2026 MHT/ASM Workshop

The 35th Annual Maryland Historical Trust Workshop in Archeology was held in Crownsville, MD, on Saturday September 26, and as its name implies this year there were a number of workshops. 

The keynote speaker was Dr. Julia King who is a Professor of Anthropology at St. Mary’s College of Maryland   Dr. King talked about finding an early 17th century Jesuit Mission at Portobacco in Charles County.

Since this was a Workshop in Archaeology, the keynote address was followed by talks, some of which had hands on activities.  Since many were held concurrently, it was often a hard choice on which one to attend.

CCASM members attending included Carol, Ned, Jim, Elsie, and Esther.  (You will have to imagine our picture for this year.)

CCASM is a chapter of ASM. 

Click for program and more details about talks

2025 MHT Archaeology Workshop

The 34th Annual Maryland Historical Trust Workshop in Archeology was held in Crownsville, MD, on Saturday September 20, and as its name implies this year there were a number of workshops. 

The keynote speaker was Cassandra Michaud who is the Cultural Resources Stewardship Supervisor for Montgomery County.  The talk was entitled "Public Interpretation & the Evolution of the Montgomery County Parks Archaeology Program".

Since this was a Workshop in Archaeology, the keynote address was followed by talks, some of which had hands on activities.  Since many were held concurrently, it was often a hard choice on which one to attend.

• Not Another Sandbox Dig!
  Excavation Experiences Using 3D Printed Models 
  Rachel Aluine     
  
• Artifact Recovery: Preservation Practices in the Field and Lab
  Nichole Daub
• Identifying Stone Tool Functions through Microscopic Use-Wear Analysis
               Katherine Sterner  
  
• Adventures with Blue Painter's Tape:  A Vesselization Workshop
               Julie Mankin   
• Flotation and Fraction Separation of Soil Samples
   Alex Glass
• Illustrating History - The Basis of Artifact Illustration
               Tyler Ball
• What's That Rock?  Toolstone Identification
               Zachary Singer
• Meet Your County Archaeologist 
               Beau Lockard (Frederick County)
              Esther Doyle Read (Charles County
              Chris Sperling (Calvert County)
              Jennifer Stabler and Amelia Chisolm (Prince George's County)
              Lauren Schiszik (Baltimore)   
• CAT Workshop — Basic Lab Procedures - Parts I and II
  Rebecca Morehouse
  
  

 

CCASM members attending included Elsie, Carol, Ned, Peggy, and Patricia 

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

Click for program and more details about talks

2024 MHT Workshop in Archaeology

The 33rd Annual Maryland Historical Trust Workshop in Archeology was held in Crownsville, MD, on Saturday September 28, and as its name implies this year there were a number of workshops. 

The keynote speaker was Dr. Stephen Brighton who is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Maryland.  Dr. Brighton talked about the Irish Diaspora in the United States, specifically in Texas, MD, and the archaeological investigations he is doing in rural Ireland.  The talk was entitled "Uncovering Hidden Worlds: The Science and Craft of Doing Archaeology".

Since this was a Workshop in Archaeology, the keynote address was followed by a number of workshops.  Since many were held concurrently, it was often a hard choice on which one to attend.

• Conventional Documentation of Archaeological Resources: Recording Structures
  Troy Nowak    
  
• The Basics of Survey and Mapmaking for the Avocational Archaeologist
  Matthew McKnight.     
• Reading Historical Documents: Hints for Transcription
               Pat Melville.  
  
• Perishables Revealed: Recording Textile Impressions on Potsherds
               Lynne Bulhack.   
• An Introduction to the Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) Library
   Lara Westwood
  
• It's Not Just a Magic Box: Understanding GPR
               David Givens
  
• Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI) of Artifacts
               Scott Strickland   
• CAT Workshop — Ethics & the Law in Archaeology - Parts I and II
  Zachary Singer and Stephanie Soder

CCASM Members

CCASM members attending included Peggy, Linda, and Carol.

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

(Thanks to Pat M for taking photo,)

Click for program and more details about talks/workshops

 

MHT/ASM Workshop - 2023

The 32nd Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD, on Saturday September 23, and like its name implies this year there were a number of workshops.

The day started with the Keynote Speaker Dr. Al Luckenbach talking about Pig Point on the Patuxent: The Excavation of a Prehistoric Sacred Place.

Next there were several workshops, some being held at the same time.  So you had to choose. 
An overview of the various workshops was included in the October 2023 issue of the ASM Ink Newsletter (lhttp://marylandarcheology.org/Newsletters/2023/10-2023.pdf)

•  ArchaeoKids: Educational Programs for the Next Generation [virtual] with Julia Berg and Sarah Mason    
  
• Swinging into the Past: Metal Detecting Basics for Archaeology  with Daniel Dean
  
• Using StoryMaps to Tell Archaeological Stories with Gregory Brown
  
• Basics of Section 106 with Dixie Henry and Troy Nowak
  
• A Practical Guide to Investigating Archaeological Oyster Shell with Matt Borden
  
• Maryland's Digital Resources for Archaeological Research and Survey  with Matthew McKnight
  
• CAT Session: Historic Ceramic Identification Workshop (Parts I and II) with Patricia Samford
  
• Tips and Tricks for Completing a Site Form with Zachary Singer

Ned was the only CCASM member attending.  He indicated that this was the best of the approximately 3-4 conferences at Crownsville that he has attended.  Four other members had planned to attend but the weather forecast caused them to change their minds at the last minute, and they stayed home.  Ned did say there was occasional hydroplaning.

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

Click for program agenda and more details about talk/worshops

MHT/ASM Workshop - 2022

The 31th Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD, on Saturday August 28, and like its name implies this year there were a lot of workshops.

The day started with the Keynote Speaker Dr. Laura Masur from Catholic Universality talking about The Archaeology of Jesuit Plantations and Jesuit-enslaved Ancestors at three sites in Maryland.

Next there were several workshops, some being held at the same time.  So we had to choose.

• Introduction to Land Patent and Deed Research with Matthew McKnight
      
  
• Flintknapping and Lithic Identification with Nate Salzman and Zachary Singer
      
• Post Colonial Earthenware Identification with Patricia Samford
  
  
• Zooarch 101: Basic Faunal Analysis with Valerie M. J. Hall 
  
  
• CAT Workshop on Basic Lab Procedures (Parts I and II) with Sara Rivers Cofield
  

Concurrent with the workshops Sammy Orlando and Megan Ossmann gave individuals an opportunity to take a virtual tour of Mallow Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary.  Virtual reality headsets let each person take a 360 degree tour.  Click links to see the virtual tour without a headset and  to see different level paddling itineraries

CCASM Members

 

CCASM members attending included Ned, Elsie, Peggy, Jim, and Carol.


CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

Click for program agenda and more details about talk/worshops

MHT/ASM Workshop in Archaeology - 2021

The 30th Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD, on Saturday September 11.   It has been two and a half years since the last in-person workshop.  There were masks and social distancing, but it was really good to see everyone again.

 Talks and presenters included

The Late Woodland in the Potomac Valley,  Richard J. Dent  (Keynote Speaker)

Looking for Cresap's Fort using Remote Sensing,  Matt McKnight

Concurrent Sessions 

Open-Source Geophysical Information Systems (GIS) for Archaeology,  Scott Strickland
    
Soils, Sediments, and Landscapes in Archaeology,  John Wah

A 3D Photogrammetry Modeling Workshop,  Tom McLaughlin & Zachary Singer

 

Concurrent Sessions 

Identifying 17th-Century Colonial Ceramics,  Amelia Chisholm
 
Atlatl Dart Throwing Workshop,  Bob Weist
   
CAT Session: Prehistoric Overview - Part I & Part II,  Bob Wall and Charlie Hall

CCASM members attending included Elsie, Evelyn, Jim, and Carol.

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

 
Click for program agenda and more details about talks

Note: There was one change to the agenda. 
 

 

2020 'Virtual" Workshop in Archeology

Due to the limitation of public access and closure of state buildings, the Workshop in Archeology was not held on March 28th as originally planned.  Instead, Maryland Historical Trust staff coordinated with the Archeological Society of Maryland as well as the originally scheduled speakers to present this "virtual" Workshop in Archeology for 2020. 

The Workshop lectures as well as opening remarks from ASM President  Don Housley are available on-line at    https://mht.maryland.gov/archeology_workshop.shtml.

Lectures include

• Priestly Plantations: What We Know (and Want to Find Out) About the Archeology of Jesuit Sites in Maryland  (40 mins)
  Laura Masur, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, the Catholic University of America
  
  
• "A bleak, barren sand beach":  Recent Investigations at Point Lookout Light Station (50 mins)
  Rob Wanner, Archeologist and GIS Technician with EAC/Archaeology, Inc.
  
  
• Cobble Reduction and Tool Production from Late Archaic through Late Woodland at the Elkridge Site  (38 mins)
  Bob Wall, Lecturer in Anthropology, Towson University
  
  
• "The once great plantation is now but a wilderness":  Archeological Research at the Josiah Henson Site  (23 mins)
  Cassandra Michaud, Senior Archeologist, Montgomery Parks (M-NCPPC) – Planning & Stewardship Division
  
  
• Archeology at the Cloverfields Site   (40 mins)
  Zachary Andrews, Crew Chief, Applied Archaeology and History Associates, Inc.

Postponed-2020 Workshop in Archeology

WORKSHOP POSTPONED:
Due to the limitation of public access and closure of state buildings with the movement of Maryland government operations to an Elevated Level II footing, the Workshop in Archeology WILL NOT be held on March 28th.  MHT will coordinate with the ASM to determine a date in Fall 2020 for the Workshop.  Check mht website for details.

The Maryland Historical Trust and The Archeological Society of Maryland, Inc

 29th Annual Workshop in Archeology

Saturday March 28 (9:00am-3:30pm)

Maryland Historical Trust, 100 Community Place, Crownsville, MD  map

Click for more details
The agenda for the workshop is

• 9:00    Registration and Coffee/Danish
• 9:30    Welcome - Elizabeth Hughes (MHT) and Valerie Hall (ASM)
     
• 9:45    Keynote Speaker
  The Search for St. Mary's Fort,   Travis Parn
   
• 10:45  Coffee Break

      Concurrent Sessions 

• 11:00   Priestly Plantations: What We Know (and Want to Find Out)
  About the Archeology of Jesuit Sites in MD,    Laura Masur
   
• 11:00   "A bleak, barren sand beach": Recent Investigations at Point Lookout
  Light Station,   Robert Wanner
   
• 11:00   Cobble Reduction and Tool Production from Late Archaic through Late
  Woodland at the Elkridge Site ,  Bob Wall
       
• 12:15   Lunch  
                     (Cafeteria is closed.  Bringing your lunchrecommended.
  

       Concurrent Sessions 

• 1:30     "The once great plantation is now but a wilderness": Archeological Research
  at the Josiah Henson Site,  Cassandra Michaud
   
• 1:30     Workshop: Dating Late 18th- to Mid-19th-Century Refined Earthenware - Part I,
  Patricia Samford
     
• 1:30     CAT Session: Prehistoric Overview - Part I,  Bob Wall and Charlie Hall

• 2:30     Archeology at the Cloverfields Site,
  Zachary Andrews, Alex Glass, & Zachary Andrews, Alex Glass, & Kristen Browne  
    
• 2:30     Workshop: Dating Late 18th- to Mid-19th-Century Refined Earthenware - Part II,
  Patricia Samford  
    
• 2:30     CAT Session: Prehistoric Overview - Part II,  Bob Wall and Charlie Hall
 

$7 for general admission, $5 for ASM members and students

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

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2019 MHT/ASM Workshop in Archeology

The 28th Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD, Saturday March 30, 2019. 
 
Topics and speakers included

• The Loss and Rediscovery of USS Indianapolis (CA-35) - Captain William Toti (Keynote speaker)
• [Not] The Last of the Piscataways: The 17th-century Indian Fort on Heater's Island -Dennis Curry 
  
• Three Centuries at the Brumbaugh-Kendle-Grove Farmstead through Archeology -Joel Dworsky    
• No Cause to be Ashamed of Baltimore: African American Life at Eutaw Manor House - Lisa Kraus
  
• Maryland's Magical Artifact - Sara Rivers-Cofield
• "X" Never, Ever Marks the Spot?: MHT's Use of Magnetic Susceptibility (Field Session Overview) - Matt McKnight
• The Shipwrecks of Curtis Bay - Susan Langley

The CAT Workshop on Historic Archaeology Overview was conducted by Silas Hurry and Kate Dinnel .

Susan Langley, Maryland State Underwater Archaeologist, indicated this year's maritime volunteer award recipient was Carolin McMannus.

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

2018 MHT/ASM Archaeology Workshop

The 27th Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD, Saturday March 10, 2018. 
 
Topics and speakers included

• Stalking Panthers, Panthers, Falcons, and Bearcats in the Chesapeake - George Schwartz and David Howe (Keynote speakers)
• The Town of Secowocomoco? Archeological Investigations at Lower Brambly (18ST51), Near Chaptico, Maryland -Julia King
• Persistent Place or Just Passin' Through?  The Contact Period Component at Biggs Ford - Matt McKnight
• The Value of X-radiography in Archaeology and Conservation - Francis Lukezic
• From the Depths of History: U-1105, the Ghost Fleet, and the Efforts to Understand and Preserve Them - Troy Nowak
• Field Session Preview - Return to Calverton - Kirsti Uunila
• The 2017 Archeological Investigations at the River Farm Site in Lothian, Maryland - Zachary Singer

The CAT Workshop Preservation Laws was conducted by Charlie Hall, and the companion CAT Workshop Archaeological Ethics was conducted by Jim Gibb.

Ilka Knuppel Gray was acknowledged for being the sixteenth ASM Certified Archaeological Technician (CAT) graduate.

This is the thirtieth anniversary of Maryland Maritime Archaeology Program (MMAP).  Susan Langley, Maryland State Underwater Archaeologist, presented awards to three individuals (Donald Shomette, John Kiser, and Michael Pohuski) who have been supporting Maryland maritime archaeology since before the existence of MMAP. 

CCASM members attending included Evelyn, Pat, Jim, Carol, and Belinda. 
(We never seemed to be in the same place at the same time.  So there is no picture,)

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

2017 MHT/ASM Archaeology Workshop

The 26th Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD, Saturday March 25, 2017.

Topics and speakers included

• Slavery at George Washington's Mount Vernon - Luke Pecararo   (Kenote Speaker)
   
• Waders and Snake Chaps: Exploring Resistance Landscapes in the Great Dismal Swamp -Becca Peixotto
   
• Mother Nature Bats Last - Jen Sparenberg
   
• Forts and Fortifications - Craig Lukezic
   
• Coins to Catherdrals: A Demonstration of the Whole Range of Latest Range of Laser Scanners Available Today - Joe Nicoli
   
• The Power of Water: Devastation in Ellicott City - Marcia Miller
   
• Revisiting the Higgins Site: Reanalysis of the First Excavated Paleoindian Site in Maryland - Zach Singer, Carol Ebright
   

The CAT Workshops Basic Lab Procedures  (Part I and Part II) was conducted by  Becky Morehouse.
 

CCASM members attending included Evelyn, Belinda, Annetta, Carol, and Elsie. 

CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

2016 MHT/ASM Workshop in Archeology

The 25th annual MHT/ASM Workshop in Archeology was held on March 26, 2016 at the Maryland Historical Trust in Crownsville, MD.

Here is an overview of the talks -

• Exploring a Beautiful Place in Time: Reflections on Half a Century of Archeology at St. Mary's City
  Henry Miller
• Searching for King Opessa's Town in the Mountains of Maryland
  John Bedell
• Heritage from the Ground Up: Using Technology to Study Enslaved and Free Workers in an Iron-making Community
  Elizabeth Comer, et al.
  
• Outfitting Outlander: Costumes, Props, and Comparisons to Maryland Archeology
  Sara Rivers-Cofield*
• Mallows Bay, the Ghost Fleet and Beyond
  Susan Langley
• New Technologies in Site Recording
  Kirsti Uunila and Scott Strickland)

And there was also a CAT Workshop - Prehistoric Overview (presented by Charlie Hall and Bob Wall)

CCASM members attending included  Elsie, Belinda, Carol, and Jim.  It was also a good time to catch up with what is happening across the state.  

* "The Artifacts of Outlander" exhibit was on display on the third floor. (Sarah had talked about this at the CCASM January meeting.)

2015 Annual Workshop in Archeology

The 24rd Annual Workshop in Archeology was held at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center in Edgewater, MD, Saturday March 28, 2015.

Topics and speakers included

• Early Chesapeake Taverns - Rod Cofield
• Digging for the War of 1812 in Patterson Park, Baltimore - Greg Katz
• Artifacts of Religion & Magic: Interpreting the Material Culture of Faith and the Supernatural in Maryland - Sara Rivers-Cofield
• Ordinance 101: Do's, Don'ts, and Myths - Bill Utley
• Historic Wreck Tagging Problem - Austin Burkhard
• SERC Archaeology Program Steps into the Anthropocene - Jim Gibb
• The ASM Field Session: The Biggs Ford Site

The CAT Workshop "Historic Overview" was presented by Silas Hurry and Kate Dinnel.

CCASM members attending the workshop included Jim, Sarah, and Lindsey.  (sorry, no photos.)

2014 Annual Workshop in Archaeology

The 23rd Annual Workshop in Archeology was held in Crownsville, MD, Saturday March 22, 2014.

Jim Delgado, an underwater archaeologist, was the keynote speaker.  He showed the site where a copper-clad Baltimore Clipper had sunk in the Gulf of Mexico.  The exploration and 3-D mapping of the site was done remotely aboard the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer.  People could log in and watch a live feed showing what was happening underwater, as well as ask questions of an archaeologist on board the ship.  The artifacts were found exactly where you would expect if the boat had sunk suddenly due to a catastrophic event.  The Okeanos Explorer plans to return to the site this year.  We hope to be able to provide a link so you can watch the live feed.

Actually Charles County was mentioned a number of times during the meeting.  Susan Langley, Maryland State Underwater Archaeologist, indicated they were trying to have Mallows Bay designated a NOAA National Marine Sanctuary.  There are currently only fourteen of these marine protected areas.  She also pointed out the 100 year anniversary of the start of World War I was approaching.  In case you don't know, Mallows Bay contains nearly 200 sunken ships above and beneath the surface of the Potomac River.  Most of the wooden hulled ships date back to World War I.

During Tim Horsley's talk on remote sensing, he showed the results of magnetometer and GPR work done at the Juhle Site in Nanjemoy.  This is the site of three known ossuaries.  He found eight anomalies in the area that could be additional ossuaries.  Of course, it would be necessary to ground truth one of them, and that is problematic.  Tim also did magnetometer and GPR work at Zekiah Fort that Julie King recently discovered, and he identified a "square" area.   The talk also included results from other Southern Maryland sites - Notley Hall, Smith St. Leonard, and Mount Calvert.  Tim indicated multiple times that we should be using plastic rather than metal pin flags.  The magnetometer picks up every pin flag location as well as the location of the nails used to mark the corner of units.

Other speakers were Al Luckenbach on the Pig Point Site,  Mike Lucas and Emily Swann on the Nottingham Project, Kim Popetz on JPPM's traveling trunks, Roy Brown on atlatls and spears, and Charlie Hall with a preview of this year's field session.  Also Becky Morehouse conducted a CAT Workshop on Basic Laboratory Techniques.

Below are five of the CCASM members that attended the Workshop.  Trying to take pictures of the group was catch as catch can, and we didn't catch Jim.  (Once again Maxine, a fellow ASM member, was our photographer.)

Belinda, George, Elsie, Annetta, Carol

Did anyone notice Elsie's CCASM shirt?

2013 ASM/MHT Workshop

The Maryland Historical Trust and the Archeological Society of Maryland, Inc hosted the 22nd Annual Workshop in Archeology on March 23.

In addition to the sessions, there was plenty of time to talk to others who were also interested in archaeology.  Here are a couple of our members during the lunch break-

But if you are interested in what talks were given, here is an overview--

This year’s keynote speaker was Dr. Stephen R. Potter, regional archaeologist with the National Park Service for the National Capital Region.  Dr. Potter who talked about what archaeological research has discovered about the Battle of Antietam, including the discovery of forgotten Confederate regiments.

Other sessions included

•  a workshop on tin-glazed earthenware by Patricia Samford
•  a workshop on equestrian artifacts of the Mid-Atlantic by Sara Rivers-Cofield
•  a primer on GPS and conventional survey procedures by Bill Stephens 
•  the Wreck of the Levin J. Marvel by John Ward
•  Marlinspike seamanship by Wes Sullivan, a profession tall ship rigger (limited to 20)
•  manufacture of Slate Tools by Dan Coates
•  overview of Biggs Ford, site of annual ASM/MHT field session, by Charlie Hall
•  CAT (Certified Archaeological Technician) Workshops on Law and on Ethics

2012 Workshop in Archeology

March 10 the Maryland Historical Trust and the Archeological Society of Maryland, Inc  hosted their 21st Annual Workshop in Archeology in Crownsville, MD.

CCASM members attending included Carol Cowherd, Josh Eller, Jim Gibb, Elsie Picyk, Carole Raucheisen, and Belinda Urquiza.   Jim also gave a one-hour workshop on animal bone identification.  (Sorry I didn't get a picture. There were multiple sessions, and we never seemed to be at the same place at the same time.)

Dr. Julia King, the keynote speaker, talked about "Finding the Zekiah Fort" in Charles County.   She thanked CCASM for their help.  Analysis on what was found is still going on, and she plans to finish the reports by the end of the summer.

Other sessions included a CAT workshop with an overview of Native American archeology in Maryland, a talk on the manufacture of shell buttons, and a variety of presentations on local archeological projects, both terrestrial and underwater.