Tag Archive for: SOULA

The SOU Laboratory of Anthropology was awarded $500,000 by Congress

SOU Laboratory of Anthropology project rewarded by Congress

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(Ashland, Ore.) — The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology’s Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project – an ongoing, collaborative effort to research and document the lives of Oregon’s early Chinese immigrants – was awarded almost $500,000 in the spending bill approved by Congress this month. The federal allocation more than doubles the total funding that the archaeological project has received since it began in 2016.

SOU is the only one of Oregon’s four technical and regional universities to receive congressional funding in the new spending bill.

“This is another example of our representatives at both the state and federal levels recognizing the important, innovative work that is coming out of our university,” SOU President Rick Bailey said. “Senators Merkley and Wyden supported this request through all the twists and turns of the congressional budgeting process, and the result will be a far greater understanding of the vital roles that Chinese Americans and immigrants have played throughout Oregon’s history.”

The new federal funding will allow the award-winning Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project to expand well beyond its original focus on 19th century mining and railroad settlements, to encompass areas throughout the state where Chinese immigrants have had a presence. The project will also incorporate “orphaned” collections from other archaeological efforts, and will result in a series of field schools, volunteer opportunities, exhibits, digital content and free, public talks and programs.

“We have investigated railroad and mining sites across the state, but these funds will be used to explore and document the history of Chinese Oregonians living in diverse geographical areas and working in a variety of industries, in an effort to better capture the full range of Chinese American heritage and experience in Oregon,” said archaeologist Chelsea Rose, director of the SOU Laboratory of Anthropology.

“While we have done amazing things working with our partners to date, this allows us to investigate some of the ‘bucket list’ sites we have encountered over the years, and implement some of our dream projects,” she said.

SOULA works on the Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project with agencies including the Medford District of the Bureau of Land Management, the Malheur National Forest, the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, Oregon State Parks, the Oregon Historical Society and the Portland Chinatown Museum.

Researchers have used local history and public archaeology to challenge dated stereotypes and highlight the transnational lives of the Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans that helped establish the early infrastructure and economic industries of Oregon. The project has included digging, interpreting and touring numerous archaeological sites around the state where Chinese immigrants worked and lived, and researching censuses and community records.

The effort has won several awards, including one last fall from the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) and a national Award of Excellence from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) in June of 2022.

Sens. Merkley and Wyden submitted a “congressionally directed spending request” on SOU’s behalf to better enable students to assist with a comprehensive, statewide inventory of Chinese heritage sites. It will pay for archival research, targeted field visits and community outreach, and archaeological investigations at seven to 10 sites identified during the survey.

“These investigations would target sites that will fill in gaps in the documentary record, including industries or areas of the state that have been understudied,” the congressional request said. “This will consist of a mix of archaeological excavation, intensive survey, or analysis of orphaned artifact collections.”

About two-thirds of the $499,743 allocated by Congress will be used for fieldwork and reporting, with most of the remainder earmarked for travel, curation and supplies. The funding is part of the federal Labor, Health and Human Services budget for improvement of postsecondary education.

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SOULA and partners work on Tragedy at Tunnel 13 commemoration

Collaborative events to commemorate historic “Tragedy at Tunnel 13”

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(Ashland, Ore.) — The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA) and Jefferson Public Radio (JPR) are part of a nationwide consortium commemorating the 100th anniversary of the “Tragedy at Tunnel 13” and its legacy. The project includes a variety of live and virtual events that memorialize what may be southern Oregon’s most infamous true crime, its victims and the far-reaching efforts to solve it.

Oct. 11, 2023, marks the 100th anniversary of the attempted robbery of Train 13 at Tunnel 13 in the Siskiyou Mountains. The crime led to the brutal murders of postal clerk Elvyn Dougherty, brakeman Coyl O. Johnson, engineer Sydney Bates and fireman Marvin Seng. The holdup led to a global manhunt, with more than 2.5 million wanted posters and a cost of more than $6 million in today’s money to catch the three DeAutremont brothers who were responsible for the crime.

The case is considered to represent the birth of American criminal forensics. The DeAutremont brothers – Ray, Roy and Hugh – were identified following a painstaking investigation, then captured after a four-year manhunt, convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

SOULA and its partners in the commemoration been working for months to plan and create resources, podcasts, exhibits and live events that will focus on a variety of aspects of the historical crime and its legacy. SOULA has used archaeological tools and public outreach to revisit and reframe the case and its relevancy today.

“While to many this case evokes romantic images of the old timey train robberies and elaborate chases, the story is actually more about innovation, collaboration and the modernization of the world around them,” said SOULA research archaeologist Chelsea Rose. “On that fateful day in 1923, the DeAutremont brothers entered Tunnel 13 in one era, and came out in another.”

SOULA, which has played a central role in the Tunnel 13 commemoration, has collaborated with agencies including the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, the Southern Oregon Historical Society (SOHS), the Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture (BBRC), the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Oregon Historical Society (OHS), Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB), the Southern Oregon Railway Historical Society, and the United States Fish & Wildlife Forensics Laboratory.

The U.S. Postal Service will make a commemorative pictorial cancellation – the postal marking that prevents a stamp from being reused – featuring original art by retired Postal Inspector, Dan Mihalko.

“As a Postal Inspector, a history buff and an artist, I was always intrigued by the DeAutremont case,” Mihalko said.

“In 1998, I did a painting of the robbery entitled, ‘The Last Great American Train Robbery,’” he said. “So, I was thrilled when offered the opportunity to design the pictorial cancellation for the 100th anniversary.”

The cancellation will be available on the anniversary at the Ashland post office and at an Underground History Live event at the Ashland Hills Hotel.

A commemoration of the Tragedy at Tunnel 13 was first suggested by Bruce Shoemaker, board member of the BBRC, which preserves and promotes railroad culture.

“The Tunnel 13 tragedy is a true story worthy of a major motion picture and the single most dramatic incident in the history of railroading in our region,” Shoemaker said. “The murder of the three Southern Pacific trainmen is also a reminder that railroad work has traditionally been – and remains – a dangerous occupation.”

View the full list of Tunnel 13 commemorative events.

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Britt Gardens archaeological dig

SOU Laboratory of Anthropology receives grant for Britt analysis

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(Ashland, Ore.) — The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology has received a grant of about $16,000 from a division of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to complete a “faunal analysis” of artifacts unearthed during 2010-11 digs at Jacksonville’s Peter Britt Gardens.

The excavations by SOULA were conducted as the city of Jacksonville prepared for a restoration project on the 4.5-acre Britt Gardens site. But due to changes in the project plans and a loss of funding the archeological findings were not immediately studied to develop a detailed picture of life at the 1800s homestead.

A later grant in 2019 from the state parks’ Oregon Heritage division, for about $15,000, enabled SOULA archaeologists to analyze, interpret and catalog thousands of artifacts from the Britt homestead. The current grant of about $16,000 will fund a faunal analysis, which will study the inhabitants’ food sources by identifying animal remains such as bones and shells.

Katie Johnson, who will lead the Britt faunal analysis“This type of funding is so important for the research that we conduct here at SOULA,” said SOU research archaeologist Katie Johnson, who will lead the project. “Specialized analysis like this is very time-consuming and there are relatively few people in our field with this type of expertise, which often results in these studies not being conducted.

“The ability to obtain funding to help offset the cost allows for these studies to not only be conducted, but also to provide opportunities for students and volunteers to be a part of research that is significant on a national level.”

The grant is one of 18 “Preserving Oregon Grants,” totaling $277,681, that were awarded this summer by the state parks’ Oregon Heritage division for historic and archeological projects throughout the state. Each was approved by the Oregon Advisory Committee on Historic Preservation.

About 30,000 artifacts were recovered during the 2010-11 excavations at the Britt homestead. Peter Britt – an early Rogue Valley settler – was a painter, photographer and horticulturist whose photos of Crater Lake were instrumental in creation of the national park in 1902. The 2010-11 SOULA excavations included the site where Britt built a log cabin upon reaching Jacksonville in 1852 and the later home that his family lived in until the 1950s.

The study of faunal materials found at the site will enable the archaeological team to further explore the Britts’ daily life as immigrants and how it changed over time. The findings can then be compared to those from excavations at Jacksonville’s nearby Chinese Quarter, which burned in 1888. The Britts interacted with the Chinese gold-mining community of Jacksonville and the surrounding region in various ways, and it is believed that a comparison of archaeological findings may offer insights into political and social climates during the late 19th century.

faunal material at Britt Gardens dig siteFindings from the excavation of the Chinese Quarter were analyzed with the help of a 2016 Oregon Heritage Grant. The data has been used in numerous studies of the Oregon Chinese Diaspora and is the subject of Johnson’s master’s thesis.

The current project will be a collaborative effort by SOU, the city of Jacksonville, the Southern Oregon Historical Society, the Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project and community volunteers.

Johnson, the project leader, is a specialist in faunal analysis and has completed work on two previous Oregon Heritage Grant projects during more than a decade of work in the state. She recently completed her master’s degree in applied anthropology and environmental studies at SOU.

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Fellowship recipients in new NAS-SOULA initiative

SOU programs collaborate to create fellowship opportunity

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Southern Oregon University’s Native American Studies (NAS) program and the SOU Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA) have created a competitive fellowship that promotes collaboration between the two programs and recognizes the research and learning that spans both.

This year’s inaugural fellowship – which is funded by SOULA – was awarded to SOU undergraduates Kayla Dumore and Charlie Zimmermann, and will support their work with the Shasta Takelma Learning Garden project. The fellowship covers 40 hours per term of a paid internship, which can be shared between two students – as is the case for this year’s inaugural round.

The Learning Garden project aims to turn the space around SOU’s Science Building into a biodiverse and culturally rich learning space, dedicated to celebrating the historical and modern presence of the lands’ original Indigenous occupants and caretakers.

Dumore and Zimmerman are using the fellowship to uncover the historical and archeological stories that lie within the space. The fellows will consolidate the stories and publicly present them prior the eventual construction of the garden.

“I am excited for this fellowship because I get the opportunity to broaden my academic horizons by working with anthropology, and because I get to be a part of a very special project with some great people,” Charlie Zimmerman says.

Charlie is a junior studying history and political science, with a minor in Native American Studies and research interests that include the history of Oregon and westward expansion. Charlie is pursuing a career in public history, copy editing, technical writing or historical society work.

Kayla Dumore is an enrolled Klamath Tribal member, with ties to the Klamath and Modoc peoples. She is working toward a major in Sociology and Anthropology, with a certificate in Native American Studies, and plans to graduate June of 2024. Kayla plans to have a career in research, with a focus on Tribal sovereignty, cross-cultural interactions and the Indigenous history of Oregon. Kayla always keeps her community close at heart in all of the work she does, and is passionate about honoring those of seven generations into the future.

“I am deeply honored to be working on this Indigenous-led project,” Kayla says. “I am passionate about advocating for the inherent sovereignty of Native American peoples and the Indigenization of spaces within higher education. This project does both in a collaborative and meaningful way. I am beyond excited to be working with fellow students, alumni and tribal partners.”

The Native American Studies Program at SOU is an interdisciplinary field that blends social science with humanities. Though Indigenous peoples have always been engaged in theoretical and conceptual activities, the physical presence of NAS as a distinct discipline in academia is an outgrowth of American Indian activism of the 1960s and 1970s.

NAS is a problem-solving, Native American-centered and applied field, which seeks to examine experiences that unify Indigenous peoples in ways that work in service to Native American communities’ contemporary challenges and aspirations. All students are welcome.

The SOU Laboratory of Anthropology connects culture, history and place in a meaningful way. The program conducts grant- and contract-funded research that includes archaeological surveying, excavation and analysis; GIS mapping; and oral history and ethnohistoric research. It serves the interests of the university and community, selecting projects in partnership with private, local, state, federal and Tribal organizations in ways that meet collaborators’ needs and provide data for expanded research and public education.

Students from a wide range of disciplines benefit from SOULA’s hands-on experiences in fieldwork, laboratory analysis, conference presentation, writing and career networking.

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National award for SOULA for Chinese Diaspora Project

SOU Laboratory of Anthropology project receives prestigious national award

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(Ashland, Ore.) – The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA) has received a national Award of Excellence from the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) for its Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project. The recognition is part of the AASLH Leadership in History Awards, the most prestigious recognition for achievement in the preservation of state and local history.

The Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project is a multi-agency collaboration with the shared mission to promote research and education on Oregon’s early Chinese residents. The project partners include the Medford District of the Bureau of Land Management, the Malheur National Forest, the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, Oregon State Parks, the Oregon Historical Society and the Portland Chinatown Museum. Researchers use local history and public archaeology to challenge dated stereotypes and highlight the transnational lives of the Chinese immigrants and Chinese Americans that helped establish the early infrastructure and economic industries of Oregon.

The project’s partners and affiliated OCDP Chinese American Advisory Committee share resources and expertise, conduct archaeological excavations, apply cutting-edge technology, model best practices and current scholarship, and aim to identify opportunities and overcome challenges in centering the history of the Chinese diaspora in Oregon.

The project will be hosting a number of public outreach events across the state this summer, including a public archaeology day at the Gin Lin Mining Trail in the Applegate Valley on Saturday, June 25, and a public archaeology day at the Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site on Saturday, July 16.

The AASLH Leadership in History Awards recognize 53 people, projects, exhibits and publications across the nation this year. The winners represent the best in the field and provide leadership for the future of state and local history.

The AASLH awards program was initiated in 1945 to establish and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation and interpretation of state and local history throughout the United States. The AASLH Leadership in History Awards not only honor significant achievement in the field of state and local history, but also bring public recognition of the opportunities for small and large organizations, institutions and programs to make contributions in this arena.

The AASLH is a national nonprofit association that provides leadership and resources to help the history community thrive and make the past more meaningful for all people. For more information about the Leadership in History Awards, contact AASLH at (615) 320-3203, or visit the website.

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Excavation by SOULA at Britt Gardens site

SOU Laboratory of Anthropology receives grant to complete Britt project

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(Ashland, Ore.) — The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology has received a grant of about $15,000 from a division of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department to analyze and report on artifacts unearthed during 2010-11 digs at Jacksonville’s Peter Britt Gardens.

Britt GardensThe excavations by SOULA were conducted as the city of Jacksonville prepared for a restoration project on the 4.5-acre Britt Gardens site. But funding dried up and the archeological findings were never fully studied to develop a detailed picture of life at the 1800s homestead.

“We are thrilled to receive the Preserving Oregon grant,” said Chelsea Rose, a research archeologist with SOULA. “The Britt Gardens Site is one of the most important archaeological resources in southern Oregon, and this funding will allow us to analyze and interpret the thousands of artifacts from the Britt homestead and share our findings about this fascinating family with the local community, tourists and interested scholars.”

The grant is one of 18 that were awarded this summer by the state parks’ Oregon Heritage division for historic and archeological projects throughout Oregon. Each was approved by the state Advisory Committee on Historic Preservation.

Peter Britt historical photo

Peter Britt

About 30,000 artifacts were recovered during the excavations nine years ago. Britt – an early Rogue Valley settler – was a painter, photographer and horticulturist whose photos of Crater Lake were instrumental in creation of the national park in 1902. The SOULA excavations included the site where Britt built a log cabin upon reaching Jacksonville in 1852.

“Everyone always asks archaeologists what our favorite find is,” Rose said. “Mine came from the Britt Gardens Site – two glass plate photograph negatives with images on them.

“This grant finally gives us the opportunity to tell the story of these artifacts, and hundreds of others, and what they can reveal about the lives of the Britt family and their experience in 19th century Jacksonville.”

The grant will pay for artifact analysis, site mapping, illustration and photography of the excavation project, and compilation of a detailed report on archeological findings. SOULA is also working with the university’s Hannon Library to create a digital artifact collection that will feature more than 100 artifacts from the Britt site.

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SOU Archaeologists Return to Jacksonville’s Chinese Quarter

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Public Archeology Day is October 12 at the Site

(Ashland, Ore) The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA), in collaboration with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the City of Jacksonville, will conduct archaeological excavations at the Chinese Quarter Site in Jacksonville, Oregon Saturday, October 12, from 10:00 a.m through 2:00 p.m. The archaeological excavation will be open to the public. Read more

SOU Archeologists Return to Fort Lane

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Public Archeology Day is July 7 at Site (and there’s now a video from the dig)

(Ashland, Ore) The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA), in collaboration with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD), continues archaeological investigations at Fort Lane this summer, and is inviting the public to see the site. The archaeological excavation will be open to the public Saturday, July 7, from 10:00 am through 2:00 pm.
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Archaeology at Fort Lane State Heritage Site opens to public viewing

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Oregon State Parks Shield
The Southern Oregon University Laboratory of Anthropology (SOULA), in collaboration with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD), will be conducting archaeological investigations at Fort Lane, a U.S. Army post occupied from 1853-1856 that was used during the Rogue River Wars. The site opens to the public on Sunday, November 13, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Visitors are invited to take the opportunity to learn about the importance of protecting Oregon’s archaeological sites and some of the aspects of archaeological field work. They will have the opportunity to walk around the site and talk with members of the archaeology team and OPRD staff, view uncovered artifacts, learn how they are cared for and how archaeological sites are treated with minimal impact to the environment. Read more