives

Date

1908

1908-1940

Local number

SIA RU007173

Creator

Miller, Gerrit S (Gerrit Smith) 1869-1956

Subject

Miller, Gerrit S (Gerrit Smith) 1869-1956

Merriam, C. Hart (Clinton Hart) 1855-1942

Thomas, Oldfield 1858-1929

United States National Museum Division of Mammals

British Museum

Harvard University

United States Bureau of Biological Survey

Type

Manuscripts

Collection descriptions

Black-and-white photographs

Physical description

2.85 cu. ft. (2 document boxes) (1 16x20 box) (2 tall document boxes)

Topic

Mammalogy

Christian Science

Piltdown forgery

Mammalogists

Record ID

siris_arc_217330

Usage

CC0