Back to the Base(ics)!

Hello to our fort followers! My name is Hannah Rucinski, and I am this year’s site photographer. I am also one of our public outreach coordinators along with Raegan Delmonico (also our Lab Coordinator) and Miro Dunham (also one of our field assistants). This past week, we held a very productive orientation for the 2019 Field School. This year, we had nine field school students and seven staff to get to know during the first couple days at Western Michigan University. We quickly became close with one another as our collective enthusiasm over site excavation and public outreach involvement was understood. The beginning of orientation involved brief icebreakers, questions about one another’s excitements and concerns about the field school, and bagels.

After we were comfortable with one another, Dr. Michael Nassaney gave lectures on the archaeology of the fur trade in North America, the Michigan underground railroad, and field & lab procedures in Niles. 

Students participated in several field exercises, including right-angle mapping, unit surveying, and operating a total station. 

The students and staff also had the opportunity to travel to a nearby construction site in Kalamazoo to examine some animal remains recovered by the construction crew. They were able to look at examples of stratigraphy at the dig site, soil colors in a pile of backfill, and the procedures that Dr. Nassaney takes when such a situation arises.

We are looking forward to the beginning of the field school’s excavation in Niles. It will be an education and memorable experience for all who participate. We can’t wait to see all of our fort followers at this year’s Open House, which runs from 10am – 4pm on August 3^rd and 4^th. For those who wish to participate in other public FSJ events this summer, we will hold four lectures at the Niles District Library as a part of our annual lecture series. This year’s theme is “Curation: Preserving the Past for the Future”, and will be held on each Wednesday in July at 7pm, beginning with July 10^th. Erika Hartley, the Fort St. Joseph Curatorial Fellow, will give the first lecture on the 10^th.

Feel free to follow along with this year’s events on our Facebook page, titled “The Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project”, by liking the page. We hope to see you, our dedicated fort followers, at some of our upcoming events!