October 2005
New lesson plan on web page
The latest addition to the Teaching with Historic Places series is, Tonto
National Monument: Saving a National Treasure. In this lesson, which
benefited from extensive comments and support from park staff, students
learn about one of the nation's most important conservation laws--the
Antiquities Act of 1906. Passage of the Act preserved important cultural
sites such as Tonto National Monument, which preserves remnants of the
Salado culture settlements that date to a time prior to European contact.
The lesson plan in online at:
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/125tonto/.
Contact: Barbara Little, [log in to unmask]
Visit Archeology Guide
In support of Preserve America and widespread interest in heritage tourism,
the Archeology Program has added a guide to visiting archeological places
across the nation. Visit Archeology
www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/visit/index.htm includes links to museums,
national parks, state parks, and historical societies that involve
archeology in telling our diverse local and national history. The page
includes two sections: a national map, with links to museums’ and parks’
archeological sites or themes throughout the U.S.; and a guide to
locations, museums, and parks along the northeast coast that are linked to
the 1604-1607 French explorations described by Samuel de Champlain in his
Journals. Additional sections of the guide are being developed, including
archeology of American cities and African American sites.
Contact: Barbara Little, [log in to unmask]
Two Archeologists Receive Albright-Wirth Grants
Jeff Burton (WACC) and Meredith Hardy (SEAC) were among 26 NPS employees
awarded Albright-Wirth grants for FY2006. Burton will use his grant to
research and produce a popular guide of World War II Japanese-American
relocation sites. Hardy plans to use her grant to inventory, analyze, and
interpret archeological materials from the Salt River site, St. Croix, U.S.
Virgin Islands, that were excavated in 1951.
The Albright-Wirth Grant program, an endowment jointly managed by the NPS
and the National Park Foundation, promotes professional career development
through an annual grants competition. Seasonal, intermittent, term,
subject-to-furlough, as well as permanent employees can receive up to
$5,000 to assist in the achievement of career goals. NPS employees may
apply through the My Learning Manager website (
http://mylearning/cfdocs/mlm_custom/SSO/login.cfm).
Contact for the Albright-Wirth Program: Victoria Clarke,
[log in to unmask]
NPS Special Agent publishes article in SAA Archeological Record
Todd Swain, NPS Special Agent and Case Agent for Operation Indian Rocks
ARPA Task Force, and Tim Canaday, BLM archeologist (former NPS
archeologist), published “Operation Indian Rocks, Conducting Interagency
ARPA investigations” in the September 2005 issue of the SAA Archeological
Record (Volume 5, No.4 www.saa.org/publications/thesaaarchrec/index.html).
In addition to documenting the history of a case involving the apprehension
and prosecution of five individuals who had removed artifacts from federal
lands, the article provides much useful information for agency officials
responsible for carrying out archeological resource protection on public
lands.
In February 2005 Interior Department Secretary Norton presented the
Conservation Service Award to Swain and other members of the task force for
investigating and prosecuting a looting ring that stole artifacts from
archeological sites. Law enforcement recovered more than 11,000 artifacts
and convicted the defendants under the Archaeological Resources Protection
Act. NPS employees can learn more about the case and link to an newspaper
article by Swain in the February 2005 Archeology E-Gram, archived on the
Archeology E-Gram webpage on Inside NPS.
Contact: Frank McManamon, [log in to unmask]
Archeology Program updates information
The Archeology program has updated the links and information in the
Research in the Parks webpage: www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/sites/npsites.htm.
“Edgar Lee Hewett and the political process,”
www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/pubs/antiq/index.htm also has been added to the
Antiquities Act Centennial pages
www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/sites/Antiquities/about.htm. Author Ray Thompson
presents a detailed and fascinating view into the final stages of gestation
of the legal foundation for public archeology and historic preservation in
the United States. Thompson shows that Hewett's familiarity with local
concerns about federal land management in the Southwest, as well as his
growing scholarly status and involvement in professional organizations,
enabled him to serve as midwife in the final push to enact the Antiquities
Act. On the main page for the Antiquities Act of 1906-2006 centennial
commemoration at www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/sites/antiquities/index.htm,
you’ll find more about the significance of the Act for archeology and for
the American public, and continuing efforts to protect archeological
heritage. The site also includes an interactive map of National Monuments
and a calendar of events related to the centennial.
Contact: Barbara Little, [log in to unmask]
Meeting Scheduled at the American Anthropological Association Annual
Meeting, December, 2005
An open meeting during the AAA annual meeting in Washington, DC, will
provide an opportunity for discussion of possible plans for commemoration
of Antiquities Act in 2006 and, in particular, during the AAA annual
meeting. The planning meeting will be held on Saturday, December 3, 2005,
from 12:15-1:30 in the Delaware-B room of the Marriott hotel and is open to
all conference attendees. Topics addressed at commemorative events held
earlier include: the intent of the act, and the ways that the deliberate
choices of terminology affected its implementation; the cultural, economic,
and political factors that influenced the act’s passage as the first
national law protecting archaeological resources and one of the most
important conservation acts ever enacted; and the use of the act’s
authority to establish significant national monuments. The associated
papers and panel summaries are available on the Archeology Program’s
Antiquities Act Centennial webpage
www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/sites/Antiquities/centennial.htm.
Contact: Teresa Moyer, [log in to unmask]
Projects in Parks: Documenting Tlingit, Russian, and American History at
Sitka National Historical Park
Sitka National Historical Park, Alaska, preserves a variety of historical
resources, including the site of the landmark 1804 Battle of Sitka between
the Kiks.ádi Tlingit and Russian fur traders intent on colonization. The
site remains a place of historical significance for the Tlingit people
today. This past summer the park began a four-year archeological survey
funded through the Systemwide Archeological Inventory Program (SAIP) to
identify and document the full range of sites in the park, with special
interest in locations and structures associated with the 1804 battle. The
NPS Midwest Archaeological Center is conducting the survey with an
experienced team of archeologists skilled in remote sensing and battlefield
archeology. Initial survey has located evidence of the battle, subsurface
anomalies that may represent Russian homesteads, and possible Tlingit
fishing stations and habitations. NPS employees can learn more about this
project by going to the Archeology E-Gram: Projects in Parks webpage on
Inside NPS.
Contacts: Kristen Griffin (SITK) [log in to unmask]; Gene Griffin
(SITK) [log in to unmask]
“Projects in Parks” is a new feature of the Archeology E-Gram that serves
to inform others of interesting archeology-related projects in a national
park. To contribute a news item, contact Karen Mudar, [log in to unmask]
Archeology E-Gram, distributed via e-mail on a regular basis, includes
announcements about news, new publications, training opportunities,
national and regional meetings, and other important goings-on related to
public archeology in the National Park Service and other public agencies.
Recipients are encouraged to forward Archeology E-Grams to colleagues and
relevant mailing lists and new subscribers are accepted. Past issues of
the Archeology E-Gram are available on the Archeology E-Gram webpage,
accessed through the Archeology homepage, on Inside NPS. Contact Karen
Mudar, Archeology Program, NPS, at (202) 354-2103, [log in to unmask]
Karen M. Mudar, Ph.D.
National Park Service
Archeology Program
1849 C Street NW (2275)
Washington, DC 20240
202-354-2103 phone
202-371-5102 fax
|
