And it is a good way to flush out descendants, when you are doing historical
archaeology.   Getting their input and interest is invaluable. 


Linda Derry
Site Director
Old Cahawba
719 Tremont St.
Selma, AL 36701
ph. 334/875-2529
fax. 334/877-4253
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-----Original Message-----
From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of
Katharine Watson
Sent: Tuesday, June 18, 2013 2:29 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Facebook archaeology, an example from Savannah, Georgia

I run a Facebook page that's mostly about archaeological work in
post-earthquake Christchurch. For us, it's been a really positive
experience, allowing us to connect with archaeologists & members of the
public not just from Christchurch but from all over the world. It's led to
people messaging us about specific sites, artefacts or areas that they're
interested in, and so we've learnt a lot too. In a city that seems to place
little value in its heritage - and an industry were you're often seen as
nothing more than a problem, it also provides us with some great positive
feedback about we're doing, and confirms that the general public do value
archaeology.

We started the page with aim of showing people (a) what archaeology was
really about i.e. no dinosaurs, gold or pyramids & (b) as a way of showing
people that some positive heritage work was taking place in Chch
post-earthquake. We're careful not to mention specific site addresses, to
avoid any potential problems for the landowner/client.

I think it's a fantastic, relatively easy outreach tool (compared to a
blog). The only tricky thing for us is making sure that we post regularly,
and that our posts are of interest to those who 'follow' or 'like' us.
Cheers,
Katharine