August 2006
NPS Archeologist and Historian Win National Cultural Resource Award—Work at
Shenandoah and Mesa Verde NPs Recognized
The work of Larry V. Nordby, Research Archeologist Emeritus at Mesa Verde
National Park and Reed Engle, Chief, Cultural Resources at Shenandoah
National Park, has been recognized with the 2005 Appleman-Judd-Lewis Award
for Excellence in Cultural Resource Management. David M. Verhey, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife and Parks made
the award and remarks at the ceremony. He noted that the Department and
the Service were “…proud to recognize Larry’s and Reed’s skill, knowledge,
professionalism, vision, and unwavering commitment to public service with
this year’s Appleman-Judd-Lewis Award. Because of their work, we know more
about ancient civilizations in the southwest and have found engaging ways
to invite the public to explore a little history with their hiking trails.
Larry and Reed personify the qualities that inspire all of us to do our
jobs better so we can preserve these places unsurpassed natural beauty and
authentic history.”
Engle has been the driving force in expanding the focus of Shenandoah
National Park beyond natural resources to appreciate and embrace the
significance of the park's cultural resources and changing how those
resources are treated, managed, and shared with the public. Nordby was
instrumental in establishing a program to manage and protect more than
4,700 archeological sites at Mesa Verde National Park. The award was
presented in a ceremony in Washington DC on 17 August. The award was
established in 1970. It is named for three well-respected, long-time
National Park Service employees: historian Roy E. Appleman, historical
architect Henry A. Judd, and curator Ralph H. Lewis. Recipients receive
an engraved crystal bowl award and $2,500.
Contact Information: Randy Biallas, [log in to unmask]
Archeologist Jeff Burton Honored
The Japanese American Citizens League (JACL) honored Manzanar National
Historic Site (NHS) archeologist Jeff Burton with a special recognition
award at the JACL's 39th Biennial National Convention, held in Chandler,
Arizona, this past June. With 113 chapters located in 23 states, the JACL
is the oldest and largest Asian American civil and human rights
organization in the United States. The award recognizes Burton and his
wife, Mary Farrell, for their work in civil rights as an extension of their
efforts in preserving and interpreting the cultural resources associated
with the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Burton
began working on the archeology of Japanese American internment sites at
Manzanar NHS in 1993. There, he recorded not only features and artifacts
associated with the relocation center, but also Native American, ranching,
and farming sites that predated World War II. In 1999, Burton documented
the structures, features, and artifacts remaining at other sites related to
the Japanese American relocation. Over 10,000 copies of the resulting
report, "Confinement and Ethnicity: An Overview of Japanese American
Relocation Sites," were distributed by the National Park Service; it is now
available on the internet
(www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/anthropology74) and an updated version
has been published by the University of Washington Press. The report is
regularly referred to in any discussion regarding the internment. Burton
has also done archeological work at Minidoka Internment National Monument,
prepared a National Historic Landmark (NHL) nomination for the Tule Lake
Segregation Center, and co-authored the NHL theme study "Japanese
Americans in World War II." Burton’s work has incorporated a diversity of
voices and stories, helped define the long-term management of the
internment sites, enhanced the public's direct involvement in the planning
process, and facilitated the NPS efforts to reach out to diverse groups in
the telling of these complex and controversial histories. After nearly 20
years at the Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Burton was
transferred to Manzanar National Historic Site earlier this year, although
he continues to be based in Tucson.
Contact Information: Alisa M Lynch, [log in to unmask]
USFS and NPS explore becoming PIT partners
The USFS Passport in Time (PIT) has been a popular volunteer program in the
Forest Service for over 17 years. In an effort to expand opportunities for
the public to volunteer in historic preservation, the FS is exploring ways
to engage other federal agencies in the program. PIT began as a way to
meet public demand for meaningful involvement in historic preservation and
to coordinate volunteer efforts in cultural resource stewardship. Today,
PIT is much more. Volunteers do, indeed, accomplish much needed work on
historic properties but perhaps the biggest benefit of PIT is that the
volunteers become knowledgeable and vocal advocates of historic
preservation.
Contact: Jill A. Osborn, Heritage Public Programs, USFS, [log in to unmask]
Presidio launches California History and Archaeology Education Program
The Shaw Fund has awarded a $107,000 grant to the Presidio Trust and the
University of California, Berkeley (UC, Berkeley) to support the launch of
the Presidio Archaeology Education Program, a unique hands-on program to
educate students from San Francisco schools about the military, colonial,
and pre-colonial history of California.
Set in the Presidio of San Francisco, the aim of the program is to engage
students in the rich history, archeology and natural heritage of the state.
The program will emphasize programs for fourth grade students, when they
typically study California history. “The Presidio archeology program
captured our imaginations,” said Alec Shaw, a principal of the Shaw Fund.
“There is so much history here, right in San Francisco’s back yard. This
program is an excellent way for young students to participate directly in
the adventure of archeological excavation, and in the process discover
California history first hand.”
Presidio Trust archeologists have been working to uncover the foundations
of the original Spanish El Presidio, one of the two oldest buildings in San
Francisco. Trust archeologists are collaborating with researchers and K-12
experts from UC Berkeley to design and direct the program. This partnership
between the Presidio Trust, the Shaw Fund, and UC Berkeley ensures that the
Archaeology Education Program has a sustainable future.” The generous grant
from the Shaw Fund served as the catalyst for the University to match the
grant in kind with teaching and administrative resources,” said Michael
Ashley, the coordinator for the UC Berkeley program.
The Presidio reflects more than 200 years of military history under three
flags. From March 28, 1776, when Spain’s Lieutenant Colonel Juan Bautista
de Anza erected a cross on the Punta del Cantil Blanco on the Golden Gate,
until October 1, 1994, when the U.S. Sixth Army left and the Presidio
became a national park, the Presidio of San Francisco was a military post
with local, regional, continental and global connections. Before the
arrival of Europeans in 1769, the indigenous Ohlone people seasonally
occupied villages in what is now the San Francisco peninsula and gathered
shellfish along the Presidio’s bay shore. The Presidio has been a national
historic landmark since 1962, and is one of the largest historic
preservation projects now underway in the nation.
In collaboration with educational, nonprofit and governmental
organizations, the Shaw Fund supports hands-on education for K-12 students
in the San Francisco area. The Fund provides early stage funding, business
development and programming support, with the aim of catalyzing the
participation of other funders and strategic partners to create long-term
sustainable programs.
The University of California at Berkeley has been a long standing partner
with the Presidio in key research, public outreach and educational
programs. The current project team is coordinated by the Office of the
Chief Information Officer, in cooperation with the Archaeological Research
Facility, the Department of Anthropology, the Interactive University
Project and the Multimedia Authoring Center for Teaching in Anthropology
(MACTiA).
For more information on the Presidio or the Presidio Trust, please visit:
www.presidio.gov
For more information on the Shaw Foundation, contact Alex Gault at (415)
987-1002 or [log in to unmask]
For more information about UC, Berkeley’s program with the Presidio,
contact Michael Ashley at (510) 501-8981 or [log in to unmask]
Projects in Parks: Archeology at the U.S. Armory, Harpers Ferry NHP
The Harpers Ferry NHP Archeology Program is currently in the second year of
a three-year long study of the historical U.S. Armory Grounds. The Armory
at Harpers Ferry is a site of the first order of significance, and has
associations with nationally important historical figures, such as George
Washington, Meriwether Lewis, Robert E. Lee, and John Brown. Harpers
Ferry’s role in supplying munitions is equally important to the history of
the United States. For nearly 65 years, between 1799 and 1861, factories
at Harpers Ferry made the nation's weapons. During the time of its
operation, weapons manufacturing at Harpers Ferry Armory evolved from a
craft-oriented process to a system of mass production of interchangeable
parts. This archeological investigation provides a tremendous opportunity
to learn about 19th century manufacturing in general, and arms production
in particular.
NPS employees who can access the NPS intranet can learn more about this
project by going to Projects in Parks <
http://inside.nps.gov/waso/custommenu.cfm?lv=3&prg=279&id=3670> on
InsideNPS.
“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. Past reports are available on the Projects in Parks webpage,
accessed through the Archeology homepage, on InsideNPS.
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 InsideNPS. Contact Karen
Mudar, Archeology Program, NPS, at (202) 354-2103, [log in to unmask] to
contribute news items, stories for “Projects in Parks,” and to subscribe.
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