History Thursday: The First Decades: 1932-1960

In 1933, Hewett hired UNM graduate student Frank Hibben to manage the new museum. It was initially housed with the Department in the now demolished Rodey Hall and few records survive of the first exhibits. In 1935, the new Administration­ Laboratory Building (now known as Scholes Hall)  became the second home of the Anthropology Department and its Museum. Exhibits were on the building’s first floor and collections were stored in the basement.

From its beginnings, the Museum had an ambitious trifold mission: to (1) integrate anthropological research in a university setting with (2) the curation and documentation of collections and the (3)  teaching and dissemination of anthropological knowledge to UNM students and the general public. Today, the museum adds to these priorities: (4) the recognition of our fundamental obligations to source and descendent communities and (5) the importance of community collaboration and partnerships in curation, exhibitions, research, and teaching, and repatriation of culturally sensitive collections and human remains.

As noted, the initial focus of the new museum was to house and display archaeological collections from New Mexico. In the 1920s and 1930s the Hewett often partnered with the School of American Research and Museum of New Mexico, with collections from their investigations divided among the three institutions. Chaco Canyon and the Jemez Mountains were important sites of early UNM field schools.

Hewett shared the commitment to object-based teaching and learning characteristic of many early academic anthropology museums. The creation of a “teaching museum,” with areas for display and hands-on learning, was among his top priorities when he established the Anthropology Department. To accomplish this, Hibben oversaw exhibits and collections in Scholes Hall and, with the assistance of students and volunteers, provided tours to public school students. As Albuquerque's only museum for nearly 30 years after its founding, the exhibits drew visitors from across the region.

Exhibit in the old Anthropology building, Scholes Hall