2019 ASM Fall Meeting

On Saturday October 5 the Charles County Archaeology Society of Maryland (CCASM), a Chapter of ASM,  hosted the Archeological Society of Maryland, Inc (ASM) 2019 Fall Meeting at the Maryland Veterans Museum at Patriot Park in Newburg, MD.  And CCASM members stepped up to put together a great meeting.

The Fall Meeting started with the Annual ASM Business Meeting.  Instead of having chapter reports during the business meeting, chapters were requested to bring a display highlighting their activities.   Six Chapters--Charles, Central, Northern Chesapeake, Mid-Potomac, Western, and Monacacy-- brought displays.  They were all different, and all were interesting

At any ASM Meeting it's always fun to catch up with others from around the state and hear what they are doing.  But the highlight of the meetings are the talks.

• 2019 Frederick L. Stiner Memorial Lecture
  What's New in Charles County: Overview of the County Archaeology Program
  Esther Doyle Read, County Archaeologist, Charles County Planning   
        
     
• Run of the Mill: History and Archaeology of Maryland Mills Dr. James G Gibb, Gibb Archaeological Consulting
    
    
• Archaeology and Community Collaboration:
  Researching Black History in Prince George’s County
  Dr. Kristin Montaperto, Chief Archaeologist, Maryland National Capital Park and Planning
    
     
• From Port Tobacco River (MD) to Portobago Bay (VA):
  Exploring Native Movement and Mobility through an Archaeological Lens
  Dr. Julia A King, Professor of Anthropology, St. Mary's College of Maryland
    
  
   
• Serendipity and a Lost Opportunity: An Adena Artifact Found in Charles County
  Carol Cowherd, Charles County Archaeological Society of Maryland, Inc

Don presenting award to Claude

Also congratulations to Claude Bowen, the 2019 William B Mayre Award recipient. 

The Museum was open, and attendees were able to tour the various rooms.  Connie Uy, the Museum Ambassador for the Day, gave us a brief introduction to the Museum and was there to answer questions.

Here are 10 of the 16 CCASM members at the meeting.

Pat, Carol, Mary, Gary, Linda, Elsie, Jim G, Julie, Mike, Annetta
(Missing- Janna, Doug T, Doug Z, Sarah, Jim R, Don)

Attendance: 52 including 3 guests

Protecting the Upper Chesapeake Bay: Fort Hollingsworth (1813-1815)

James Gibb

On September 12 at the first CCASM meeting this fall Dr. James Gibb talked about Fort Hollingsworth, a small breastwork on the Hollingsworth property in Cecil County, Maryland.  He explained the reasons the local citizens felt the need to erect a fort at this location in April 1813 as a means to protect their property and the Upper Chesapeake Bay from the British during the War of 1812.  After the war the fort was demolished, and the land returned to farming.

Jim showed how geophysical methods were used to locate the fort and how field investigations during as Archeological Society of Maryland field session ground-truthed those findings.

James Gibb is the principal of Gibb Archaeological Consulting as well as a Smithsonian Research Associate.  Jim is also one of the founding members of CCASM.

Attendance: 11

Fieldwork near the Potomac River

On August 24 and 25 CCASM volunteers worked with Charles County archaeologist Esther Read to investigate an area behind a historic house in the Mount Vernon view shed.  Additional construction was planned in that area, and the Charles County Historic Preservation Commission had requested that Esther investigate before construction could proceed.

Eighteen shovel test pits were dug.  Various historic ceramics, a couple of prehistoric ceramic fragments, bricks, rusted nail fragments, and some worked lithics were found.  Once the artifacts recovered are processed at the Monday Lab, Esther will put together the report.

CCASM members volunteering included Denise, Joe, Linda, Doug, Mary, Janna, and Carol.

July 4th at Smallwood Retreat

On a hot July 4 afternoon CCASM was at Smallwood Retreat for an Independence Day event.  We brought a display highlighting archaeological investigations at an eighteenth century house as well as a few colonial artifacts.  There were not that many people attending, but we did have a visit from General Smallwood (Mike Callahan).  And a potter stopped by to give us insights into one of the usual artifacts we had brought.

We had two new activities especially for the day - making a flag star to wear and mending two broken flag "plates".

There was "colonial' music for part of the afternoon.  As you can see, a number of people were in colonial costumes, including Rose and George representing the Friends of Maxwell Hall.  And, of course, there were tours of the Smallwood Retreat house and of the garden.

Thanks to Elsie and Carol for representing CCASM.  (Photos were provided by Elsie, Frank, and Carol.)

A Visit ot the The Southern Maryland Resource Center

Thursday, June 27, four CCASM members visited the Archives at the Southern Maryland Resource Center (SMRC) at the College of Southern Maryland in LaPlata to learn more about the excavations that took place in Port Tobacco prior to the Courthouse being re-constructed.  We had been told that all notes, etc. taken during the excavation had been given to John Wearmouth, and his papers were at SMRC.  It took us all afternoon to look through four boxes that looked most promising.  We were not the first to look at these papers.  But you often learn more when you do the research yourself rather than relying on the notes of others.  And you never know if you will find something, others have overlooked.  Also it was the first time several of us had visited the archives.

We found a number of reports and photos pertaining to the excavations in the area of the Courthouse.  There was a grid indicating how the 10' squares were identified.  When the artifacts were labelled, a PTn number was used rather that the longer square identification.  The draft report mentions a site log as well as the catalog cards that associated the PT number with the location on the grid.  These were missing. There were no reports associated with the excavations around the St Charles Hotel, but there was an analysis of pipe stems found there as well as their general location, e.g. trench north of hotel .  Also there was no mention or reference to the excavations around the Ferguson Store (the area associated with the BF1 artifacts).

We did not have time to look at another box (or boxes) that had not been entered into the database.  So another trip will be needed.  And several of us identified documents related to other research we were doing that warranted another trip to the archives.   

It was an interesting, worthwhile visit, and those at the SMRC were quite helpful.