Blog of the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office

Category: Archaeology (Page 18 of 19)

P.H.A.S.T. and Dirty.

The crisis in transportation funding in Pennsylvania has had some consequences for the management of heritage resources.  Since the Federal Highway Administration and PennDOT are legally required to consider the effects transportation projects have on archaeological sites and historic structures and districts, the historically low levels of funding have made that mandate more difficult. The crisis has also limited the opportunities young archaeologists and historians have to gain practical experience in their profession, and to advance their careers as the numbers and size of transportation projects shrink. In 2010, archaeologists at PennDOT and at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) launched a new program intended to help address both problems. Continue reading

Improving Archaeological Reports and Review: Part 1

We archaeological reviewers here at the PA SHPO have many jobs other than just reviewing Section 106 and State History Code submissions.  Among our ‘other duties as assigned’, we are also responsible for helping the GIS Section ensure that the information from archaeological reports gets into the CRGIS (Cultural Resources Geographic Information System) for use by consultants, planners, and the public.  Making sure all the data we receive at our office is curated correctly and that it is available online is a big job – one that you, as report writers and submitters, can help us do more efficiently. Continue reading

Unearthing the Forgotten Past at Pandenarium, Site 36ME0253

Growing up in a small northwestern Pennsylvania town, I always assumed that while our local history was important to us – it didn’t always carry the same import to the world beyond.  As so often happens, I was wrong and, in this case, willingly so.  In graduate school, I was fortunate enough to work on a local archaeological site with national, even international implications on our understanding of a shared history.

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T.H.I.S and a little bit of that

Gabrielle Vielhauer

My name is Gabrielle Vielhauer. I am a student at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania where I am studying anthropology. From September to December 2012, I was pleased to be selected to participate in The Harrisburg Intern Semester (THIS) program sponsored by the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). This program places one student representative from each university, within the state system, with an office of the legislature or in a government agency. Continue reading

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