American Studies Commons^™

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project Annual Report, 2012-2013, Michael Nassaney

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project

The Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project continued to maintain its high standards in research, teaching, and public outreach in the examination of the fur trade and colonialism in southwest Michigan under the auspices of the Fort St. Joseph Archaeology Advisory Committee. Over the past year (September 1, 2012 through August 31, 2013) Western Michigan University (WMU) students and faculty, along with interested stakeholders and community volunteers, collaborated in both the archaeological investigation of Fort St. Joseph as well as the dissemination of information to an expanding audience. The highlights of the past year include:

• The newly released DVD, "Militia Muster,” …

Interview With Margot Weiss In Critical Lede Podcast, Margot Weiss

Margot Weiss

Podcast: Episode 130 - Interview with Margot Weiss We talk with Margot Weiss (Wesleyan) about BDSM, pleasure and neoliberalism in her new book Techniques of Pleasure: BDSM and the Circuits of Sexuality.

“Margot Weiss Talks Bdsm And Sexuality.” Interview By Yasmin Nair In Windy City Times., Margot Weiss

Margot Weiss

Margot Weiss' book, Techniques of Pleasure: BDSM and the Circuits of Sexuality ( Duke University Press, 2011 ) has become a fixture in several ongoing conversations about the BDSM community. It received the 2012 Ruth Benedict Book Prize and was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards.

Archeological Investigations For The Levi Jordan Plantation House Stabilization, Brazoria County, Texas, Jennifer K. Mcwilliams, Douglas K. Boyd, Aaron Norment

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Levi Jordan plantation house is one of the few antebellum plantation structures to have survived in Brazoria County. It is the only standing structure associated with the plantation, which began operating in 1848 and was occupied continually up through the 1990s. The original house, built in the early 1850s using slave labor, was a 20x60-ft two-story wooden frame structure. It was altered many times during its long occupation, often due to hurricane damage. A portion of the Levi Jordan Plantation was acquired by the State of Texas in 2002 and managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department until …

Journalism In A Pr World, Michael I. Niman Ph.D.

Michael I Niman Ph.D.

Mike Niman discusses the future of journalism in a PR-dominated communication environment. In particular, he examines the migration of talent from journalism to the PR industry, the collapse of mainstream journalism and the role of an emergent alternative media as American journalism goes through metamorphosis from what it was to what it could become. Journalism is a social good that should equip people to understand and resist spin. Niman argues that mainstream American journalism, rather than rising to this challenge, has transparently succumbed to serving as an arm of the corporate PR industry, thus laying the groundwork for its own …

Journalism In A Pr World, Michael I. Niman Ph.D.

Michael I Niman Ph.D.

Mike Niman discusses the future of journalism in a PR-dominated communication environment. In particular, he examines the migration of talent from journalism to the PR industry, the collapse of mainstream journalism and the role of an emergent alternative media as American journalism goes through metamorphosis from what it was to what it could become. Journalism is a social good that should equip people to understand and resist spin. Niman argues that mainstream American journalism, rather than rising to this challenge, has transparently succumbed to serving as an arm of the corporate PR industry, thus laying the groundwork for its own …

The Spirituality Of Food And Nutrition: A Critique Of The United States' Food Practices Through An Analysis Of Three Asian Religions And Philosophies, Kiley G. Hagerty

Senior Theses and Projects

There is no question that the United States is a country that is currently faced with serious health epidemics, such as hypertension and diabetes, associated with being overweight and obese. It has been the assumption of the government and the public that the large food corporations are to blame for the country’s poor health. However, it is too simplistic to believe that tighter regulations upon corporations would alone lead to improved health. There needs to be a change at the individual level, and of the practices of most of the country’s citizens. Through an analysis of three Asian religions (Hindu …

A Nation In Its Prime: A Pentadic Study Of Walt Disney World's Main Street, U.S.A., Casey Guise

Masters Theses

The purpose of this paper is to consider the entrance to Walt Disney World, Main Street, U.S.A., as a rhetorical text and apply Kenneth Burke's dramatistic pentad. Background is provided on rhetorical theory and The Disney Company. Meanings are derived from messages interpreted using semiotics and symbolic interaction within the location. The significance of Main Street, U.S.A., as a replica of historic architecture and an illustration of revival architecture in creating emotive messages is discussed. Further discussion includes the implications of this study on corporations and the field of rhetorical studies in addition to suggestions for further research.

Ravelings (Fa 752), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

FA Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Collection 752. Clippings of "Ravelings" column from "Harland (Kentucky) Daily Enterprise" and "Corbin (Kentucky) Daily Tribune" with collected mountain superstitions, customs, and folkways.

Pinto, Chelsea (Fa 591), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

FA Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 591. Paper, titled “Paul McCartney Wanted Dead or Alive”, written by Chelsea Pinto for a folk studies class at Western Kentucky University. Pinto details the urban legend surrounding the alleged death of Paul McCartney of the English rock band The Beatles, and his subsequent replacement by a “look-alike”. Pinto bases her conclusions largely on a small number of interviews conducted with Beatles fans.

Remaining Two Parcels 39 And 41 Principal Investigator Waldo Troell, Waldo Troell

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The project field survey took place on September 23-24, 2013. The project’s area of potential effect (APE) encompasses a maximum of 122 acres including current right of way (ROW) [1.29 acres] and proposed ROW [120.71 acres]. A previous TxDOT pedestrian survey in September/October 2010 [permit # 5665] had covered approximately 117.52 acres where right of entry had been granted to TxDOT. At the time of the first survey no right of entry was granted for parcels 39 and 41. TxDOT has since purchased the entire APE and current survey covers the remaining two parcels 39 and 41 [4.48 acres]. No …

Archaeological Survey Of The Nolan Creek Improvements For The City Of Belton, Bell County, Texas, Michael R. Bradle, Herbert G. Uecker

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In September 2013, American Archaeology Group LLC conducted an archaeological survey of three tracts of land along Nolan Creek totaling 8.68 acres for the City of Belton’s planned low water dam removal and replacement dam installed, development of a parking lot and trail for kayakers, and removal of a low water bridge crossing. These improvements are being funded by a Texas Parks & Wildlife Department grant. The investigation consisted of a pedestrian survey supported with mechanical trenching. No archaeological sites were identified during the survey. American Archaeology Group LLC recommends that construction within the project area should be allowed to …

Two Archeological Surveys In The Texas Department Of Transportations Atlanta District: Fm 450 At Little Cypress Bayou, Harrison County (Csj 0843-02-012), And County Road 4114 At Brutons Creek, Morris County (Csj 0919-20-030), Damon A. Burden, Ross C. Fields

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Prewitt and Associates, Inc., was contracted by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to perform two intensive archeological surveys in TxDOT’s Atlanta District under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 6385. This work was completed prior to replacement of a bridge and realignment of approaches on Farm-to-Market Road (FM) 450 at Little Cypress Bayou in Harrison County (CSJ 0843-02-012) and replacement of a bridge and improvement of approaches on County Road 4114 at Brutons Creek in Morris County (CSJ 0919-20-030). The Area of Potential Effects (APE) for the FM 450 project is 50 acres and includes existing and new TxDOT right of …

Archeological Survey For Bridge Replacements On County Road 39 In Victoria County, Fm 532 In Lavaca County, Fm 951 In Dewitt County, And Fm 108 In Gonzales County, Texas, Aaron R. Norment

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

On November 12–13 and December 17–18, 2012, personnel from Prewitt and Associates, Inc., conducted archeological surveys for the Texas Department of Transportation for the proposed replacement of four bridges in the Yoakum District under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 6374. The bridge replacements are as follows: (1) on County Road 39 at an unnamed stream in Victoria County (CSJ 0913-27-051); (2) at the edge of Moulton, Texas, on FM 532 at the West Prong of the Lavaca River in Lavaca County (CSJ 1007-03-017); (3) on FM 951 at the North Fork of Queens Creek in DeWitt County (CSJ 0839-04-010); and (4) …

Archeological Survey Of The Jefferson Street Lift Station Force And Gravity Main Corridors And Louise Hays And Lehmann-Monroe Parks, City Of Kerrville Kerr County, Texas, John E. Dockall, Karl W. Kibler

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In April 2013, personnel with Prewitt and Associates, Inc., performed an archeological survey for proposed sewer and water main improvements and park improvements in the City of Kerrville, Texas. The work was done for Freese and Nichols, Inc., and the City of Kerrville, under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 6508. Three contiguous project areas totaling 96 acres were surveyed: the Jefferson Street lift station force main corridor, the Jefferson Street gravity main and water line corridor, and Louise Hays and Lehmann-Monroe Parks. In total, 62 shovel tests and 4 backhoe trenches were excavated. No new archeological sites were found. Two previously …

Two Middle Caddo Period Habitation Sites And Cemeteries In The Sabine River Basin, Gregg County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula, Bo Nelson

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This publications concerns the reporting of 1963-1964 archaeological investigations conducted by Buddy Calvin Jones at 41GG5 and the Joe Smith site (41GG50) in the Sabine River basin in the East Texas Pineywoods (Figure 1). Both of the sites are Middle Caddo period (ca. A.D. 1200-1450) settlements and small cemeteries situated on southern-flowing tributaries of the Sabine River, namely Grace Creek (41GG5) and Hawkins Creek (41GG50).

Analysis Of A Small Sample Of Caddo Ceramic Sherds From The T. M. Sanders Site (41lr2), Lamar County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This article documents several small collections of Caddo ceramic vessel sherds from the T. M. Sanders site (41LR2) in northwestern Lamar County, in East Texas. These vessel sherds were collected from the surface in 2011 and 2012, and provided to the author for analysis.

The Chasteen Site (41ur18) On Big Cypress Creek, Upshur County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Chasteen site (41UR18), also known as the W. S. Chastain site appears to be an early Titus phase (ca. A.D. 1450-1550) mound center and village (with an associated cemetery) on an upland landform overlooking Big Cypress Creek. The small mound (18m in diameter and 1.5 m in height) at the Chasteen site, apparently constructed over an important building, is part of a larger complex of Titus phase mound centers at this locale, including the Harroun (41UR10), Camp Joy (41UR144), and the Dalton (41UR11) sites.

The village deposits at the Chasteen site are estimated to cover 3-4 acres around the …

New Radiocarbon Dates From East Texas Caddo Sites, Timothy K. Perttula, Robert Z. Selden Jr.

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In this article, we report on new radiocarbon dates obtained from five Caddo sites in East Texas. The radiocarbon samples are charred organic remains scraped off of one surface of whole vessels or sherds. These samples are from the Johns (41CP12), Shelby Mound (41CP7l), Gilbert (41RA13), Henry Spencer (41UR315), and Henry Williams (41UR318) sites. All of the dates are calibrated using Ox Cal v4.1.7, with atmospheric data from Reimer.

Analysis Of A Surface Collection From The L. A. Hale (41tt12) Mound Site, Titus County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This article, and the three that follow in this volume, are summaries of artifact surface collections obtained by Robert L. Turner, Jr. at four sites in the Big Cypress Creek basin in the Post Oak Savanna and Pineywoods of Northeast Texas. The first surface collection is from the L.A. Hale Mound site (41TTI2) on Blundell Creek, a southward-draining tributary to Big Cypress Creek.

According to Thurmond, the principal component at the L.A. Hale Mound site is an Early Caddo (ca. A.D. 900-1200) mound center with extensive midden deposits. There are six mounds at the site, two large platform mounds (Mounds …

Archaeological Investigations At The Pine Snake Site, An Allen Phase Settlement On Flat Creek In Northwestern Cherokee County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula, Bo Nelson, Mark Walters, James Feathers

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Pine Snake site is a recently discovered late 17th to early 18th century Caddo Indian archaeological site located on private land in the northwestern part of Cherokee County, Texas, in the valley of a westward flowing tributary to the Neches River. This is an area of the Pineywoods of East Texas that contains extensive numbers of Caddo archaeological sites along all major and minor streams. Post-A.D. 1400 Frankston phase and post-A.D. 1650 Historic Caddo Allen phase sites, especially cemeteries dating to either phase, are particularly abundant in this part of East Texas. This article summarizes the findings from archaeological …

Analysis Of The Prehistoric Artifact Assemblage Of Ceramic And Lithic Artifacts From 41lr351, Lamar County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Site 41LR351 was first recorded during the 2005 Texas Archeological Society summer field school on the Stallings Ranch in Lamar County, Texas. This prehistoric site is on a natural knoll (420-430 feet amsl) in the headwaters of Pine Creek, a northward-flowing tributary of the Red River, in the Post Oak Savannah. The site has been excavated by the Valley of the Caddo Archeological Society, and a large prehistoric Caddo ceramic assemblage has been recovered, along with a substantial chipped stone tool and debris assemblage. The analysis of the ceramic and lithic artifact assemblages from the site is the subject of …

The Linebarger Site On Dry Creek, Camp County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Linebarger site (41CP493) is an ancestral Caddo site on Dry Creek in Camp County, not far upstream from the Tuck Carpenter site and large Late Caddo Titus phase cemetery. At least four ancestral Caddo burials are known to have been excavated at the Linebarger site in the 1960s, and Perttula documented two vessels and a large chipped biface from burial contexts in the Tommy Johns collection. The Robert L. Turner. Jr. surface collection came from an unspecified habitation area at the site.

The first documented vessel was a small inverted rim carinated bowl with a typologically unidentified engraved motif …

Analysis Of Surface Collections From Areas A And B At The Sam Roberts Site (41cp8) On Prairie Creek, Camp County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Sam Roberts site is a large ancestral Caddo mound center and habitation site on the floodplain of Prairie Creek, an eastward-flowing tributary to Big Cypress Creek, as well as on an upland landform south of the creek. Robert L. Turner, Jr.'s surface collections came from what he labeled Area A (in a plowed field in the floodplain) and Area B (in the uplands), several hundred meters apart. His notes with the collection also indicated that Caddo vessels had been plowed up in another cultivated field well to the east of Area A in the Prairie Creek floodplain.

The two …

Aboriginal Ceramic Sherds From 41ma30 In The Navasota River Basin In Madison County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Aboriginal ceramic sherds from three sites (41MA27, 41MA29, and 41MA30) in the Navasota River basin in the Prairie Savannah of Texas provided the opportunity to investigate their spatial and temporal nature, and to establish with a reasonable certainty their origins, ethnic affiliations, as well as relationships to other ceramic assemblages in the general region. A second collection of nine ceramic sherds is available from 41MA30, and this article describes the analysis of these additional sherds, and then summarizes the character of the larger assemblage (n=30 sherds) as a whole.

Analysis Of A Collection Of Early Caddo Artifacts From The Davis-Mcpeek Mound Site (41ur4/99), Upshur County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Davis-McPeek site (41UR4/99) is an Early Caddo (ca. A.D. 900-1200) mound and associated village on an alluvial terrace along Little Cypress Creek, in western Upshur County in East Texas. The site, with one known mound, has been known since the early 1930s, and in the early 1960s Buddy Jones conducted archaeological investigations in the mound. A small collection of ancestral Caddo artifacts from that work are curated at the Gregg County Historical Museum (GCHM, Longview, Texas), and this article provides an analysis of this collection.

Additional Ancestral Caddo Ceramic And Lithic Artifacts From The Three Mounds Creek Site, Gregg County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Three Mounds Creek site is an ancestral Caddo multiple mound center along a southern-flowing tributary to the Sabine River in the Longview, Texas area. Buddy Jones recorded the site in 1956, and noted that it had three mounds. His notes fail to describe the mounds in any fashion, nor their relationship to each other or the landform they were built on, and no map is available that shows the location of the three mounds with respect to where he collected artifacts from the site.

In April 1956, Jones excavated a 9.5 x 12 ft. (2.9 x 3.6 m) unit …

The Sam D. Carpenter Garden Plot Site (41cp496), Camp County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Robert L. Turner, Jr. obtained a surface collection of ancestral Caddo material culture remains from the Sam D. Carpenter Garden Plot site (41CP496) some unknown number of years ago. With records provided by Turner, Bo Nelson has recently recorded the site, and provided the artifacts from the surface collection for analysis.

The site is located in the uplands (330ft. amsl) on the west side of the Big Cypress Creek valley, about 2 km west of the modem channel of Big Cypress Creek. The Sam D. Carpenter Bottom site (41CP495), another Caddo site, is about l km to the east. Prairie …

A Late Caddo Cemetery At The A. Davis Site In The Little Cypress Creek Basin, Upshur County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula, Bo Nelson

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The A. Davis site is a previously unreported Late Caddo period Titus phase cemetery in the Piney woods of the Little Cypress Creek basin in Upshur County, Texas. There are notes and collections from the site in the Buddy Jones collection at the Gregg County Historical Museum, and our analysis of those materials are presented in this article.

The Dave Spencer Site On Middle Lilly Creek In Camp County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula, Bo Nelson

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Dave Spencer site (41CP497) is an ancestral Caddo site in the Middle Lilly Creek valley in southwestern Camp County, Texas. It is situated on a lower upland ridge slope (350-355 feet amsl) about 200 m south of the current channel of Middle Lilly Creek. This creek is an eastward-flowing stream in the Little Cypress Creek basin.

Robert L. Turner, Jr. identified the site some years ago, and obtained a surface collection from it. The analysis of the artifacts in that surface collection are the subject of this article.