June 2011 Archeology E-Gram
NPS Archeologist Mourns the Passing of Lewis Binford
With the news of Lewis Binford's passing on April 11, 2011, e-mails flew,
phones rang, and obituaries were written across the globe. Archeologists
(the NPS spelling was advocated by Lew during those heady New Archeology
Days of the '70s) shared perspectives from every sector about Lew's
influence on the study of the human past. "I can't believe he's gone," was
a common refrain.
The NPS Archeology E-gram posted a fine obituary, and I would like to share
a few personal thoughts. I was Dr. Binford's last PhD student, having met
him in 1984 at the University of New Mexico and obtained my PhD in 2006
from Southern Methodist University (like many of us, I took a few detours).
Lew, a friend of national parks, combined a strong stewardship message with
the intellectual pursuit of the past. He advocated preservation of sites
and important places for scholars and descendant communities, and was
particularly interested in the ever-growing research and heritage value of
archives and museum collections, often challenging students to 'mine' data
from CRM reports and museum collections.
Lew's ethnoarcheological work challenged us to make linkages between
dynamic behaviors and static material records - linkages that brought the
past and its people to life, and highlighted their relevance to the big
issues and processes of today. Lew also emphasized the "Archeology of
Place," an approach that is absolutely critical in consultations with
tribes and other descendant communities. In the classroom, Lew felt that
"the professor's job is not to fill up empty vessels. His job was to help
students find the best posture for learning, that they will use throughout
their lives." As scholars and public servants, this message is central to
the mission of NPS archeologists. In late May, I raised a beer to Lew with
a group of University of Montana students, “Here's to learning!”
If you would like to post a short memorial statement for Lewis Binford, go
to
www.worldarchaeologicalcongress.org/home/lewis-binford. The World
Archaeological Congress will place your message in a book for Lew's family.
By PeiLin Yu, Cultural Resource Specialist, Intermountain Region
James “Doc” Price Has Retired
James E. Price, Chief of Resources Management, Ozark NSR, has hung up his
ranger hat after 11 years of Federal service at the park. Exploring the
family farm in the Current River Valley on the Missouri-Arkansas line and
finding arrowheads and other Native American artifacts sparked an early
interest in archeology and anthropology. After graduation from Doniphan
High School in 1963, he received a scholarship to attend the University of
Missouri at Columbia, where he earned a BA with Honors in anthropology in
1967.
His pursuit of a MA and PhD in anthropology, both as a Woodrow Wilson
Fellow, was accomplished at the University of Michigan in 1970 and 1973,
respectively. He served with distinction as a research associate,
archeologist, and adjunct faculty member at the University of Missouri,
Columbia, and Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, until his
retirement in 2000.
His ongoing research and field work in documenting prehistoric and historic
peoples who lived, struggled, and built homes along the Current and Jacks
Fork Rivers in Ozark NSR led him to his second career. He was hired as a
staff archeologist at the park in 2000 and was promoted into his present
position as Chief of Resources Management in 2007. During his tenure, he
was responsible for the preservation of the vast collection of park
archeological sites, historic home sites, churches, cemeteries, and
artifacts. His love of traditional Ozark folkways was evident during the
park’s special events, such as Heritage Days and Haunting in the Hills,
where he practiced woodworking. He will continue to volunteer at the park,
perpetuating traditional Ozark folkways and demonstrating at park events.
Jim’s friends wish him all the best in his retirement.
By Faye Walmsley, Public Information Officer, Ozark, NSR
Passing Of Carla Martin
Carla Martin, 75, former superintendent of the Western Archeological
Conservation Center, passed away on June 12, 2011, from a heart attack.
Educated at Occidental College, Los Angeles, Carol received a Fulbright
scholarship that enabled her to study in Austria. She returned to study at
the University of Arizona, achieving an MA in anthropology.
Carol found her home in many parks, including Grand Teton NP, Carlsbad
Caverns NP, Glen Canyon NRA, Tuzigoot NM, and Little Bighorn Battlefield.
Widowed, she made the NPS her career even while raising two small boys
alone. A high point in her career was becoming one of the first women
superintendents in the NPS.
Carol will be buried with her husband Phil at Grand Canyon’s Pioneer
Cemetery.
Archeological Workshop Attendees Investigate Earthworks at Palo Alto
Battlefield NHP
Palo Alto Battlefield NHP and the NPS Midwest Archeological Center hosted
the 21st annual workshop for geophysical archeology in the park during the
week of May 23, 2011. Nearly 40 archeologists, geologists, and
geophysicists from around the country and as far away as Great Britain,
Sweden, and Germany participated in this year’s workshop, entitled “Current
Archeological Prospection Advances for Non-destructive Investigations in
the 21st Century.”
The field exercises for the workshop were carried out at the site of the
original earthworks of Fort Brown. The six point star shaped fort on the
banks of the Rio Grande, opposite the city of Matamoros, was constructed in
the spring of 1846 by troops under the command of General Zachary Taylor in
an effort to lay claim to the disputed territory of the recently annexed
state of Texas. On May 3, the Mexican Army laid siege to the fort, with
events culminating in the opening battles of the War with Mexico at Palo
Alto and Resaca de la Palma on May 8 and May 9. Major Jacob Brown,
commander of the fort, was grievously wounded during the siege and had died
the previous day. The fort was named in his honor.
Today only a small fraction of the fort remains – a bastion and the
adjoining parapet walls. Most of the standing fort was wiped away, first
from construction of a levee system in the 1940s, then construction of a
golf course in 1950s, and the installation of various utilities and
developments throughout the years. The recent erection of the international
border fence bisects the fort and places much of the site between the fence
and the river. Archeologists feared much of the story of the fort was lost.
During the workshop, geophysical equipment indicated a substantial amount
of subsurface integrity to the site. The results from the magnetic and the
ground penetrating radar survey suggested the presence of intact buried
archeological features and artifacts associated with the historic Fort
Brown. The resistivity data provided the best indications; one bastion,
along with the ditch surrounding the parapet wall, is clearly outlined in
the data.
Armed with the new data collected during the workshop, park staff will
continue partnership work with the International Boundary and Water
Commission and the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost
College to explore, preserve, and interpret this important site.
For more information about Palo Alto Battlefield NHP, go to
http://www.nps.gov/paal/index.htm.
By Rolando Garza, Archeologist/Chief of Resource Management, Palo Alto
Battlefield NHP
Death Valley Cultural Site Assessments
Over a period of 10 days in April 2011, Vanishing Treasures Historical
Architect Randy Skeirik conducted a “cultural resource blitz” at Death
Valley NP. Accompanied by archeologist Leah Bonstead and assisted by other
park staff, Randy visited nine different sites, providing insights into the
condition of the buildings and structures, discussing the causes of
deterioration, and recommending appropriate preservation treatments.
All of the sites are related to the park’s mining and ranching history and
include the Lower Vine Ranch, the real home of Death Valley Scotty;
Panamint City, high up in the Panamint Mountains with an incongruous,
towering 70-foot-tall brick smokestack; Augerberry Camp, a modest miner’s
homestead; the famous beehive charcoal kilns, built to provide fuel for the
Modoc mine’s smelter, 25 miles away; the Kean Wonder Mine tramway,
constructed to move gold ore from mines located a mile up a rugged canyon;
Harmony Borax Works, associated with the romantic image of “Death Valley
Days” and 20-mule-team borax; Gold Mill Hill, with its small-scale ore
processing facility; the immense 15 stamp Skidoo Mill, with its massive
heavy timber structure cascading down the side of a canyon; and the Strozzi
Ranch with its modest house, dugout, and associated ranch buildings.
While none of these buildings or structures is more than 130 years old,
most of them, especially the mining structures, were built with the
knowledge that they would likely be abandoned after the mines played out.
As a result, they were not built to last. In fact, the Panamint stack and
the charcoal kilns were constructed with clay soil, not mortar, between
their bricks and stone. The clay soil is highly susceptible to erosion, and
while these structures have held up remarkably well, attention and
maintenance will be required to keep them standing.
One of the biggest challenges facing the park in preserving some of these
structures is their remote locations. It is a steep and rugged hike to the
Keane Wonder Mine Tramway’s upper terminal, and 5 of the tramway’s 11
towers are on the other side of a deep canyon, requiring helicopter support
for the delivery of preservation supplies and equipment. Likewise, the road
up to Panamint City was washed out in 2001, and now the site can only be
accessed by a 6 mile hike. Getting masonry supplies to this remote site
will also likely require the use of helicopters.
While Death Valley NP may best be known for its extremes -- high
temperatures and low elevations – it also possesses a wealth of cultural
sites, illustrating the extremes that people were willing to endure to
satisfy dreams of riches or simply to wrest a meager existence from a harsh
environment. Preserving these sites helps us to understand a past that few
of us today could otherwise imagine.
For more information about Death Valley NP, go to
http://www.nps.gov/deva/index.htm
By Randall Skeirik, Historical Architect, Vanishing Treasures Program
Significant Archeological Discoveries Made In White Sands National Monument
Over the last four years, hundreds of fossilized tracks have been found
throughout White Sands NM, greatly expanding the number of fossil track
sites known from the Tularosa Basin in southern New Mexico. These tracks
are thought to represent one of the largest concentrations of Cenozoic
tracks within the United States and, possibly, the world. A few recently
discovered sets of fossil tracks appear to be associated with archeological
artifacts, however, suggesting co-existence between humans and mammoths or
mastodons in this region. The majority of the fossil tracks suggest that
the ancient animals traveled to and along the shorelines of late
Pleistocene Lake Otero and surrounding ancient wetlands.
The tracks are preserved in gypsum layers and are quite fragile. Once
exposed from beneath the sand, the tracks weather rapidly. The majority of
the tracks identified last year are now completely gone and those that are
still present are severely eroded. The monument staff are working with
Vincent Santucci, Senior Geologist, NPS Geologic Resources Division, to
develop a strategy for conserving and monitoring the fossil tracks. In an
attempt to document the trackways before they disappear, the monument’s
biologist, David Bustos, recruited two students, Drew Gentry and
Christopher Franco, using NPS Geoscientists in the Parks (GIP) and regional
NPS Youth In Parks funding to fully document the trackways.
The scientific significance of the fossil tracks preserved at the monument
underscores the need for continuing research into these incredible and
rapidly vanishing natural wonders.
For more information about White Sands NM, go to
http://www.nps.gov/whsa/index.htm.
By David Bustos, Biologist, White Sands NM
Gunaaxóo Kwaan Hold Historic Event At Dry Bay, Glacier Bay National
Preserve
On May 21 and 22, 2011, the Gunaaxóo Kwaan, an Alaskan Native group, held
an historic event in Glacier Bay National Preserve to celebrate a
reconnection with their traditional homelands. The two-day ceremony
included drumming and dancing, sharing clan house histories, telling sacred
stories of about Raven, and a ceremony to connect with the ancestors who
once walked this land.
Over the past 13 years, the Gunaaxóo have worked closely with the NPS and
US Forest Service to successfully locate a village site and a number of
clan houses in Dry Bay, and this celebration allowed many clan members to
visit those sites for the first time. Over 125 people attended the event,
some of whom traveled from the lower 48 states for the occasion. It was the
first time in over a century that a gathering of this size has taken place
in Dry Bay.
This event was a success due to the interagency planning efforts of the
Gunaaxóo Kwaan, Yakutat Tlingit Tribe, NPS, and US Forest Service, with
additional support from the Yak-Tat Kwaan and the City and Borough of
Yakutat.
For more information about Glacier Bay National Preserve, go to
http://www.nps.gov/glba/index.htm
By Jacqueline Ashwell, Yakutat District Ranger, Wrangell-St. Elias NP and
Preserve
Big Hole National Battlefield Camp Connects Youth to Tribal Culture and
Battlefield History
Despite frequent snow squalls, almost 1,000 students from Montana and Idaho
schools attended Coyote Camp at Big Hole NB in the last full week in May.
During the five-day program, tribal cultural demonstrators from the Nez
Perce and Umatilla reservations talked about their culture and shared
hands-on activities. With as many as 200 students arriving daily, park
staff divided the students into eight smaller groups for battlefield tours
and cultural demonstrations. Students, teachers, and staff made the best of
bad weather to increase understanding of two ancient cultures: the Nez
Perce and Cayuse. For most participants, this program provided a first-time
interaction with the Nez Perce and Cayuse peoples.
Coyote Camp was born out of necessity – to provide visitor information
while the park’s Visitor Center closed for almost a year’s worth of
renovations. This year’s program was a huge endeavor with every employee of
the park working together to make it happen, including the park’s three
newest employees who arrived for work just one week earlier. Thanks to
everyone for making Coyote Camp such a success!
For more information about Big Hole NB, go to
http://www.nps.gov/biho/index.htm.
By Steve Black, Superintendent, Big Hole National Battlefield
Kids Colonial Camp Held at Kings Mountain National Military Park
In conjunction with the “Let’s Move Outside” program, Kings Mountain NMP
hosted an overnight camping trip on the first weekend in May for eight
fifth grade merit program students from Hickory Grove – Sharon Elementary
School, Hickory Grove, SC. The camping trip introduced the students to
colonial life, the NPS, "Leave No Trace" principles, and natural history,
all in an outdoor environment.
The camping trip began with the children dressing in 18th century clothing
and setting up their period-correct tents in the park’s encampment area.
Living history interpreters taught the students how meals were prepared,
using colonial cookware over an open fire, and the students assisted in
preparing all of the meals during the camping trip.
In addition, the students rotated through various stations that introduced
them to different trades and activities typical of colonial life, including
a colonial dance. There was also a nighttime hike on the battlefield trail,
where students located constellations and a nature hike the next morning to
identify flora and fauna located in the park. This was the first time the
park hosted the event; it was a great success and the teacher is already
planning for next year.
For more information about Kings Mountain NMP, go to
http://www.nps.gov/kimo/index.htm.
By Katherine Lynn, Park Ranger, Kings Mountain NMP
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Receives Cultural Resource
Award
On May 12, 2011, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve was honored by
Colorado Preservation, Inc., the largest historic preservation
organization in Colorado, for the role firefighters played in the
protection of "Indian Grove," a group of 72 culturally modified ponderosa
pine trees that were at risk during the 2010 Medano fire.
On June 6, 2010, a lightning strike within the park started the
long-running Medano Fire. This fire ultimately burned for nearly six months
in the Sangre de Cristo Wilderness, a steep and remote portion of the
national preserve. Few park facilities were threatened during the fire. The
fire burned in a natural mosaic pattern and covered about 6,000 acres.
Previous consultation with tribes, including the Utes, Apache and Pueblos,
provided park staff with directions to protect the trees, if possible, and
not to put firefighters at risk. Both outcomes were realized. Firefighters
were instructed to rake duff and other woody material away from the Indian
Grove grouping of trees and, in a few instances, handheld drip torches were
used to prevent a spot fire in the grove. As a result, this historically
and culturally significant grove remains intact and will continue to be an
important place for tribal visits. These trees are, literally, one of the
few places left from their past that they can touch, see, and smell.
The grove is significant to the Utes and Apache peoples, who have close
affiliation to this area. Their ancestors extracted important medicinal and
nutritional resources from these trees. Tree ring dating has shown that
sections of bark were removed from select trees during the 1700s, 1800s and
the early 1900s. The Indian Grove, which is in the National Register, is a
key cultural resource in the park. This is one of the very few "living"
sites on the register. The tribes and park staff realize that eventually
this ancient grove of trees will succumb to time and age. That day was just
postponed for a while.
For more information about Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, go
to http://www.nps.gov/grsa/index.htm
By Katherine Faz, Community Planner, Pecos NHP
Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park Celebrates its 50th
Anniversary
Pu‘uhonua o Honaunau NHP celebrated its 50th anniversary as a unit of the
NPS with a cultural festival this past weekend. More than four thousand
visitors experienced nineteenth century Hawai‘i. Practitioners in
traditional dress provided visitors with a uniquely Hawaiian experience,
honoring the culture and traditions of the Hawaiian people. The festival
opened June 17, 2011. with a ho‘okupu (offering) and then was followed by
three days of hula performances, canoe rides, food tasting, weaving,
hukilau (traditional fishing), musical implements, lei making, medicinal
plants, archaeological hikes and much more. The festival concluded Sunday
afternoon with a closing ho‘okupu.
This event was only possible with the aloha of the hundreds of
practitioners and volunteers who shared their time, wisdom, skills and,
most of all, their love for Hawaii. The park would like to thank all of the
practitioners and the volunteers who gave so much of their time to make
this event so successful.
For more information about Pu‘uhonua o Honaunau NHP, go to
http://www.nps.gov/puho/index.htm.
By Eric Andersen, Chief of Interpretation, Pu‘uhonua o Honaunau NHP
Historic Museum at Tuzigoot National Monument Reopens with New Exhibits
“Where in the world is Tuzigoot?” is a question in NPS training materials
developed for teachers, but on June 3, 2011, local historians and community
members gathered for remembrances of their own special site as the
refurbished historic Tuzigoot NM Visitor Center and Museum was reopened to
visitors.
Superintendent Kathy Davis presented heritage awards to individuals and
organizations that made substantial contributions to local cultural and
historic preservation. One component of the observance was honoring those
who initiated and have continued Native language preservation programs. The
Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe, Prescott, Arizona, and the Yavapai and
Apache heritage programs, Camp Verde, Arizona, were recognized. Hopi
educators Eric and Jane Polingyouma of Second Mesa and Anita Poleahla of
First Mesa discussed the importance of oral traditions and native language
in embedding and continuing the values of indigenous cultures.
Historian Jesse Valdez presented an overview of early Mexican-American
heritage around Tuzigoot, sharing photos and stories of early 1900s
ranching families. Several descendants of workers involved in the
excavation of Tuzigoot, construction of the museum in 1935, and artifact
curation and display were also recognized.
NPS museum exhibit specialist Sue Fischer offered tours of the new exhibits
that continue a tradition of 75 years of updating the displays and sharing
information. Over the celebratory weekend, cultural demonstrations were
presented by Hopi old-style katsina carvers Philbert Honanie and Tayron
Polequaptewa, chipped stone tool maker Amil Pedro of the Gila River Indian
Community, and Apache flute and moccasin craftsmen Don Decker. The
presentations helped connect visitors with technologies and expressions of
the past.
Another major highlight of the opening weekend at Tuzigoot was a “star
party,” with talks, slide presentations and a gathering of local
astronomers who shared their time, telescopes, expertise, and special
viewing opportunities with the public.
For more information about Tuzigoot NM, go to
http://www.nps.gov/tuzi/index.htm.
Japan’s Public TV to Feature Manzanar National Historic Site Gardens
Landscape gardens built by Japanese American internees at Manzanar will be
featured in a documentary produced by NHK, the public television station of
Japan. Manzanar was one of ten “relocation centers,” where some 120,000
U.S. residents and citizens were confined without due process during World
War II. Award-winning director Yo Ijuin has previously directed
documentaries about Japanese gardens in Japan, and was drawn to Manzanar by
his love of Japanese gardens and his interest in World War II history.
The film includes numerous oral histories and interviews along with
historic research. Professor Kendall Brown of California State University
Long Beach noted that the Japanese gardens at Manzanar are noteworthy
because they were created during World War II, when resources were scarce
and when anti-Japanese sentiment was at an all-time high. Even more
remarkable, Dr. Brown said, is that “this is garden art of a very high
order … I think arguably this is the most interesting, compelling
collection of Japanese gardens in America.” Director Ijuin commented that,
based on its gardens alone, Manzanar should be nominated as a World
Heritage Site.
Associate Producer Eddie Noguchi said that he hoped the film would provide
inspiration for the Japanese people who lost so much during the 2011
earthquake and tsunami. “Internees at Manzanar had lost everything, too,
and still created beauty for their families and the future…. Building
Japanese gardens, which focus on harmony and nature, helped people heal.”
The film is expected to be completed in August for the Japanese audience;
an English version is under consideration.
For more information about Manzanar NHS, go to
http://www.nps.gov/manz/index.htm
By Jeff Burton, Archeologist, WACC
Landmarks Committee Recommends the Carrizo Plain Archeological District as
a Potential NHL
On May 25, 2011, the NPS Landmarks Committee voted to recommend that the
Carrizo Plain Archeological District be designated a National Historic
Landmark. A positive vote by the Committee is the first step in the
designation process.
The Carrizo Plain Archeological District lies within the Carrizo Plain
National Monument, managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), in San
Luis Obispo County, California. The district consists of 100 nationally
significant archeological sites that, together, reflect the stunningly
intact Carrizo Plain pictograph sites and associated archeological remains.
The proposed NHL district is nominated under NHL Criteria 5 and 6 under the
NHL thematic framework themes of Peopling Places and Expressing Cultural
Values.
Dating from about 10,000 to 200 BP (8050 BC – AD 1750), the concentration
of these sites outstandingly documents the demographic pre-contact history
of the first inhabitants in the far western United States and has great
potential for contributing to our understanding of the pre-contact and
historical-ethnographic past in numerous ways. Their importance is
reflected in the pivotal role these sites have played in recent rock art
research, where they have been crucial to our understanding of
archeo-astronomy, ethnic affiliations and cultural boundaries, gender
symbolism and ritual landscapes, as well as pre-contact symbolic systems
and cognition more generally. The property will be presented to the larger
National Park System Advisory Board during the winter of 2011/2012.
To read the nomination for the Carrizo Plain Archeological District or to
learn more about the National Historic Landmarks process, go to
www.nps.gov/nhl/.
By Erika K. Martin Seibert, Archeologist, National Historic Landmarks
Program
Archaeological Survey Technologies, Data Integration, and Applications
Workshop and Seminar
The NPS, Archaeological Survey Technologies, Data Integration, and
Applications (ASTDA), and other institutions will jointly offer a workshop
and seminar. The training opportunities focus on the application of
non-invasive mapping and recording technologies including archeological
geophysical surveys (ground penetrating radar, magnetic gradient,
resistance, and conductivity), and 3D laser scanning, for the integration
of the buried and standing archeological site records within a broader
landscape.
Workshop
August 15-21, 2011
Held at Historic Longfellow House, Cambridge, MA, the workshop will teach
participants specific skills of non-invasive acquisition and fusion of data
to map sub-surface features, existing archeological structures, and
landscapes. It focuses on effectively engaging these methods in the
investigation, planning, and preservation of historic properties. The
workshop will introduce and provide hands-on teaching of geophysical
surveys including ground penetrating radar, magnetometry, conductivity and
resistance, fundamentals of site survey, and 3D laser scanning with
participation in mapping and scanning. Participants will engage in data
collection, processing, and integration into GIS with analysis in a 3D
visual environment.
Instructors include Meg Watters (Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology and
the Ancient World, Brown University); Ken Kvamme (University of Arkansas);
Bryan Hayley (Tulane University); Stephen Wilkes (Feldman 3D); and Dr.
Steven Pendery (NPS).
Registration deadline: August 1, 2011.
Seminar
October 21, 2011 (Date to be confirmed, keep an eye on the web page), 12:00
– 5:00 p.m.
Held at the Historic Longfellow House, Cambridge, MA, the ASTDA seminar is
tailored to provide specific knowledge transfer to three distinct groups
intrinsic to historic site preservation: (1) property managers; (2) public
outreach organizations; and (3) property developers. The seminar will focus
on presenting each of the three stages in creation of the 3D property
models (data capture, processing, and fusion) and how to use this
innovative visualization of integrated data for particular needs.
The workshop will consist of three stations with different components of
the Longfellow House integrated 3D models (geophysical surveys, 3D laser
scanning, and visualization and analysis) for each targeted group. Time
will be allotted for questions and feedback on how participants perceive
the 3D visualization method, how it applies to their work, and how it could
be further modified to meet their needs. A panel discussion, moderated by
Steven Pendery, will include representatives from each of the targeted
groups (to be announced), and will discuss and debate this approach to
historic property management through 3D visualization methods.
Instructors include Meg Watters (Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology and
the Ancient World, Brown University); Stephen Wilkes (Feldman 3D); and Dr.
Steven Pendery (NPS).
For additional information and registration details, go to the Workshop and
Seminar website: http://proteus.brown.edu/astda
NPS NAGPRA Workshop in Intermountain Region Open for Registration
The NPS Park NAGPRA program, in cooperation with the Intermountain Region
(IMR) NAGPRA program, is offering a two day training session at the IMR
Office in Denver, CO, about the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Park superintendents, resource managers,
archeologists, curators, and other staff with NAGPRA duties are invited to
attend. The training, scheduled for July 13-14, 2011, will provide a
comprehensive overview of NAGPRA, prepare participants to respond to
inadvertent discoveries and plan for intentional excavations as prescribed
by the law, and explore issues of special concern to the Intermountain
Region. Other topics covered will include dealing with cultural items
subject to NAGPRA in collections, evaluating repatriation requests,
complying with the new culturally unidentifiable rule, consultation,
disputes, and reburial on park lands.
There are no fees or tuition for the training session. Approximately 20 –
25 participants can be accommodated.
Contact Brenda Todd, (303) 969-2864 by July 1, 2011.
National NAGPRA Webinar Offered
43 CFR 10.11- The Disposition of Culturally Unidentifiable Human Remains
became effective a little over a year ago and many people still have
questions about its implementation. To address these questions, the
National NAGPRA Program has scheduled a webinar “Integrating 43 CFR 10.11,
Final Rule - The Disposition of Culturally Unidentifiable Human Remains
into the NAGPRA Process.” The webinar will be held July 20, 2011, 1:30 -
3:30 p.m. (EDT). The webinar is an opportunity for tribal, museum and
Federal agency officials as well as interested members of the public to
review the rule with NAGPRA staff and attorneys and ask questions regarding
its implementation. Time will be allocated for discussion and questions.
To register for the webinar, go to http://www.nps.gov/nagpra/TRAINING. The
webinar is free and open to the public. You are encouraged to submit
questions about the process for the panelists.
Contact: Sangita Chari, (202) 354-2203
NPS Offers “Effective Oral History” Course
The NPS Park History Program, in collaboration with Stephen T. Mather
Training Center, is offering “Effective Oral History: Interviews, Project
Management and Practical Applications” October 31-November 4, 2011, at
Everglades NP, Homestead, FL. This 40 hour team-taught course introduces
students to oral history methods, principles, and practices and provides
hands-on training for all phases of an oral history project. Instruction is
designed to meet the practical needs of historians, interpreters,
ethnographers, archivists, and museum curators who conduct oral history
projects.
The instruction team includes historians, ethnographer, archivists, a
curator, and a solicitor. Each session will include a brief overview of a
topic; the rest of the time will be spent in small groups applying the
overview to particular aspects of oral history projects. Participants will
also conduct and critique an interview on-site. Instructors will share case
studies based on NPS oral history projects they have designed and
completed.
By the end of this course, participants will be able to plan an oral
history project and use oral history in historical research, planning and
management; understand legal and ethical issues that relate to oral
history; be knowledgeable about recording technologies (audio and video);
plan for and conduct in-depth oral history interviews; preserve, archive,
and manage oral history collections; process interviews (indexing and
transcribing); and use oral history in interpretive programs such as talks,
exhibits, Web sites and publications.
Registration deadline is October 7, 2011. The course, listed in DOI Learn,
requires supervisory approval: http://www.doi.gov/doilearn/index.cfm. The
class name is NPS-2011-1031-EVER
Contact: Lu Ann Jones, Park History Program, WASO, (202) 354-2219.
2011 Summer Speaker Series at Fort Vancouver National Historic Site
Experts will speak during the annual archeology field school at Fort
Vancouver NHS, a program of the Northwest Cultural Resources Institute. The
talks are open to the public and will address topics of diversity, race,
ethnicity, and public archeology. The field school is a joint undertaking
of the Institute; NPS; Portland State University; Washington State
University, Vancouver; and the Fort Vancouver National Trust.
Michael Nassaney: The Archeology of the Fur Trade at Fort St. Joseph
July 14, 2011
When Western Michigan University archeologists were invited to assist in
locating a lost French fort along the banks of the St. Joseph River in
Niles, Michigan, they unknowingly embarked on a long-term,
multidisciplinary project to explore the importance of the fur trade and
colonialism in the past and in the present. Since the project’s inception
in 1998, public involvement has been central to the way the project is
conceived and put into practice.
Lori Lee: Historical Archeology of Memory, Race, and Landscape at Thomas
Jefferson’s Poplar Forest
July 21, 2011
Ms. Lee’s talk will discuss the connections between documents, material
culture, and narratives through an historical archeological investigation
of landscape, memory, and race at Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest
plantation in central Virginia. The role of memory in constructing the
physical and social landscapes formed from a system of institutionalized,
race-based slavery in the 18th, 19th, and 20th century will be explored.
The significance of these landscapes as frames of reference for
representing these memories today is also examined.
The Northwest Cultural Resources Institute is dedicated to facilitating
cultural resource education and research activities in the region through
cooperative partnerships at Fort Vancouver NHS, and at other northwestern
national parks. Fort Vancouver, a premier historical archeological site in
the Pacific Northwest, provides a dynamic, place-based learning environment
for public and academic programs.
Civil War Commemorations
In March 2010 the NPS began celebrations to commemorate the 150th
anniversary of the Civil War. We have established a new feature in the
Archeology E-Gram to provide information and links about activities to
commemorate the Civil War. Each month, the E-Gram will feature information
about activities such as exhibits, re-enactments, and lectures taking
place. Here are some events that will take place in June:
A Ride Through History: A Caravan Tour of Stones River National Battlefield
Stones River NB
Visitors will follow a ranger in their vehicles and stop at four sites to
learn about the events and people that are part of the story of the Battle
of Stones River. The program will not be offered when a living history or
special event is scheduled.
Monday-Friday, May 30-September 2, 2011
Civil War Gap Cave Tours
Cumberland Gap NHP
A two hour adventure awaits as you explore Gap Cave with its majestic
stalagmites, striking stalactites and shimmering flowstone. Step into the
music room and listen for the whispers of a Civil War soldier. Catch a
glimpse of a bat or a cave salamander. This tour involves a 1.5 mile walk
and 183 steps must be negotiated in the cave.
Daily, June 11-August 13, 2011
Summer Ranger Programs at Gettysburg
Gettysburg NMP
Summer Ranger Programs at Gettysburg begin on June 11 with a full schedule
of programs, battle walks, children's programs, tours and evening campfires
taking place throughout the park and at the Gettysburg National Military
Park Museum and Visitor Center.
Daily through August 15, 2011
More information about Civil War commemorations can be found on the NPS 150
th website http://nps.gov/civilwar150.
Projects in Parks: The History of the Spring Enclosure, Fort Davis
National Historic Site
Historical archeology is often about testing assertions made in historical
documents against the physical remains in the archeological record.
Historical archeologists often look at whether the archeological remains
verify what is written or tell a different story. This process of verifying
the written record was used to unravel and document the stone masonry of
the spring enclosure at Fort Davis NHS. The resulting investigation
illustrates the unique perspective that archeology can bring even to sites
occupied relatively recently and the way it can provide information on
aspects of peoples’ daily lives that aren’t discussed in detail in written
accounts.
To read the entire report, go to
http://www.nps.gov/archeology/sites/npSites/fortDavisSpring.htm
Projects in Parks is a feature of the Archeology E-Gram that informs others
about archeology-related projects in national parks. The full reports are
available on the Research in the Parks web page
www.nps.gov/archeology/sites/npSites/index.htm or through individual issues
of the Archeology E-Gram. Prospective authors should review information
about submitting photographs on the Projects in Parks web page 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 NPS and other public agencies. Recipients are
encouraged to forward Archeology E-Grams to colleagues and relevant mailing
lists. The Archeology E-Gram is available on the News and Links page
www.nps.gov/archeology/public/news.htm on the NPS Archeology Program web
site.
Contact: Karen Mudar at [log in to unmask] to contribute news items, stories for
Projects in Parks, submit citations and a brief abstract for your
peer-reviewed publications, and to subscribe.
|