Archeology E-Gram April 2022

Ancient Ohio Earthworks Nominated as America’s next UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks has been nominated for inclusion on the World Heritage List. The nomination is a group of eight archeological sites in southern Ohio, located within both Hopewell Culture NHP and related properties owned by the State of Ohio and the Ohio History Connection. The nomination will be considered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in the summer of 2023.

The earthworks were built during the Middle Woodland period (1,500 – 2,200 years ago) by American Indians, people now referred to as the Hopewell Culture. Built on an enormous scale and using a standard unit of measure, the earthworks form precise squares, circles, and octagons as well as a hilltop sculpted to enclose a vast plaza. The geometric forms are consistently deployed across great distances and encode alignments with both the sun’s cycles and the more complex patterns of the moon. These are among the largest earthworks in the world that are not fortifications or defensive structures.

The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks include Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, including the Mound City Group, Hopewell Mound Group, Seip Earthworks, High Bank Earthworks, and Hopeton Earthworks; Newark Earthworks State Memorial, including the Octagon Earthworks and Great Circle Earthworks; and Fort Ancient State Memorial.

The NPS manages all or part of 19 of the 24 World Heritage Sites in the United States. It is also the principal U.S. government agency responsible for implementing the World Heritage Convention in cooperation with the Department of State.

36 CFR 79, Subpart E Deaccessioning Regulation Finalized

The NPS has finalized a rule to allow deaccessioning of federally owned archeological items determined to be of insufficient national archeological interest. The rules amends Code of Federal Regulations Chapter 36 part 79.

Federal agencies, including the NPS, are responsible for millions of archeological objects around the nation. The rule will assist federal agencies in their stewardship of archeological collections which they curate on behalf of the American public.

The new rule provides agencies with a rigorous procedure to remove from collections a limited number of particular material remains that are determined to be "of insufficient archeological interest" by meeting very specific criteria. No human remains or cultural items as defined in the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) may be disposed of under this rule.

Objects for disposition under the rule must be archeological "material remains.'' Examples include brick fragments retained from an excavation or soil samples that have become contaminated.

The rule will improve the cost-effectiveness of caring for federal collections. It includes a number of safeguards for protection of objects, including consultation with a Collections Advisory Committee, that may include a representative appointed by a federally-recognized tribe; notification of interested parties, including State and Tribal Historic Preservation offices and interested universities; and publishing detailed information about the proposed disposition in the Federal Register. Deaccessioned objects are not to be sold or traded as commercial goods.

The final rule was published in the Federal Register on April 15, 2022.

Eglin Cultural Resources Office Hosts Archeology Day Event

On March 26, the Eglin Air Force Base Cultural Resources Office hosted the 9th annual Archeology Day at the Jackson Guard station in the western Florida Panhandle. The event is a community outreach event to bring awareness of the cultural resources on the base.

More than 125 people attended the event to learn about local area heritage and cultural resources. On display was a pioneer exhibit, a children’s table, history markers, and the Atwater historic shipwreck. In addition, there were exhibits by the Fort Walton Beach Culture and Heritage Center and Prentice Thomas and Associates, a local archeology company.

Catherine Nolan, archeologist and organizer for the event, explained that because Eglin is federal land, its cultural resources need to be made accessible to the public. “We have everything from prehistoric sites going back to Paleoindian through military sites, so we have a wide range of resources.”

The Eglin Archeology Day event happens every March in connection to Florida’s Archeology Month.

Oklahoma State University Offers Tribal Agreement Database

Oklahoma State University has announced an updated tribal agreement database. In the mid-1990s, the Oklahoma State University Library started an ambitious project to scan 150 pages from the 1904 work “Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties” (Volume II), compiled and edited by Charles J. Kappler. The project began at a time when library digitization projects were in their infancy. Over time, the project expanded to include the remainder of Volume II, in addition to Volumes I and III. In 2001, Volumes IV-VII were digitized and made available online.

In 2021, work began on an updated database to help improve access to the treaties located in Volume II, thanks to the support of the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Interior. Links to Kappler’s original text and digitized treaties held at the National Archives can be found throughout the site. A recently updated, comprehensive index complements the work.

This database is in high demand by Indigenous people, researchers, journalists, attorneys, legislators, educators and others of both Native and non-Native origins. Updates to this evolving database will continue into early 2022 as we build contemporary connections to present-day tribes.

To visit the database, go to Tribal Treaties Database

Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary Established

On October 9, 2021, Congress established the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary. The 726 square mile sanctuary off the coast of Wisconsin includes 36 known shipwrecks dating from the 1830s to the 1930s. Archival research indicates that the sanctuary could include another 59 or 60 such shipwrecks that have yet to be discovered. Twenty-one of the known shipwrecks were listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Thanks to the cold, fresh water of Lake Michigan, several of the known shipwrecks were essentially intact and looked much like they did when they sank.

The Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast is not the only Great Lakes marine sanctuary. Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve is located on Lake Huron's Thunder Bay. The 4,300 square mile sanctuary extends extends east from the Michigan shoreline to the international border with Canada. It protects an estimated 116 historically significant shipwrecks ranging from nineteenth-century wooden side-wheelers to twentieth-century steel-hulled steamers. Geological and archeological evidence suggests a high probability of prehistoric archeological sites awaiting discovery.

Designating a national marine sanctuary provides important protections for cultural resources. After designation of the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary, NOAA announced that it would install mooring buoys that would make anchoring or grappling unnecessary, establish policies allowing access to shipwrecks where mooring buoys would not be installed, and potentially allow activities it originally intended to prohibit, such as allowing divers to attach mooring lines directly to some shipwrecks.

The Federal Archeologist’s Bookshelf: Will be back soon

GRANTS AND TRAINING

ARPA Snapshot Training Series

ARPA Snapshots are designed for Law Enforcement and Cultural Resource Professionals who want to refresh their skills, look more closely at a particular topic, or explore new directions that the Archeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) may take them in their work.

May 11 – ARPA Resource Damage Assessment (RDA)
Presenter: Caven Clark
What goes in an RDA and how do you get there from your FDA?

May 25 - ARPA Sentencing and Sentencing Guidelines
Presenter: Randy Ream
What both LE and CR need to know for an ARPA sentencing hearing

June 8 – ARPA and Tribal Partners
Presenter: Caven Clark
Working with tribes to both satisfy legal requirements and build trust

June 22 – ARPA Patrol: Investigation Basics
Presenter: Robert Still
What you need to know to effectively coordinate an ARPA investigation

These webinars are offered using the MS Teams platform. 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm ET
Find the registration links and more details about each webinar on the Common Learning Portal.

Tribal Consultation Webinar Series

Federal agencies are required to engage in regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration with Tribal officials. Government-to-government relationships should include regular and timely communication so that tribes may provide input on issues that may have a substantial direct effect on them. The Tribal Consultation Webinar series is being offered for NPS employees looking for an introduction into the Tribal consultation process, or those who want to refresh their skills or ask experts for advice on best consultation practices for managing park resources.

May 10, 2022 - Consultation - A Legal Overview

June 14, 2022 - Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Tribal Consultation but Were Too Afraid to Ask - Part I
July 12, 2022 - Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Tribal Consultation but Were Too Afraid to Ask - Part II

August 16, 2022 - Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Tribal Consultation but Were Too Afraid to Ask - Part III

September 13, 2022 - Historical Trauma and Mistrust of the Federal Government

October 11, 2022 - Players in the Tribal Consultation Process

November 15, 2022 - Cross-cultural Communication - How to Communicate with Tribes

December 13, 2022 - Shared Stewardship

January 10, 2023 - Applied Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)

These webinars are offered using the MS Teams platform, 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm ET.

Register through the Common Leaning Portal. The link registers you for full series but you may attend as few or as many as you wish. Speakers for each session and additional information are available on the Common Learning Portal.

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation Offers Online Consultation Training

Working Effectively with American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Governments, an online training course to provide all users with a better understanding and greater knowledge of Native American issues, is now available.

It is an introduction to the complexities and perspectives of Tribal people and their governments. With more than 570 federally-recognized Indian Tribes this online program will provide basic knowledge to work more effectively with American Indian and Alaska Native governments.

The course was initially developed by the Interagency Indian Affairs Executive Working Group and released in January 2008. The updated program and 2022 launch is presented by the ACHP Office of Native American Affairs, the DOJ National Indian Country Training Initiative, and the BIA Office of Justice Services.

Working Effectively with American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Governments is available at: https://tribal.USALearning.net and is free of charge. It will take between one and four hours to complete the course.

SLIGHTLY OFF TOPIC: Three Films Dubbed in Navajo!

From story by Vanessa Romo, National Public Radio

In 2013, the Navajo Nation Museum, in Window Rock, AZ, partnered with Lucas Films to dub a version of Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope and followed that in 2016 with Disney's Finding Nemo.

The idea to translate popular, mainstream American films into Navajo came from Manuelito Wheeler, the director of the museum. "We wanted to do a project that was fun and got people excited," Wheeler told a National Public Radio reporter. From the very beginning, he said, the films, the casting and even the script writing have served to "create a space where it is OK to have an open dialogue about why we don't speak our language as much anymore."

In 1980, 93% of Navajos spoke their native language but that number had dropped to 51% by 2010. Non-Navajo speakers included Wheeler, until he got married. Although he was born on the reservation and spent his formative years there, it is his wife, a teacher and fluent Navajo speaker, who has helped him learn the language.

The first two films were aimed at attracting younger audiences, but after those projects Wheeler says he began hearing from elders in the community." 'You should do a Western,' they would tell me. And then I thought about it, and their age group are the primary language keepers for Navajo and probably for all Native peoples ... so that put the seed in my mind,” Wheeler said.

There was just one problem. Traditional Western films do a poor job of providing positive portrayals of Native Americans. "Typically they're so offensive, whether they were belittling Native people or portraying them as primitive or as savage and brutal."

But in Sergio Leone's 1964 film, A Fistful of Dollars, there are no Native Americans. Wheeler thought, problem solved! The other plus was the style of the film. Spaghetti Westerns, which were new to American audiences at the time, have a gritty look to them and feature flawed anti-heroes — a total contradiction of the glossy, polished, white-cowboy-hat westerns of the ‘50s.

"I mean, it's just so cool," Wheeler said. "I thought that would appeal to young Navajos who really have no affinity for the genre. It's just not part of the world that they're growing up in but they might connect to this."

For Ravonelle Yazzie, being a voice in the film has been a deeply meaningful experience. Although she's fluent in Navajo, the 27-year-old said she rarely gets an opportunity to speak it in her everyday life. She is a student at San Diego State University, and is a few months away from getting her MA to become a school counselor. Growing up on the Navajo Nation reservation, she was surrounded by the language and attended a Navajo immersion school "from kindergarten all the way up until my eighth grade year." It was her key tether to her maternal grandmother, who moved in with the family when Yazzie was still a toddler. "She only spoke Navajo."

But more recently, she said, "I feel like I'm losing a little bit of it because I just don't get the practice anymore," she said. And when she visits, her mother and family tend to slip into English pretty quickly. "My mom went to boarding school and my uncles have gone to boarding school and that trauma is still a really recent" part of her family history, Yazzie explained. But she is firm in her resolve not just to not lose the language and all of its complicated nuances, but to pass it on.

At the premiere screening of Béeso Dah Yiníłjaa' she said she would be thinking about her grandmother, who died a few years ago and who loved movies even though she didn't speak English. She was a fan of Westerns "because they're pretty easy to understand because of all of the action."

The dubbed films are available on Disney+. To watch the Navajo language dubbed versions of the films, simply search the movie titles. Navigate to the “extras” section located at the bottom of the window and scroll left or right until you see the Navajo language versions.

Archeology E-Gram, distributed via e-mail on a regular basis, includes announcements about news, new publications, training opportunities, national and regional meetings, and other important goings-on related to public archeology in the NPS and other public agencies. Recipients are encouraged to forward Archeology E-Grams to colleagues and relevant mailing lists.

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