Dear Friends,
On Saturday, May 4, I had the good fortune to attend Ndee Ła Ade, the 23rd Gathering of the People Celebration at Fort Apache Historic Park on the White Mountain Apache Reservation in east-central Arizona. It’s an annual event with song and dance competitions, food, arts and crafts, and booths from various civic and educational organizations. On this day, however, another special event occurred.
At noon, about a dozen dignitaries gathered near the former Boys’ dorm to conduct a groundbreaking ceremony for a soon-to-be rehabilitated structure—the Nzhǫ́ǫ́níhí Benkegohen’áání Gową, the Home of Harmony. Among the dignitaries who spoke was Archaeology Southwest’s Director of Landscape and Site Preservation, Dr. John Welch, who is the founding secretary of the Fort Apache Heritage Foundation and was instrumental in planning and acquiring funds for transforming the 21,000 sq. ft. symbol of colonial oppression into a place of pride, prosperity, and healing.
![At the groundbreaking ceremony for a soon-to-be rehabilitated structure—the Nzhǫ́ǫ́níhí Benkegohen’áání Gową, the Home of Harmony. Seated (L-R): Rochelle Lacapa (Chair, Fort Apache Heritage Foundation Board of Directors), Kasey Velasquez (Chairman, White Mountain Apache Tribe). Standing (L-R): Alvin Declay, Sr. (White Mountain Apache Tribe Councilmember [ret.]), Sterling Goseyun (Facilities Manager, Fort Apache Heritage Foundation). Krista M. Beazley (CEO, Fort Apache Heritage Foundation), Shavaughn Titla (White Mountain Apache Queen), John Welch (Archaeology Southwest and Foundation Board Secretary).](https://www.archaeologysouthwest.org/wp-content/uploads/IMG_3895-1024x768.jpg)
The work John has done for the White Mountain Apache Tribe began long before he formally started working for Archaeology Southwest in 2018, but it embodies the spirit of our Tribal Collaboration Model. Indeed, John’s extensive work helped inform the creation of that model. Congratulations to John and the rest of his team; I’m proud to work with someone who so ably embodies the collaborative work to which Archaeology Southwest currently aspires.
On Sunday, May 5, John and I went looking for a place called Swinburn Cave south of St. John’s, Arizona. It is a cave site excavated by someone named Martin Hoffman back in 1959. Hoffman was a student or employee of Arizona State University at the time, but the artifacts he excavated ended up at the Field Museum in Chicago, where I cataloged them in 1998 and where they still sit, though without any photographs or excavation records. I looked for the site about 15 years ago, to no avail. I thought perhaps with John and I both looking, we’d have better luck, but we didn’t. If any of you know of Hoffman or the elusive Swinburn Cave, we’d love to hear from you!
From celebrations of decades-long efforts in heritage preservation to a great hike that came up empty, it was another fantastic weekend. As I nurse my sore knees and feet, I am left to reflect yet again—what an honor it is to lead an organization like Archaeology Southwest!
Until next week,
Steve Nash
President & CEO, Archaeology Southwest
Great News for the Lands Between!
We have very exciting news to share: Bears Ears Partnership has just been notified that our litigation and settlement over the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) March and December 2018 oil and gas lease sales in the Lands Between has resulted in the cancellation of 25 of the 28 parcels—a total of 40,296.23 acres… This is a major win for this tremendously significant cultural landscape and for descendant communities across the region. The Lands Between is held sacred to our partners at the Pueblo of Acoma, in addition to numerous other Tribes and Pueblos, who have led the call for more enduring protections. This decision is the result of nearly six years of historic hard work and collaboration between the Pueblo of Acoma and our team at BEP—represented by Advocates for the West. Bears Ears Partnership | Read more »
Continuing Coverage: Opposing SunZia’s Route through the San Pedro
The tribes have appealed the decision to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, seeking a ruling as soon as possible given construction of SunZia is ongoing in the San Pedro Valley. “We will continue to oppose this environmentally and culturally irresponsible project that could easily be rerouted through already degraded power line corridors rather than destroying this irreplaceable stretch of the San Pedro River Valley,” said San Carlos Apache Chairman Terry Rambler. Their case, they argue, is not against the BLM’s 2015 decision, which centered on the National Environmental Policy Act, but alleges the BLM never properly conducted the cultural heritage studies needed to comply with the National Historic Preservation Act. They claim the BLM promised to do those studies but never did, and that they could not sue the federal agency until construction began without the required studies. Wyatt Myskow for Inside Climate News | Read more »
REMINDER: Calling All Section 106 Pros: Please Take Our Survey on Cultural Landscape Studies
Archaeology Southwest calls on all professionals involved in the Section 106 process (to comply with key provisions of the U.S. National Historic Preservation Act) to contribute knowledge and perspective on the best ways to identify, assess, and protect cultural landscapes. Please take the succinct, anonymous, 10-question survey by May 17, 2024. John Welch and colleagues for Archaeology Southwest | Take the survey »
Two Utah Museums Work to Align Presentation and Interpretation to New NAGPRA Rules
The update to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) also is shining a light on cultural consent and collaboration between museums and different groups of people. For example, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, senior curator Alisa McCusker said, has for the last two years increased its consultations with advisory groups when developing programming. One example is the exhibit on the art of Polynesian tattooing from last year. The advisory council for that exhibition helped facilitate the layout of the exhibit, and made sure the images in it were presented in an honorable way. … Offering a recent example of consent and collaboration, Greenwald described [Natural History Museum of Utah’s] “Native Voices” initiative, a federally funded effort that features more than 150 hours of consultation with 14 different tribes, including the eight tribes recognized by the state of Utah. The project highlights cultural artifacts, stories, traditions and people from the tribes. While creating its exhibit, Greenwald said, museum curators learned details from the Indigenous Advisory Council that they might otherwise have overlooked, such as the importance of putting it on the ground floor or placing it in a circular space. Palak Jayswal for the Salt Lake Tribune | Read more »
Haynie Site Stabilization Completed
One of the most important obligations we have as archaeologists is to protect cultural sites in perpetuity. Crow Canyon partners regularly meet with tribal members and affiliated groups to assess sites at which we work to establish and implement appropriate preservation plans. This month, preservation work was completed at the Haynie site, part of the Northern Chaco Outliers Project. The work was done in collaboration with The Archaeological Conservancy, who owns and stewards the property on which the Haynie site resides and who received a History Colorado State Historical Fund grant for this project, and Woods Canyon Archaeological Consultants, who performed the hands-on stabilization work. Crow Canyon Archaeological Center News | Read more »
Video: A New Kind of Archaeology
With David Wallace Visuals and narrator Corey Flintoff (retired NPR host), Archaeology Southwest has just produced a 3-minute video sharing the why and how of our work. Please enjoy, comment, and share with others to introduce them to our organization! We welcome conversations and the opportunity to reach out to new friends who connect with our collaborative and conservation-based approach. Archaeology Southwest | Watch and share now »
Video: Paul Reed and Shannon Cowell on the Scott Michlin Morning Program
On May 2, host Scott Michlin and monthly guest Paul Reed welcomed Shannon Cowell for a conversation about the Save History BIA ARPA assistance program. 25:26. KJSE Morning Show | Watch now »
Podcast: Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies
In this episode, host Jessica Yaquinto chats with Eric Pinto (Assistant Director at the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian studies at Washington University in St. Louis; Descendant of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and Pueblo of Zuni). The Buder Center is part of the Brown School of Social Work, Public Health, & Social Policy that offers the only social work program in the country with an American Indian/Alaska Native concentration. The two talk about Eric’s transition from personal training to getting a Master’s in Social Work and how the social work program led him to cultural projects, archaeology, and land/cultural resource protection efforts through the Buder Center. We also discuss the Buder Center’s Indigenous community and Tribal Nation engagement efforts, including an ongoing trail marker tree initiative, as well as their student practicums, scholarships, and events. Additional topics that came up during our conversation include land acknowledgements, the Urban Relocation Program in the 1950s, enrollment, and blood quantum. Heritage Voices | Listen now »
May Subscription Lectures (Santa Fe NM)
May 13, Grant S. McCall, Southern Africa Rock Art & Hunter-Gatherer Social Systems: Changing Perspectives; May 20, Ripan S. Malhi, Anthropological Genomics: Changing the Practice and Practitioners; May 27, Henrietta Lidchi, Surviving Desires: Making & Selling Native Jewelry in the American Southwest. 6:00 p.m., Hotel Santa Fe; fees apply. Southwest Seminars | Learn more »
REMINDER: TODAY, May 9 Online Event: Explaining the Pueblo in Kansas: Ethnogenesis of Apachean and Puebloan Communities on the High Plains
With Matthew H. Hill. Nearly 120 years ago, researchers identified a most unusual find for western Kansas: a seven-room masonry pueblo. This discovery led to repeated archaeological excavations of this site (Scott County Pueblo) and other nearby related sites. The available information suggests these localities were occupied by migrants from the Rio Grande Pueblos who lived alongside Indigenous Apache (Ndé) groups for several generations from the early 1600s to late 1700s. Hill describes his and Dr. Margaret Beck’s systematic reanalysis of these sites and highlights their findings about occupation history, the residents’ identities, and regional social connections with other groups in and around the Great Plains. Crow Canyon Archaeological Center | Learn more and register (free) »
May 11 and 18 In-Person Events (Tucson AZ): Essence of Tucson Book-Signing
A young journalist/herbalist/volunteer at Mission Garden, Aneta Hebrova from Czech Republic, has visited Tucson multiple times and fallen in love with the city and its many cultures. She has just written and published a very unusual book, a look at us from her perspective. Essence of Tucson is about some amazing people she has met here, including special interviews with people we know and admire, like the late Big Jim Griffith who founded Tucson Meet Yourself and UA Folklore Center, and Jesús García, the energetic bilingual ethnobotanist-teacher at the Desert Museum and Mission Garden. Aneta has been gifted intimate conversations with such people as a Yoeme medicine person, sharing wisdoms with his blessing. Essence of Tucson will be featured at two book-signing events coming up soon: May 11, 1:00–3:00 p.m. at Barnes & Noble bookstore, North La Cholla location, and May 18, 8:00 a.m.–noon at Mission Garden, 946 W Mission Lane off S. (The latter is part of the San Ysidro Fiesta when we harvest heirloom wheat, thresh it with Spanish barb horses, and feast on posole de trigo—an exciting event for family participation.) Martha Burgess on behalf of Mission Garden | Learn more »
May 15 Online Event: Navajo Yeibichai Weavings and Carvings: A Historical Overview
With Rebecca Valette. will give a presentation based on her research of Diné (Navajo) weavings and carvings, with imagery inspired by cultural practices. She is the author of two books on the topic, Navajo Weavings with Ceremonial Themes: A Historical Overview of a Secular Art Form, and Clitso Dedman, Navajo Carver. ASM Associate Curator Diane Dittemore will share Yeibichai-themed items from ASM’s collections. Arizona State Museum and Friends of the ASM Collections | Learn more and register (free) »
REMINDER: May 15 Online Event: Archaeology Behind the Lens
With Matt Stirn. What is it like photographing pyramids in Sudan for Smithsonian Magazine? How about covering an excavation from a Trojan War palace in Greece for The New York Times? In this lecture archaeologist and photojournalist Stirn will talk about his transition from researching prehistoric villages in the Rocky Mountains to covering archaeology stories around the world for magazines and newspapers. Utah SHPO | Learn more and register (free) »
REMINDER: May 15 Online Event: Recalibrating the Significance of Prehistoric Sites of the Great Sage Plain in the Mesa Verde Heartland
With Jason Chuipka. Introducing the Great Sage Plain—the most important Ancestral Puebloan environment you’ve never heard of. The archaeological sites of the Great Sage Plain are important to many groups. To some they exist in a sacred landscape, while to others they are a source of data for study of the past, or are interesting elements of a beautiful place seemingly frozen in time. Utah SHPO | Learn more and register (free) »
REMINDER: May 15 In-Person Event (Hanover NM): Indigenous Rock Imagery of the Sonoran Desert
With Aaron Wright. Petroglyphs and pictographs are integral to the cultural traditions of Indigenous communities the world over, and especially so in the Sonoran Desert where they abound on the countless chocolate- and charcoal-colored rocks. It’s natural to ask what they may mean, but perhaps a more appropriate question is what do they do? These images move us in remarkable ways, and therein lies some of their significance. This presentation will review the diversity of rock imagery across the Sonoran Desert with one eye on common threads and the other on unique regional qualities.6:00 p.m. potluck dinner (bring your own plates, utensils, and a dish for yourself or to share); 6:30 p.m. business meeting, followed by the presentation. Roundup Lodge, 91 Acklin Hill Rd. Grant County Archaeological Society | Email gcasnm.org@gmail.com for more info »
May 16 Online Event: What’s Going on at the Edge or the Greater Southwestern World?
With Jason LaBelle. LaBelle provides an overview of his lab’s ongoing work on Fremont farming communities located along the base of Blue Mountain, situated between the Yampa and White River valleys of southwestern Moffat County, Colorado. He will discuss results from excavation, pedestrian survey, radiocarbon dating, repository collections work, and photogrammetric mapping of over 20 granaries scattered in this rugged canyon country. Rather than being an isolated and ephemeral occupation, he argues that Blue Mountain was (relatively) intensively occupied by small hamlets of farmers approximately 1,000 years ago, and one of a number of contemporaneous Fremont polities in the region. The ultimate goal of his work is to better understand the interaction between these scattered communities and with the larger Fremont villages found further west in the Uinta Basin of Utah and beyond. Crow Canyon Archaeological Center | Learn more and register (free) »
REMINDER: May 16 Online Event: Of Noble Kings Descended: Colonial Documents and the Ancient Southwest
With Steve Lekson. Early Spanish and Mexican records can tell us much about the ancient Southwest. Dr. Lekson will review some of them that lend insights for deeper history relevant to places like Chaco Canyon and Casas Grandes, and will contextualize these with Native accounts and archaeological data. Third Thursday Food for Thought series (Old Pueblo Archaeology Center) | Learn more and register (free) »
May 22 Online Event: Local History of Northwestern Band of Shoshone Living
With Brad Parry, Vice-Chairman of the Northwestern Band. The Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation has lived in what is now northern Utah, eastern Idaho, and western Wyoming since time immemorial. Parry’s presentation will discuss the history of Shoshone migration patterns and interaction with fur trappers and Mormon pioneers. He calls on his background in natural resources to talk about how plants and animals were used to survive in this beautiful, difficult environment that the Shoshone call home. Utah SHPO | Learn more and register (free) »
May 29 Online Event: With Great Power Comes Great Hydroelectricity
With architect Jansen Bennett. Jansen will debut a video tour of one of the oldest hydroelectric power plants in western North America, the Olmstead Hydroelectric Plant, located at the mouth of Provo Canyon and take questions from a live audience. The Olmstead Plant is still in use today, and with every passing year new technological upgrades have been made to the plant complex that result in a fascinating tour through time. Utah SHPO | Learn more and register (free) »
June 11–25 Online Class: Overview of Hohokam Pottery Wares and Types
With Allen Dart. Tuesdays, 4:00–5:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time. Dart will show and discuss the main kinds of pottery of southern Arizona’s Hohokam archaeological culture. The class includes hundreds of pottery photos, definitions of ceramic analysis terms, attributes of the most common Hohokam pottery wares and types, reading materials and sources on Hohokam pottery, and plenty of discussion opportunities. Registration & $45 donation due by 5:00 p.m. June 7. Old Pueblo Archaeology Center | Learn more »
Remember to send us notice of upcoming webinars and Zoom lectures, tours and workshops, and anything else you’d like to share with the Friends. Thanks!