Paralleling John’s academic studies in philosophy at Claremont College and the University of Wisconsin Madison, he began pursuing his interest in native American philosophy and history. In conjunction with this, as well as an interest in art, he hiked the mountains near his home in California to view native rock art sites. Eventually, while searching for sites, he visited the UC Santa Barbara campus map room and there came across an old map showing a “Tejon Indian Reservation.” It was located in the mountains south of Bakersfield. Curious, having never heard of this “reservation,” John took the map to the Santa Barbara Indian Center to ask about it. No-one there had seen an official survey of the reservation before. Shortly following this event, a (then) graduate student in Native American Studies, Dr. Gregory Schaaf, knocked on John’s office door and said the Indian Center had asked Greg to research the map. Thus began an intriguing new direction for Dr. Anderson’s work, and 40-plus years of collaboration with Native American friends and academics including Dr. Schaaf.