November 2005
New “For Kids” web page on Archeology Program website
The Archeology Program web site has a new “For Kids” page, designed to help
young people learn about what archeologists do and how they work. The web
page has many images of children learning and working with archeologists,
as well as links to other interactive web pages. Suitable for children of
all ages, the page is also useful for teachers and adults looking to
encourage a child’s interest in archeology. Visit “For Kids” at
http://www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/PUBLIC/kids/index.htm.
Contact: Barbara Little, (202) 354-2130, [log in to unmask]
Archeology Program updates information
The Archeology Program has added three National Monument and Park profiles
to the “Accomplishments” section of the Antiquities Act Centennial
Commemoration web pages at <
http://www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/sites/Antiquities/accomplishments.htm>.
Devils Tower National Monument, Petrified Forest National Park (both
established in 1906), and Tonto National Monument (established in 1907)
were added to a growing list of profiles of early national monuments. The
profiles include cultural histories of the national monuments and comments
from visitors about the importance of these monuments. “It preserves our
heritage which is so important. We have lost too much. Without this park
and other national parks, we would lose it all” (comment of visitor to
Tonto National Monument).
Contact: Frank McManamon [log in to unmask]
Archeology Program staff attend ACRA meeting, Washington DC
Archeology Program staff Terry Childs and program manager Frank McManamon
attended the Friday session of the 10th annual American Cultural Resources
Association (ACRA) meeting in Washington DC on November 9-11, 2005. The
Archeology Program provided handouts on the National Anthropological
Database (NADB), Antiquities Act centennial activities, and other
Archeology Program services. NPS Associate Director, Cultural Resources,
Janet Snyder Matthews gave a presentation in the plenary session “The Role
of the Federal Government in Cultural Resource Management in the New
Millenium.” NPS Assistant Associate Director for Historical Documentation
Programs, Antoinette Lee gave a report on NPS cultural resources activities
in the session on Government Agency Updates.
ACRA (a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization) was incorporated in March,1995,
to serve the needs of the cultural resources industry in the United States,
estimated to be made up of over 500 firms employing over 10,000 people
working in a wide variety of fields, including historic preservation,
history, archaeology, architectural history, historical architecture, and
landscape architecture. ACRA’s mission is to promote the professional,
ethical and business practices of the cultural resources industry,
including all of its affiliated disciplines, for the benefit of the
resources, the public, and the members of the association.
ACRA website: www.acra-crm.org/index.html
The Archaeology Channel Features Videos on NPS Parks and Monuments
Videos about NPS parks and sites are available on The Archaeology Channel
(TAC) (www.archaeologychannel.org), the streaming-media Web site produced
by the nonprofit Archaeological Legacy Institute. National parks and
monuments featured in TAC videos include:
Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument,
Hopewell Culture National Historical Park,
Mesa Verde National Park,
Ocmulgee National Monument,
Shiloh National Military Park, and
Tonto National Monument.
Currently, the TAC Web site has 67 archeology videos available on-demand
without charge. The web site also includes a wide variety of audio
commentaries, interviews, stories, and other features, as well as teacher
resources, news, a bulletin board, archeological film festival information,
and Web links, all devoted to archeology. Membership information is
available at www.archaeologychannel.org/member.html.
Contact: ALI Executive Director Rick Pettigrew, [log in to unmask]
Chief Archeologists' Meeting, November 17
The Archeology Program, NPS, organized a meeting of federal agency chief
and lead archeologists on November 17, 2005, to discuss issues, projects,
and other topics of mutual concern and interest. Archeologists or others
from the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), Farm Security
Administration, Fish and Wildlife Service, Minerals Management Service,
National Park Service, Natural Resources Conservation Services, Army Corps
of Engineers, Bureau of Land Management, United States Army, and the United
States Navy attended.
Topics discussed during the meeting included status report and discussion
of reserved section of 36 CFR 79, on collection deaccessioning, led by
Terry Childs, NPS; developing technical assistance for permitting
archeological investigations on federal lands, led by Eugene Marino, FWS;
status report on the Secretary’s Report to Congress on the Federal
Archeology Program, led by Karen Mudar, NPS; Agency updates and discussion
on archeological resources as heritage assets, led by Frank McManamon;
providing for the preservation of and access to archeological data, led by
Frank McManamon; plans for commemoration of the Antiquities Act in 2006,
led by Robin Burgess, BLM; and an ACHP Archeology Task Force status report,
led by Laura Dean. The next Chief Archeologists’ Meeting is scheduled for
February, 2006.
Contact: Frank McManamon, [log in to unmask]
SEAC Produces Calendar
The NPS Southeast Archeological Center has produced a handsome calendar
FY2006 featuring some of the many activities that take place in association
with the protection and preservation of archeological resources in the
United States. The color photographs in the calendar show park and
volunteer staff carrying out archeological survey, excavation, analysis,
curation, and protection of prehistoric and historic archeological
resources. The publication of the calendar is one of the activities that
have taken place to commemorate the centennial of the Antiquities Act.
More information about Antiquities Act centennial celebrations is available
on the NPS Archeology Program web site at
www.cr.nps.gov/archeology/sites/Antiquities/centennial.htm. More
information about the Southeast Archeological Center is available at
www.cr.nps.gov/seac/acim.
Contact: John Ehrenhard, Director, [log in to unmask]
Projects in Parks: NPS Archeologists Conduct Archeological Site
Assessments after Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina, August 25, 2005, caused substantial damage to Dry
Tortugas NP and the Flamingo District of Everglades NP, major damage to the
Mississippi District of Gulf Islands NS, and extensive damage to units of
Jean Lafitte NHP&P and New Orleans Jazz NHP. The Incident Command Team
requested services of NPS archeologists to provide assessment of damage to
archeological properties at affected parks. Bob Sonderman, MRCE, and Mary
Troy, GWMP, provided an assessment of damage due to downed trees at
Chalmette National Battlefield and Cemetery. They recommend that human
remains and other cultural materials disturbed by uprooting of trees over
graves be re-interred after recording. Guy Prentice and Robert Wilson,
both SEAC, visited East and West Ship Islands, Gulf Island National
Seashore, and reported that the historic cemetery and the quarantine
station were now submerged, and that the French warehouse and the
lighthouse site had been severely affected. Fort Massachusetts sustained
damage from the storm surge. NPS employees can learn more about
archeological assessments of the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina by
going to the Archeology E-Gram: Projects in Parks webpage on Inside NPS.
Contacts:Guy Prentice, SEAC, [log in to unmask]; Mary Troy, GWMP,
[log in to unmask]; Bob Sonderman, MRCE, [log in to unmask]; Robert
Wilson, SEAC, [log in to unmask]
“Projects in Parks” is a feature of the Archeology E-Gram that serves to
inform others of interesting archeology-related projects in a national
park. To contribute project information, 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] to
contribute news items and to subscribe.
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