American Bottom Archaeological Field School
Summer Session II 2004
UNC Wilmington
What?
UNC Wilmington will offer a field school in the American Bottom region of North America from July 6-August 6. Our goal is to investigate Emergent Mississippian components in the Southern portion of the American Bottom, concentrating on the George Reeves site (11-S-650) near Dupo, Illinois. Students will learn excavation techniques, record-keeping, surface surveying, mapping, and basic lab techniques, including flotation. We will excavate a portion of the George Reeves site, a large, multicomponent site on the eastern bluff overlooking the southern American Bottom. We will also go on field trips to the many sites and features in the area, including Cahokia Mounds (my favorite!), the St. Louis Botanical Gardens, and other archaeological excavations in the region.
UNCW students visiting Monks Mound at Cahokia. Look, they applied sunscreen!
Last year's field school excavated 19 features, most dating to the very early Emergent Mississippian Dohack phase, including a house basin, several earth ovens, and a pit containing carbonized maize cobs and kernels. We hope to build on last year's accomplishments and excavate as much as possible of the Early Emergent Mississippian period before the site is turned into a golf course and housing development.
Kelly McCallister (left, in hat) and Claire Nanfro (sitting) digging an earth oven feature in the Summer 2003 American Bottom Field School. Photo taken by James Harrington.
Where?
The American Bottom is the part of the Mississippi Valley where the floodplain is particularly wide and fertile. It extends from the Illinois River to the north, to the Kaskaskia in the south. St. Louis is the largest modern city in the American Bottom, and we will be within easy driving distance of St. Louis throughout the session.
Map of the American Bottom region showing major mound centers and the George Reeves site, shown in red. George Reeves is in the bluffs overlooking the southern portion of the American Bottom. Modern St. Louis is directly on top of the St. Louis mound group shown in the map.
We will be staying at either an apartment complex north of the site, or at the dormitories at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. We will commute each morning to the site--a pain, but worthwhile.
Home, sweet home! Kelly McCallister, Matt Tuttle, and John Navarra enjoying a free evening.
Why?
This is important to help understand how the Middle Mississippian culture of the American Bottom began. The American Bottom produced the first complex chiefdom in the Southeastern United States, including an impressive concentration of large, complex urban mound sites. Our goal is to learn about how this complexity began, by digging up an Emergent Mississippian site in the southern portion of the American Bottom.
Patty Reese Eaton excavating a pit feature at the George Reeves site. In the background, Dr. Reber tries to understand what's going on with a Dohack phase house basin. Photo by James Harrington.
How Much?
Not including room, board, or transportation to St. Louis, the estimated cost of the field school is $1699 for in-state students, $3298 for out-of-state students. The present estimate for costs including room and transportation to St. Louis, but NOT food is $2359, in-state tuition; $3958 out-of-state tuition. To learn about eligibility for in-state tuition, click here.
Most of the crew finishes up screening dirt. On left screen, Kelly McCallister, Claire Nanfro. On right screen, Matt Tuttle (with shirt on head), Joshua Fairchild (in large hat), and John Navarra. Photo taken by James Harrington.
How Do I Sign Up?
For non-UNCW students (in addition to application)
If you're interested in taking the field school, or even thinking about it, please drop by my office in SBS 100F, or send me an e-mail at rebere@uncwil.edu. I need a count of interested people for departmental purposes. The deadline for application forms is April 9, but earlier is generally better.. Following acceptance into the field school, a packet of information and other forms will be sent to you.
Enrollment is limited to 12.
Lunchtime! Site is in the background, as the crew relaxes under an old cedar tree. Standing is Joshua Fairchild. Sitting are John Navarra and Dr. Reber. Kelly McCallister and Claire Nanfro are lying down but still conscious, with Matt Tuttle fading out fast, and Patty Reese Eaton enjoying a nap. Photo by James Harrington.
What Else?
For more information, contact rebere@uncwil.edu, or (910)962-7734.