THE RED WING FIELD SCHOOL PROGRAM IN ARCHAEOLOGY AND PUBLIC
INTERPRETATION
 
This state-of-the art field training program run by the Institute
for Minnesota Archaeology (IMA) will take place in historic Red
Wing, Minnesota overlooking the Mississippi River one hour south
of Minneapolis-St. Paul. Excavation and public programming will
take place at two sites: a 12th-century Native American (Oneota)
village site and a 19th-century historic site in downtown Red
Wing. The program's credit-granting co-sponsors are Hamline
University, the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, and the
University of Wisconsin-River Falls.  Additional co-sponsors
include the Goodhue County Historical Society and the Anderson
Center for Interdisciplinary Studies.
 
Students will learn basic archaeological skills, including
geophysical and other survey techniques, methods of excavation,
and computer-assisted record keeping and map making. IMA's
archaeology lab in Red Wing, located at the Anderson Center, will
be the venue for instruction in artifact preservation and
analysis, flotation, and accessioning procedures. In addition,
students will participate in public interpretation of the sites
by developing and preparing interpretative materials for the
public.
 
The Burnside School Site (21GD159)
 
Over 1000 years ago sweeping changes in subsistence strategies
and lifestyles affected the peoples who lived throughout middle
North America. The introduction of maize horticulture and other
innovations had profound effects on settlement patterns. One area
of population concentration was at the head of Lake Pepin on the
Mississippi River, around what is present-day Red Wing.
Continuation of excavations at a small village site will help
clarify the complex interactions with larger sites in the area,
including Bryan and Energy Park. They will also provide clues to
relationships with the major site of Cahokia in the American
Bottom, 500 miles to the south.
 
The Original Hamline University Site in Red Wing
 
Founded in 1854 as the first institution of higher education in
Minnesota, Hamline University built its first structure in
downtown Red Wing. Rising costs and a shrinking student base,
along with changes brought about by the Civil War, caused Hamline
to move to St. Paul after little more than decade. What was life
like for those first Hamline students? What were the
relationships between the students, the institution, and the
community? Field program students will explore
these and other questions with historical archaeologists as they
excavate the remains of Hamline's original home.
 
Public Interpretation
 
The field program will address current issues in public education
in archaeology. Students will gain experience in interpreting
archaeology to the public by giving tours, preparing educational
materials, and participating in the closing program for the
public on Saturday, August 17th.
 
A variety of registration options are available to undergraduate
and graduate students
 
Contact Phyllis E. Messenger, Senior Education Archaeologist for
additonal infomation
 
Institute for Minnesota Archaeology
3300 University Avenue SE, Suite 204
Minneapolis, MN 55414
Phone: (612) 627-0315, 623-0299
Fax: (612) 623-0177
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