Southwest Archaeology Today for May 26, 2006

Archaeology Making the News – A Service of the Center for Desert Archaeology

– Cornerstones Community Partnerships Workshop Focuses Upon Adobe Preservation: In the American Southwest, adobe construction is an ancient art. To foster appreciation of earthen architecture, architects, conservators, and historians from the United States and Mexico will participate in a June workshop highlighting traditional adobe preservation techniques. For more than a decade, Cornerstones Community Partnerships, a Santa Fe nonprofit organization, has brought together experts from both sides of the border for intensive three-day workshops. Combining lectures with hands-on conservation, previous workshops have addressed preservation needs at the San Jose Mission north of Las Vegas, the Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico, and other sites in the United States and northern Mexico.
http://tinyurl.com/f763n – Preservation Online

– Arsonists Damage Camp Newell: Rebecca Orozco reports that historic Camp Newell in the border community of Naco was struck by arsonists on Sunday, May 21, destroying or severely damaging six buildings. The fort is an important piece of border and buffalo soldier history. Efforts to save to fort will now be much more difficult due to the mandated requirements to fence off the site and to do asbestos clean up. The community, a largely Hispanic and impoverished border town, is looking for resources and ideas to preserve this historic treasure. For further information, contact Rebecca Orozco, orozcor@cochise.edu. For the story on the fire:
http://www.svherald.com/articles/2006/05/22/local_news/news3.txt

– Puebloan Dance Return to Mesa Verde: Almost 800 years ago a kiva within the Long House cliff dwelling on Wetherill Mesa served as a dance plaza for the ancestral Puebloan people. Tuesday afternoon, native songs and dance returned with echoes through Rock Canyon in celebration of the park’s centennial.
http://tinyurl.com/kr9cz

– Old Pueblo Archaeology Center Announces New Webiste: Old Pueblo Archaeology Center is delighted to announce that our web site has been totally revamped and now includes up-to-date listings of our upcoming activities. Please visit us at http://www.oldpueblo.org and bookmark our page so you can find us easily whenever you wish!
http://www.oldpueblo.org

– Travelogue, Mojave National Preserve: Throughout Mojave National Preserve, a 1.6 million-acre park about 140 miles northeast of Los Angeles, the subtle traces of a bygone civilization are all around. Pictographs painted on cave walls, dart tips in the sand, shelters, fire rings and pottery shards are common in the area, where generations of prehistoric people lived and died. Indeed, Mojave National Preserve is an amateur archaeologist’s dream, with undocumented sites open year-round for visitors to explore in the empty, undeveloped park.
http://tinyurl.com/ltcrt – New York Times

– Plans for Conrtoversial Power Plant on Navajo Reservation Move Forward: Navajo Nation and energy officials plan to sign leases today in Arizona giving the tribe’s go-ahead for a controversial power-plant project to move forward. But a local group is concerned the project could worsen air quality in Southwest Colorado. “It’s disappointing,” said Judy Schuenemeyer, secretary of the Montezuma/Cortez League of Women Voters, referring to the signing before completion of an environmental impact statement. “It should not be a rubber stamp.
http://tinyurl.com/qzgyp – Cortez Journal

Old Pueblo Archaeology Center Fundraising Tour from Tucson: Springerville Area Archaeological Sites. Saturday, July 29 – Sunday, July 30, 2006. Lodging at 60-year-old Reed’s Lodge. Visits to Casa Malpais Archaeological Park, Lyman Lake State Park petroglyphs, and ruins sites at Hooper Ranch, Danson Pueblo, and Sherwood Ranch (Raven Site). En-route stops at Besh-Ba-Gowah Archaeological Park and Tonto National Monument. $199 per person non-members; $174 for Old Pueblo Archaeology and Pueblo Grande Museum Auxiliary members. Early bird special – sign up by june 2, 2006 and save $25 per person. Call 520-798-1201 or e-mail to info@oldpueblo.org. Tour fee includes a donation to Old Pueblo Archaeology, transportation by van, lodging, and all entrance fees.