SRAC "River, Rocks, and Time"

Elderwood Residents Visit African Exhibit at SRAC

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 20:37:00 +0000

Becky Benninger, Elderwood Senior Care

(WAVERLY, NY) Elderwood Senior Care Residents took a field trip to the Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC) recently. The residents were seated in chairs and wheelchairs around a “camp fire” where SRAC’s Janet Andrus presented actual artifacts to them to handle and see up close. The residents held items from finely beaded jars to weaponry as they were told about the way of life of the people who made and used them in the harsh sub-Saharan desert environment of Eastern Africa.

SRAC’s cofounder and executive director, Deb Twigg stated, “Earlier this week, we had the entire 7th grade class from the Athens School district in and today we had the “elders” of our community in. In fact one of the Elderwood residents even climbed in the Somali hut to the amazement of us all! It makes us so proud that our Center is a great place for community members of all ages to enjoy.

Bob Vasliow, Elderwood Senior Care resident

In celebration of having the African Exhibit for Black History Month - we decided that we would not charge any child/student or the Elderwood residents anything for making the trip.”

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC) is located at 345 Broad Street in Waverly, NY, and is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 1-5pm, and Saturdays 11-5pm. The “Ordinary Objects- Extraordinary People” African Exhibit which represents the eight nomadic tribes of Eastern Africa was unveiled at SRAC February 4th and will be on display at the Center for only two more weeks in celebration of Black History Month. A donation of $3 is requested which will include both the SRAC Woolly Mammoth and Native American exhibit as well as the “Ordinary Objects- Extraordinary People” African Exhibit. SRAC members and students can visit the exhibit all month for free.

Letters from Athens Field Trip Participants

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 21:39:00 +0000

I received a package from 7th grade at Athens this morning filled with thank you letters from the group of 179 students who were here on Monday for a field trip - I am attaching my favorites below, beginning with the teacher, Kathy Prichard who organized the trip: (click any letter to enlarge)

Athens 7th Grade Enjoys Field Trip to SRAC

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:39:00 +0000

Recently the entire 7th grade class from Athens school district visited SRAC for a field trip that will not be soon forgotten. Stations included the Eastern Africa exhibit representing the 8 nomadic tribes that live in the harsh sub-Saharan desert region as their ancestors did 1,000 years ago and the SRAC Native American exhibit which covers from the times of the Paleo Indian and the Woolly Mammoth times to Early European contact. The kids were also given time to shop in the SRAC gift shop full of great learning toys, rocks and minerals and books.

Ted Keir discusses the 1983 excavation of the woolly mammoth at Spring Lake

Ted Keir discusses what life here was like 12 - 15,000 years ago

Bill Bauman discusses hunting techniques in Eastern Africa

Bill and Betty Bauman explain the harsh lives of the nomadic tribes

Dick Cowles discusses early trade between the Native Americans and Europeans

Dick Cowles discusses the hisotry of Native Americans in our region.

While in the gift shop - the kids were invited to play in a contest using a magnetic "Euler's Disc" with a chance to win a prize.

Four bus loads of 170-some kids arrived in two groups of approximately 85 - one in the morning and one on the afternoon and then split up into 3 subsets of kids who rotated through each station every 30 minutes. The day was a wonderful time for the kids and the volunteers who ran each station throughout the day.

However, none of this would have been possible without the support of the Athens Rotary - who helped pay for the busing for the day. Hats off to them for helping us at SRAC inspire our kids to learn more about other cultures and the prehistory of our region.

I also want to personally thank the following volunteers who worked hard to make the day a special memory for the kids: Mary Keene, Janet Andrus, Ted Keir, Dick Cowles, and Bill and Betty Baumann! Thanks to all of you - it was a great day for everybody!

There's ALWAYS Something Going on at SRAC!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:02:00 +0000

Yesterday is a great example of all of the fun we have at SRAC - take for instance the business meeting that I had with WBNGTV's Rich Maynard in the Somali hut that we have on display in our huge African exhibit this month only for Black History Month:

WBNGTV's Rich Maynard enjoying the African Exhibit now on display at SRAC

We also had Jim Nobles in to do tours throughout the afternoon as our docent for the African Exhibit (he will be here every Wednesday with other docents scheduled every day while the exhibit is here!)

After we closed, we had the Waverly Cub Scouts in at 6pm to learn about our Native American past with SRAC's own Ted Keir.

Waverly's Cub Scout Troop enjoys a night at SRAC with Ted Keir.

One thing is for sure - there really is always something fun going on at SRAC ! Stop by and experience it for yourself! We are open Tuesdays through Fridays 1-5pm and Saturdays 11-5pm all year long! (Did I mention we are all volunteers? We HAVE to be having fun !)

Ordinary Objects– Extraordinary People - Opens this Saturday!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:49:00 +0000

“Ordinary Objects– Extraordinary People,” an exhibit dedicated to the study of the eight nomadic tribes of Eastern Africa will be on display at the Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC) at 345 Broad Street Waverly from February 4^th through the 25^th 2012.

Philadelphia’s Betty and Bill Bauman, who with Sultan Somjee, a Kenyan anthropologist developed the exhibit which was sponsored by the Mennonite Central Committee. The goal was to prepare a representative group of indigenous nomadic herders from northern and eastern Kenya to share their material culture (essential everyday objects) and their experiences. Today it is the only exhibit of its kind in the world.

Maps of Africa pinpoint the area traversed by the tribes of the nomads as they eke out their existence in the harsh sub-Saharan environment. The tribes navigate the desert from one watering hole to the next, staying for months at a time and then moving on to find a new source of water and food. Because all tribes are constantly traveling, all possessions must be portable. Dress consists of sandals, ornate beaded collars and simple clothing which are represented in the exhibit. Visitors will also see a Somali hut which is occupied by up to two adults and three children, and although are made to be portable with its branches thatched with raffia , it can last 25 – 30 years and can withstand wind gusts of 40-50 miles an hour. Near the hut, a camel sits close by with its feed and watering trough while a fire with wooden stools invites visitors of all ages to sit and take in all that surrounds them. Simple utensils, ornate headrests, spears and throwing sticks, and beautifully created milk containers also adorn shelves of the exhibit, with many more artifacts to discover around each corner. Visitors are invited to touch, smell and experience the exhibit with a hands-on approach not seen in many museums today.

The exhibit itself fills nearly 2,000 square feet at SRAC where they have been redesigning their lecture hall space for weeks in order to make this an incredible experience for all who visit the exhibit.

Ordinary Objects– Extraordinary People” will be at SRAC from February 4th - 25th during normal business hours (Tuesdays - Fridays 1-5pm, and Saturdays 11-5pm. ) The public is invited to attend this exhibit as well as SRAC's own Exhibit Hall filled with thousands of local Native American artifacts for the same donation requested all year long with one exception that ALL students and children will have free admission during the month of February in order to try and allow all kids a chance to see this incredible one-of-a-kind exhibit.

SRAC’s co-founder and executive director Deb Twigg stated, “Ordinary Objects– Extraordinary People” is a “city exhibit” that has traveled from Philadelphia to other large cities in the Midwest and Canada. We are fortunate to bring it to Waverly, New York for the month of February, which is also Black History month, and we wanted to share it with our community. Please try and bring your family to experience it while it is here.”

Getting ready to set up the East African Exhibit!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:58:00 +0000

SRAC lecture hall will house the East African Exhibit February 4th - 25th.

We have been working hard the last couple of weeks to get ready to unveil the East African Exhibit titled "Ordinary Objects - Extraordinary People" at SRAC. We have removed all of the furniture (including around 80 heavy duty chairs!) that we could and then curtained and draped everything else in earth tone/ desert tone colors so as to give the room a totally new "African" feel. The crates arrived last week - and we plan to be able to start putting the exhibit together when the creators, Bill and Betty Baumann arrive on Tuesday. They tell me that it will take around two days to get all of the exhibit set up...

The exhibit is the result of anthropological work done personally by the Baumanns with eight different

nomadic tribes in Eastern Africa. Sponsored by the Mennonite Central Committee, they worked with other anthropologists to record these tribes and their material culture for the very first time in history. In fact, Bill will tell you that the things that you see in this exhibit came from these tribes who donated and sold their items to him with the intention of recording their everyday life.

In return, Bill with the assistance of the Ford Foundation helped each tribe make a small cultural center on their own tribal lands for visitors and even the UN to be able to come in and learn more about these people. Bill told me that some of these centers are merely huts, but they are manned by a trained staff person who takes care of it while having the responsibility of teaching anyone who visits about his tribe and their way of life. The Ford Foundation continues to pay each tribe $200 to pay this staff person his annual salary.

When you come to the exhibit, you will see the 8 tribes represented with actual items they deemed to be representative of who they are and how they live. From clothing to basketry, to ornate headrests, to food containers, to regalia and beadwork, and so on that total over 350 items I am told in all. Along with this there are incredible photos and artwork, maps and even books that are part of the exhibit.

Bill also claims that because this was made by the tribes wanting to show their "ordinary objects" - that there are things in this exhibit that cannot be seen in any other museum in the world. As a result, this exhibit is the most comprehensive representation of these nomadic people that exists anywhere and is a must see for anyone trying to learn more about them and how they survive life in a harsh sub-Saharan desert environment.

After experiencing the exhibit, visitors will better understand why the exhibit is aptly named, "Ordinary Objects - Extraordinary People."

The exhibit will be open February 4th - 25th, Tuesdays through Fridays 1-5pm, Saturdays 11-5pm. A request of a $3 donation will be requested for the general public, $2 for seniors. All children students can attend the exhibit at no expense.

1853 Map of Chemung County Now at SRAC

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:38:00 +0000

The Chemung County Map is Dated 1853

SRAC member Sandy Schamel recently donated a 5 foot map of Chemung County in 1853 to SRAC. It is now on display in our Exhibit Hall. She actually emailed me one day and it was hanging in our Exhibit Hall the next! We want to thank Sandy for her donation which is a wonderful addition to SRAC!

If you have something that you would like to donate to SRAC - please contact me - Deb Twigg at dtwigg@sracenter.org.

Books! Books! and more Books!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:04:00 +0000

I am proud to announce that SRAC has purchased some really great book titles to add to our HUGE selection of historical books available in our gift shop. The new titles include "The Old New York Frontier", "Wolves from Niagra (Butlers Rangers)", "Journals from the Expedition of Major John Sullivan" (includes maps on DVD), The Sullivan Expedition of 1779 (A genealogy resource), "Indians from New York Volumes 1, 2 and 3 (genealogy resources), "Early Athens and Old Tioga Point" by Louise Welles Murray, and the Congressional Hearings from the family survivors of the Wyoming Massacre.

Incredible amount of high quality books available at SRAC Gift Shop

It is commonly accepted that the history book selection at SRAC is the largest of it's kind in the region, so stop in today for yourself or for someone you know who is a history, Native American, or Archaeology buff and get a great book at the best prices around. Best of all - you can shop local and support your community!

SRAC Members:
In addition to all of the great books that you can buy at SRAC, if you are an SRAC member, we have hundreds of books that you can borrow from our lending library just for being a member!


SRAC members can borrow books from SRAC's lending library

Not a member yet? Use this link to join today! http://www.sracenter.org/join/

SRAC has Lead Article in NYSAA Newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 14:56:00 +0000

My recently published article about the local site, Spanish Hill, which pushes current understanding of the region's prehistoric past, was recently published again as the lead article in the New York State Archaeological Society's Newsletter. We take this as a significant vote of confidence by the association, and appreciate their continued support in helping us get my current research out to professional and avocational archaeologists throughout the state. I appreciate any and all feedback!

Click here to open the pdf version or open the online reader by clicking the image below:

Open publication

SRAC Donates Educational Collection to Broome Community College

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 14:26:00 +0000

SRAC's Don Hunt and Mike Sisto with Broome's Lynda Carroll with one of the 53 containers of artifacts.

(WAVERLY, NY) The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center has donated an educational collection of artifacts to Broome Community College. Broome's Anthropology Adjunct Professor, Lynda Carroll picked up the 53 containers of artifacts recently and will take them to the college to be used by her students in her Introduction to Anthropology class this semester.

SRAC's co-founder and executive director Deb Twigg stated, "The Center received the collection a few months ago and painstakingly cataloged the collection artifacts. We found that the collection provenance was questionable and not relative to our region of study. After much consideration as to what would be the best use for this collection, we decided to donate the collection to Broome Community College to enhance their students learning experience. It's my understanding that this collection will be the first artifacts that the college has for their students to work with. For that reason, we are proud to make this transaction in order to try to inspire young students to pursue the profession of archaeology." Carroll added, "This semester, students in BCC's Archaeology Lab Course will have the chance to sort through this great collection."

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center is dedicated to education, research and preservation of the region's Native American archaeological and historical assets for the communities within the Twin Tier Region of southern eastern NY and northeastern PA. To learn more visit the Center at 345 Broad Street, Waverly, NY or on the web at www.SRACenter.org.

Eastern African Exhibit at SRAC in February 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:37:00 +0000

Bill Bauman adjusts an African headrest at the
"Ordinary Objects - Extraordinary People" Exhibit

(WAVERLY, NY) The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC) in Waverly, NY will host “Ordinary Objects - - Extraordinary People,” an exhibit which invites people to experience the day to day struggles of nomadic life in the harsh sub-Saharan environment of Eastern Africa from Saturday, February 4th to Saturday February 25th. The exhibit will include hundreds of artifacts to include a Somali hut which the nomads transport along with all of their possessions on the backs of camels through the desert.

Philadelphia’s Betty and Bill Bauman, who with Sultan Somjee, a Kenyan anthropologist developed the exhibit which was sponsored by the Mennonite Central Committee. The goal was to prepare a representative group of indigenous nomadic herders from northern and eastern Kenya to share their material culture (essential everyday objects) and their experiences.

Maps of Africa pinpoint the area traversed by the tribes of the nomads as they eke out their existence in the harsh sub-Saharan environment. They navigate the desert from one watering hole to the next, staying for months at a time and then moving on to find a new source of water and food. Because all tribes are constantly traveling, all possessions must be portable. Dress consists of sandals, ornate beaded collars and simple clothing which is represented in the exhibit. Visitors will also see a Somali hut which is occupied by up to two adults and three children, and although are made to be transportable with branches thatched with raffia can last 25 – 30 years and can withstand wind gusts of 40-50 miles an hour. Simple utensils, ornate headrests, spears and throwing sticks, and beautifully created milk containers also adorn shelves of the exhibit, with many more artifacts to discover around each corner. Better yet, visitors will be invited to touch, smell and experience the exhibit with a hands-on approach not seen in many museums today.

SRAC’s Deb Twigg added, “We want people to realize that “Ordinary Object s– Extraordinary People” is a “city exhibit” that has travelled from Philadelphia to other large cities in the Midwest and Canada. We are fortunate to bring it to Waverly, New York for the month of February, which is also Black History month. Our hope is that our youth will get the opportunity to experience it while it is here. As a result, we will not be charging students to visit the exhibit and we urge the schools in our area to consider making a field trip to SRAC while the exhibit here.”

The “Ordinary Objects – Extraordinary People” Eastern Africa exhibit will be open during normal business hours at SRAC, Tuesdays through Fridays 1pm – 5pm and Saturdays 11am – 5pm. The Center is located at 345 Broad Street, Waverly, NY. For more information, call the Center at (607) 565-7960 or visit www.SRACenter.org.

Thank You Wennawoods Publishing!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:45:00 +0000

In 2011 SRAC received many great donations and we are thankful for all of you that support us year after year - without you - we couldn;t do what we do!

We wanted to remind you about the new book titles and artwork that we received in 2011 from Wennawoods Publishing's Ron and Kris Wenning! Stop in and see the new items and see why SRAC has the THE BEST selection of high quality, hard cover historical books in the region because of them!

Here's the newest title from Wennawoods now available at SRAC:

The HISTORY OF PENNSYLVANIA'S WYOMING VALLEY by William Stone

Beginning on a section of the North Branch of Susquehanna River about 100 miles west of New York City, The History of Pennsylvania’s Wyoming Valley is a long and complex story. Amid William Stone’s chapters and magnificent review of this river valley land called Wyoming, the history would not be complete without including the near 100 pages on over 10,000 years of Susquehanna River Indian history. The History of Pennsylvania’s Wyoming Valley ends with 30 years of intermittent bloody clashes leaving the surviving families to rebuild the once beautiful Wyoming Valley into the river valley it would become today. This is the valley's story.The History of Pennsylvania’s Wyoming Valley and the Battle of Wyoming are clearly some of the most fascinating times in early Pennsylvania history. This 18th century time in the Wyoming valley played out simultaneously amid several ongoing major events. Wrapped around the French and Indian War and the American Revolution was the little know Yankee-Pennamite Wars. With the French & Indian War pitting British interest against the French and Indians; and the American patriots struggling against the British for American independence, these little know Pennamite Wars wore heavy on the land along the Susquehanna River for 30 years as Native Americans, British sympathizers, and American frontier settlers all battled each other for control of this picturesque land valley called Wyoming. Scattered along the Susquehanna, both Loyalists and Patriots differed in their perceptions of the country and its future and this line between Patriot and Loyalist was not always sharply drawn. Imagine, Connecticut Yankees, fighting American patriot interests; Pennsylvania Patriots fighting British interest, and the Connecticut Yankees and Pennsylvania Patriots fighting each other for control of the Wyoming Valley. This tug of war between the Connecticut Yankees and the Pennsylvania Patriots, often pitted neighbor against neighbor, with circumstances frequently dictating ones choice. Whether you were a Loyalist from Connecticut who supported the British in North America or a Pennsylvania’s Patriot who wanted a new country, free of British rule; this struggle for independence in the Wyoming Valley was very difficult times at best for all. All this happening because of undecided land claims to the Wyoming Valley by conflicting grants from Charles II to both the British Loyalist of Connecticut and the Patriots of Pennsylvania of William Penn.

Visit other interesting chapters in the book about Francis Slocum and her capture by the Indians. Read how the Susquehanna land company was formed to help settle these conflicting land claims, only to lead to more turmoil. Learn how the Seneca and British rangers' massacre of settlers at the Battle of Wyoming helped fanned the flames of American Independence; and how General Sullivan’s retaliatory campaign of death and destruction by his troops through the Wyoming Valley into New York State because of the massacre at Wyoming, settled once and for all, the disputed ownership of this beautiful valley.The History of Pennsylvania’s Wyoming Valley was originally published in 1844 and republished in 1868 as Wyoming and its History. We have chosen to republish this book about the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania, as it was the scene of 30 years of some of the bloodiest mini-wars of the time, the Yankee-Pennamite Wars. We have chosen to leave out the poem Gertrude of Wyoming from the 1868 edition but included its most important part, nearly 100 pages of footnotes from the poem based on 1st hand information. This is the fascinating story of The History of Pennsylvania’s Wyoming Valley. 360 pp Hardback, Complete with Index, Notes from the poem Gertrude of Wyoming, Original Deed Info, and Sir William Johnson’s Diary,..............….$44.95

Scientists confirm tobacco use by ancient Mayans

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:31:00 +0000

For more info visit: http://news.rpi.edu/update.do

Mass spectrometry detects first physical evidence of nicotine in Mayan container

Archaeologists examining late period Mayan containers have identified nicotine traces from a codex-style flask, revealing the first physical evidence of tobacco use by ancient Mayans. The study published in Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry reveals the flask is marked with Mayan hieroglyphics reading, "y-otoot 'u-may," ("the home of its/his/her tobacco,") making it only the second case to confirm that the text on the exterior of a Mayan vessel corresponds to its ancient use.

"Investigation of food items consumed by ancient people offers insight into the traditions and customs of a particular civilization," explains Jennifer Loughmiller-Newman from the University at Albany in New York. "Textual evidence written on pottery is often an indicator of contents or of an intended purpose, however actual usage of a container could be altered or falsely represented."

Many of the Mayan flask vessels from the Kislak collection of the Library of Congress examined in this study were filled with other substances, such as iron oxide used in burial rituals, making it difficult to detect the original content.

The most indisputable evidence of a container's usage is obtained when hieroglyphic text or pictorial illustrations on the exterior of a container is consistent with the chemical analysis of interior residues. For the current investigation, researchers analyzed samples extracted from the Late Classic Maya period (600 to 900 AD) using gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS) and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS).

Nicotine—the signature alkaloid in tobacco—was identified as the major component of the extracts from one of the 150 vessels in the collection. The flask was determined to be made in southern Campeche, Mexico and dates to around 700 AD.

Prior to the current discovery, the only existing evidence showing a Mayan vessel to have the same content as indicated by hieroglyphic text was the identification of theobromine, an alkaloid found in cacao, more than 20 years ago.

"Our study provides rare evidence of the intended use of an ancient container," concludes Dr. Dmitri Zagorevski from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. "Mass spectrometry has proven to be an invaluable method of analysis of organic residues in archaeological artifacts. This discovery is not only significant to understanding Mayan hieroglyphics, but an important archaeological application of chemical detection."

Both Loughmiller-Newman and Zagorevski would like to see this technique used to analyze a greater variety of vessel types.

SRAC Receives $10,000 from the Allen Pierce Foundation

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 18:04:00 +0000

SRAC received $10,000 from the Allen Pierce Foundation today. We want to thank the Foundation for their continued support since we were incorporated in 2005. Without them, SRAC would never have survived their early years and certainly would not have continued to grow so steadily in recent years. Foundations like these sometimes go unnoticed to the people in our communities - - but we can tell you personally that you would undoubtedly notice if they did not exist.

You just need to look around at your local museums and libraries and ask yourself how they can pay their bills every year - and without fail - there has been a foundation or two that have supported these things in your community.

Co Founders of SRAC - Ted Keir, Deb Twigg, and Dick Cowles

Thank you Allen Pierce Foundation - for all you do for SRAC and our communities!

Spanish Hill: The Search for More Answers

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 13:05:00 +0000

Spanish Hill is a large glacial mound located in South Waverly, PA. It is just 1/4 mile east of the Chemung River (the western branch of the Susquehanna above Tioga Point), and just south of Waverly, NY and the New York state border.

Spanish Hill is private property - no trespassing.

Spanish Hill's shape has been referred to over the years as the shape of a sugarloaf - in that it rises some 230 feet to its summit, with steep sides and a flat top of about ten acres. Note that the Chemung River is to the west of the hill, and joins the Susquehanna only three or so miles south from this point. The Susquehanna then runs south to the Chesapeake Bay. Local historian and author, Louise Welles Murray may have said it best as she described the hill nearly 100 years ago:

Early photo of Spanish Hill, provided by the Tioga Point Museum

Spanish Hill: circa 1980's, courtesy of Spanish Hill.com

"Of many points of historic interest in our valley, perhaps none has attracted more attention or roused more speculation, from the earliest times to the present, than the mound called Spanish Hill. This prominence is due not only to its unusual position (isolated from the hill ranges and regions), but also to its odd outline, the remains of fortifications on the top, and its present name." - ~Louise Welles Murray -"History of Old Tioga Point and Early Athens -"1908.

Now covered with “No Trespassing “ signs, a large home and several out buildings, the site was once a favorite place for locals to take the steep climb to the summit for a Sunday picnic. The earliest of these would have picnicked on a beautiful flat lawn surrounded by strange earthen walls with an interior ditch that would later be erased by the plow of an overzealous farmer.

Earthen Enclosure
Apparently, the destruction of these fortifications was quite well known by locals as in 1870 Mrs. Perkins wrote in her book “Early Times on the Susquehanna ,” “Many now living remember the beautiful flat lawn of several acres on top of the hill (Spanish Hill) and an enclosure of earth 7-8 feet high, which was within a quarter of a century been leveled by the plow and harrow.” (Perkins, 1906:102)

But Perkins was not the only person to have recorded seeing these strange earthen walls – the earliest description known to date is that of Duke Rochefoucault de Liancourt, a French Traveler in 1795, who revealed that the name “Spanish Hill” was most likely derived from the fact that these fortifications existed. In route to Niagara, he saw the hill and thus wrote of it:

“Near the confines of Pennsylvania a mountain rises from the bank of the river Tioga (Chemung) in the shape of a sugar loaf upon which are seen the remains of some entrenchments. These the inhabitants call the Spanish Ramparts, but I rather judge them to have been thrown up against the Indians in the time of M. de Nonville. One perpendicular breastwork is yet remaining which, though covered with grass and bushes, plainly indicates that a parapet and a ditch have been constructed here.” (La Rochefoucald-Liancourt 1795:76-7)

The next earliest account is that of Alexander Wilson, celebrated ornithologist from Philadelphia who wrote in 1804:

“Now to the left the ranging mountains bend,
And level plains before us wide extend;
Where rising lone, old Spanish Hill appears, The post of war in ancient unknown years.
It’s steep and rounding sides with woods embrowned,
It’s level top with old entrenchments crowned;
Five hundred paces thrices we measured o’er,
Now overgrown with woods alone it stands,
And looks abroad o’er open fertile lands.
(Murray 1908:53)

In 1878 Spanish Hill landowner, Mr. I.P. Shepard of Waverly, NY presented a paper for the Tioga Point Historical Society in Athens, PA. In that paper, he created the following illustration with the help of Charles Henry Shepard, whose residence throughout a long life of eighty-seven years, was close to the hill and who remembered “distinctly” the “Spanish Ramparts” before the plow of a farmer nearly leveled them to the ground.

Map courtesy of SRAC/Cowles collection

Fortifications on Spanish Hill redrawn by Ellsworth Cowles from early sketch
“Mr. C.H.Shepard described these fortifications as consisting of an embankment with a trench, giving a height of four or five feet inside. When he was a boy and first visited them, about 1820 or 1825, large trees were growing in the trenches, showing that a long time had elapsed since they were used. The double lines in the diagram indicate portions still clearly defined, and were evidently made much higher to protect those portions of the hill that were easily assailable…The dotted line inside this angle, Mr. Shepard thinks indicated a palisade for greater security…” (Murray 1908:58)

Later the infamous 20th century archeologist Warren K. Moorhead, whose experience with earthen embankments included those discovered at Fort Ancient , Ohio made reference to these fortifications at Spanish Hill. In the “Susquehanna River Expedition” he recorded that a site further south of Spanish Hill, (Sugar Creek) showed, “…traces of a fortified hilltop, there being distinct traces of embankments. This being smaller than Spanish Hill, but it resembled same.” (Moorehead 1936:70)

But most significant to the research of the site and the earthen walls was yet another witness to the embankments, General John S. Clark later in 1878. Unlike the other observers, Clark was a seasoned surveyor and mapmaker from Civil War times, and as a result drew the most significant evidence relative to the earthen walls that exists today. The nearly 150 year old old survey depicts the enclosure as follows:

The information provided by Clark in the first portion of the survey (shown here) illustrates the cross section of the enclosure wall with the interior ditch clearly defined.

The second portion of the survey illustrates the massive size of ten acres that was enclosed running the entire edge of the summit. Why Clark placed posts in the embankment remains a mystery however, because no post molds were ever recorded to support this idea.
Unfortunately, after the enclosure walls (as reported by early witnesses) were erased from the summit by annual plowing and cultivation, some researchers began to question whether they ever really existed at all. Furthermore, the researchers that did accept that the enclosure did exist would consistently deduce that they were indicative of an ancient hilltop/ palisaded village site.

In fact, it wasn’t until the past decade when fresh eyes again reviewed these reports that any new discussions about the Spanish Hill site occurred. Specifically, the strange construction of the walls with the ditch on the inside of the wall became a point of interest, and when it was discovered in “Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley,” that author and ancient mound specialist E. G. Squier wrote, “the circumstances of the ditch being within the vallum (wall) is a distinguishing mark between religious and military works” things began to point in a totally new direction to explain what Spanish Hill actually was. Like Fort Ancient – some believe today that the enclosure on top of Spanish Hill had been mistaken to be a hilltop fort, and was actually a ceremonial space.

Unfortunately, the new information just didn’t jive with the current understandings of the region’s archaeological past and the idea that a ceremonial hilltop enclosure existed so far away from the Ohio Valley and what is believed by many as its counterpart, Fort Ancient in Ohio, is still unthinkable to many professionals even today. However, more and more evidence seems to be mounting that might someday overturn the current beliefs…

What We Know About the Fort Ancient Culture
Fort Ancient is a name for a Native American people that flourished from 1000-1600 AD who predominantly inhabited land in the region of Ohio and Kentucky. The Fort Ancient culture was once thought to be an expansion of the Hopewell and or Mississippian cultures, but it is now accepted as an independently developed culture of its own.

The name of the culture originates from the Fort Ancient, Ohio site. The fort is located on a hill above the Little Miami River, close to Lebanon, Ohio. Fort Ancient has earthen walls that are over 3 miles (5 km) long and up to 23 feet (7.5 m) high. The hilltop enclosure surrounds a plot of 100 acres (0.4 km). However, recently it was discovered that the southern “fort” was separately constructed much earlier than the much larger northern area of the site. Despite its name, most archaeologists do not believe that Fort Ancient was used primarily as a fortress by either the Hopewell or the Fort Ancient -- rather, it is becoming commonplace to accept that it was a ceremonial location again due to the construction of the ditches on the interior side of the enclosure walls.

Early historical records also indicate that only high ranking leaders or shamans actually used these spaces and that the other Native Americans would not climb to the summit of a ceremonial enclosure. Captain John Smith when exploring the Susquehanna River noted his experience at a ceremonial site, “This place they account so holy that none but priests or kings dare into it, nor savages dare go up in the boats by it…” and E. G. Squier stated in his “Aboriginal Monuments of the State of NY, Concerning Sacred Enclosures of North America,” “This sacred place, according to our authority, could not be approached by any but the magi or priests.” Coincidentally, Spanish Hill historian Louise Welles Murray also noted this strange behavior in her book “Old Tioga Point and Early Athens,” (1908) “Early in the last century, Alpheus Harris settled at the foot of the hill. An old Indian was a frequent visitor, but when asked to ascend the hill he always refused, saying a Great Spirit lived there who would kill him.”

The Fort Ancient people are also given credit for the largest effigy mound in the United States, Serpent Mound, in Ohio, and are believed to be responsible for hundreds of effigy burial mounds in the shape of birds, animals, and even “horned men effigies” found in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa.

Until recently, it has not been commonly accepted that the Fort Ancients would have populated the regions of Pennsylvania but more and more evidence is mounting along the Susquehanna River that seems to be irrefutable.

Disappearance of Earthworks/Evidence
Sadly over the past two hundred years – the majority of the earthworks recorded by 19th century researchers like Squier and others have been demolished. Many in fact would be amazed to see the 1881 map of “Ancient Earthworks East of the Mississippi” created by Cyrus Thomas on behalf of the Smithsonian Institute to record the sites that even then were disappearing at an alarming rate. Dots pepper not only the Mississippi River Valley but also New York and Pennsylvania. In fact, Spanish Hill was included in the 1881 map and was recorded as an enclosure.

Portion of 1881 map with Spanish Hill circled

Sadly, without the archaeological evidence of the enclosure atop Spanish Hill to accompany the historical records that remain, professional’s interest in the site has diminished, and as a result it is now private property with no access allowed for any research to continued.

Yet even with the demise of the ancient earthworks over the last century and less and less hard evidence to support their existence, some researchers have found new hope in yet another type of evidence. Ancient rock art has been found which many believe irrefutably reinstates the belief that the Fort Ancients had a presence along the Susquehanna River.

Safe Harbor Petroglyphs
Huge rocks in the Susquehanna River in Safe Harbor, PA show a striking resemblance to the Fort Ancient effigy mounds found hundreds of miles away throughout Ohio, Iowa, and Wisconsin. One of the most significant clusters of this rock art could be seen on the Big and Little “Indian Rocks” located at Safe Harbor, and were recorded by Donald Cadzow in 1934. Like the ancient earthworks, many petroglyphs have been lost. Fortunately, enough petroglyphs still remain to show that the same people or culture must have been responsible; for both the effigy mounds of the Midwest clearly have matching counterparts in the petroglyphs at Safe Harbor, PA (shown above.)

Common Fort Ancient Effigy Mounds
Below is a collection of effigy mound shapes, all found in just one county in Wisconsin.

Display at the Sauk County, Man Mound 100 Year Anniversary (of discovery)

Below is a collection of petroglyphs found along the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania at Safe Harbor.

Copies of the ancient petroglyphs on a gneissic rock named “Little Indian Rock” below the dam at Safe Harbor, Pennsylvania, drawn from plaster casts by Professor Porter in 1863 and 1864.
One of the most interesting and unique Fort Ancient mounds is the Man Mound in Sauk County, Wisconsin that measures 214 feet in length and 48 feet in width at the shoulders.

Specific to my interest was the man shaped figures from both mediums (Mounds and Rock Art) -

Early photo of the Man Mound –provided by Sauk County Historical Society

MOUNDS:

Other “Horned Man” Effigy Mounds in Wisconsin

ROCK ART

A unique character in the Fort Ancient belief system is referred to as the water spirit or water “panther.” The Fort Ancients believed that water spirits controlled the underworld and especially the waters and that they were hunted by the thunderbirds of the upperworld. “Earthmaker created the Waterspirits and the Thunders first among the spirits, giving the Thunders control over the waters of heaven and the Waterspirits control over those of the lower world.” Foster, Foster's Indian Record, vol. 1, #2,: p. 3, col. 2 Waterspirits were believed to be found in rivers, lakes and springs where they could make whirlpools and rough waters that could topple a canoe. For this reason, this particular petroglyph seems fittingly placed along a river that could be treacherous to navigate. “Waterspirits can be very dangerous, creating whirlpools that have sucked under many a canoe. In the deep water off Governor's Island in Lake Mendota, there lay a den of Waterspirits who caused great disturbances in the water and overturned canoes. The Waterspirit of Green Lake created whirlpools by swirling her arms up. Those who did not make the proper offerings would be sucked under.” Charles Edward Brown, Wisconsin Indian Place Legends (Madison: Works Progress Administration, Wisconsin, 1936) (Note that the Safe Harbor horned men found along the Susquehanna River are raising their arms up.)

An interesting side note is that many believe that the humanoid effigy forms that also take on thunderbird or water spirit qualities (i.e. horned men or thunder birds with human legs) represent shaman who had great spiritual powers or connections to either form. (Watch my video at a Man Mound and a Bird Man Mound a few years ago.)

Sites other than Safe Harbor have also shown evidence of the Fort Ancient water panther and belief system in Pennsylvania.

Parkers Landing Petroglyphs -Located on the east shore of the Allegheny River approximately 1.6 miles downstream from Parker City in Clarion County, Pa – Provided by Kris Wenning, SRAC Member

The rockart/effigy shown here was found near Clarion, PA along the Allegheny River, and is commonly accepted to be a water panther or water spirit of Fort Ancient origin.

Were the Fort Ancients in Pennsylvania and the Likely Creators of the Earthworks on Spanish Hill?
The truth is that even E.G. Squier noted that he had seen evidence that the Fort Ancients had travelled as far eastward as the Susquehanna River when he stated, “Some ancient works, probably belonging to the same system with those of the Mississippi Valley , and erected by the same people, occur upon the Susquehanna River, as far down as the Valley of Wyoming, in Pennsylvania. The mound builders seem to have skirted the southern border of Lake Erie, and spread themselves in diminished numbers, over the western part of New York State, along the shores of Lake Ontario to the St. Lawrence River. They penetrated into the interior, eastward as far as the county of Onnondaga where some slight vestiges of their works still exist. These seem to have been their limits at the north-east.” (Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, E.G. Squier , page 1)

Archaeological Evidence at Spanish Hill and Surrounding Sites
Burial grounds near Fort Ancient were reported to be made up of stone graves such as those reported by Moorehead in his "Primitive Man in Ohio" shown here:

Drawing courtesy of Primitive Man in Ohio (Moorehead:1892)

Interestingly - these same type of stone graves have been found below Spanish Hill, and that info (with photos) have been reported to me by SRAC's own Ted Keir.

Fort Ancient Pot Found in Murray Farm Site

The archaeological evidence from this site and those surrounding it has been collected for hundreds of years. In fact, Warren K. Moorehead reported in the Pennsylvania Historical Commission’s “Report of the work of the Susquehanna Archaeological Expedition Conducted during the summer of 1916” the following: “Within a radius of forty kilometers of this place (Spanish Hill) there are at least twenty-five collectors of specimens. These men have searched the hills and fields for many years. It is quite likely that most of the objects left by the Andaste have been picked up.”

During Moorehead's expedition in 1916, his crew actually found a Fort Ancient pot in the Murray Farm site which is just a stone's throw below Spanish Hill, which was reported by PA's authority on pottery, Charles Lucy in 1951 as, "a double pot grit tempered, and decorated in cord-wrapped paddle designs on the rim and neck. It is similar to specimens found in the Ohio Valley and identified as Fort Ancient..." This pot went with the rest of the artifacts from that expedition to the Heye National Museum of the American Indian in NYC which was just breaking ground in 1916. Moorehead's "Susquehanna River Expedition" was funded by that Museum's founder, George Heye in return for all of the artifacts and skeletal materials found or bought during it.

SRAC's Fort Ancient axe found on top of hill

Sadly, this was the way of early archaeology in America - leaving sites in our region without the original archaeology that could give us clear scientific evidence of the people who lived here and created the sites like Spanish Hill...and clearly why I have had to work so hard trying to figure this all out...

The artifacts preserved today are quite sparse compared to what was found in Moorehead’s day, but there are ongoing efforts to preserve what can be located in order for more research to continue.

The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC)
This research has been an ongoing passion. I began chronicling the research on SpanishHill.com in 2003, which lead to an article being published in the PA Archaeologist Journal in 2005. In doing the initial research on Spanish Hill for that article, it became evident that just as with the earthworks, the artifacts are slowly disappearing because of constant artifact collecting in the region by private collectors.

SRAC's slate amulet/tablet found below hill

In 2004, the search for archaeological evidence, located two of the largest known collections of private Native American artifact collections from Spanish Hill and the surrounding region that still existed in private hands. These collections (Keir and Cowles) were to be the foundation of a new nonprofit organization dedicated to the education, preservation and research of the Native American artifacts – The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC). Teaming up with Ted Keir and Richard Cowles also brought together the knowledge of the region’s leading avocational archaeologists, along with a huge reference library that SRAC continues to build. This along with adding other private collectors to the SRAC board and membership allows the Center to have the most knowledgeable staff concerning local sites available, and the hope of keeping those important collections in
the region. SRAC also has a list of professional archaeologists and anthropologists from NY state and surrounding universities act as professional advisors allowing SRAC to continuously remain up-to-date about new finds, excavations, and research. SRAC is committed to maintaining a line of open communication between professionals and avocationals by sharing important information openly between the two. (The ongoing differences between professionals and collectors often make communication difficult.) As a result of these efforts, SRAC has been able to save artifacts that were found at Spanish Hill over a century ago, like the deep grooved ax shown here which was found by a private collector in 1897, and the blue slate amulet seen here, found in 1908.

To date SRAC houses thousands of local artifacts from sixteen different private collections with many artifacts originating from Spanish Hill; in fact, one whole case is dedicated to that site and it’s the most popular part of the exhibit area. The Center is a 501c3 with over 300 members and is open five days a week while being manned 100% by volunteers, many of which are collectors and students of the regional Native American past and archaeology.

The next step for the Center is to facilitate research with professionals and amateurs working together to start answering many of the questions surrounding Spanish Hill. The questions concerning the earthworks that once enclosed ten acres at its top, and the people who made them still need definitive answers. It is crucial that ongoing research continue in order to establish that the petroglyphs described here are of the same cultural origin as those earthworks recognized by Squier. In doing so, many answers to the questions of early Pennsylvania and New York and possibly Iroquoian prehistory may be uncovered. Researchers with backgrounds in Fort Ancient work are invited to join the ongoing investigation.

For more information concerning Spanish Hill, visit www.SpanishHill.com. Please note: Spanish Hill is currently private property and trespassing is not advised. SRAC is located at 345 Broad Street in Waverly, New York. To learn more about this article and SRAC, visit www.SRACenter.org or contact Deb Twigg at dtwigg@SpanishHill.com.

If you like the work we are doing please consider supporting our small non-profit at http://www.SRACenter.org/Donations/

Thank in advance for whatever you can do!

Mark Twain at SRAC - Tuesday, January 3rd

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 17:43:00 +0000

"Mark Twain: “Known to Everyone – Liked by All”
Tuesday, January 3rd 6:30pm – 7:30pm
at SRAC, 345 Broad Street Waverly, NY

We live in "Mark Twain Country." The great American author spent 20 summers on a hilltop outside of nearby Elmira where he wrote many of his most popular books and stories. He was the first American celebrity—“the most conspicuous person on the planet”—and his fame and reputation transcend time and place. Mark Twain still matters. Let us be: “Proud to be where Twain remains.”

Lance J. Heidig has curated Cornell’s Mark Twain exhibition. He was born and raised in Waverly, NY.

An admission donation of $6 for adults, $4 for SRAC members (free admission for students!) is requested. Free admission to the SRAC exhibit hall is included in this donation. For more information, visit www.SRACenter.org , email info@SRAcenter.org, or call the Center at 607-565-7960.

Jewelry and Beading Class January 7th at SRAC!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 17:40:00 +0000

Jewelry and Beading Class
Sat, January 7, 11:30am – 1:30pm
SRAC, 345 Broad St. Waverly, NY

Mark Twain Presentation at SRAC January 3

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 16:20:00 +0000

Teaching History and Making Memories at SRAC

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 23:43:00 +0000

SRAC's Dick Cowles discusses early Native American contact and trade with the Europeans

(WAVERLY, NY) The Susquehanna River Archaeological Center (SRAC) hosted the 4th grade students in the Waverly, NY school system to a day of fun and learning at the Center recently. Approximately one hundred and twenty five students in all walked to SRAC from their school and were treated to a unique experience that the Center provides as a follow up to their curriculum on Native American history.

This year’s event included SRAC’s Ted Keir, Dick Cowles, and Jack Andrus who ran stations that the students rotated through on Hunting the Woolly Mammoth, Early Trade with Europeans, and Native American Children’s Stories. While attending each station, students touched actual artifacts found in the locality as they listened to SRAC’s staff who taught them about the Native American people who lived here hundreds to thousands of years ago. Cathy Hand, one of the 4th grade teachers in attendance told the children, “Before today we could only tell you about the Native American who lived here, but today you have seen and touched the actual evidence they left behind.”

SRAC's Ted Keir discusses early mammoth hunters

The field trip ended with the students broken up into teams and competing against each other in the SRAC “Stump the Chumps” contest where each team tried to come up with questions from each station that the others couldn’t answer. In the end, the winners were thrilled to take home actual net sinker artifacts that were donated personally by Ted Keir and in small drawstring bags embossed with “SRAC”. Keir stated, “Net sinkers are so common in our area and I have so many at home that I decided to donate some personally for this event today at SRAC. I hope that the kids that won these simple little stone artifacts that once were used as weights on fishing nets will be inspired to think about what life was like for the Native Americans in our area and that they continue to want learn more.”

Deb Twigg, SRAC’s executive director added, “Everyone at SRAC looks forward to the field trips that we put on and we all take the fact that we are creating a childhood memory for these kids very seriously. I want to thank Waverly’s 4th grade teachers for bringing the kids and letting us be a part of their Native American curriculum each year. We enjoy it as much as the kids do.”

Roger Kennedy, The Political History of North America from 25,000BC to 12,000AD

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:14:00 +0000

Roger Kennedy, the former head of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History and former Director of the US National Park Service, is so eloquent that Walt Kelly based a "Pogo" character on him (the bear P.T. Bridgeport, whose speech balloons are circus posters).

Roger Kennedy's most driving current interest is the long-term effects of long-term abuse of natural systems, and he means seriously long term.Kennedy knows politics. For decades a major player himself in Washington DC, he has written redefining biographies of Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and Aaron Burr. Kennedy knows history. Besides writing and hosting a number of television series on American history, he wrote Rediscovering America and Hidden Cities: The Discovery and Loss of Ancient North American Civilization.

And Kennedy knows natural systems. As a highly popular Director of the National Park Service, he pushed the whole Park System toward greater emphasis on science.Roger Kennedy also found the mountain in Nevada where The Long Now Foundation aims to build the 10,000-year Clock. In this talk he defines the continental frame of the Clock.

Click the following image to play the presentation - (wear headphones if possible - - the sound is not great!)

This Tuesday - "Life and Times of a PA Game Commissioner"

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 12:56:00 +0000

Experience the history of game conservation and the Pennsylvania Game Commission at SRAC on Tuesday, December 6th from 6:30pm - 7:30pm. Dressed as an old time game refuge keeper, Bill Bower will depict the life and work of early game protectors. Bradford County is home to the lowest numbered game lands in Pennsylvania - SGL #12 located on Barclay Mountain. Sunfish Pond was once the site of a game refuge. Come and hear the stories of a refuge keeper.

In 1995 the Pennsylvania Game Commission celebrated its 100th anniversary. It was formed in 1895 when a law was passed authorizing the Governor to appoint six men to this new commission. These men were to be sportsmen and serve without salary and pay at their own expense. No money was appropriated to run this new commission, and many thought it would fail before it even got started.

The commission was very unpopular with some of the hunting public. No longer could a man hunt whatever or whenever he wanted. Now he had to obey certain laws and hunt only during the open season, and there were some animals he could not hunt at all. To say that these new game protectors were unpopular would be unjust; actually most were hated by the hunters. In the first year, 14 game protectors were shot at, seven were hit, and four killed.

The state's forests were all cut over and forest fires were a common thing. Gone were the elk, the bison, the passenger pigeon, and the beaver. The state's wildlife community was in deplorable condition and needed help, badly.

Today a Game Protector is called a Wildlife Conservation Officer. Although his job is still basically law enforcement, the type of work has changed drastically in the last 100 years.

Bill Bower is a retired Wildlife Conservation Officer for western Bradford County.

An admission donation of $6 for adults, $4 for SRAC members (free admission for students!) is requested. Free admission to the SRAC exhibit hall is included in this donation. For more information, visit www.SRACenter.org , email info@SRAcenter.org, or call the Center at 607-565-7960.

Jewelry Classes at SRAC Saturday(s) Dec 3rd and 10th

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 12:46:00 +0000

There's ALWAYS something going on at SRAC!

Buy one get on free on all Exhibit Hall admissions til 2012!

Donated Painting Raises $2,000 for SRAC!

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:19:00 +0000

Charles Durant Painting raised $2,000 for SRAC

Over a year ago, Lillian Warren came to SRAC and donated a painting to us to raise funds. The truth is that I wasn't sure that we could sell it to our demographic and set it on an inconspicuous shelf. ...I think I had $25 on it or something like that...

It wasn't until a good friend of SRAC - and artist in his own right - Albert White came in one day that changed the course of things...Albert took one look at the painting and said, "Deb you want to take that painting upstairs and research it on some pulp art websites - I think you'll find it."

After researching it - I did in fact find the painting - and not only that - but found out that it had been the cover of the October 1932 issue of the "Ace High Magazine" - !

October 1932 Ace High Magazine

Initially I contacted about 8 auction houses and several pulp and western art dealers acrossed the country but nobody would go above $1,000 for it and I just thought that I should keep trying...Over the past year there were times that I would hear from someone from Texas or that had interests in the JE Ranch, etc as well and I would ask them to share our painting with interested buyers...But nothing ever came of the efforts...

So last week I just decided that I would post it in eBay for the price I was willing to take for it ($2,000) and see what happened. To my surprise - I got the bid, and yesterday it sold for $2,000.

I cannot stress enough that we are blessed to have the good people that SRAC has around us. First Lillian donated this painting, and second, Albert could have just bought the painting for $25 and sold it himself - but he didn't - he was honest with me and guided me and in fact is the real reason why we ended up with $2,000 yesterday.

I want to thank Lilian and Albert publicly here for being so generous and well just great people - and I want to say that although I think that some people think that SRAC isn't in need of support because we always seem to have good fortune and successful reports - when the truth is that SRAC is truthfully less well off (financially) than any other museum in our region. We have no endowment money to fall back on, we have a mortgage to pay for, and we don't take state or federal funding.....At the same time we are open 5 days a week, give school field trips for free and host incredible events that cannot be seen anywhere else in the region...all with volunteer staffing.

So I want to thank EVERYONE who understands how hard we work to keep things going and supports SRAC and our mission to preserve the Native American archaeology of our region and to share the thousands of artifacts and our knowledge with our community. Without your continued support, we really could not do what we do. And to me - - this feel good story is the launch of the Christmas spirit for SRAC this year...

This Christmas - Help somebody if you can.

RARE 1898 Native American Portraits at SRAC

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 22:32:00 +0000

We have 20 of the "Rinehart Indian Portraits" that were donated to us and are now on sale in the SRAC gift Shop!

In 1898 Frank A Rinehart set up a photo studio at the Trans-Mississippian Expo where he photographed many Native Americans who had participated in the Battle of Little Big Horn and Wounded Knee.

More than five hundred American Indians from thirty-five tribes attended the 1898 Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition in Omaha, Nebraska. American ethnographer James Mooney (1868-1921) of the U.S. Bureau of Ethnology hired Omaha native Rinehart to photograph the tribal delegates. The sheer number of Rinehart's exposition portraits ensures that they represent the most comprehensive collection of images of early-twentieth-century Indian leaders.

These reprints are from the original glass plate negatives. Don't miss your chance to own one of the 20 - some photos which are hyped to be the BEST of the Rinehart collection! At just $24.99 each - they would make a great Christmas gift! Each poster is 19 inches wide by 24.5 inches high, sealed in plastic w/ backing and accompanied by the above information. An example can be seen in the photo below:

Each poster is also etched with the persons name and tribe :

Act quick and get first picks - as we only have one of each of these items !

Thank you for supporting SRAC!

M.L Gore Painting on Sale by SRAC on Ebay

noreply@blogger.com (Deb Twigg, Executive Director, SRAC.) — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 18:23:00 +0000

SRAC just received an original - one-of-a-kind painting by one of the most famous painters in our area - M. L. Gore. It is of the Teton Mountains in Wyoming and we have placed it on eBay - so please help us get the word out to all of the local art collectors who might want to keep it local. It is huge (30 x 48 inches!) and in a beautiful oak frame.

To view and/or bid on the painting on eBay - use the following link:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150707414502

Thank you for supporting SRAC and our efforts!