Workshop dates for 2009 are May 16-17 and August 15-16,
and by arrangement for a group of six or more

About the Instructor -:- How to Enroll -:- Materials for Students -:- Image Gallery
Typical Weekend Schedule -:- What to Bring -:- Useful Links
Annotated Bibliography of Geoarchaeology Texts and Papers
A Note on the Background of this Page

            These workshops in geoarchaeology are aimed at all skill levels in archaeology and geoarchaeology, from beginners who want to learn the basics of soil description to more advanced students wishing to further their skills in a specific geoarchaeological topic.  The goal is to give each student a greater understanding of soils, sediments, and landforms, and to teach the utility of geoarchaeology within archaeology and the wider field of anthropology.  Participants have included undergraduate and graduate students, avocational archaeologists, and academic and contract archaeologists seeking professional development.

            Each workshop is composed of lectures, informal discussions, and field trips to a diverse array of soil exposures.  Enrollments are kept small, usually under 15 students, to facilitate one-on-one communication and instruction.  Lecture, discussion, and field topics can be tailored to individual students and groups, but usually include the following:

- Describing soils in the field and laboratory.
- Interpreting soil horizons and sediment types.
- Bioturbation and other forms of soil mixing.
- Identifying buried soils.
- Soil/sediment/landform relationships.
- The archaeological implications of different sedimentation rates.
- Artifact depth-distribution analysis.
- The use (and misuse) of County Soil Surveys and digital SSURGO soils data. 
- Overview of basic soil sampling and analysis techniques.
- Laboratory analysis methods that do not require elaborate or expensive equipment.
- Incorporating geoarchaeological information into archaeological interpretations.
- Examples of how geoarchaeology has aided in the interpretation of archaeological sites.

            We usually schedule two to three workshops each year (for the 2009 dates watch this website and www.caa-archaeology.org).  If you have a group of six or more people who would like to take the workshop but cannot make these dates, you may be able to arrange a workshop as our schedules permit (call the Center for American Archaeology at 618-653-4316 or e-mail gvogel@caa-archaeology.org).  I am also available at certain times to give talks or workshops (ranging from three hours to two days) to field schools, colleges, universities, professional and avocational groups, or anyone with an interest in geoarchaeology.  Again, please call or e-mail to arrange a meeting that will suit your needs.  
           
            Tuition for the weekend workshop at the Center for American Archaeology is $200, including room (in one of the CAA's bunk-style dormitories) and basic field lunches (breakfast and dinner are not included).  Rooms are often available on the days immediately before and after workshop dates at no additional charge – please contact us to check for availability. 

How to Enroll

            To enroll in a workshop, complete the registration forms and return to the CAA along with a 30% deposit ($60) or full payment ($200).  Upon receipt or completed forms, we will send you a confirmation letter and packet of additional information.  Please note that your remaining tuition balance is due one week before the program begins.  The following forms need to be submitted to the CAA:
                                                              Registration form
                                                              Adult medical form
                                                              Assumption of risk/permission to photograph 
            (More information about all of our programs here.)   Please call (618) 653-4316 or e-mail caa@caa-archeology.org with any questions.

Materials for Students

Map to Kampsville (JPEG) (PDF)
Map of the CAA campus in Kampsville (JPEG) (PDF)
Annotated bibliography of useful geoarchaeology texts and papers

Below is a typical schedule for a weekend workshop:

Saturday

8:00 – 9:00 am           
Check-in at Kamp Sore Museum and Visitor's Center.

9:00 am           
(At Maynard House, next door to Kamp Store Museum)
- General introduction and goals of the workshop.
- Soils, sediments, and landforms.
- Soil horizon formation and nomenclature.
- Pick up (bag) size-graded sand samples.
- Stop by TBGOK trailer to pick up shovels etc.

11:30 am           
(Lunch break before or after Langdon road cut.)
- Langdon road cut.  Step-by-step soil description (loess deposit) and discussion of the archaeological             implications of soil characteristics.
- Trowels and any other equipment allowed here, but please keep dirt off of the driveway.

1:30 pm -           
- McCully Heritage Project.  Step-by-step soil description (alluvial deposits with possible buried soil),             exposed shales and muck at sulfur spring, wetland soils.
- Trowels and any other equipment allowed here.

- Diehl sand pit.  Complex soil/stratigraphic relationships and multiple parent materials.
- What could be the origin(s) of these sediments?
- In-field discussion of Hans Jenny's five factors of soil formation (cl,o,r,p,t...)
- Trowels and any other equipment allowed here.

- Hamburg road cut #1.  Loess with interesting inclusions: how were they deposited?
- Trowels here only, and no large excavations.

- (If time permits) Hamburg road cut #2.  Loess – soil description and comparison to loess at Langdon             road cut: which is older?
- Trowels and any other equipment allowed here, but please keep dirt off of the road.

5:00 pm           
Back to Kampsville, dinner on your own.

7:00 pm           
(At Maynard House)
- Importance of the rate of sedimentation to the preservation of the archaeological record.
- Discussion of bioturbation and the movement of artifacts within the soil.
- Examples of applied geoarchaeology.

Sunday

9:00 am                       
(At Maynard House)
- Brief overview of a few laboratory methods: sand sieving, particle size by the hydrometer and pipette             methods.
- Overview of sieving methods for clast and artifact depth distribution analysis.
- Overview of key books and papers concerning geoarchaeology.
- Further discussion of topics of interest to participants.

11:00 -                       
- MacDougal Dormitory clay exposure.  What is the origin of this deposit?
- Trowels and any other equipment allowed here, but please keep dirt off of the road.

- Vin Fizz Highway road cut.  Burlington limestone and overlying residuum.
- Burlington biostrome, abundant chrinoid columns and other fossils; source of chert.
- Overlying clay-rich resisuum (very old soil).
- Trowels and any other equipment allowed here, but please keep dirt off of the road.

- TBGOK (The Buried Gardens of Kampsville).  CAA Education program Field School site                         (Middle-Woodland village).
- Midden vs. non-midden soils: definitions of "midden", etc.
- Classic river-valley margin landform: colluvial/alluvial slopes.
- Please no trowels or digging equipment here.

- Any final in-field discussion.

2:00 pm           
- Have a safe trip home!

            What to Bring

            The workshops are hands-on, so bring field clothes as appropriate for the season and conditions.  The soil exposures we visit are all relatively close to the vans (no more than a few hundred meters), but we will still need to walk through tall brush, hop over a creek or two, and climb a moderate slope to get to some of them.  The Lower Illinois Valley can be quite hot and humid during the summer.  For current weather information in the Kampsville area click here. We will be in the field rain or shine, so be sure to bring rain gear.     

            Bring a favorite trowel, shovel, or other implement of excavation if you like, otherwise we will provide them for you.  If you have other soils-related equipment you regularly use in the field (Munsell book, hand-lens, sand-size comparator chart, etc.), feel free to bring these along also. 

            Each workshop covers several "core" ideas in soils and geoarchaeology, but many topics are tailored to the interests of the particular students participating, so be sure to bring material for taking notes during lecture and discussion time.