The Granger Papers Project is a collection of original primary source materials which have remained in the family. They were "re-discovered" in 1977 and include Walter and Anna Granger's personal diaries, letters, postcards and memorabilia from fossil expeditions to the Faiyum of Egypt (1907) and Central Asia (1921-1930), as well as a small quantity of newsclippings, third party letters, family records and other items. This rare and unique material is being researched by The Granger Papers Project for eventual publication.

Walter Granger fieldnote-keeping at Camp Margetts. The camp was located at a titanothere fossil site one-third of the way down the 100-mile long north-south caravan route that traversed the eastern edge of the Gobi Desert. It also provided a link between the northwesterly Kalgan-Urga route (at Iren Dabasu) and the more westerly Old Post Road (at the Urtyn Obo). Camp Margetts (Gobi), September 24, 1930.

Over the winters between summer season fossil-hunts in the Gobi, Granger worked from a remote fossil-collecting campsite 1,200 feet above the Yangtze River in the western highlands of Sichuan Province. He journeyed by boat from Shanghai upriver through the famous Yangtze River rapids and gorges to Wanxian. Though he ordinarily traveled between Peking and Shanghai by train, Granger chose to motor up by automobile in 1926. As he foreshadowed for his father in a four page letter, China's warlords so escalated their battling that the Expedition could not venture into the Gobi for the summer of 1926. Here is the first page:

"Peking, May 9, 1926
Dear Father: We drove to Peking on April 23d, just a month after breaking camp at Yen-Ching-Kou. The trip up took us five hours which included a half hour stop for lunch. Fifty of the 84 miles is fine going, twenty miles bad and the balance fair to midlin'. It's a special automobile road built by the Famine Relief Board a few years ago and is the longest stretch of regular auto road in China. Train service between Tientsin and Peking is still poor and it takes from nine to fifteen hours to make the run. Our crowd is all gathered and waiting for something to happen so that we may get up to Kalgan -- at present the opposing armies meet..."

These are from the first two pages of the 72-page daily account kept by Walter Granger during this trailblazing American fossil-collecting expedition to the Faiyum of Egypt in 1907. Granger was the expedition's leader. He was aided by Albert "Bill" Thomson and an Arab work party of 20 men. An independent Austrian collector named Richard Markgraf, who was already in the field for German paleontologists, lent his assistance as well:

"Wed. Jan. 23,
Weather pleasant. African coast in sight at sunrise. Anchored in Alexandria harbor at about 9 o'clock. Passengers were landed first and baggage was late in following. Everyone anxious to get his aboard the special train first. About a hundred native porters (Cook's & independent) to handle baggage..."

"Thurs. Jan. 24,
Capt. Lyons of the Survey Dept. called on Prof. O. this A.M. Went with Osborn & Lyons to the Geological Museum (Branch of the Survey Department). Small Museum with fine display of invertebrates and vertebrates from the Fayum. One adult and two young Arsinoitherium skulls, very fine. Preparation work excellent. Done by man sent in from British Museum. Prof. O. is negotiating with Cook's for an outfit. Capt. Lyons has sent up to Helouan for one Daoud Mohammed, Beadnell's Chief native assistant. He is to report at the Museum and be placed at our disposal for the Fayum trip."

Anna Granger usually remained in Peking while Walter Granger was in the Gobi with the Central Asiatic Expeditions. Although they were in the middle of the Gobi, the Expedition was always within reasonable reach of the various telegraph, postal, and camel caravan routes that spanned the Mongolias west and north from China. Here Anna is passing information about Walter to his father, who was also her uncle:

Peking, June 19, 1928.
Dear Uncle Charles: Recently I receved a letter from Walter dated May 24th. A caravan of sixty camels returning eastward passed the camp and Walter intrusted the letter to one of the camel drivers --- to post when he reached Kalgan. The camels were some who have been with the explorer, Sven Hedin, the last year. Both the animals and their drivers used to be with the Andrew's party, so there was much visiting going on at the camp between the servants and the camel men. Yesterday I was surprised to get a telegram from Ehrlien from Walter. He said that the Western trip had been abandoned and that the remainder of the season would be spent east of the Kalgan[-]Urga trail. He gave no mailing address, because there is no postal service in that section any more than there was in the Western Gobi. He may have a chance to send something again by some traveler. He said he was well, and that Andrews was getting better all the time. Peking is now in the hands of the Southerners. The change was accomplished without any disturbance except that for thirteen days there was no train service between us and Tientsin. Anna."

This letter was written at Harold J. Cook's ranch at Agate in western Nebraska. It was mailed from a small, one-room post office there. Though no longer in service, the old post office still stands in a cottonwood grove that also shades the Cook ranch house and complex along the road between Harrison and Scottsbluff. Directly across the road is Agate Fossil National Monument, a fossil mammal locality that was extensively worked by Granger's longtime colleague, Albert "Bill" Thomson, during the 1910s and 20s. Four days after the letter below was written, Granger and Bill Thomson headed west over the state line to Lusk, Wyoming. Granger died that night, of heart failure, at 11 o'clock in his room at the Rainger Hotel. He was 68:

"Agate, Nebr. Sept. 2, 1941
My dear: Yesterday was a rather strenuous day -- 154 miles with many stops and much talking about the various formations etc. Interesting but a bit wearying except to the younger fellows. Colbert has gone on to Lincoln and will be back toward the end of the week and then we shall be getting back to normal. Weather wonderful now -- that lovely fall coolness has set in and should continue. My love to you dear. I'm hoping to get accumulated mail at Lusk, from Max. Bill, of course, is particularly anxious to hear from home. Walter

I'll send you on some of the stuff about this meeting later. It was an experiment and seems to have been a success."