Dig up some history with the Amerind Museum and the Arizona Memory Project

PHOENIX – Indigenous cultures captured William Shirley Fulton’s attention from a young age. So much so, that when the noted archaeologist made his home in Dragoon, Arizona, he unearthed numerous artifacts on his own ranch. He published his findings and built a museum that still exists today. The Amerind Museum-Arizona Legacy of William Shirley Fulton collection on the Arizona Memory Project documents his passion and the work of the Amerind Foundation.

According to a representative from the Amerind Foundation: "The Amerind Museum today is recognized worldwide for its Native American object collections and its foundational work in Southwestern Borderlands archaeology. These images in our latest collection tell the story of Fulton’s early life in Connecticut, his visits to Navajo communities in the 1920s, and the growth of the Amerind Foundation from its inception in 1937. Today, Mr. Fulton’s vision has evolved from his first love of archaeology and Native American art into an Arizona institution that continues to preserve and celebrate Native American cultures with public outreach programs and ongoing archaeological research.”

Researchers of the Amerind Museum-Arizona Legacy of William Shirley Fulton collection on the Arizona Memory Project can view it indefinitely and on any digital device at http://go.azsos.gov/fulton.

For questions about this or any digital collection, or for cultural institutions interested in sharing collections on the Arizona Memory Project, contact [email protected].

The Arizona Memory Project provides free online access to the wealth of primary sources in Arizona archives, museums, libraries, and other cultural institutions. The Arizona Memory Project is supported by the Arizona State Library, Archives & Public Records, a division of the Secretary of State, with federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

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