Nancy Lurie
Encyclopedia
Nancy Oestreich Lurie is a distinguished American anthropologist who specializes in the study of North American Indian history and culture. She received her B. A. from the University of Wisconsin–Madison (1945) and graduated with an M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Chicago (1947) and a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Northwestern University (1952). There she met her husband, historian Edward Lurie; they married in 1951 and divorced amicably in 1963. Lurie’s research specialties are ethnohistory, action anthropology and museology
; her areal focus is on North American Indians, especially the Ho-Chunk
(aka Winnebago) and the Dogrib (Taicho
) of the Canadian NWT; and the comparative study of territorial minorities.
. She began her teaching career in 1947 as an instructor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Extension Division, where she spent two years, taught one quarter at the University of Colorado, and five years at the University of Michigan, largely as a part-time lecturer.
Between 1954 and 1963, Lurie worked frequently as a researcher and expert witness for tribal petitioners in cases brought before the U. S. Indian Claims Commission, including Lower Kutenai(Ktunaxa), Lower Kalispel(Kalispel
), Quileute
, Sac and Fox Nation
, Winnebago (aka Ho-Chunk
), Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians
, Eastern Potawatomi; after 1963 she appeared as an expert witness in regard to the Wisconsin Chippewa and Menominee
in federal courts. As a result of research in Indian claims she became an active voice in the development of the field of ethnohistory
.
She served as Assistant Coordinator to Professor Sol Tax
, University of Chicago, in The American Indian Chicago Conference of 1961. This was a major test of his concept of Action Anthropology: assist in finding means to empower groups/communities seeking help to identify their own objectives and take charge of accomplishing them. She used this experience (1962–1975) in Action projects with the Wisconsin Winnebago, the United Indians of Milwaukee, and the Menominee.
She was appointed to the State of Wisconsin Historical Preservation Review Board (1972–1979), served on review committees of the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities during the 1970s and 1980s, was a member of the board of trustees for the Center for the Study of American Indian History of the Newberry Library in Chicago (now the D'Arcy McNickle Center...), and served on the editorial board for Early American History and Culture, Williamsburg, VA (1978–1980). She also served on the editorial boards of two volumes of the Handbook of North American Indians (1970–1978). She received research grants from the American Philosophical Society, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Science Foundation, University of Chicago Lichtenstern Fund, and Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research.
She held elected and appointed offices in various anthropological organizations and in 1983-1985 was elected President of the American Anthropological Association. In 2006 she received the Association's Franz Boas
Award for Exemplary Service to Anthropology. She has received numerous awards and citations in recognition of her service to American Indian and other organizations and is the recipient of three honorary doctorates.
While retired, living in Milwaukee (WI), Professor Lurie still remains an active scholar.
Museology
Museology is the diachronic study of museums and how they have established and developed in their role as an educational mechanism under social and political pressures.-Overview:...
; her areal focus is on North American Indians, especially the Ho-Chunk
Ho-Chunk
The Ho-Chunk, also known as Winnebago, are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what is now Wisconsin and Illinois. There are two federally recognized Ho-Chunk tribes, the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska....
(aka Winnebago) and the Dogrib (Taicho
Taichō
was a shugendō monk in Nara period Japan. He was raised in Echizen Province, which was in the southern portion of present day Fukui Prefecture. He was the second son of Mikami Yasuzumi...
) of the Canadian NWT; and the comparative study of territorial minorities.
Professional Activities
Lurie was a professor of anthropology (1963–1972) at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, a visiting scholar with a Fulbright-Hay Lectureship in Anthropology at the University of Aarhus, Denmark (1965–66), and head curator of anthropology (1972–1992) at the Milwaukee Public MuseumMilwaukee Public Museum
The Milwaukee Public Museum is a natural and human history museum located in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The museum was chartered in 1882 and opened to the public in 1884; it is a not-for-profit organization operated by the Milwaukee Public Museum, Inc. MPM has three floors of exhibits...
. She began her teaching career in 1947 as an instructor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Extension Division, where she spent two years, taught one quarter at the University of Colorado, and five years at the University of Michigan, largely as a part-time lecturer.
Between 1954 and 1963, Lurie worked frequently as a researcher and expert witness for tribal petitioners in cases brought before the U. S. Indian Claims Commission, including Lower Kutenai(Ktunaxa), Lower Kalispel(Kalispel
Kalispel
Kalispel may refer to:* Pend d'Oreilles , a tribe of Native Americans* Kalispel-Pend d'Oreille, the language of the Pend d'Oreilles tribe* Kalispell, Montana, a city in the United States...
), Quileute
Quileute
The Quileute , also known as the Quillayute , are a Native American people in westernWashington state in the United States, currently numbering approximately 750. The Quileute people settled onto the Quileute Indian Reservation after signing the Quinault Treaty in 1855...
, Sac and Fox Nation
Sac and Fox Nation
The Sac and Fox Nation is the largest of three federally recognized tribes of Sac and Meskwaki Native Americans. They are located in Oklahoma and are predominantly Sac....
, Winnebago (aka Ho-Chunk
Ho-Chunk
The Ho-Chunk, also known as Winnebago, are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what is now Wisconsin and Illinois. There are two federally recognized Ho-Chunk tribes, the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska....
), Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians
Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians
The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians is a Native American tribe of Ojibwa and Métis peoples, based on the Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation in Belcourt, North Dakota. The tribe has 30,000 enrolled members...
, Eastern Potawatomi; after 1963 she appeared as an expert witness in regard to the Wisconsin Chippewa and Menominee
Menominee
Some placenames use other spellings, see also Menomonee and Menomonie.The Menominee are a nation of Native Americans living in Wisconsin. The Menominee, along with the Ho-Chunk, are the only tribes that are indigenous to what is now Wisconsin...
in federal courts. As a result of research in Indian claims she became an active voice in the development of the field of ethnohistory
Ethnohistory
Ethnohistory is the study of ethnographic cultures and indigenous customs by examining historical records. It is also the study of the history of various ethnic groups that may or may not exist today....
.
She served as Assistant Coordinator to Professor Sol Tax
Sol Tax
Sol Tax was an American anthropologist. He is best known for his studies of the Meskwaki, or Fox, Indians, for "action-anthropological" research titled the Fox Project, and for founding the academic journal Current Anthropology. He received his doctorate from the University of Chicago in 1935.Tax...
, University of Chicago, in The American Indian Chicago Conference of 1961. This was a major test of his concept of Action Anthropology: assist in finding means to empower groups/communities seeking help to identify their own objectives and take charge of accomplishing them. She used this experience (1962–1975) in Action projects with the Wisconsin Winnebago, the United Indians of Milwaukee, and the Menominee.
She was appointed to the State of Wisconsin Historical Preservation Review Board (1972–1979), served on review committees of the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities during the 1970s and 1980s, was a member of the board of trustees for the Center for the Study of American Indian History of the Newberry Library in Chicago (now the D'Arcy McNickle Center...), and served on the editorial board for Early American History and Culture, Williamsburg, VA (1978–1980). She also served on the editorial boards of two volumes of the Handbook of North American Indians (1970–1978). She received research grants from the American Philosophical Society, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Science Foundation, University of Chicago Lichtenstern Fund, and Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research.
She held elected and appointed offices in various anthropological organizations and in 1983-1985 was elected President of the American Anthropological Association. In 2006 she received the Association's Franz Boas
Franz Boas
Franz Boas was a German-American anthropologist and a pioneer of modern anthropology who has been called the "Father of American Anthropology" and "the Father of Modern Anthropology." Like many such pioneers, he trained in other disciplines; he received his doctorate in physics, and did...
Award for Exemplary Service to Anthropology. She has received numerous awards and citations in recognition of her service to American Indian and other organizations and is the recipient of three honorary doctorates.
While retired, living in Milwaukee (WI), Professor Lurie still remains an active scholar.
Selective Research in Print
Lurie’s publications include the role of women in anthropology; on action anthropology; museum studies; Great Lakes Indians (especially Wisconsin) as well as the Dogrib Indians of the Canadian Northwest Territories; Indian land claims; and the development of the interdisciplinary field of ethnohistory; Lurie has authored studies of the Menominee, and about the field of anthropology. She has edited, coauthored or coedited several volumes; as well as contributed to other symposia. She has published more broadly on the American Indian. Most recently she has edited family letters that go beyond personal memoirs to include observations about the gaslight era, WWI, the flu epidemic, women's suffrage, prohibition and other events. "Love and Other Letters" (Milwaukee, WI: Milwaukee County Historical Society,2010).External links
- University of Michigan Press: http://www.press.umich.edu/titleDetailDesc.do?id=7669.
- Nancy Oestreich Lurie Papers, 1947–1988; http://guides.library.uwm.edu/archives-nativeamericans.
- Picture and information