Mound City Archaeological Society (MCAS)
Meeting Minutes; Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Prepared by Janet Kneller, Secretary
August 7 Guest Speaker: Mark Leach’s topic is “Missouri Mound Adoption Project: Preserving Pieces of Our Ancient Past”. Mark Leach from the Chesterfield Landmarks Preservation Commission and Trustee of the Missouri Archaeological Society will discuss local efforts to undo decades of looting at St. Louis County’s largest surviving Native American mound, the Blake Mound in Chesterfield. He will also explain the newly formed Missouri Mound Adoption Project and how individuals can “adopt” other mounds in the area. Copies of Mark’s book, “A Guide to Chesterfield’s Ancient History”, will be available for sale in the gift shop. A book signing will be held following the lecture. The book costs $13.50 for MHS members, $15.00 for non-members (no sales tax).
Call to Order: The business meeting of the Mound City Archaeological Society (MCAS) was called to order at 6:37 p.m. at the Missouri Historical Museum (MHM) by Greg Paulus, MCAS President. Greg welcomed everyone to the July meeting of MCAS.
Minutes: Judy Horton motioned and Annie Kiddon seconded to wave the reading of the minutes of the June meeting and approve them as written. Motion carried.
Treasury: MCAS Treasurer Carol Baluka reported a balance of $2,156.17 with 98 memberships.
Announcements:
1) Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site: Volunteers are still needed for Archaeology Days at Cahokia Mounds on August 25 from 10 am until 4 pm. All Cahokia Mounds events are listed at www.cahokiamounds.com/calendar.html or by calling 618-346-5160. Cahokia Archaeological Society (CAS) meets on the third Thursday of every month – the July 19 gathering will be their annual potluck dinner (no lecture). The August 16 CAS meeting will feature a video on the Aztalan Mounds in Wisconsin. Anyone interested in the Cahokia Mounds Bus Trip July 21-22, please contact Steve Riddle at 618-345-5160.
2) Volunteers are still needed to work the MAS information booth at the Missouri State Fair on August 9 through August 19. Morning and afternoon shifts are available. If you can help, please contact Greg at 314-704-3507 or bgpaulus@archaeologist.com.
3) The Sutter-Meyer Society (SMS) will meet on the third Tuesday of every month at 7 pm at the Pershing School library in University City. Membership is $18.73, which is also the year the farmhouse was constructed. The next excavation and surveying day is scheduled for July 21 from 7am until 1pm. Contact Greg for information. Sutter-Meyer t-shirts are available for $18.73. A portion of the proceeds goes to help the SMS with start-up costs.
Sutter-Meyer Open House will take place Sunday, September 16 from 10 am until 4 pm. A rain date is scheduled for September 23. This event will be co-sponsored by MCAS and SMS. A large number of visitors are expected, so many volunteers will be needed. To help with at least one two-hour shift that day, please contact Greg.
4) MAS Fall Symposium on the Woodland culture will be in Arrow Rock on September 8.
5) To celebrate Missouri and Illinois Archaeology Month, MCAS & CAS are co-sponsoring a field trip by deluxe motor coach to visit archaeological sites in southern Illinois is being planned for September 22. Cost for MCAS and CAS members is just $59 per person. Cost for anyone else is $69. Lunch is included. A detailed itinerary will follow shortly.
6) Missouri History Museum: Upcoming events include
a. “A Short History of the Tuskegee Airmen” is a free presentation at August 12 at 2pm.
b. “unCommon Threads: Stories of Missouri Brides” is open until September 9.
c. “Flight City: St. Louis Takes to the Air” is open until September 28, 2008.
For further information call 314-746-4599 or visit the MHS web site at www.mohistory.org.
7) Upcoming MCAS programs at MHM (7pm on the first Tuesday of every month):
a. September 4 will feature perennial favorite Dr. Timothy Baumann with "Archaeology and Restoration of the John Sites Gunsmith Shop in Arrow Rock, Missouri". Tim will present discuss his reanalysis of a 1967 excavation of a gunsmithy and its restoration into a museum.
b. October 2 will feature sward-winning Wisconsin artist Geri Schrab, who focuses exclusively on visiting and painting from petroglyphs and pictographs, primarily those located in North America. She will describe how these fragile sites have influenced her work which respects the spiritual nature not only of the sites, but also of the land of which they are a part. Items featuring Geri’s artwork, including copies of her popular children’s coloring book, “Weaving the Past with the Present”, will be available for purchase.
A business meeting of the MCAS will precede each lecture at 6:30pm. MEMBERS: If you want to get more involved in the MCAS, then please try to attend the business meeting, since this is when we discuss current and upcoming Society activities, some of which come and go before the meeting minutes are published.
To receive e-mail announcements and reminders of these and other upcoming events, subscribe to our e-mail bulletin board by sending a blank e-mail to MAS-MCAS-SUBSCRIBE@yahoogroups.com.
8) To celebrate Missouri and Illinois Archaeology Month, MCAS and the Powell Archaeological Research Center (PARC) will co-sponsor the second annual “Walk through the PARC” awareness- and fund-raiser on Saturday, September 29 at 9am. The route this year will be a guided tour from the Big Mound Historic Marker just north of downtown across the Eads Bridge to the remnants of the East St. Louis Mound Group. More information will be sent out and posted to the PARC website at www.powellarchaeology.org soon. If you can’t participate this year, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to support those who do. Contact Greg for more information.
9) We’re planning a Phase I mapping and surface survey (no digging) of about a dozen stone cairns located along a river bluff in Newton County, Missouri, for Saturday, November 3. Information collected will be submitted in a site report to the Archaeological Survey of Missouri (ASM). The project will also be the basis for an article in an upcoming issue of the MAS Quarterly. Up to four people will drive down in one car Friday evening and return Sunday afternoon. There will be a fair amount of hiking, so volunteers should be in good physical condition. Cost for transportation and two nights stay in a nearby motel should be around $85. Cost assumes double-occupancy rooms; single rooms will cost more. Continental breakfast included; other meals extra. Contact Greg to sign up or if you would like more information.
Old Business:
1) The following items are available for sale as fundraisers:
a. Small “Archaeology is reading the book of the Earth” stickers: $1.00 each.
b. Large MCAS “I DIG ARCHAEOLOGY” stickers: $2.00 each.
c. White MCAS “Archaeology is reading the book of the Earth” t-shirts: $12.00 each.
d. Tan MCAS “Sutter-Meyer Farmhouse Archaeological Research Project” t-shirts: $18.73 each
Items can be purchased at any upcoming MCAS event or mailed for a nominal extra charge to cover postage (include an additional 50 cents for any number of stickers and $3.00 for each t-shirt). Contact Greg at bgpaulus@archaeologist.com or 314-704-3507 for more information, including available t-shirt sizes.
Richard Wall motioned and everyone seconded that the business meeting be adjourned at 7:10 pm. Motion carried.
Guest Speaker: Dr. Jane E. Buikstra from the Center of American Archaeology in Kampsville, Illinois, and Arizona State University’s School of Human Evolution and Social Change lectured on “Venerated Ancestors: Mummies of the Ancient Andes.” She discussed seven examples of South American mummies from the earliest Chinchorro mummies to the later Inka. A raffle for a copy of Johan Reinhard’s book, “The Ice Maiden: Inca Mummies, Mountain Gods, and Sacred Sites in the Andes” was held following the lecture. $24 was raised and presented to Dr. Buikstra as a donation to the CAA. Thank you to everyone who participated. Attendance: 50