Anthropology 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,” …

An Assessment Of Public Outreach With Children And Educators Conducted By The Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project, Erica A. D’Elia

Masters Theses

Archaeological public outreach to children can be enhanced through collaboration with school educators. While archaeologists have begun to collaborate with local and descendant communities, they have been slow to engage in work with educators in the same manner. The Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project provides the context for me to explore some of the current issues in public archaeology and the politics of education. My study was conducted to better understand the needs of both children and teachers. In my work with the archaeological summer camp for middle school students I seek to conceptualize how the camp enhances their educational …

Silence, Declaration, And Circumstance: Rethinking Women’S Roles In Saudi Arabia, Ashleigh Elizabeth Dunham

Masters Theses

The canon of academic research on Saudi Arabian women still fails to address the stereotypical images that represent them. While Anglo-American models of feminism may benefit American women, they cannot and should not be a lens through which Americans view Saudi women, as American and Saudi cultures are fundamentally different. Because of this issue, Anglo-American feminism along with the obvious problems of racism and Islamophobia contribute to the American assumption that Saudi Arabian women lack agency and control of their lives. The resulting ideologies continue to influence American ideas about Saudi Arabian women’s access to the opportunities that non-Saudi women …

“Common Sense” Versus “Good Sense”: Marginalization In Agriculture, Mark W. Hoock

Masters Theses

Scholars have engaged in discussions of when and where capitalism emerged in agrarian America. These discussions have led to categorizations that placed some farms outside the discussion of capitalist interrelationships. This separation homogenized many 19^th and early 20^th century farms on the Hector Backbone in Schuyler County New York into a “non-capitalist” category. This thesis aims to illuminate the real lived conditions of a sample of these farmers through a Marxist dialectical perspective. Archeological analysis of production strategies, through a Marxist framework allows for a better understanding of the differences between individual marginalized farms. Since analysis of a …

Refugee Reflections: A Focus On The Lived Experiences Of African Refugees Resettling In Michigan, Diane Roushangar

Masters Theses

Refugee resettlement is often observed by focusing on external indicators of integration such as employment and English proficiency. What is often ignored is the multi-faceted process refugees experience in regard to the emotions that occur during these transitions of resettlement. Emotional stressors include financial concerns, work-related issues, a lack of adequate counseling services and ESL support that can all lead to increased anxiety. This paper examines the process of resettlement that northeast African and sub-Saharan African refugees have experienced including issues of unsafe working conditions, changing gender roles, and a lack of adequate time for adjusting to the culture.

La Oficina De La Mujer (Omm): A Conduit For Social Empowerment Among Women In A Small Guatemalan Lake Community, Rachel Volk

Masters Theses

La Oficina de Municipal de la Mujer, the Municipal Office of Women, is a recent creation of the Guatemalan central government meant to help address the inequalities that women experience each day. Like so many towns in Guatemala, La Laguna (pseudonym) contains high levels of poverty and unemployment. Here, women encounter difficulties finding employment, whether as a result of the poor economy or the bigotry arising from structural sexism and racism. My investigation of the OMM uses qualitative anthropological techniques to understand the purpose and effects that this organization has towards women‟s marginalized position in the town. The application of …

24-Archaeological Investigations: Liberty Hyde Bailey Museum Site, Stephen A. Damm, Louann Wurst, Department Of Anthropology

Archaeological Reports

This report documents an archaeological investigation conducted on the property of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Museum (LHBM) in South Haven, Van Buren County, MI, which was given the site number 20VA78. The homestead is the birthplace and childhood home of Dr. Liberty Hyde Bailey, Jr. (1858-1954), a naturalist, farmer, and Professor of Horticulture at Cornell University who gained prominence as a pioneer of the progressive farming movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

In the spring of 2012, John Stempien, then Director of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Museum, contacted Dr. LouAnn Wurst of Western Michigan University to request …

Participant/Observer Vol. 6. No. 1 Summer 2013, Anthropology Department

Participant/Observer

A Newsletter of the friends of the Western Michigan University Department of Anthropology

Table of Contents:

• Welcome from the Editor
• Recent Investigations of Fort St. Joseph
• 2012 Finger Lakes National forest Farmstead Archaeology Project Season
• Michigan Archaeology Day
• Liberty Hyde Bailey Museum Project in South Haven
• Where Are Our Alumni Now?
• Faculty Updates
• Annual Speaker Series
• WMU at SHA
• Recognize anyone?
• 2012-13 Department of Anthropology Awards

Closer To Nature: Exploring Environmental Summer Camp Experience Through Ethnographic Fiction, Courtney Morgan Schofield

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the experiences of counselors and campers at environmentally-themed summer camps through the medium of ethnographic fiction. Research was conducted by examining the experiences and influences of two separate summer camps, the Midwest Nature Center Camp and Midwest Zoo Camp. Drawing on traditional ethnographic research methods, I explore the environmental messages emphasized during camp, the myriad of relationships individuals have with nature, and the impact of gender on the summer camp experience. Yet, while this thesis is based on ethnographic research, an emphasis is placed on the presentation of the information. By examining the way anthropology has been …

A Discursive Analysis Of A Pregnancy Center: How Pregnant Women Are Encouraged To Develop A Sense Of Self-Worth And Emotional Wellbeing Through The Use Of Rhetoric And Imagery, Jessica Postma

Masters Theses

This study presents and alternative approach to how pregnancy is interpreted in western society and how settings such as a pregnancy center both challenges and reinforces these social standards. The promotion of abstinence, the aversion to abortion, notions of truth and morality, religious narratives, and the standard of care are all integral components to this analysis of pregnancy, language, and culture.

Investigations At The Fort St. Joseph Archeological Project Unit N25 W9, Erika Mammen

Honors Theses

The Western Michigan University Archaeological Field School is a program that allows students with an interest in Anthropology or History an opportunity to participate in a learning community devoted to the practice of archaeology. Since 2002 the field school has been held regularly at the site of historic Fort St. Joseph (20BE23). During the summer field season of 2011 I was a student archaeologist at Fort St. Joseph. For my honor’s thesis I am presenting a summary of my field experience and a discussion of my findings.

The purpose of this thesis is twofold. First, I aim to provide future …

Playing Politics: Presidential Elections In Board Games, Stephen Damm

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

No abstract provided.

Investigation Of The Effect Of Diet, Sex And Age On Dental Health Among Ancient Asian Populations From China And Mongolia, Jamie M. Gomez, Erdene Myagmar

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

No abstract provided.

Sweet Memories: Confectionary And History In Japan, Jon Holtzman

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

This project examined practices, attitudes and memories surrounding confectionary as a lens on historical consciousness in contemporary Japan. Building on a growing scholarly literature that shows food and eating practices to be a potent arena key developments in recent history through the lens of sweets, considering practices that have remained relatively stable and those which have seen considerable change as Japanese society has itself undergone radical transformations.

Morphometric Analysis Of Acetabular Rim Shape Among Ancient Mongolian Pastoralists, Jacqueline T. Eng, Andrew Baker, Pingbo Tang, Shannon Thompson, Jamie M. Gomez

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

The adoption of nomadic pastoralism may have marked new physiological stresses to the hip for the bipedally-adapted human rider. Relatively few studies have examined differences in acetabular shape resulting from long-term equestrianism. Steppe populations of Mongolia began a nomadic pastoral lifestyle during the Late Bronze Age, which has persisted to the present day, with whole communities of men, women, and children riding horses as part of their lifeway.

Fort St. Joseph Post - Spring 2013, Department Of Anthropology

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project

Vol 4. No. 1 Table of Contents:

• Greetings from the Director!
• The 2012 Field Season: Exploring Structures and Exciting Finds!
• The Work Starts When We Leave the Field: News from the 2012-2013 Lab Students
• A Public Presence: Conferences Attended by Members of the Project
• New Film Released: Militia Muster at Fort St. Joseph
• Reenactor Perspectives at Fort St. Joseph
• Alumni News
• Geophysical Survey: Exploring the Unknown Space
• Recent and Upcoming Events and Activities
• Fifth Annual Summer Archaeology Lecture Series
• 2013 Fort St. Joseph Archaeology Summer Camp
• 2013 Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Open House

American Beisbol: How Cultural Differences Help Explain Different Approaches To Game Playing, Derek Jackson

Masters Theses

The purpose of this thesis project is to examine the effect of culturally derived game strategies on the success level of players in the game of baseball. Specifically, I look at both the influence of how various Latin American cultures teach the game in order to better ensure success of players at the MLB level versus how the game is taught in the United States and Japan. In this way I develop a feedback model in which these game strategies perpetuate a cycle of enculturation that further reinforces cultural/ethnic identities. In order to accomplish this goal I look at the …

The Age Of Consumption: A Study Of Consumer (And Producer) Behavior And The Household, Stephen A. Damm

Masters Theses

While anthropologists have often emphasized the importance of factors such as the household's age, lifecycle, and kinship within the context of the wider community, archaeologists have paid less attention to these factors. Using data from the excavations of eighteen farms in the Finger Lakes National Forest, occupied from the 19th century into the 1930s, I examine how household age influenced the consumer choices made by a sample of households and how aspects of production and consumption were prioritized within this context. By examining broad patterns in the archaeological and historic data, an age-based analysis as a young/old categorization is juxtaposed …