USNM CURATORS ANNUAL REPORTS - Department of Ethnology, Monthly Reports, 1882

Throughout the late 1870s and early 1880s, ethnologist and naturalist Edward William Nelson was stationed in then-uncharted Alaska--under the recommendation of Second Smithsonian Secretary Spencer Fullerton Baird--to study the native flora, fauna and peoples. After Nelson's data was collected, what happened to it back at the Smithsonian? Find out with the Department of Ethnology's 1882 monthly reports! A key goal of the department that year was processing Nelson's collections from his 1877-1881 expedition. Discover more about Nelson's collection and the work of the Department of Ethnology and help transcribe this fascinating report.