Anna Curtenius Roosevelt facts for kids

Anna Curtenius Roosevelt, born in 1946, is a famous American archaeologist. She is a top professor at the University of Illinois Chicago. Dr. Roosevelt studies how humans have changed over time. She also looks at how people and their environment have interacted for many years.

She is a leading expert on ancient people, called Paleoindians, who lived in the Amazon. Her important discoveries were made on Marajo Island and at Caverna da Pedra Pintada in Brazil. She has also worked in the Congo Basin in Africa. A fun fact: she is the great-granddaughter of United States President Theodore Roosevelt.

Becoming an Archaeologist

Anna Roosevelt became interested in archaeology when she was nine years old. Her mother inspired her through books and a trip to Mesa Verde. She went to Foxcroft School, an all-girls' boarding school, and finished in 1964.

In 1968, she earned her first degree from Stanford University. She studied History, Classics, and Anthropology there. Later, in 1977, she received her Ph.D. in anthropology from Columbia University.

Her Career Path

From 1975 to 1985, Dr. Roosevelt worked as a curator at the Museum of the American Indian. A curator is someone who manages a museum's collections. She was also a guest curator at the American Museum of Natural History.

After that, she became a curator of archaeology at the Field Museum of Natural History. Her early field work took her to the Andes mountains in Peru. She also did research in Mexico and Venezuela. Today, she is a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Discoveries on Marajo Island

Praia de São João - Marajó Island

In 1991, Dr. Roosevelt published a book about her work on Marajo Island. This island is located near the mouth of the Amazon River in Brazil. Her team studied ancient settlements there. They used special tools to look underground, along with digging.

Her research showed that ancient people on Marajo Island had a complex society. This went against older ideas that the Amazon could not support large, advanced groups. She found evidence of a big population and farming. Her discoveries changed how people thought about early Amazonian cultures.

Secrets of Painted Rock Cave

From 1990 to 1992, Dr. Roosevelt led digs at the Painted Rock Cave. This cave is known as Caverna da Pedra Pintada in Brazil. It has many ancient rock paintings. These include handprints, human and animal figures, and geometric shapes.

Oldest Art in the Americas

Scientists believe these paintings are some of the oldest art in the Western Hemisphere. Dr. Roosevelt's work found signs of human life in the Amazon that were much older than thought. Some evidence was twice as old as previous discoveries.

Ancient people used the cave about 10,000 to 11,000 years ago. They left behind unique tools. They also brought plant seeds from far away. These early people lived differently from big-game hunters. They relied on rivers and forests for food.

Dr. Roosevelt also found 7,500-year-old pottery at the site. This might be the oldest pottery found in the Americas. Her findings made scientists rethink how humans first came to the Americas. They also changed ideas about how civilization grew in the Amazon.

Current Research

Dr. Roosevelt continues her field work in Brazil. She is now exploring underwater sites in the Xingu River. Here, she studies what ancient people did in the Amazon's river areas.

She has also started research in the African Congo Basin. Her work there focuses on very old sites without pottery. These sites are in Bayanga, in the southwestern Central African Republic.

Awards and Recognition

Anna Roosevelt has received many honors for her work. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She has also been given the Explorers Medal. The Society of Woman Geographers awarded her their Gold Medal.

Brazil has honored her with the Order of Rio Branco and the Bettendorf Medal. In 1988, she received a special five-year fellowship from the MacArthur Fellows Program. She also has honorary doctorates from Mount Holyoke and Northeastern University.

In 2012, she received awards from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Her research has been supported by grants from many groups. These include the National Science Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Family Connections

Anna Roosevelt is the daughter of Quentin Roosevelt II. Her mother was Frances Blanche Webb. Her grandfather was Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr.. As mentioned, her great-grandfather was United States President Theodore Roosevelt. Her sisters are Susan Roosevelt Weld and Alexandra Roosevelt Dworkin.

Images for kids

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  Praia de São João - Marajó Island

See also

In Spanish: Anna Curtenius Roosevelt para niños