Frank Hamilton Cushing (July 22, 1857 in North East Township, Erie County, Pennsylvania – April 10, 1900 in Washington, D.C.) was an American anthropologist and ethnologist who made pioneering studies of the Zuni Indians of New Mexico by entering into their culture; his work helped establish participant observation as a common anthropological research strategy. In recent years, however, questions have emerged about Cushing's activities among the Zuni. Consequently, Frank Cushing's work provides an important case study for considering the ethics of both ethnographic research and the generation of museum collections.
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Early life
Cushing was born in the borough of North East, Pennsylvania. He later moved with his family to Western New York. As a boy he took an interest in the Native American artifacts in the surrounding countryside and taught himself how to knap flint (make arrowheads and such from flint). He published his first scientific paper when he was 17.