As a student, it was easy to forget that my professors were also human beings; naturally, they all had faults, quirks, and idiosyncrasies like anyone else I knew. For the most part, I never knew those individuals beyond the classroom. And that’s a regret, because I had many fine teachers. Luckily, one of the few I did get to know was Kit Wesler. Kit was … Continue reading In Memoriam
Even though I’ve become known as the Bourbon Archaeologist, I never dreamed of being fortunate enough to be involved with the discovery of the “Bourbon Pompeii” at Buffalo Trace. Continue reading My First Weekend at Bourbon Pompeii
Davis Bottom The Davis Bottom neighborhood once sat on the very edge of Lexington, Kentucky. Today, it is located only one-half mile southwest of downtown. You might think everyone always wanted to live in Davis Bottom. It would be easy to get to work in downtown offices and to shop in downtown stores. But you would be wrong. In the early 20th century, buses and … Continue reading A Neighborhood Remembered
Fox Farm is a large archaeological site located in Mason County, Kentucky. The site was occupied from ca. A.D 1300 to 1650 by sedentary farmers of the Fort Ancient culture and is one of the largest and most intensely occupied Fort Ancient village sites in the middle Ohio Valley. As part of ongoing research on the faunal remains recovered from this site from 2009-2016, four … Continue reading Worked Deer Shoulder (Scapulae) Blades from Fox Farm
Enter the time machine… You are rocketed 5000 years into the past. It is 3017 B.C. and you are overlooking a large sinkhole in what will someday be Warren County, Kentucky. It is a sweltering summer afternoon. A dozen hunter-gatherers have settled within the sink, refreshed by the cool air rising from the cave entrance below. As they knap brittle stone into spear … Continue reading What Can We Learn From “Dirt”? Geoarchaeology at a Sinkhole in Kentucky
Dear Reader, Do spiders make your skin crawl? Don’t read on! Afraid of snakes? Head back now! For those of you deciding to stick around you’ve reached Part 2 of “Danger of Kentucky Archaeology”- the creepy-crawly edition. Just like in Part 1, many of these dangers are present around the world yet Kentucky is ripe with critters that can make an archaeologist gear up … Continue reading Chiggers and Ticks and… Scorpions? Dangers of Kentucky Archaeology, Part 2
Sunburn? Unfortunately. Meeting a stranger with a gun. That’s happened. Dehydration? All the time. Ticks? Yep. Chiggers? My sworn enemy. Snake bite? Mmmhmm. Going in to the discipline of archaeology, students rarely think of the dangers they may face while out in the field. While many of the dangers of archaeology are occupational hazards for anyone who works outdoors, some of these hazards are unique … Continue reading Be Aware of Strangers with Guns & Sharp Pointy Things: Dangers of Kentucky Archaeology, Part 1
Development projects are a recurring feature of modern life, but not one that is new. Development often has tremendous impacts on human-environmental relationships and socio-economic dynamics, with implications for social justice. Development is the bane of and reason for so much of the archaeology that occurs within Kentucky and the nation. In terms of its impact on western Kentucky communities and the legacy of bureaucratic … Continue reading How do we acknowledge Kentucky’s contentious archaeological resources?
The practice of archaeology is full of mystique. Both in reality and in the public imagination, archaeology has the ability to inspire people to investigate human diversity, history, and cultural heritage. The fundamental nature of archaeology as exploration and adventure is undeniable. As an educator and a scientist I have found that in general, the public and students alike are eager to learn about … Continue reading Communication and Why Archaeology Matters in the 21st Century
Recently developed online web application called Story Maps, by the well-known GIS (Geographical Information Systems) company ESRI is making it easier to tell a story about an archaeological project, or site, or topic, and in doing so broaden your impact and reach on the internet. ESRI Story Maps are a new strategy for combining geographic information with text, images and multimedia content in an easily … Continue reading Have an archaeological story to tell via the internet?
