From the Field 2007
- Welcome from the Director
- Weeks 1 and 2
- Weeks 3 and 4
- Week 5
Welcome from the Director
The 2007 class.
Scenery along the Sassafras.
Sites in Queen Anne's County, situated along sandy ridges.
Probability areas on a soil map—high probability shown in red.
Each year we run 6-week field school here at Washington College, teaching students all of the skills they need to become competent field archaeologists. This year we have 15 students joining us, 14 from Washington College and one from Case Western.
The course is taught by Darrin Lowery and John Seidel, with assistance from our lab director, Liz Seidel, and two Washington College grads, Teresa Fewlass (currently a PhD candidate at the College of William & Mary) and Brynn Torelli (MA candidate, University of Nevada Las Vegas). Assisting us in the field are anthropology majors with previous field experience, Astra Haldeman and Elizabeth Clay, so we have a staff of 7 joining the 15 students.
This year's work is spread out through Kent County, but is targeted at "ground truthing," or testing, a predictive model we have developed for archaeological site locations on the Upper Eastern Shore of Maryland.
Based on a variety of ecological and environmental factors, the model tries to predict the areas that were most likely to have been attractive to Native Americans, and thus most likely to hold archaeological sites. If the model works, it will be of enormous interest to archaeologists and useful to planners who want to avoid sensitive areas when planning new roads or other development.
To test the model we're surveying plowed fields along the Sassafras River and on Eastern Neck, south of Rock Hall—the idea is that concentrations of artifacts are indicators of sites. We'll compare our survey results with the model to see whether or not the model actually compares to reality. This is our third summer of testing, and so far, so good! We'll also assess some of the sites we found in previous years with test excavations.
We've asked the students to report on each week's activities, and we'll try to keep this updated on a regular basis. Occasionally you'll also see some interjections on the part of staff. We hope you'll find our explorations into Maryland's past of interest!
Best wishes,
John L. Seidel
Field School Director
Director, Center for Environment & Society
Darrin Lowery
Associate Field School Director