Description
Mr. E. D. Zimmerman was an amateur archaeologist. He was known to excavate burial mounds. An August 22, 1962 letter written by Ruth Herrick (as told by artifact dealer Herman J. Rush) describes Zimmerman: "[He was] known as the grave robber of the West, he had as many as 15 sheriffs search for him with warrants for his arrest. When he descended on a burial ground, he posted sentries, worked like mad, and was off before the property owner arrived at the scene. Of Penna. Dutch descent, sent West as a lunger, and an amateur archaeologist, he occupied his time in digging up Indian graves, some thousands of years old, and other, no doubt, of the day before. His collection, which was a large one, has been absorbed into many collections, and since most of this artifacts were unlabelled have lost their identity.