Few historians of anthropology and missionary work examine the relationship of Protestant missionaries with nineteenth-century anthropologists and its effect on anthropological portrayals of Indians. This paper poses the question: Does it make a difference that early anthropologists in Canada and the United States also worked as Protestant missionaries or relied on Protestant missionaries for data? Answering yes, it shows how declining support for Indian missions led missionaries to peddle their knowledge of Indians to scholarly institutions. These institutions welcomed missionaries as professionals because of their knowledge, dedication, and time in the field. Such relationships helped create a transnational image of the Indian in late nineteenth-century North American anthropology.
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November 2003
Research Article|
November 01 2003
Saviors and Scientists: North American Protestant Missionaries and the Development of Anthropology Available to Purchase
C. L. HIGHAM
C. L. HIGHAM
The author teaches in the history department at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and in the interdisciplinary studies program at Davidson College.
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Pacific Historical Review (2003) 72 (4): 531–559.
Citation
C. L. HIGHAM; Saviors and Scientists: North American Protestant Missionaries and the Development of Anthropology. Pacific Historical Review 1 November 2003; 72 (4): 531–559. doi: https://doi.org/10.1525/phr.2003.72.4.531
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