ARKANSAS CELEBRATES ARCHEOLOGY WEEK 2001
Arkansas Archeology Week 2001 was celebrated October 20-28 with 30 different events at 21 venues throughout the state. The theme for 2001 was "Archeological Parks," which was chosen to recognize these special parks that not only preserve ancient sites, but provide the opportunity for the public to visit and learn about them. Events for Archeology Week 2001 included demonstrations, exhibits, workshops, slide shows, and open houses and were sponsored by museums, libraries, state parks, archeological offices, and various chapters of the Arkansas Archeological Society.
Participating
state parks included Parkin, Toltec Mounds, Bull Shoals-White River, Lake
Chicot, Logoly, Petit Jean, Queen Wilhelmina, Prairie Grove, and Blanchard
Springs Caverns. Participating museums included the ATU Museum, Russellville;
Bella Vista Historical Museum; Children's Museum of Arkansas and Museum
of Discovery, Little Rock; Shiloh Museum of Ozark History, Springdale;
and the Ft. Smith National Historic Site. Libraries included Clark County
Library, Fayetteville Public Library, Garland Co. Library, and the Ouachita
Baptist University Library. Details about some of the activities follow.
The Museum and Survey station at Arkansas Tech in Russellville hosted an open house, which included stone tool making and blowgun demonstrations. A presentation on experimental archeology and its use in studying the burning and rebuilding of Caddoan houses was also given. Toltec Mounds sponsored a pine needle basket workshop, and Queen Wilhelmina State Park demonstrated early games and technologies.
The Children's Museum of Arkansas held a series of pottery workshops, in which children could make and decorate their own clay pots. The museum also offered programs about the lives of Quapaw or Cherokee children, and about choosing archeology as a career. The Fort Smith National Historic Site also sponsored a workshop on archeology for kids.
An exhibit on novaculite was displayed at the Garland County Museum, and a collection of Native American artifacts from Chicot County was displayed at Lake Chicot State Park.
Slide-talks on the excavations of the 19th-century site of Van Winkle's Mill and Arkansas rock art were held at the Shiloh Museum, while a Little Rock Corps of Engineers archeologist presented a program on protecting archeological resources. Slide-talks on the archeological parks of Poverty Point, La., and Pinson Mounds, Tenn., were also presented.
In October 2002,
Archeology Week will become Archeology Month. Events, exhibits, and
other activities will be scheduled throughout the entire month, allowing
more opportunities for everyone to be able to participate. A theme for
Archeology Month 2002 has not yet been chosen. In 2003, Arkansas will
be celebrating the anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase, so the theme
for Archeology Month 2003 will tie in with that historic event. Check
this Web site closer to October 2002 for further information and a schedule
of events.
