Lynne P. Sullivan facts for kids

Lynne Sullivan (born December 25, 1952) is an American archaeologist. She used to be the Curator of Archaeology at the Frank H. McClung Museum at the University of Tennessee. Lynne Sullivan is known for her studies on ancient cultures in the Southeastern United States. She also researches how women have played a part in the history of modern archaeology.

Early Life and Education

Lynne Sullivan was born in Kingsport, Tennessee, on December 25, 1952. She grew up in Cleveland, Tennessee. Her interest in archaeology started when she was a child, reading National Geographic magazine.

When she was 17, Sullivan got to join her first archaeological dig in Iowa. This was in the summer of 1970, right after she finished high school.

Starting Archaeology

In 1971, Sullivan started college at the University of Tennessee. She tried to get a job on a dig but was told no because she was a girl. This was a common problem for women in archaeology back then.

However, things changed in 1972. Congress passed the Equal Employment Opportunity Act. This law made it illegal to refuse someone a job because of their gender.

After this law, Sullivan got a paid job in field archaeology in 1973. She worked on the Tellico Project. She was one of the first women at the University of Tennessee to get such a job. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology in 1974.

Graduate Studies

In 1974, Sullivan also worked at Cahokia, an ancient city site. There, she met women who were getting their PhDs in archaeology. This inspired her to continue her studies.

She went to graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1975. She earned her Master of Science degree in Anthropology in 1977.

Later, she returned to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for her PhD. She studied the Mouse Creek Phase, an ancient culture near her hometown in Tennessee. She received her doctorate in 1986.

Career in Museums

After her PhD, Sullivan worked at the Dickson Mounds branch of the Illinois State Museum. She then worked at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. She was the first person without a graduate degree to be a curator for their archaeological collections.

New York State Museum

Next, Sullivan became the first female Curator of Anthropology at the New York State Museum. She worked there for 13 years. She helped organize and update the museum's huge collection of ancient artifacts.

She also got grants to properly record and care for the museum's collections. She started field schools at the Ripley site, an ancient site in New York.

Return to Tennessee

In 1999, Sullivan came back to the University of Tennessee. She became the Curator of Archaeology at the McClung Museum. She has worked there for many years.

Her job involves managing the museum's collections. She also advises students and does her own research. She was also the first female editor of Southeastern Archaeology, a major journal.

Key Research Projects

Lynne Sullivan's research covers many topics. These include ancient cultures in the Southeast, powerful Mississippian societies, and how people were buried long ago. She also studies how to care for museum collections and the history of archaeology. She has written many books and articles.

Mississippian Time Periods

One of Sullivan's main projects is understanding the Mississippian Period in eastern Tennessee. This period lasted from about 900 AD to 1600 AD. She works to figure out the exact dates of different ancient sites. This helps archaeologists understand how societies changed over time.

She uses special dating methods like accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) to get precise dates. She also works with tree-ring dating, called dendrochronological studies.

Sullivan also studied Mound 31 at Cahokia with Timothy Pauketat. This helped them understand when the mound was used. This work helps us learn more about the ancient city of Cahokia.

Women in Archaeology

Sullivan is very interested in the role of women in ancient societies and in the history of archaeology itself. She faced challenges as a woman in a field mostly dominated by men.

She was inspired by women like Madeleine Kneberg and Florence Hawley. These women made big contributions to archaeology but didn't get as much credit as their male colleagues. Sullivan supports the idea of feminist archaeology. This movement looks at how gender roles affected ancient societies and how women have shaped archaeology.

Her research helps us understand ancient Native American societies in a more complete way.

Preserving Old Collections

Sullivan noticed that many artifacts from the 1930s, collected by the Works Progress Administration (WPA), were not well organized. These collections came from big projects like the Tennessee Valley Authority Reservoir sites.

She worked to complete reports for these projects. As a curator, she made it a priority to preserve these WPA collections. She got grants to create an online archive of old archaeological photos. She also got funds to store fragile artifacts in special museum cabinets. This work helps protect these important historical items for future generations.

In 2003, Sullivan co-wrote a book called Curating Archaeological Collections: From the Field to the Repository. It was the first book focused on how to care for archaeological collections in the United States.