Ancient Sites in the Modern Office V
Malheur National Forest - Emigrant Ranger District, Oregon, 2014
by Pete Cadena, District Archaeologist
Last
week we hosted a Passport in Time (PIT) project at the SO. The project, Ancient
Sites in the Modern Office V, brought volunteers from Washington (Seattle,
Tacoma, Snohomish), Oregon (Portland and Jacksonville), California (Oakland),
and New Mexico (Albuquerque). In addition, we had three volunteers from the
Umatilla Tribe. We had several returning volunteers and volunteers new to the
Malheur.
These
amazing individuals volunteered a grand total of 424 hours. They spent the week
carefully and meticulously examining thousands of lithic flakes (debitage) and
identifying stone tools. The information gathered by the volunteers will be
used for many years. Immediately, the information will be used in a heritage
inventory report currently being completed. In addition, it will provide solid
preliminary data that can be used for future research.
Field
trips were also scheduled throughout the week. Forest Archaeologist, Don Hann
lead a field trip to Picture Gorge and provide information about the site based
on his research. The group also had the opportunity to visit the Kam Wah Chung
State Heritage Site. The volunteers were happy to gain a greater understanding
of heritage in the area.
Overall,
last week’s PIT project was extremely successful because (1) we recovered good
useful data from artifacts collected last summer (2) we were able demonstrate
the value of all cultural material and (3) people had the opportunity to learn
new skills.
I
just wanted to share this volunteer response on the PIT critique form:
I
enjoyed everything about this PIT experience: I acquired new skills and
experiences, shared them with interesting people, and felt that I was
contributing some value to an important Forest Service project. While
difficult to choose the “best” part of the experience, I think what will stay
with me is the much greater understanding and appreciation I gained of how
stone tools were made.
I
want to thank everyone who came by to visit throughout the week. Also, I want
to give a special thank you to Don Hann for leading the Picture Gorge field
trip and Diane Browning for all her help last week.