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US - Virginia - Appalachian Trail Archaeological Heritage Project PDF Print E-mail
 

Historic Archaeology Field School

Appalachian Trail Archaeological Heritage Project



Application Deadline: Open
Field School Dates: June 3 through June 28

University, College, Institution

Department of Anthropology, American University, Washington, DC, USA

Location of Field School

Amherst County, Virginia, USA

Field School Overview

  • Field School Type: Excavation and Ethnography
  • Time Period(s) 1850-1920
  • Field School Conditions: The field site is located within the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests along the Appalachian Trail about 30 minutes drive from Lexington, VA.
  • Field School Access: A moderate hike is required to access the site.
  • Number of years for field school: 2

    Project Directors

    Jodi Barnes
    Department of Anthropology
    American University

    Field School Description

    ANTH 560 is a historical archaeology field school offered by the Department of Anthropology at American University. It will provide training in the techniques of excavation, mapping, artifact classification and contextual interpretation.Research at the rural mountain farmsteads focuses upon the transition from slavery to tenant farming.


    Field school web site: www.atahp.org
    Field School Size: 1-15
    Minimum age: 18
    Is prior experience required?: No

    Specialized skills you will have the opportunity to learn

    Manual Mapping/drawing (plan views, profiles): Yes
    Compass mapping survey: Yes
    Traditional Photography: Yes
    Digital Photography: Yes
    Excavation Survey Techniques: Yes
    Interpreting stratigraphy: Yes
    Soils: Yes
    Lab work: Yes
    Artifact analysis: Yes
    Fauna identification: Yes
    Flora identification: Yes

    Academic, Credit Room and Board, & Tuition

    Academic Credit: Yes
    Number of Credits: 3-6 credits
    American University


    Room and Board Information: Since the sites are located on the Appalachian Trail, we will enjoy the experience of hiking a portion of the Trail and the beauty of the surrounding National Forest. We will camp nearby. The camp will be staffed by a professional camp coordinator hired by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy; the camp coordinator will also train participants in Leave No Trace ethics and outdoor skills.

    Participants will be required to pay $200.00 for the cost of meals during the field school.

    Recommended readings

    Hantman, Jeffrey L. (2004) Monacan Mediation: Regional and Individual Archaeologies in the Contemporary Politics of Indian Heritage. In Places in Mind: Public Archaeology as Applied Anthropology. Paul A. Shackel and Erve J. Chambers, eds. Pp. 19-34. New York: Routledge.

    Horning, Audrey (2000) Archaeological consideration of Appalachian identity: community-based
    archaeology in the Blue Ridge Mountains. In The Archaeology of Communities: A New World Perspective. Jason Yaeger and Marcello Canuto, eds. Pp. 210-230. London: Routledge.

    Jones, Edward P. (2004) The Known World. New York: Harper Collins.

    King, Brian B. (2000) Trail Years: A History of ATC. Appalachian Trailway News. Harpers Ferry:
    Appalachian Trail Conference.

    Orser, Charles E. (2004) Historical Archaeology. 2nd edition. Upper Saddle River: Pearson.

    ------. (1991) The Continued Pattern of Dominance: Landlord and Tenant on the Postbellum Cotton Plantation. In The Archaeology of Inequality. Randal H. McGuire and Robert Payntner, eds. Pp. 40-54. Oxford: Blackwell.

    Shackel, Paul (2004) Introduction: Working with Communities Heritage Development and Applied
    Archaeology. In Places in Mind: Public Archaeology as Applied Anthropology. Paul A. Shackel and Erve J. Chambers, eds. Pp. 1-18. New York: Routledge.

    Singleton, Theresa A. (1997) An Introduction to African-American Archaeology. In I, too, Am America Archaeological Studies of African-American Life, edited by T. Singleton. Charlottesville: Univ. Press of Virginia.

    Tolley, George (n.d.) Long Mountain Community. Paper presented at Mid-Atlantic Archaeological
    Conference.


    Archaeology field school contact

    Jodi Barnes
    Department of Anthropology
    American University
    4400 Massachusetts Ave, NW
    Washington, DC 20016
    jb5270a@american.edu
    240-994-6887
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