In December of 2014, I had the opportunity to write a guest blog for the State Historical Society. In that blog, I mentioned the volunteers and archaeology enthusiasts (like me) who gather at the ND Heritage Center archaeology lab on Wednesday afternoons to sort and quantify artifacts.

Sorting crew in the Heritage Center archaeology lab.

A question that volunteers ask from time to time regards the importance placed on their activities and what happens to the sorted and quantified artifacts when they are done. I worked on a major sorting project during winter 2006-2007 and pondered those very questions. I would like to give a personal example of what happens to the sorted material.

During summer 2006, a major (actually “world-class”) archaeological project was conducted at a site called Beacon Island in northwestern North Dakota. PaleoCultural Research Group was the lead institution for the research project, and the field director originally from France. Other team members were from Germany, Florida, the University of Chicago, archaeologists from the State Historical Society of North Dakota, and others. I was fortunate enough to participate in one of the four nine-day sessions.

The 2006 archaeological project at Beacon Island, North Dakota.

When the excavation was completed in August 2006, all of the artifacts recovered, as well as the water screened debris, were transferred to the State Historical Society. The winter of 2006-2007 was spent sorting and quantifying that “debris.”

“Debris” sounds like something that is quickly discarded. That is far from the truth. When we finished each small part of the large project, our sorting trays would hold neat piles of bone fragments, stone flaking debris, fire-cracked rock, small aquatic shells, charcoal fragments, and other material. Upon completion of the sorting project, all of the neat, distinct piles were consolidated and sent off to the experts who specialize in the analysis of bone, shell, stone, charcoal, and other materials.

The final report was delivered in August 2012. The report, titled “Agate Basin Archaeology at Beacon Island, North Dakota,” was edited by Dr. Mark D. Mitchell of the PaleoCultural Research Group of Denver, Colorado. The 277-page report details every aspect of that world- class project.

To summarize the report:

In early to mid-winter of a day ca. 12,000 years before the present time, a group of PaleoIndians (ancestors to modern Native Americans) surrounded a small kettle basin in what is now northwestern North Dakota. That day, they killed and butchered at least 29 Bison antiquus, ancestors to the modern species of bison. After the kill, they butchered the animals, preparing some of the forelimbs and hind limbs for transport to a secondary processing camp. At the same time, they refurbished some of their stone tools. Fires were built to prepare some of the bison meat for consumption at the site. They then departed the area.

How can archaeologists determine:

1. The event happened 12,000 years ago at this location?
2. The event happened in early to mid-winter?
3. They gathered at a small kettle basin?
4. They killed 29 animals (a pretty precise number)?
5. They took the time to refurbish their stone tools?
6. They made a meal of the bison while still at the site?

Space on this blog will not permit detailed answers to these and many other questions.

You can, however, find the answers to these questions at the ND Heritage Center & State Museum. A prominent display in the Innovation Gallery: Early Peoples is devoted to Beacon Island; it features a Bison antiquus skeleton, artifacts recovered from the site, and a large, detailed painting of the site.

Beacon Island exhibit at the ND Heritage Center & State Museum

So, back to the original question - why is the work of the volunteers in the archaeology lab important? Because without their painstaking work, the small pieces to a very large mystery could not be assembled. By combining the detailed information obtained from sorting and quantifying the “debris” with the larger artifacts obtained from the site, the story can be reconstructed by archaeology professionals, and an exhibit can be created depicting that event.

Visit the Beacon Island exhibit at the ND Heritage Center & State Museum to discover the answers to a 12,000-year-old mystery!

The expansion of the North Dakota Heritage Center was a major investment in the preservation of the state’s history. From state-of-the-art storage areas to new State Museum galleries, we were given the tools needed to protect and present North Dakota’s story for decades to come. I’d like to share with you one way we’re using the expansion to safeguard those stories.

North Dakota’s native people have always played an important role in the state's history, and the State Museum’s collection reflects that. Some of the earliest pieces we collected back in the early twentieth century were Native American in origin, and it is something that we have continued to build upon ever since.

During our recent expansion project, it was decided that the Native American collection would be the primary focus of our new, 5,000-square-foot collection storage area. The new space is a big improvement for the collection, because it went from occupying three rows of storage to 21, plus a restricted access room specifically created to house more significant or sensitive items. With more room and improved shelving, we can better care for and continue to expand on an already exemplary collection.

A panorama of our new collection storage room, which is initially committed to the Native American collection. In this image you can see that much of our new area contains compact, moveable shelving. Rows are accessed by rotating the black handles you see on the side of each unit, which causes the shelves to move along the tracks in the floor. That allows us to fit more rows of storage in the room than if they were stationary.

In October 2013, I started planning a basic layout for the new area and figuring out the scope of the project. After a few weeks of preparation, I began the move of the Native American collection to the new space. With nearly 4,000 artifacts involved, it was a challenging project to organize and wrap my head around. That is especially true given all the different types of artifacts such as beaded moccasins, hide dresses, firearms, preserved food, and even a birch bark canoe, just to name a few, each of which have unique needs and preservation concerns.

The original shelving units for the collection were filled many years ago and space was limited. This was our chance to store the collection exactly how we wanted it, and much thought was put into what we would do. We decided to arrange the new storage area into sections divided by type of artifact and also separated out by tribe within each section. That allows us to easily compare the differences between say, Sioux and Chippewa pipe bags. With similar objects grouped together, the layout also makes artifacts easier to find.

Left: Here you can see one of our enclosed cabinets, which are ideal for objects such as clothing. Notice the gaskets around the doorframe. With these seals in place, the environmental conditions inside each cabinet are very stable. Also notice the labels on each shelf with tribe names. I organized the storage area by type of object, separated by tribe. That arrangement allows us to easily compare objects created by different tribes.
Right: A row of open shelving, which happens to contain various types of bags, pouches, and other containers.

I have spent the last 18 months moving the collection over to the new area, cartload by cartload. As of this writing, I have about 22 artifacts left to move. There is more work to be done in the space, but phase one is nearly complete!