 Born in Glasgow to a middle @-@ class family , Wheeler was raised largely in Yorkshire before relocating to London in his teenage years . After studying Classics at University College London ( UCL ) , he began working professionally in archaeology , specializing in the Romano @-@ British period . During World War I he volunteered for service in the Royal Artillery , being stationed on the Western Front , where he rose to the rank of major and was awarded the Military Cross . Returning to Britain , he obtained his doctorate from UCL before taking on a position at the National Museum of Wales , first as Keeper of Archaeology and then as Director , during which time he oversaw excavation at the Roman forts of Segontium , Y <unk> , and <unk> Augusta with the aid of his first wife , Tessa Wheeler . <unk> by the archaeologist Augustus Pitt Rivers , Wheeler argued that excavation and the recording of <unk> context required an increasingly scientific and methodical approach , developing the " Wheeler Method " . In 1926 , he was appointed Keeper of the London Museum ; there , he oversaw a reorganisation of the collection , successfully lobbied for increased funding , and began lecturing at UCL . 
