Douglas W. Owsley (born July 21, 1951) is an American anthropologist who is the curator of Biological Anthropology at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History (NMNH). He is a respected and well-known forensic anthropologist and archaeologist who has been involved in several high-profile investigations. In September 2001, he provided scientific analysis at the military mortuary located at Dover Air Force Base, following the 9/11 attack in Washington, D.C. The following year, the US Department of Defense honored him with the Commander's Award for Civilian Service for helping in the identification of 60 federal and civilian victims who died when American Airlines Flight 77 hit the Pentagon.
Other notable cases include analysis and identification of Jeffrey Dahmer's first victim; excavation and study of the H. L. Hunley Confederate submarine in Charleston Harbor; excavation of the historic Jamestown Colony; analysis and identification of 82 victims of the siege at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas; processing and identification of US servicemen killed during Operation Desert Storm; and research, analysis, and identification of individuals buried in 17th-century iron coffins discovered in the Chesapeake Bay area of Maryland.Benedict 2003, page ix
Owsley was also involved in the debate over claims of ownership and ancestry of the Kennewick Man, which he analysed and erroneously concluded that the remains were not related to present-day Native Americans. The 1996 discovery of the skeletal remains of the prehistoric Paleo-Indian man dating back to a calibrated age of 9,800 years in Kennewick, Washington, along the Columbia River sparked much academic debate and resulted in an extended court battle that Owsley was a party to.Benedict 2003, page 86Benedict 2003, page 102 He has worked on archaeological excavations and skeletal analyses on populations from colonial North America, Plains Indians and from Polynesia. As part of his work with the Smithsonian, he has overseen the forensic examination of over 13,000 skeletons and human remains originating from over an estimated 10,000 years ago.
Owsley's 2003 biography, No Bone Unturned: Inside the World of a Top Forensic Scientist and His Work on America's Most Notorious Crimes and Disasters, was published by HarperCollins, and served as the basis of a Discovery Channel documentary entitled Skeleton Clues, as well as an ABC News 20/20 segment entitled Murders, Mysteries, History Revealed in Bones. He was also featured in the film Nightmare in Jamestown, produced by National Geographic. In 2005, Owsley was honored alongside other influential figures in the list of "35 Who Made a Difference," published in the November issue of the Smithsonian Magazine.
Personal background Douglas W. Owsley was born on July 21, 1951, in Sheridan, Wyoming. He is the son of William "Bill" and Norma Lou (née Cooke) Owsley. The family lived in the ranching community of Lusk, Wyoming, located in the eastern part of the state, from the Nebraska state border. His father was a game warden with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, while his mother was a painter and stained glass artist.Benedict 2003, pages 4–5 During his youth, Owsley attended Sunday school classes at the St. George's Episcopal Church of Lusk.Benedict 2003, page 292
The that made up the Lusk community is surrounded by the eastern extension of the Black Hills National Forest. The nearby forest and foothills stirred Owsley's interest in nature and science.Benedict 2003, page 2 Highly interested in the biology of animals, he grew up viewing wildlife and their carcasses as specimens from which to learn. He often asked questions of his teachers, displaying an "unquenchable curiosity" and desire to learn.Benedict 2003, page xi When he was a child, he viewed his first archaeological excavation, when he joined his father on one of his job sites. While his father spent most of his time at work, Owsley participated in scouting, eventually reaching the rank of an Eagle Scout.Benedict 2003, page 4
When he was nine years old, Owsley set up a makeshift chemistry lab in the family basement, using tools and materials that came with a Christmas gift. One day, he began experimenting and combined some of his chemicals with some of his mother's bathroom cleaning solutions and developed an anesthetic. Testing out his new concoction, he discovered that he could cause the native brown-spotted horned toad (or lizard) to fall asleep and become temporarily unconscious. Out of curiosity, he cut open a toad to take a closer look at the internal organs. He recorded everything that happened, noting that the heart continued beating and the lungs continued to draw breath. Afterwards, he carefully closed the wound with supplies from his mother's sewing kit. When the toad continued to show signs of life, apparently unharmed, he released it safely in the backyard pond.Benedict 2003, page 5
In summer 1962, Owsley and Lyon were exploring an abandoned silver mine, when they discovered the skeletal remains of a large horse. Fascinated, they raced home and returned with their red wagons to gather the bones and take them to their converted chicken coop lab on the Lyon property.Benedict 2003, pages 2–6 They wanted to reassemble the bones and build the horse's skeleton, similar to the dinosaur skeletons they saw in their school's science films. Once all of the bones were transported to the "lab", they spread the bones out and sorted them by size and shape. Over the summer, without the assistance of textbooks or diagrams, they spent their free time matching various bones that looked like they fit together, much like assembling a jigsaw puzzle. After two months, in the last week of their summer break, the boys finished rebuilding the horse skeleton. Owsley later said, "When we're scientists someday, I'll bet we could be in National Geographic."
Marriage and family When Owsley was growing up in Lusk, Wyoming, his future wife was living just four blocks away.Benedict 2003, page 35 They grew up in the same neighborhood and attended the same schools. When Susie celebrated with him at his second grade birthday party, he developed a crush. By the time he was in tenth grade, the attraction was mutual. He told her that he would marry her someday.Benedict 2003, page 36 Following high school, other priorities took over when Susie went on to nursing school in Denver, Colorado, and Owsley enrolled at the University of Wyoming. After they both graduated, they returned to Lusk and married in their neighborhood church. After their wedding, they relocated to the University of Tennessee, where Owsley continued his education and his wife joined the nursing staff of the university.
In May 1978, just prior to Owsley receiving his Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Tennessee, their first daughter, Hilary was born. Their second daughter, Kimberly was born two years later, in September 1980. , Owsley and his wife reside in a rural farmhouse on in Jeffersonton, Virginia.Benedict 2003, pages xii, 263–264
Educational background University of Wyoming After graduation from Niobrara County High School in 1969, Owsley began pursuing a medical career, studying Zoology at the University of Wyoming. He was a "straight A student", earning perfect scores while preparing to go to medical school. Owsley had plans to become a physician.Benedict 2003, page 7
During his junior year, Owsley signed up for an introductory course in anthropology taught by George Gill, who became a valuable mentor to him. The following year, Gill suggested that he consider signing up for a couple of graduate-level classes focusing on human evolution and osteology. At the end of the semester, he recorded the highest scores in both classes, ahead of the current graduate students. Excited with what he was discovering in these two classes, Owsley began considering a career in anthropology.Benedict 2003, pages 6–8
During Owsley's senior year, one of his classmates found what appeared to be a human skull, while exploring the Absaroka Range, near Meeteetse, Wyoming. Gill reported the discovery of the remains to the Wyoming State archaeologist's Office, who authorized him to recover it. Prompted by Owsley's enthusiasm with learning more about the study of skeletal remains, Gill invited him to accompany him when he went to the site to excavate the remains.Benedict 2003, page 6
Following his professor's lead, Owsley assisted with the excavation, using tools to carefully remove the surrounding soil and organic materials to reveal the remains of two Native Americans wrapped in buffalo robes. Careful not to disturb or move the remains, they photographed the bodies to document the exact position in which they were found. After returning to the university campus, Owsley switched his major from pre-med to anthropology.Benedict 2003, pages 8–11
Later that same year, Gill took Owsley with him to Mexico to participate in an archaeological dig, where he assisted in excavating ancient Aztec remains. Gill served as his academic advisor and continued as a mentor throughout his life. Of the initial excavation in Mexico, Gill remembers, "Doug was naive and wide-eyed. He didn't even know where Kansas was, and it was two states over. But he was tremendously intelligent and inquisitive."
One summer, Gill invited Owsley to attend the annual American Association of Physical Anthropologists meeting held in Kansas. While at the conference, Owsley met Dr. Bill Bass, the chair of the University of Tennessee's anthropology department, who was recognized as the most well-respected and in-demand forensic anthropologists in the US, having recovered more American Indian remains than any other scientist working in the same field.Benedict 2003, page 11 Following their introduction, Bass invited him to apply to the school's new program at the Anthropological Research Facility.
University of Tennessee, Knoxville After receiving his Bachelor of Science degree in zoology in 1973, Owsley enrolled at the University of Tennessee, where he simultaneously served as an assistant professor. It was here that he completed his Master's degree and earned his Ph.D. in Physical Anthropology in 1978. During this time, he worked with Bass, as well as Dr. Richard Jantz, who both greatly influenced him in his career.
In choosing the topic for his Master's thesis, Bass convinced Owsley to study skeletal remains discovered in the Arikara Larson Village and cemetery in South Dakota, alongside the Missouri River and present a demographic analysis of the tribe that lived in the area.Benedict 2003, page 12 The initial discovery of the village was part of the Smithsonian's participation in the Missouri River Basin Surveys Project, sponsored by the federal government between 1945 and 1969. The program provided for the excavation of roughly of the basin for archaeological remains in long-abandoned cemeteries that would soon be washed away due to the building of a new local dam and reservoir. Bass had recovered human remains in the area on behalf of the Smithsonian from 1956 to 1970.Steckel 2002, page 535
Under the direction of Bass, Owsley reviewed and identified the age and gender of 762 of the Arikara excavated during the survey project. Gender indicated both male and female, but there was wide discrepancy in the ages of the individuals. The number of deceased men was high, but there were only a handful of children or young child-bearing women found in the village. This analytical data provided the basis for Owsley's Master's thesis. He included a comparative study of the mortality rates of both genders and presented a viable rationale for the wide gap in the age at death among the Arikara people.Benedict 2003, pages 12–13