From a practical point of view, this project stems from the 1988 Economic History Association meetings held in Detroit, for which Winifred Rothenberg organized a session on the Neolithic Revolution featuring papers by anthropologists George Armelagos, Alan Goodman, Debra Martin, and Jerome Rose. Familiar with the research on stature by economic historians, Jerome had contacted Richard Steckel prior to the meetings to arrange for discussion of common interests in the health and nutrition of the black population. Over coffee, they agreed that the fields of economic history and physical anthropology had much to learn from each other, but they also lamented the impediments to communication. Although using data of interest to historians, physical anthropology journals published rather technical articles, which often focused on skeletons from narrow geographic sites of excavation and which assumed considerable training in human biology. Ordinary historians could not read, much less contribute to, this vehicle of publication. Similarly, physical anthropologistswere largely untrained in issues and methods of interest to historians and were unfamiliar with the conventions of publication in that field.

Nevertheless, Steckel and Rose sensed that an important research opportunity was available. The quincentennial of 1492 was just around the corner, which would help focus research interests in both fields. The issue was how to bring the groups together for interdisciplinary research. They organized a small planning conference, funded by Ohio State University and by the Wenner-Gren Foundation, at Ohio State University in the fall of 1990.