Archaeologists Move In!

Our move to Niles today was a success! We came into town around 10 o’clock and were settled into our house by about noon. The house seems to be more than enough for us with room for us to have our own living space, lab area, and a kitchen.  After getting settled in and eating lunch we took a drive to the Fort St. Joseph site. We met with Prism Environmental Services and learned about the process of taking soil samples and what they will be testing those samples for. We also met Juan Ganum and discussed plans for the site this year. We then continued with a tour of the site seeing the fort site, the granite cross marking Father Allouez’s grave, the rock across the street with the Michigan historic sign, and finally the Lyne site. Following our tour we started to get to work.

Alex, the leader of our clearing crew.

 Today we were able to clear a path to the Lyne site and an area for our excavation for the next few weeks. This week is also the beginning of the Public Lecture Series on Wednesday at the Nile District Library at 7pm with Dr. Doug Scott who will be presenting on “Shot and Shell Tell the Tale: Some New Interpretations from Military and Battlefield Archaeology.” This Thursday we will also have a booth at the French market. We would love to meet more of the public so come on over! Keep checking in for our daily updates, and we hope to see you soon!

Joe teaching students how to use the total station.

           Michelle

Fieldwork Begins July 9th!

Hi and welcome to the 2012 field season at Fort St. Joseph!

The 2012 field season is about to start at the Fort St. Joseph and Lyne sites. Fourteen graduate and undergraduate students will join Dr. Michael Nassaney and five other staff members in archaeological excavations this summer. The students and staff spent several days at Western Michigan University over the last two weeks familiarizing themselves with the history of the fort, learning about archaeological excavation techniques, and participating in field exercises to prepare themselves. The Fort St. Joseph archaeologists will be moving to Niles on July 9^th and are eager and excited to start field work later that day!

Let me tell you a little about myself and my involvement with the Fort St. Joseph Project. I started pursuing my MA. degree specializing in archaeology at Western Michigan University during the fall 2010. I quickly got involved with lab work on the Fort project and served as the graduate teaching assistant last summer. My research interests began with Native American history and colonial interactions and have since moved towards public archaeology and children’s education. Luckily the Fort project allows me to do both! I’m looking forward to starting this season in my new job as public outreach coordinator and, of course, learning with the students about new discoveries in the field how that helps us know about the history of the fort.

We have a lot of exciting events planned for this summer – make sure you don’t miss out on them:

The Public Lecture Series begins on Wednesday July 11^th with Dr. Doug Scott whose program is titled “Shot and Shell Tell the Tale: Some New Interpretations from Military and Battlefield Archaeology”. He will speak at the Niles District Library at 7pm. Following the presentation the archaeology students will get their first chance to mingle with the audience and talk about their first experiences in the field. The lecture series will continue with Larry Horrigan on July 25^th also at the library, Robert Myers on August 1^st at the Niles Senior Center, and Joseph Gagné at the Northern Indiana Center for History on August 8^th. All presentations begin at 7pm. Visit our Facebook and "like" us for updates as well!

Fort St. Joseph archaeologists will once again be at the French Market in downtown Niles on Thursdays throughout the summer. Come check us out, we’d love to talk to you.

Of course our annual Open House promises to be an exciting event again this year. It will take place on August 11^th-12^th at the intersection of Fort and Bond Streets. 

Site tours can be arranged by contacting me at ericaadelia@gmail.com. 

I hope to see you around!

Erica

Looking Out From Fort Ticonderoga

Dr. Nassaney and I spent the weekend of May 18, 19 and 20^th at America’s Fort, Fort Ticonderoga. A weekend filled with a variety of spectacles including many fascinating presentations from visiting scholars, hobbyists and war historians from around the United States, Canada and beyond.

The conference was the Seventeenth Annual War College of the seven Years’ War, and it attracted by all accounts a record turnout. For the first time in eleven years, the event was free of rain and thunderstorms, Dr. Nassaney, and I were delighted, because the panoramic view looking out from the battlements of the fort was nothing less than awe-inspiring.

The crowning experience for us was the unveiling of the brand new exhibit in the museum at the fort. An incredible collection of French and English firearms dating from the early eighteenth century through the Revolutionary War, including rare officer sabers and several pistols and other military paraphernalia from the period. This fantastic exhibit was built around the personal collection of Mr. and Mrs. Cook, great friends and supporters of Fort St. Joseph. Through his years of collection, Mr. Cook had accumulated an amazing display of artifacts that were actually used in the period. It was a great opportunity to actually see these weapons, Dr. Nassaney and I had a wonderful time. We made valuable contacts and listened to informative dissertations and demonstrations.

Saturday night we were treated to a reenactment of the forts capture by American forces on May 10, 1775, led by Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys and the infamous Benedict Arnold. The whole raid and capture lasted barely nine minutes and was quite interesting to learn the various details of the event that never make the history books.

Overall, Dr. Nassaney and I had a great time; we listened to great lectures, saw wonderful exhibits and enjoyed truly spectacular views looking out over Lake Champlain from the walls of Fort Ticonderoga.

Scott MacPherson

2012 Summer Archaeology Lecture Series Announced

We at the Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project are proud to present the schedule for the 2012 Lecture Series. These lectures will cover a variety of topics related to the military in historical and archaeological perspectives. These lectures are open to the public and feature prestigious speakers relating to the topic of focus. Listed below are the dates, times, and locations for the lectures. More details relating to the lectures at the Open House will be announced when available. Thank you again for your constant support. Hope to see you there!

July 11, 7 p.m.

Niles District Library

Shot and Shell Tell the Tale: Some New Interpretations from Military and Battlefield Archaeology

Douglas D. Scott This lecture will focus on how archeological evidence can be used with historical documentation to identify command and control or­ganization on a battlefield as well as see the loss of tactical cohesion.

July 25, 7 p.m.

Update: Will Be Held at the Niles District Library 

Firearms of New France

Larry Horrigan The history, use, and development of the flintlock in 17th and 18th cen­tury New France will be discussed. Authentic replicas will be displayed to assist in identifying the different types of fusils used by the French.

August 1, 7 p.m.

Niles Senior Center

Marines and Militia: The Military History of Fort St. Joseph

Robert C. Myers While never a mighty military stronghold, Fort St. Joseph neverthe­less figured prominently in the French effort to control the southern Lake Michigan region. In many conflicts, Fort St. Joseph showed its worth – and vulnerability – as a military outpost in colonial America.

August 8, 7 p.m.

Northern Indiana Center for History

Minding Militia: Canadian Militiamen and the Great Lakes during the Seven Years’ War

Joseph Gagné This presentation will examine the composition of the infamous Ca­nadian militia, their role in the Seven Years’ War, and what became of them after the war in the Great Lakes region.

August 11-12, time TBA

Fort St. Joseph Archaeology Open House

Guns of New France, 1700-59

Kevin Gladysz This presentation will examine the types of civilian flintlock guns traded, given or sold to allied Native tribes, voyageurs, fur traders, European settlers, and French colonial militiamen in New France from 1700-59.

Trade Knives and Axes of New France

Kevin Gladysz This presentation will cover the various types of French folding/ fixed-blade knives (e.g., Siamois, Flatin, Boucheron, Flamand) and axes (trade axes, Biscayan axes, and the famous casse-tête) used in the fur trade throughout the Great Lakes.

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project Now Offering Virtual Lectures

Greetings!

We are proud to announce a new service offered by the Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project! Virtual Lectures are now being offered to any interested parties. These virtual lectures last approximately 30 minutes, and feature a short lecture from our lab at Western Michigan University. Using a webcam, the internet, and the free software "Skype", lecturers from the FSJAP can connect around the country with classrooms, lecture halls,or anywhere you can get an internet signal! The program is primarily focused on students grades 3-12, but is available to any interested parties or groups. The lecture will show you a variety of artifacts recovered from the past field season, as well as taking any questions that you may have about the project or archaeology in general. For more information on the program, see the official press release at the link provided below or email Abrand87@gmail.com to schedule a date and time for your virtual lecture and field trip to the world of archaeology and data analysis. Thanks for your constant support and we will update you again soon!

Alex Brand

Official Press Release: http://www.wmich.edu/wmu/news/2012/03/092.html

Lead Shot Production Research

Hello Fort St. Joseph World!

I would like to tell you all about the research I have been doing since the close of the field season. While taking the Early Technologies class with Dr. Nassaney, I, along with the other students, was assigned to research an early technology. For many reasons, I choose to do research on lead shot specifically from Fort St. Joseph. I used the lead shot found at the fort site to learn about production methods and if the shot had been produced on site or brought in through trade. The lead shot was weighed and then examined in detail to see if there was any marking to show how the shot was produced. I found that the shot was being produced in two main sizes, but still held a great amount of variation which led me to the conclusion that there were multiple producers. This in turn showed me that it was most likely produced on site. Also, the markings on the lead shot shows us that over 86% of the shot found on site is Rupert method shot, which is produced by pouring lead through a strainer and letting it drop a short distance into water. This is a very easy way to produce lead shot, which also helps to prove that people living at the Fort were likely producing the shot on site. To better illustrate and explain my findings, I put them into a poster, which I have posted to the blog for your benefit.

I hope this has shed some light on what we do here at Western when we aren’t in the field!

-Amanda Messer

Speech to Support the Fort

Some former field school students were given the opportunity to share their current research and tasks with Support the Fort last week. Ian Kerr, Erica Stone, and Amanda Messer traveled to Niles where they spoke to an interested group of supporters.

Ian introduced the audience to tDAR. tDar, or "the Digital Archaeological Record," is a website that acts as a database for hundreds of archaeological sites all over the world. Through grant funding, Ian was able to input the data from our site; our site photographs, protected location, the history of the fort, and even our artifact inventory. For more on this and the Fort site, go to http://core.tdar.org/project/366183. Various links there will allow you to access Fort St. Joseph-related publications, photos, and more!

Erica gave some information about research that had been done on the exciting finds from the 2011 field season. There was an update about the bale seal from Lille (which we had previously put on the blog), some of the contents of the blacksmith's cache that was expanded, news on the hearth feature, and a little about our Native American pottery find.

Amanda, armed with a poster, presented her research into the field of lead shot. She was trying to determine if people at the fort were producing their own shot, or if the shot had been shipped from another location.

Stay tuned for our next post, in which Amanda will discuss her findings!