George Bird Grinnell (1849-1938) was an American anthropologist, historian, naturalist, and writer. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Yale University with a B. A. in 1870 and a Ph. D. in 1880. Originally specializing in zoology, he became a prominent early conservationist and student of Native American life. He has been recognized for his influence on public opinion and legislation which ultimately led to the preservation of the American buffalo. Grinnell's books and publications reflect his lifelong study of the northern American plains and the Plains tribes. He was a historian of the buffalo and their relationship with Plains tribal culture. His best-known works are on the Cheyenne, including The Fighting Cheyennes, published in 1915, and a two-volume work on The Cheyenne Indians (1923). In 1928, he presented the story of Frank Joshua North and Luther North in Two Great Scouts and their Pawnee Battalion. Other works on the Plains culture area focusing on the Pawnee and Blackfeet people include: Pawnee Hero Stories (1889), and The Story of the Indian (1895).
