It has been my experience that historians rarely appreciate historical
archaeology as a true research field. I distinctly recall bringing Donald Cutter,
professor emeritus, University of New Mexico, to San Diego as part of a grant
to send him to Spain in search of historical documents relating to the 1796
Spanish cannon battery at the mouth of San Diego Bay (California). Although
he was very polite and carried out our search in Spain, he clearly saw little
value in our profession. Other academic historians I have encountered view
artifacts as doodads or worse. I just do not believe that placement of an
historical archaeologist in a history department would be healthy for the
archaeologist or advance our science.
Ron May
Legacy 106, Inc.
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