This object has been deaccessioned and is no longer in the GRPM's collection
Native American
Native American - Southwest ➔ Ancestral Remains
Identifier:
1982.33.280Description:
These ancestral remains were repatriated in May 2025.Current Location Status:
RepatriatedCollection Tier:
Tier 1Source:
Estate of Ruth HerrickRelated Entities:
Estate of Dr. Ruth Herrick (donor)Born on July 6, 1895 in Ohio, Ruth Herrick became known as one of the first women physicians in Michigan. She studied at the University of Chicago Medical College and at Blodgett Memorial Hospital. Afterwards she began her practice in 1931 in Grand Rapids. She was an avid collector and took a strong interest in archaeology, having lectured at the Greenfield Village Museum and wrote and published a book entitled "Greentown glass: the Indiana Tumbler and Goblet Company and allied manufacturers (1959)". In 1961 she cooperated with the Kent County Medical Society in compiling a historic medical collection. She retired in 1973 and later passed away after an automobile accident on June 7, 1974, with many of her assets bequeathed to the Public Museum. Wilton Rancheria (consultation) Herman J. Rush (sold by)
Herman J. Rush was an artifact dealer in Belvidere, New Jersey. He also served as the secretary and treasure or the Leni-Lenape Indian Relic Collectors Association of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. E. D. Zimmerman (is related to)
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.