John L. Cotter

John Lambert Cotter (6 December 1911 – 5 February 1999) was an American archaeologist whose career spanned more than sixty years and included archaeological work with the Works Progress Administration, numerous posts with the National Park Service, and contributions to the development of historical archaeology in the United States.

Education Cotter was born in Denver, Colorado to John Aloysius Cotter and Bertha Becker Cotter.

After earning a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Denver, Cotter continued and earned an M.A., conducting research at a series of prehistoric sites in the western United States and writing a thesis under E.B. Renaud. Cotter then began working toward a PhD at the University of Pennsylvania in 1935, where he failed his prelims. He would ultimately receive his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania in 1959 while working as Regional Archaeologist for the Northeast Region of the National Park Service.

When his draft number was called in 1943, Cotter joined the U. S. Army. After seventeen weeks of training, Cotter was sent along with the 357th Infantry Regiment of the 90th Division to serve in the invasion of Normandy. Cotter was wounded and flown to Churchill Hospital in London for rehabilitation. He then returned to France to train at the Armed Forces Institute and was subsequently transferred to London, where he joined the staff of the Armed Forces correspondence school. Cotter earned a Purple Heart for his service at the invasion of Normandy as well as the European and Combat Infantryman badges. He returned home in December 1945 to resume his career at Tuzigoot.

Following the completion of his doctoral degree, Cotter was offered a teaching position at the University of Pennsylvania in 1960. He taught the first courses in historical archaeology from 1960 until 1979, focusing on his work in 17th-century Virginia. Cotter began teaching field schools in historical archaeology in 1963.

When he stepped down from the National Park Service in 1977, Cotter was given the National Park Service Outstanding Service Award. He was bestowed with David E. Finley award for Outstanding Achievement in Historic Preservation by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He also received, alongside Edward B. Jelks, the Historic Preservation Award of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (now Preservation Virginia).

Cotter called for a collaborative effort between professional and amateur archeologists in preservation efforts,

Publications Cotter, John L, and John M. Corbett. Archeology of the Bynum Mounds, Mississippi. Washington, D.C: National Park Service, U.S. Dept. of the Interior, 1951. Cotter, John L, and J P. Hudson. New Discoveries at Jamestown: Site of the First Successful English Settlement in America. Washington, D.C: U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Park Service, 1957. Cotter, John L. Archeological Excavations at Jamestown Colonial National Historical Park and Jamestown National Historic Site, Virginia. Washington: National Park Service, U.S. Dept. of the Interior, 1959. Cotter, John L. Cotter, John L. Bibliography of Historical Sites Archaeology: Section I – Historical Site Artifacts. Section II – Historical Sites Excavation Reports, 1966. Cotter, John L. Handbook for Historical Archaeology. Philadelphia, 1968. Cotter, John L, and Roger W. Moss. The Walnut Street Prison Workshop: A Test Study in Historical Archaeology Based on Field Investigation in the Garden Area of the Athenaeum of Philadelphia. Philadelphia: Athenaeum of Philadelphia, 1988. Cotter, John L., Daniel G. Roberts, and Michael Parrington. The buried past: An archaeological history of Philadelphia. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992.