the Digger       

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

Nanaimo Branch Spring 2004

President's Message:

Since the last edition of the Digger, your Executive committee has been working hard with the main body of the ASBC in Vancouver, as well as our sister Branch in Victoria, to improve communication and work together as one voice for Archaeology in the Province. Members from all the Executives met in Vancouver in November 2003 and Nanaimo was host to the recent meeting in February 2004. I am pleased to report that communication has greatly improved, with ideas and resources being shared amongst all parties. Your Executive is working hard to be your voice on the Provincial scene as well as at home. I would like to thank everyone who has participated in these meetings. Your input and knowledge of the issues has been invaluable. The results of the next meeting (April 2004) will be posted on our website (http://homesites.nisa.net/asbcnb/). If you would like more information about the previous meetings, please contact any member of your Executive Committee.

This year is an exciting one for the Nanaimo Branch. We have been invited by a Nanaimo couple to conduct archaeological work on their heritage property. We are in the planning stages and hope this project will evolve into a larger excavation depending on the availability of volunteers and funding. No prior archaeological experience is necessary, just a bucket full of enthusiasm. This is your chance to get involved and either get a little dirty or do the much needed archival work that will be crucial to the project. Currently we are looking for a Project Manager with a background in archaeology who would be willing to be on-site while the work proceeds. Participation is open to all ASBCNB members, volunteers will be asked to sign an ethics contract and a liability waiver. For more information you may contact Julie Cowie or Colleen Parsley . This is proving to be a wonderful project and we encourage you to become involved, it's a great opportunity to learn new skills or dust off old ones.

Keep in mind that we are still planning our "Discover Archaeology" Bones Display at the Nanaimo District Museum this summer and we always need volunteers. As well, if you know of a classroom in your area that would benefit from the ASBC coming to speak about archaeology, please contact any member of your Executive. We have many resources available.

The Annual General Meeting for the Nanaimo Branch of the ASBC will be coming up in June and is a perfect opportunity for you to become involved and see what your ASBC has done over the last year. Our Executive is one of the most dedicated and fun bunch around and we are always looking for new members with fresh ideas and enthusiasm. Join us for the great potluck lunch and stimulating conversation! We will post the date and venue as soon as that information becomes available. I'm looking forward to seeing you there.

 ASBC Vancouver is currently looking for submissions to the Midden. If you or someone you know is doing archaeological work or research within BC or calls BC home but is working elsewhere and could submit an article, please visit the Midden website. Also, the ASBC in Vancouver is conducting a poster contest in honour of Hilary Stewart, a prominent BC archaeological illustrator and author. The contest is currently open to children from Grades 8 to 12. Visit their website at www.asbc.bc.ca for more details.

I look forward to seeing you all at the upcoming lectures. As always, feel free to pull me aside and introduce yourself. My door is always open.

~Julie Cowie

 

Bones, Totems and Middens

2003/04 ASBC-Nanaimo Branch Lecture Series

All lectures are held at Malaspina University-College in the Education/Social Sciences Building (356) in Room 111 from 7-9 PM. Lectures are open to everyone. Membership for the year (includes the full lecture series and the quarterly publication The Midden) is as follows: $24 Family, $19 Individual, and $14 Student/Senior. Non-members will be asked to pay $5.00 per lecture at the door. Refreshments are available.

March 12, 2004

Speaker: Dr. Bryan Wells

Topic: Ancient Writing and Astronomy

Bryan Wells is currently finishing his Ph.D. at Harvard University and was appointed project epigrapher (a person who deciphers ancient inscriptions) for the Harvard Archaeological Expedition to Baluchistan, a Province in Pakistan. He has returned to BC to write his dissertation: Epigraphic Approaches to Indus Writing, and is currently living in Qualicum Beach.

His studies began at Simon Fraser University where he graduated with a BA in 1984. He specialized in geomorphology and computer cartography. After graduation he ran Cartographics, a computer consulting firm specializing in the analysis and display of large data sets.

In 1996, he entered the Master of Arts program at the University of Calgary. Wells’ Masters thesis, titled An Introduction to Indus Writing, was published in 1998 after he graduated. In 1999, he moved to Berlin, Germany and with Andreas Fuls of the Technical University of Berlin, co-authored a monograph titled Correlating The Modern Western and Ancient Maya Calendars.

April 16, 2004

Speaker: TBA

Topic: TBA

 

May 14th, 2004

Speaker: Brian Thom

Topic: Coast Salish Senses of Place

In this talk, Brian will draw on his experiences in Coast Salish communities on Vancouver Island to illustrate ways that Coast Salish people relate to the land.  The stories of First Ancestors and the Transformer are key to understanding a Coast Salish worldview and the basis of current claims to the land.

 Brian Thom is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Anthropology at McGill University, and will be defending his dissertation on the various ways Coast Salish relates to the land this spring.  Brian has worked for the Hul'qumi'num Treaty Group in Ladysmith since 2000, where he works on the negotiations as Senior Negotiations Support to the Chief Negotiator.  Brian has a long interest in local archaeology and ethnography having worked and studied in Coast Salish communities since 1990, the year he first joined the ASBC.  Recent publications include "The Anthropology of Northwest Oral Traditions" (Arctic Anthropology 2003), "Aboriginal Rights and Title in Canada After Delgamuukw" (Native Studies Review 2001), "Precarious Rapport: Harlan I. Smith and the Jesup North Pacific Expedition "(European Review of Native American Studies 2000).  He is currently writing an ethnography of First Nations intellectual property systems.

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Barkerville

Is this just the tip of the iceberg?

By Julie Cowie

Currently there is an alarming trend towards the diminution of the importance of heritage by the government of British Columbia and the privatization of that heritage. The abolition of the of BC Heritage Trust and the institution of the BC Heritage Legacy Fund, as well as the devolution of BC heritage properties, is indicative of a larger trend towards less or no government involvement and funding. The shift is being made to local community management of heritage sites where the government believes community groups, local governments or individual businesses can be responsive to local interests. The assumption is that these groups have a better knowledge of community needs and that they can be more creative and innovative. Ultimately they are expected to do this without government funding. Where will these groups get the funding?

These trends are typified by one of BC’s most celebrated heritage sites: Barkerville. It, too, has been earmarked for the devolution process. In essence, this process takes over all government responsibility for maintenance, restoration, curation, liability, security, and overall management and places it squarely on the shoulders of the private sector. At Barkerville this means that funding would be reduced from $1.2 million to $750,000 and no funds would be given for maintenance, where it has been calculated that $4 to $5 million is greatly needed. In addition, the $750,000 would be reduced to zero in five years. Whoever takes over responsibility for this site will have to find those funds elsewhere. But in times where funding is scarce and communities are battling for survival in the face of sweeping provincial budget cuts, will sites such as Barkerville survive? Private sector proponents were asked to submit proposals for operating the site but none came forward. This is not surprising when the communities of the Interior have been faced with devastating cuts to all sectors. Barkerville brings in much needed revenue and jobs to the Interior, infusing the economy with $5.4 million in 1994. The loss of Barkerville would be another blow to an area that experienced a downturn in tourism due to last summer’s forest fires.

With no one to manage Barkerville, what will happen to the buildings and collections? By spring 2004, Barkerville staff will have been reduced from 17 to seven, an alarming decline for such a large site. Artifacts that were donated to Barkerville were done so in trust to the BC government. People donated their family photographs and treasures with the implication that our government would preserve them for future generations. Without proper supervision, what will happen to these resources? If the site closes because there is no one to manage it, where will the collections go? To the Royal BC Museum, which is also faced with equally devastating cuts and must also look for private sector funding?

In response to the problem, the Barkerville Coalition was formed to serve as a unified voice for those concerned with Barkerville and to increase awareness for the need to preserve BC’s heritage sites. It is a non-partisan, ad-hoc group that is supported by local municipalities, local businesses and Chambers of Commerce, Barkerville merchants, contractors and staff at Barkerville, the Friends of Barkerville, the BC Government and Services Employees’ Union and concerned citizens. More information can be found at their website http://www.barkervillecoalition.com/.

What does the situation at Barkerville indicate and why should we be concerned as citizens of British Columbia? In the face of sweeping government cuts to our health care and education why should we care about funding cuts to Barkerville, the Royal BC Museum, or the Archaeology Branch? Because if we don’t fight to protect our heritage now, future generations will only know the wonder of BC’s past through the internet instead of exploring with their own eyes. Protecting BC’s heritage should not be entirely our responsibility as we have already contributed our tax dollars to create sites such as Barkerville. The government has a fiscal and moral responsibility to maintain BC’s heritage, from the smallest archaeological site to the larger treasures such as Barkerville. Privatization is not the answer when heritage is concerned. BC’s collective past should not be held up for sale to the lowest bidder. They not only dishonour our past, they short-change our future. If you are concerned about BC’s Heritage, please contact the Honourable Murray Coell, Minister of Community, Aboriginal and Women's Services at murray.coell@gems3.gov.bc.ca or write to him c/o PO Box 9042 STN PROV GOVT, Victoria BC V8W 9E2.

 

BC Historical Federation – Annual Conference "Beyond Coal"

Dorchester Hotel Nanaimo, BC

May 6 - 8, 2004

Members of the British Columbia Historical Federation and friends of the history of British Columbia meet in May of each year at a different location in British Columbia. In the past years the Federation's Conference was hosted by societies in Williams Lake, Nelson, Surrey, Merritt, Port Alberni, Richmond, Revelstoke, and Prince George. The 2004 Conference will be held in Nanaimo, with the 2005 conference scheduled for Kelowna.

The Federation was fortunate to obtain a grant from Canada’s National History Society that allows the Federation to offer two free pre-conference workshops on Thursday May 6, 2004 from 9:00 am to 4:00 p.m. The subjects selected for the workshops are Family History and Local Archives. Both workshops will occupy a full day, instead of one half day as in the past. This will allow for a more in-depth coverage of the subjects and more time for questions. However, it does mean that registrants may only sign up for only ONE of the workshops, rather than the two as in the past. The ASBC Nanaimo’s own Dr. Imogene Lim will be speaking about the Nanaimo Chinatowns Project so sure to attend this conference!!! For more information and conference registration forms, visit their website at http://www.bchistory.ca/conf.html .

 UPDATE:

Nadine Simpson has volunteered and been appointed to the vacant position of Vice President.

…Many Thanks, Nadine.

UPCOMING COURSES

Six weeks in the field (Pitt Polder) and six weeks at Langara College.
Courses:

ANTH 1221 (6 credits) - Field Techniques
ANTH 1222 (3 credits) - Laboratory Techniques
ANTH 1224 (3 credits) - Ethnoarchaeology

Fieldwork includes archaeological site survey as well as excavations in the Pitt Polder area of Maple Ridge. All work will be conducted under the auspices of the Katzie First Nation. Students with field school experience stand a good chance of future employment.
The deadline for application is April 16. Phil Hobler will be running the field school.
Contact: Stan Copp (Anthropology) < scopp@langara.bc.ca > http://www.langara.bc.ca/anthropology/archaeology

UNBC Archaeology Field School

The University of Northern British Columbia and the Nuxalk nation are pleased to announce the 2004 Archaeology Field School, to take place in the Bella Coola Valley from July 5 - August 27.

For more information: www.unbc.ca/anthropology Application deadline: 26 March 2004 (4:00pm)

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Membership Renewal:

Only members in good standing receive the Midden.

		MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL 2003-04 THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA, NANAIMO BRANCH Dept. of Social Sciences, Bldg. 356, Malaspina University-College 900 - 5th Street Nanaimo, BC V9R 5S5
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