My experience with bottle collectors has been bad. Almost every historical archaeological project I have directed in downtown San Diego has been vandalized by them. The hop fences at night and dig into our privy and feature excavations. They often tresspass onto the demolition sites before we get there and make quite a mess. In the mean time, they are exposing themselves and their families to hazardous materials. Several years ago, a bottle hunter died while digging, illegally, into an enbankment at a closed bottling plant in L.A. Sure there may be "responsible" ones among them, but their activities run counter to the goals of professional archaeology and historic preservation, no matter how much you want to rationalize it.
Jerry Schaefer
ASM Affiliates, Inc.
2034 Corte Del Nogal
Carlsbad, CA 92011
Phone: (760) 804-5757
Fax: (760) 804-5755
-----Original Message-----
From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Rich
Lundin
Sent: Monday, September 29, 2008 3:58 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: More about bottle digging
Bill:
That is absolutely ridiculous. Such legalistic, IRB academic garbage will
lose the trust of valuable informants. When I did my thesis work with the
last decendents of a VERY EPHEMERAL 1880's gold processing site, I was told
flatly that they would not sign an IRB consent form BUT would talk with me
informally. I took that opportunity and was glad that I did as they were
last living memories of Seymour Arizona and died the next year. I have
found in my contacts with bottle hunters that they are VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE of
bottle types, history and dates. My experience is that, if asked, they are
willing and careful participants in professional\avocational historic site
investigations along with metal detectorists, whom I have used on several
occasions for Class I archaeogeophysical surveys-their work is invaluable in
determining which archaeogeophysical and archaeochemical methods to use on a
particular site.
Keep up your contacts with these people and you will both benefit. Claudia
and I will gladly join you and your bottle seeking groups and convert them
into avocational archaeologists with local archaeological societies such as
the AAS-that is where the REAL FUN is and the pot lucks on
professional\avocational digs are GREAT!
Sincerely,
Richard J. Lundin BA, MA, RPA, ISAP
Consulting Historical Archaeologist & Remote Sensing Specialist
(Archaeogeophysics)
Director, Wondjina Research Institute
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lockhart, Bill" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, September 29, 2008 1:56 PM
Subject: More about bottle digging
> Hi All,
>
> I received the following in response to my informal observation of the New
> Mexico bottle dig:
>
> I really wonder what New Mexico State University's Institutional Review
> Board (IRB) would think of your impromptu reporting/faux ethnography
> exercise? Did you disclose your intentions to these folks? Did you get
> informed consent from them? Your university should take appropriate
> remedial action if you did not.
>
> My reply was:
>
> Of course, I informed everyone present about exactly what I was doing and
> why I was asking questions. They agree with me that it would be very
> helpful if archaeologists knew what collectors were doing and thinking and
> vice versa.
>
> Everything was also done in a public setting. Observations of public
> settings is open to any interpretation, anyway.
>
> Bill
>
>
>
>
> Bill Lockhart
> Associate Professor of Sociology
> New Mexico State University
> Alamogordo, NM
> (575) 439-3732
>
>
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