YAVAPAI CHAPTER
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter Officers
Meetings
Classes
Field Trips
Chapter Projects
Chapter Bylaws
Chapter History
Local Museums
Introduction
The Yavapai Chapter is located in Prescott, AZ
Yavapai Chapter News April 2008
Contacts: President Fred Kraps (928)778-0653 fkraps@mac.com.
Programs: Vice-president Gloria Grimditch (928) 443-8881 ggrimditch@aol.com
Field trips: Tom Garrison garrison@voyager.net
On February 21, Stewart Deats of Envirosystems, spoke on the 2006 Simonton Ranch excavations in Camp Verde, where he was field supervisor. In all, 25 pithouses were examined as part of the project. Of particular interest was a burned pithouse structure that raised many questions, due to its unusually large size, and the discrepancy in dates, ranging from some sherds found in-situ on the floor identified as Verde Red and Gila Red (AD 1150-1400), projectile points (AD 600-1000) and radiocarbon dates obtained from burned reeds (AD 540-680). Possible explanations are the misidentification of the sherds or less likely, date ranges that are too narrow for these two ceramic types. Several chapter members worked on the excavation of this structure.
At the March 20 meeting Jim McKie, Archaeologist for the Prescott National Forest, Dr. Sandra Lynch, Archaeologist with the Sharlot Hall Museum and our outreach team Mark Millman and Rosie Hartner all join for a presentation on the importance of public education and community outreach. Find out what Mark and Rosie have been telling the area 4th and 6th graders. Preview and comment on the proposed presentation for adult groups ranging from ATV clubs to civic organizations. In addition, on display will be several of the pots from the Willow Lake (Neural) site.
Coming up on April 17, Dr. Mike Ruddell, archaeology professor at Yavapai College, will present his forensic analysis of the human remains found at the Willow Lake site (Neural Site), dated to about 1100-1300 AD.
At the May meeting, Dave Haleric with the Coronado National Forest will give us a look at archaeology on the Arizona – Mexico border. Because of border fence construction activities, CNF archaeologists have been working there extensively, and in light of current events, their findings are of interest to all Arizonans.
Before the meetings, all are invited to join speakers and fellow chapter members at the Prescott Brewing Company at 5:30 for dinner.
Field trips continue on the second Saturday after our chapter meetings. This meant our “February” field trip was March 1. The weather was perfect for the outing to the Arrastre Creek site on Black Mesa. A large enthusiastic group of Yavapai and Verde Valley chapter members enjoyed seeing the multitude of petroglyphs, bedrock basin, trough metates and other features.
Our March 29th trip will be to the V-V Heritage Site, the premier petroglyph site in northern Arizona, near Rimrock. Our guide there will be Ken Zoll, noted archaeoastronomy expert and author. We also plan to visit the nearby Sacred Mountain site.
Many thanks to the stalwart members who gathered on Monday and Wednesday mornings to wash sherds and lithics from the Cahava site. The last bag was completed March 10, so as a “reward”, Monday’s group visited a fascinating nearby site where petroglyphs were pecked on fragile schist outcroppings.
Chapter Officers
| Office | Office Holder | Contact Data |
| President | Fred Kraps | 928-778-0653 fkraps@mac.com |
| 1st Vice President | Gloria Grimditch | 928 443 8881 ggrimditch@aol.com |
| Treasurer | Jim Christopher | 928- 771-9057 jchristopher@prescott.edu |
| Secretary | Dawn Kimsey | --- |
| One Year Director | Mark Millman | 928.636-8888 anasazi8@cableone.net |
| Two Year Director | Susan Jones | 928-776-9085 sukeyinaz@msn.com |
| Three Year Director | Ron Robinson | 928-443-9405 ronsmail@cableone.net. |
| Archivist | Nancy Cannon | 928-443-8510 nancann7@aol.com |
| Certification Rep | Susan Jones | 928-776-9085 sukeyinaz@att.net; |
| Advisor | Andy Christensen | 928-445-1953 alchristensen@cableone.net |
| Last Updated | 1/7/2008 |
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Chapter Meetings
| Meeting Place | Day & Time | Location |
|---|---|---|
| -- | 7:30 PM, the third Thursday of each month | -- |
| Speaker Topic | Date | Speaker |
| - | - | - |
| -- | - | -- |
| -- | - | -- |
| -- | - | -- |
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Scheduled Classes
ROCK ART RECORDING CLASS IN JUNE
The Yavapai Chapter will be offering the lecture portion of the AAS rock art recording course each Saturday in June – 7,14,21,28 -- from 9:00 to 3:30 in the pueblo of the Smoki Museum, 147 N. Arizona, (off Gurley St), Prescott The class, taught by Barbara Gronemann, will cost $50 for the four sessions. This is a unique opportunity, especially for members from any chapter who have been unable to take part in field schools because of work commitments.
Participants can gain the field hours needed for certification working on the Brooklyn Basin Project (See those details elsewhere on this site) as well as opportunities in the Prescott area offered later at the completion of this course.
The course outline can be viewed on this site: Click on Certification and then Certification Manual. The registration form can be found there also.
To sign up for the June course, please send the registration form and your check made out to Yavapai Chapter, AAS to: Susan Jones 46 Woodside Dr. Prescott AZ 86305. If you have any questions, you can call or e-mail Susan: 928-776-9085 or sukeyinaz@msn.com.
Barbara will have copies of the required texts available for purchase at the first class, if you have registered before May 1. These texts are: A Practical Rock Art Recording Guide by Jane Kolber $18.00, and Rock Art in Arizona by J. Homer Thiel $16.00.
| Class | Date | Time | Location | Instructor | Contact | Phone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rock Art Certification | June – 7,14,21,28 | from 9:00 to 3:30 | the Smoki Museum, 147 N. Arizona, (off Gurley St), Prescott | Barbara Groneman | Susan Jones | 928-776-9085 | sukeyinaz@msn.com |
| - | - | -- | -- | ||||
| - | - | -- | -- | - |
Field Trips
Tom Garrison -- e-mail:garrison@voyager.net
| Destination | Meeting Location | Date | Trip Leader | Phone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arrastre Creek | 23 Feb 2008 | - | xxx-xxx-xxxx | ||
| - | - | - | - | xxx-xxx-xxxx | |
| - | - | - | - | xxx-xxx-xxxx |
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Chapter Projects
| Project | Activity | Project Director | Phone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | - | - | - |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| - | - | - | - | - |
Chapter Bylaws
Bylaw text goes hereTOP
Yavapai Chapter News Feb 2008
?Shafted!? was the intriguing title of the January 17 program. Neil Weintraub, South Kaibab Zone Archaeologist, Kaibab National Forest, led a PIT project documenting the remains of the Anita Mining Camp (aka Copperopolis), occupied in the early 1900?s. Prescott?s own Buckey O?Neil had a hand in the financing and finagling that brought the Grand Canyon Railroad right past the Anita Copper Mine, giving it a second life. Neal?s enthusiasm for historical archaeology was infectious. And if we come across an old tub of Cottolene, we?ll know what it was.
On February 21, Stewart Deats, project manager with Envirosystems, will talk on the 2006 Simonton Ranch excavations in the Verde Valley. The Chapter continues to host a dinner for our speaker at Prescott Brewing Company at 5:30. All members are welcome.
The next field trip, Saturday February 23, will be to the Arrastre Creek site in the Agua Fria National Monument.
Yavapai Chapter?s extensive library has been temporarily moved to a member?s home while Sharlot Hall Museum does renovations and construction on our previous location. Starting January 30 it will be available from 10am-noon on Wednesdays, and also by appointment. Please call Gloria Grimditch (928) 443-8881 to make arrangements.
?Shafted!? was the intriguing title of the January 17 program. Neil Weintraub, South Kaibab Zone Archaeologist, Kaibab National Forest, led a PIT project documenting the remains of the Anita Mining Camp (aka Copperopolis), occupied in the early 1900?s. Prescott?s own Buckey O?Neil had a hand in the financing and finagling that brought the Grand Canyon Railroad right past the Anita Copper Mine, giving it a second life. Neal?s enthusiasm for historical archaeology was infectious. And if we come across an old tub of Cottolene, we?ll know what it was.
On February 21, Stewart Deats, project manager with Envirosystems, will talk on the 2006 Simonton Ranch excavations in the Verde Valley. The Chapter continues to host a dinner for our speaker at Prescott Brewing Company at 5:30. All members are welcome.
The next field trip, Saturday February 23, will be to the Arrastre Creek site in the Agua Fria National Monument.
Yavapai Chapter?s extensive library has been temporarily moved to a member?s home while Sharlot Hall Museum does renovations and construction on our previous location. Starting January 30 it will be available from 10am-noon on Wednesdays, and also by appointment. Please call Gloria Grimditch (928) 443-8881 to make arrangements.
YAVAPAI CHAPTER NEWS FOR SEPTEMBER 2006
Although chapter meetings were on hiatus during June and July, the chapter members still were busy. The first weekend in June we opened our laboratories to the public at Sharlot Hall Museum's annual Folk Arts Fair. For two hot days, people steamed through, seeing demonstrations, exhibits of artifacts found in the area, publications of the chapter, and pictures of work and activities. While thanks are due to all of the loyal members who volunteered to spend two hours at the lab, special thanks are due to Dawn Kimsey for the loan of her swamp cooler, Dakota and Sierra Kimsey who with their mother and Gloria Grimditch led children in the making of clay figurines, Judy McCormick who demonstrated the ancient methods of pottery making, Ginger Johnson who demonstrated the making of coiled baskets, and Bob Beck who showed how he makes jewelry from argillite. Very special thanks go to Roy Julian for spending all day both Saturday and Sunday and demonstrating twine making, sandal making and fire making.
Michael Ruddell, professor of anthropology at Yavapai College, talked to the chapter in May on "A Comparison of Paleo Indian Colonization: Eastern River Valley versus Western Strategy." He began with the Clovis point and indicated its similarities to the fluted points of the Salutrian culture of central Europe of 3000 years ago. 12,000 years ago there was an ice free corridor which had become habitable and megafauna and man wandered through it. The environment for the Clovis people was changing dramatically; it was warming and the people had to follow the food and water supplies. The Clovis culture ended with the extinction of the megafauna. While in the southwest fluted points were found in conjunction with kill sites, in the southeast they were not. In the southeast, fluted point technology was more "expedient;" chert scatters were often found lying on the ground, and many more fluted points were found in the east than in the southwest. As the climate warmed, melting waters were funneled down valleys in the east. In the southwest, the San Pedro River Valley became the last gathering place of the mega fauna. Finally the drought in the SW, and local hunters, brought about their extinction. However, in the SE, as the megafauna died out, the hunters could turn to the woodlands nearby and hunt turkey and deer. 10,800 BP is considered the date of the extinction event and the end of the Clovis culture.
As meetings resume for the year, members are busy preparing to host the state meeting in October. Some are making special items to be sold in a silent auction. We are also looking forward to the Prescott Conference of the Arizona Archaeological Council which will be held at the Sharlot Hall Museum on November 3 and 4. The program concentrating on our area sounds most impressive.
In September, Clifford Hersted will talk to our chapter about petroglyphs on Perry Mesa, particularly one which he believes is a map of the mesa's settlements.
Our regular meetings are held on the third Thursday of the month at 7:30 pm in the Pueblo of the Smoki Museum. A dinner is usually held before the meeting with our speaker. For further information call president Ron Robinson 928-443-9405 or vice president Fred Kraps 928-778-0653.
YAVAPAI CHAPTER NEWS FOR MAY 2006
For the Yavapai Chapter, Archaeology Awareness Month began with a talk at our regular meeting by Tom Motsinger on regulations and the future of Prescott archaeology. He feels strongly that we should not lose archaeologi- cal sites without knowing what we are losing. If land cannot be protected and preserved, it should at least be identified and documented. Prescott must work under 3 regulations: the National Historic Preservation Act pertaining to federal land and permits, the state burial laws, and Prescott's Historic Preservation Ordinance. However, this leaves much of Yavapai County unregu- lated. Two new projects now should require the attention of archaeologists: the Transwestern Pipeline expansion and the Yavapai Ranch land exchange. Both of these projects should at least be surveyed and documented before sites are lost forever.
The following Saturday, Banks Leonard spoke on the development of Ston- eridge outside of Prescott Valley. Before the developers could begin, a survey report found 65 sites. Surface artifacts were collected, and test pits dug. Finally excavation began on selected sites which would be impacted by the development. Paleo Indian projectile points from 6000 years ago were found. The earliest pithouses dated to 2130 BC-1760 BC. These squarish pit houses had a central hearth, double rows of post holes, and remnants of maize. No ceramics were found with them. Other pit houses dating to 440 AD were found and still later ones from 880-960 AD and 1030-1150 AD. These later pit houses were contemporaneous with Fitzmaurice Ruin and 98% of the ceramics found were local Numerous burials were found with the pattern of the burials changing over the periods of occupation.
The chapter's laboratory hosted around 40 visitors who gathered at the lab before going on a behind the scenes tour of the Sharlot Hall Museum.
On Sunday, 17 brave souls followed Andy Christenson to Fitsmaurice Ruin despite the threatening snow. And in the afternoon, while the snow blew in, Robert Neily led about 25 to the remadas at Willow Lake Park which cover three of the pit houses uncovered during their excavations there.
The May meeting will feature Michael Ruddell talking on A Comparison of Paleo Indian Colonization: Eastern River Valley versus Western Strategy in the Pueblo of the Smoki Museum at 7:30 pm. A dinner is usually held before the meeting with our speaker.
Plans are already underway for participation in Folk Art Fair at Sharlot Hall Museum on June 3 and 4, 2006.
In an unusual move, there will be NO MEETINGS in June and July. Howev- er, regular meetings will resume in August.
For further information call president Ron Robinson 928-443-9405 or vice president Fred Kraps 928-778-0653.
-- Mary I. S. MooreGoes here
Local Museums
| Museum Name | Location | Website |
|---|---|---|
| Smoki Museum | address | - |