Help SV-POW! find the reference for this paper by Untermann and Untermann
July 19, 2022
We have many times been in the position of having the reference for a paper and wanting to find the full text. But I think this is a first: I have the full text of a paper, and I want to find the reference!
The paper is a short one — just two pages — so I will reproduce it in its entirely right here in the blog-post:
As you can see, it’s by Billie R. Untermann and her husband G. Ernest Untermann — both important figure in the history of the Utah Field House museum whose history they were chronicling. The report doesn’t have a running header with the journal title, date, volume or issue, or even page number. We know nothing except that we can guess the date is 1970 or 1971 because of the closing statement that “1971 will be one of its greatest years”.
How can the source be tracked down?
I tried asking around on Twitter, but that didn’t pan out. A couple of people there suggested the G. Ernest Untermann papers collection, at Archives West. But John Foster kindly went through those boxes without turning it up, so our best hope struck out. John also had the had the University of Utah library go through the State Parks newsletters, which seemed the most likely venue, but again without success.
So over to you, dear readers. Can anyone come up with a route to track down the source of this report? To whoever comes up with the reference, I offer the shiny prize of formal acknowledgement in a forthcoming paper.
Sauropod Vertebra Picture of the Week 
July 19, 2022 at 9:09 pm
Look. This is a long shot but you may want to try the Utah State Parks newsletter “the Pow Wow” for writings from 1893-1975.
The Washington Park Zoo
Delaney Hunter Foundation
Arthur G. Nord and Earl Douglas family for private correspondence.
These are all the areas that the Untermanns have published something in.
July 20, 2022 at 10:24 am
Dale, is the “Pow Wow” different from the State Parks newsletters that John Foster had UU people go through?
July 20, 2022 at 12:28 pm
I imagine you’ve tried this, but just in case: https://vertpaleo.org/bibliography-of-fossil-vertebrates-the-indexed-published-literature-of-vertebrate-paleontology-1509-1993/
July 20, 2022 at 12:46 pm
Good idea, but it didn’t help. Going to https://www.bfvol.org/ and submitting the query
au='untermann'yields only six references, all from 1959 or earlier. Thanks anyway!July 20, 2022 at 4:43 pm
Another long shot but one you may have already considered, could this be a local newspaper article?
July 20, 2022 at 4:45 pm
Not impossible, Ann, but it doesn’t look like a newspaper — especially one from the 1970s, when fonts were smaller and pages were bigger. I think it’s more like a society newsletter or similar, which is why the State Parks newsletter seemed like such a promising possibility.
July 20, 2022 at 5:09 pm
I’d agree, it feels more like a natural history society newsletter, especially the part about Andy Anderson going on vacation after completing the 1972/73 budget.
Regarding the database, did you notice this statement: “Currently, the database covers the years 1509-1968 and 1981 – 1993”.
So the critical period is missing, but presumably you could consult the hard copy version?
July 20, 2022 at 5:25 pm
There’s a whole set of volumes online about the local history of that part of Utah. I’ve not looked at this one closely, but there’s a great picture of what seems to be a sauropod excavation on page 348:
July 21, 2022 at 12:06 am
Have you contacted John Foster at the Utah Field House in Vernal?
July 21, 2022 at 7:57 am
Dan, I noted in the post above that John has already gone out of his way for me, sadly without success. (I agree he seems the person who would be most likely to be able to help.)
July 22, 2022 at 1:07 am
Maybe this helps? https://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:80444/xv38626
July 22, 2022 at 1:11 am
This might be from the “Pow Wow” newsletter for the Utah State Parks and Recreation Commission employees, which the Untermanns wrote for during the 1960s and early 1970s.
July 27, 2022 at 7:45 am
Late and possibly not helpful but I also think that “Pow Wow” seems to be the likely source. The style of writing, formatting, the Untermann’s “signing” their contribution (rather than a byline preceding it), the interposed joke about wedding rings, and mention of Andy’s holiday all suggest a publication of that nature.
However, time-wise, I think that 1972 is more likely. It is stated that the museum is “now 23 years old” which, given that it opened and was dedicated in the latter half of 1947, suggests that the article was written no earlier than the latter half of 1971.
Andy took his holiday after “doing” the 1972-73 budget, something that I think was probably completed in the first half of 1972, and possibly in the second quarter.
https://archives.utah.gov/ is down for me right now but I found this on the Internet Archive –
https://web.archive.org/web/20211204015115/https://archives.utah.gov/research/inventories/27582.html
They’re missing a few of the issues from the period of interest but the ones that they do have appear to be later dates than those that John Foster has trawled through. Worth a shot?
July 27, 2022 at 10:09 am
Thanks, Mark, that is indeed helpful, and I will dig into that archive when I have the chance. But:
Why would the Untermanns write “1971 will be one of its greatest years” in 1972?
Work on the museum was begun on 16 October 1947 and completed on 1 July 1948, and the building was dedicated on 29 October 1948 by Governor Maw. So “now 23 years old” would most reasonably mean 23 years after 1948, i.e. 1971.
July 30, 2022 at 10:03 am
Why would the Untermanns write “1971 will be one of its greatest years” in 1972?
The future thing that they are referring to could be the year 1971 or it could be the assessment of 1971’s greatness or otherwise. I might say to you now that 2021 will be one of the best years for farnarkling and you could reasonably assume that I am referring to some comparison that could be made in the future between 2021 and past & following years, rather than that I think it’s 2020.
Ugh, typo. Yes, I meant 1948. Add 23 years for the latter half of 1971 being the earliest date for publication. We also don’t know how much lag there was between them writing the article and it being published. 23.5 years would push the publication date into 1972.
So, unless Andy “did” the 1972-73 budget *and* took his holiday before Dec 1971, I think that 1972 (and prob Apr or later) is much more likely as a publishing date.