Heritage tourism, the umbrella term under which archaeological tourism =
falls, is big bucks everywhere folks combine historic preservation and =
tourism.
 
Heritage tourism is the number one industry in many U.S. states, =
including Maryland.  Unfortunately, there are few sources of hard data =
related to the economic incentives of heritage/archaeological tourism.  =
Late last year I tried to collect data to present to clients (private =
developers) who were hit with a hefty Section 106 compliance bill and =
who were willing to incorporate the archaeological resources identified =
during compliance work into their final design.  In my search I =
contacted the Chambers of Commerce at the obvious places, Annapolis, =
Baltimore, St. Augustine, Philadelphia, etc. Although data are available =
in gross terms for numbers of visitors, few have attempted to quantifiy =
the actual economic benefits of archaeology.
 
To get a better handle on the touristic draw of archaeological =
resources, the U.S. CRM practitioner should look across the Atlantic at =
successful European examples.  One of the best success stories is the =
Jorvik Viking Center in the UK, which when it peaked in the '80s was =
Great Britain's most visited tourist destination.
 
As the grim reality of budget cutbacks begins to take hold and eat into =
Section 106 work; as field-hardened professionals tire of petty games =
played between Agencies and SHPO's, the public and a hostile Congress is =
finally waking up to realize that although their bucks going into =
legislatively mandated CRM work has given them modest returns (saved =
sites), for the most part all their money has gotten them is a muddy sea =
of gray literature and botched projects.=20
 
One venue for CRM firms may be in consulting to better integrate the =
past into the present using our training and tools at hand to interpret =
and disseminate information within archaeological resources.  =
Archaeologists in the private sector, paired with marketing and other =
business professionals, can work with other CRM professionals (notably =
historians and folklorists) to make the past a profitable and accurately =
presented tourist destination.  Archaeologists can recover the material =
evidence and interpret it, but they also can work with a folklorist to =
learn the place of the past within the contemporary community's =
worldview. =20
 
Already there are many examples of publicly funded archaeology remaining =
the public eye long after the final report has cleared and construction =
completed.  Look at the preserved hypocaust beneath a popular Annapolis =
hotel or the well-used public space at the Franklin home in Philadelphia =
to get a taste for what is possible when you combine archaeology and =
tourism.  From my perspective it's a vast open field just waiting to be =
developed.
 
 
David S. Rotenstein
Historical Solutions
email: [log in to unmask]
WWW: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~drotenst/