Sessions/Panels
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Sessions/Panels Bernick , Kathryn (Royal British Columbia Museum) Emerging Trends in Northwest Coast Wet-Site Archaeology Wet sites and waterlogged wood artifacts are showing up at an accelerating rate in the Pacific Northwest and challenging the prevailing assumption that they are rare. Archaeological fieldwork in a region where wet sites abound requires attention to the possibility of water- saturated deposits and readiness to recover, analyze, and curate waterlogged perishable materials. The papers in this symposium address practical aspects of wet-site archaeology and give examples of important research that can be accomplished with modest investigations. Recent everyday finds and small, unpublished or under-reported projects illustrate that wet sites are not only for specialists and not only about spectacular objects. They are what every CRM or Research archaeologist working in the region might encounter on their next field expedition. In addition to their legendary potential, wet sites are an integral component of Northwest Coast archaeology. Griffin, Dennis (Oregon State Historic Preservation Office) and Matthew Diederich (Oregon State Historic Preservation Office) Connecting with the Past: Techniques to Assist in Site Identification and Evaluation Work in archaeology today continues to be dominated by CRM activities with a primary emphasis on identifying and evaluating archaeological sites that may be impacted by proposed projects. Such an emphasis highlights the importance of using every technique possible to identify the location of possible sites as well as placing them in a historic context of past land use. This symposium highlights several basic technologies that are gaining acceptance in CRM, useful in locating buried sites without relying solely on the excavation of subsurface probes. In addition, discussions on the importance of basic data collecting techniques are emphasized to assist efforts in site evaluation. " Holthoff, Carolyn (Washington State Department of Transportation) and Scott S. Williams, (Oregon State Department of Transportation), Historic Roads, Waterfronts, and Communities: The Year in Transportation CRM As a result of the extensive construction and infrastructure work conducted by both state Departments of Transportation in Oregon and Washington, both agencies maintain large cultural resources programs. ODOT and WSDOT archaeologists and consultants present some of the highlights of the past year’s cultural resources management activities undertaken by the two agencies. Hushour, Jen (Tierra Right of Way) and Katherine M. Kelly (Tierra Right of Way) Reconstructing Monte Cristo: research in a historic mining district in Snohomish County, Washington 1 Within the narrow confines of the mountain walls and the slimmest margin of time, Monte Cristo encapsulates our national struggle between the fierce drive toward industrialization and the equally passionate urge to conserve the natural wonders of the American West. Monte Cristo’s 30-year lifespan as a boomtown was short lived, truncated by rising production costs, the collapse of the silver market, and an often catastrophic misunderstanding about the natural forces at play in the valley. The story of Monte Cristo is derived from myriad resources, ranging from oral history to formally recorded feature coordinates to surveys by environmental engineers, and represents the wildly disparate activities of people who converged on Monte Cristo from places as far flung as Japan and Cornwall. These diverse approaches to evaluating the landscape have resulted in multilayered histories of the town, often contradictory and endlessly fascinating. Jankowski, Stephen Todd (Malheur National Forest-Oregon) Methods in Archaeology Kelly, Katherine M. (Tierra Right of Way) Archaeology and Environmental Restoration (wicked problems, unintended consequences, and righteous solutions) Wicked problems, such as those commonly encountered by biologists, engineers, agencies, archaeologists, and resource managers working on environmental restoration projects, are rarely “textbook,” instead they are large, messy, complex, and systemic. Wicked problems, even the small ones, seem overwhelming; each part of the problem seems to require an uneven mix of contradictory solutions and untenable choices. The most successful strategies developed to untangle wicked problems tend to rely on inclusive, collaborative, and innovative strategic approaches. As practiced as archaeologists are at crossing interwoven social, ecological, and economic systems, we occupy unique positions on restoration management teams, and are often presented with opportunities to step out of our traditional roles. Kniseley, Marinel (Western Washington University) and Duane Kahler, (Western Washington University) Exploring Collective Approaches: Co-constructing and applying anthropological research in migrant communities This symposium explores the process, experience, and applied dimensions of research involving migrant communities, with particular emphasis on practical steps for design and initiation of research, building partnerships, and fostering dissemination and positive impact beyond the research endeavor itself. The value of the anthropological perspective is evident in the way it inhabits and promotes the intersection of local, global and academic interests. How research can speak to the perceived needs of communities with whom we are co-constructing knowledge is essential for an ethical and applied anthropological endeavor. Participants span various stages of the graduate research process from preliminary framing to establishing relationships and methodology, synthesis and writing, and finally, to post-degree applications. Contributors will address commonalities across their particular research directions, as these relate to issues of resiliency, inclusion and long-term prospects for members of groups who are frequently marginalized by legal, cultural, and economic borders. 2 Lewarch, Dennis E. (Suquamish Tribe and Association for Washington Archaeology) Perspectives on Federal and State Laws and Regulations: A Panel Discussion Hosted by the Association for Washington Archaeology Cultural resource management professionals in the private sector work with an array of federal, state, county, and local agencies as well as Indian Tribes. This panel discussion hosted by the Association for Washington Archaeology will include agency and Tribal representatives who will summarize their perspectives on federal and state laws and regulations, explain how they interpret and apply the regulations, and outline their expectations when dealing with private contractors. The session will provide an opportunity for a dialog among agency, Tribal, and consulting archaeologists. Major, Maurice L. (Washington Department of Natural Resources) What happens when an archaeologist feels like a site is significant, but the proponent and the regulatory agencies decide it is not, and damage to that site benefits natural resources including salmon? This session explores what happened when the Mission Spit site (45-TN-450), bisected by channel excavation done to restore an estuary in Olympia, Washington, became the focus of a salvage project run by volunteers from universities, contract archaeology firms, agencies, and the local community. We will report on the process of obtaining and screening a large sample of the site, as well as the results. Ongoing analysis shows that while the site may not be the best we could hope for, it does reflect a Contact era site associated with the first Catholic Mission on Puget Sound, with ample evidence of Native American occupation and a few surprises. Marcotte, Jacqueline (Environmental Science Associates) Symposium: Maritime Heritage – Preserving, Conserving, and Sharing In keeping with year’s conference theme, the maritime symposium focuses on connecting with the public and sharing our research with the community, and with each other. Presentations highlight volunteer maritime heritage oriented projects in the Pacific Northwest, their methods, and the strides these organizations are currently making towards documenting and preserving the coastal, submerged, and extant maritime history of the region. This symposium also shares a range of current research regarding pre-contact and historic cultural resources found in coastal and submerged settings throughout the Pacific Northwest. In the course of the presentations we will explore: conservation of previously submerged carronades (wood and metal), shoreline geomorphology; the archaeology of submerged cultural resources, new methods for recording historic vessels, as well as nautical archaeology and the restoration of historic vessels. Miller, Bruce G. (University of British Columbia) Anthropology of the Skagit Valley Recent research in the Skagit Valley combines methods archaeological, ethnographic, ethnohistorical, and oral historical, to create new interpretations of the Indigenous peoples and a move away from ahistorical representations. In this session, papers are concerned with the issues of community cohesion in light of historical forces of colonialism, at different time scales 3 and with varying theoretical orientations. A community leader/intellectual (Schuyler) focuses on the critical role of anthropology in preserving tribal culture today, an ethnohistorical paper (Miller) concerns legal and political issues, an archaeological paper (Angelbeck) addresses settlement patterns, another (Mierendorf) uses distinctive toolstones to define