The posts on this website have been interesting these last few weeks. My two 
bits are being thrown in as a reply to the Civil War relic hunting issue in 
Virginia and also to the items regarding the definition of an archaeologist and 
our potential political actions. All these are interrelated topics. In the 
past my views have been contrarian ones and I suspect they still are.
 
In reading the posts here and at other sites I sense much frustration and 
indignation about the present poor state of archaeology, particularly in the 
United States. I take comfort in knowing that the UK can support 4,500 
archaeologists. Here in the US maybe we could strive to reach a similar per capita ratio, 
to about 30,000 working archaeologists. This could be achieved if we don’t 
fall on our swords first.
 
In the US the big world is encroaching in on the little world of archaeology 
and CRM. Environmental and historic preservation laws are being gutted, or not 
enforced, or enforced poorly. There is poor project funding. Archaeologists 
are poorly paid. Nobody really cares when we do poor work. Nobody listens to us 
when we do good work, particularly Hollywood. All I can suggest is that 
archaeologists have created this mess. 
 
The central problem these posts speak to is the relationship between 
archaeology and the broader general public. By relationship I mean the public images, 
impacts, and influences that the profession and industry of archaeology have 
on people outside the community of archaeology insiders. Most archaeo-insiders 
continue to work from an Us Versus Them mentality. Archaeology has become 
exclusive, to be controlled by those that have been trained to do it. In my 
opinion this is the wrong approach. 
 
Archaeologists need to think and act inclusively. Invite the relic hunters, 
the privy diggers, and, yes, the land developers to archaeology meetings. 
Attend theirs and ask for ten minutes of their time to make your, hopefully 
tactful, sales pitch about the wonders of archaeology. Learn to respect them and what 
they do. Convert them to our way of thinking when you can. Stop shouting at 
them; stop antagonizing them; stop trying to put stakes into moral high ground 
that does not exist. Stop making enemies of people who could be our best 
allies. 
 
I, for one, enjoy the fluidity of the terms archaeology and archaeologist. I 
don't worry about the definition of them. I hope and pray I'll recognize a 
competent archaeologist when I see one. I have an MA and don't care about 
academic credentials and am fully in favor of labor laws that allow a person with 
solid experience and no formal schooling to get a job in a profession they 
choose. And, it does not bother me when people write books titled The Archaeology of 
Beekeeping, The Archaeology of Knowledge, or The Archaeology of the Cinema. I 
understand what they are saying and take no offense.
 
Archaeologists should be concerned about the relic hunting of Civil War sites 
in Virginia. But the other side has to be worked with in a positive manner. I 
have some experience with this problem, having been the historical 
archaeologist for Fairfax County (1990-1996) in Northern VA. Fairfax has done much good 
work toward preserving and archaeologically studying Civil War sites, 
especially at Centreville and Union Mills. This work would not have come about without 
the cooperation of local relic hunters. My complements go out to all 
archaeologists in Virginia and elsewhere who work with relic hunters.
 
In Virginia there are more relic hunters than there are archaeologists in the 
United States. Some of these people are the Joe Six-packs that we can make 
fun of. However, many are professionals with PhDs, MDs, CEOs, and JDs behind 
their names. They have more money, more local, state, and national political 
influence than archaeologists will ever have. Work with these people to make them 
our allies. Archaeologists must be tolerant with regard to relic hunters when 
they are not breaking any laws. To do otherwise is to fall on our collective 
swords for no reason.
 
As for the nit picking about publications--Archaeologists still rank fourth 
in the overall contributions list to understating the Civil War. Historians 
hold the main honor there and rightly so. Novelists and other fiction writers 
rank third on the list. Relic hunters, some in the guise of amateur historians, 
are second. These people have produced a volume of literature that is 
astounding. In Virginia you cannot do Civil War archaeology without using the 
literature produced by relic hunters. Their artifact catalogues are impressive and are 
no different than the general group of collector-books on other artifact 
categories that archaeologists use. 
 
In my opinion, it is unprofessional to not use this information. If the data 
is conveniently available then you must review it. If you are assessing a 
Civil War site and don’t use the relic hunter information available to determine 
what’s been taken from the site then you are not doing a thorough job. (In 
Virginia the standard working assumption should be that all Civil War sites have 
been hunted over and there is a strong possibility that someone has written a 
paper about that nice site you think you just found.) Like any periodical, 
there are good articles in the North South Trader and there are poor ones. 
 
Archaeologists have made some impact toward understanding little aspects of 
the Civil War. In the long run our contributions to understanding that war will 
be minor--and I say this as I am near completion of two papers on glass from 
Civil War camps in Virginia. To think that Civil War archaeology will perform 
another interpretive coup as was done at the Battle of Little Big Horn is 
unrealistic. Other wars and other battlefields may be more conducive for such 
major substantive contributions by archaeologists. (I don’t want to steal anyone’
s dreams here. Keep trying and prove me wrong). 
 
Well, my two bits are done. One last thought:

There are two types of people, the quality and the equality. The latter will 
always acknowledge the former when mistaken for it. (Owen Wister, The 
Virginian)
 
Larry Moore
Cultural Resource Specialist
Wyandotte Net Tel @
DOE, Southwestern Power Administration
One West Third Street
Tulsa, OK 74103
918 595-6749