Wet Spring Survey

The May 2011 survey occurred in the midst of one of the wettest seasons on record. Due to the field conditions as well as the short period of time available, survey activity was limited to a follow-up survey of the Bockmier 3 site and the Bockmier 4 find-spot. A controlled surface survey was employed to confirm an artifact distribution that was suggested during the dissertation fieldwork. The rainy weather permitted two days of survey, and the rest of the time was spent documenting metric data from two private collections of artifacts from the region. I also met with the staff from the Tribal Historic Preservation Office of the Seneca Nation, to establish one of the collaborative aspects of the Allegheny Valley Project. THPO Archaeologist Lauren Waldinger assisted with the surface survey, as did volunteer Laurie Labella. Preliminary results confirm the artifact distribution within Bockmier 3, and a few diagnostic artifacts will help us determine the age and nature of the site. As before, a few widely scattered artifacts were located within the area designated Bockmier 4 find-spot. It is likely the area was a low activity area during the occupation of the various sites on the Bockmier tract.

Short May Survey

We will be conducting a controlled surface survey at Bockmier 3 and Bockmier 4 sites on May 25 and May 26. Since these are weekdays, the hours will run from 1:00 PM to 7 PM, so volunteers who work days can participate. You do not need to be there the entire time to participate, and there will be some lab activities for those who do not wish to get muddy (if you participate in the survey, you will likely get muddy, so dress appropriately). Rain will not deter the survey (we will pause for downpours), but we will retreat to shelter if it thunders. We do not expect many volunteers, so feel free to bring friends or family. Children must be supervised at all times. Bockmier 3 and Bockmier 4 are located behind the Bockmier's Farm Market in Allegany, New York. See you there!

2011 Preliminary Work

The Allegheny Valley Project 2011 schedule is mainly focused on administrative duties in preparation for the full-scale summer field seasons to begin in 2012. I will be in the region for one week in the spring (May 22 - May 28) for meetings and limited testing. Unfortunately, most testing will occur on weekdays, so some may not have an opportunity to volunteer. However, I will try to keep later hours (at least until 7pm) to accomodate visitors who have to work during the day. Testing days will be announced by email within the few weeks prior, so if you are interested in volunteering or visiting and not on the email list, be sure to get on it. Simply send me an email with a request to be included at sph1@email.com.

May Fieldwork

I will be conducting a few days worth of fieldwork in late May while I am making preparations for artifact curation and meeting with representatives from local educational and cultural institutions for collaboration with future field projects. Field days will likely be the third weekend and perhaps a few days into the following week. Anyone interested in participating can contact me, and I'll get the details out when they are finalized.

Project News

Volume 2, Issue 1 of Project News (Spring 2011) will be distributed soon. If you are not on the mailing list, send an e-mail with your mailing address to sph1@email.com to receive the free newsletter. Topics in this issue include the Archaic features from the Karl Site, and new information regarding the Allegheny Iroquois.

Defense Successful

I have successfully defended my dissertation (now officially Dr. Howard!), so now I can begin to focus on the continued investigations in the Allegheny Valley. The Bockmier Point article has been accepted for publication at Northeast Anthropology, and I am in the process of preparing portions of the dissertation for publication. Hopefully, I'll be back in the field early next summer...

Hiatus

Been a while, working on the dissertation and other projects (2 papers being published soon), but the defense is less than a week away. Posts will become more regular when the 2011 field season approaches.