Florence Hawley

Florence May Hawley Ellis (née Florence May Hawley, also known as Florence Hawley Senter; September 17, 1906 – 1991) was one of the first anthropologists to work extensively on dendrochronology, or tree-ring dating. She conducted archaeological and ethnographic research in the Southwestern United States; and undertook some of the first dendrochronological research in eastern North America in the mid 20th century, examining samples from a number of archaeological sites. She was also highly regarded as a passionate teacher who pushed her students toward greatness by encouraging them to think for themselves and work hard for what they wanted to achieve. Although faced with many challenges in her career, and discriminated against for being a woman, she persevered in her research and became a great influence both for her students and for other women in her field.

Background

Florence Hawley was born in Cananea, Sonora, Mexico, where her father was chief chemist for a copper mine. In 1913, after the outbreak of the Mexican Revolution, her family moved to Miami, Arizona. She was introduced to archaeology at a young age from her father during his excavating of ruins around their home in southern Arizona.

In 1936 Florence married archaeologist Donovan Senter; together they had a daughter named Andrea. In 1950, after a divorce from Senter, she married Bruce Ellis who was a historian.

She began teaching at the University of Arizona in 1929, where she was introduced to dendrochronology in a class taught by A. E. Douglass. She began teaching at the University of New Mexico fall of 1934 until she retired in 1971. She received her M.A. in anthropology the next year. She completed her Ph.D. in anthropology at the University of Chicago From the Late 1950s through the 1960s she directed a summer archaeological field schools through the University of New Mexico. One of the most prominent discoveries was that of San Gabriel de Yunge, the first Spanish Capital of New Mexico, which dated from 1600, found near San Juan Pueblo.

Key excavations

Florence Hawley participated in many field excavations, including her work at the Chetro Ketl site in Chaco Canyon. After her retirement she continued to offer field training to interested students, which was based around the Ghost Ranch of Abiquiu. In 1934 she and her crew worked in western Kentucky and the Wickliffe mounds as well as in the Norris Basin in Tennessee collecting living- tree specimens, charcoal, and modern specimens. She also did work in the Mississippi Valley, as well as many Midwestern states.

Selected publications Hawley, Florence. "The Significance of the Dated Prehistory of Chetro Ketl, Chaco Canon, New Mexico." The University of New Mexico Bulletin, vol. 1, no. 1, 1934. Hawley, Florence. "Relationship of Southern Cedar Growth to Precipitation and Run Off." Ecology 18 (1937): 398- 405. Hawley, Florence. "A Dendrochronology in Two Mississippi Drainage Tree-Ring Areas." Tree-Ring Bulletin 5 (1938): 3–7. Hawley, Florence. "Tree Ring Dating for Southeastern Mounds." In: Webb, W.S. (Ed.), An Archaeological Survey of the Norris Basin in Eastern Tennessee. Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 118. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution; Government Printing Office, 1938. p. 359-362.

Hawley, Florence. From Drought to Drought an Examination of Archaeology. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press, 1988. Hawley, Florence. San Gabriel Del Yungue as Seen by an Archaeologist: Examination of an Historic Site in New Mexico. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press, 1989. Hawley, Florence. Pueblo Indians: Archaeologic and Ethnologic Data: Acoma-Laguna Land Claims. Taylor and Francis, Inc., 1977. Hawley, Florence, Richard Ford, & Myra E. Jenkins. When Cultures Meet: Remembering San Gabriel del Yunge Oweenge. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press, 1987.