ALASKA OFFICE OF
HISTORY & ARCHAEOLOGY Announcements and Links
General Information & Announcements
Report Cover Sheet requested for submittals to SHPObeginning July 1, 2006 In an effort to
streamline the entry of AHRS data, OHA requests that all report
submittals be accompanied by a check list and one-page cover
sheet with summary information. Draft forms have been used successfully
by a few investigators on a voluntary basis for more than a year.
After July 1, 2006, compliance reports missing coversheets will
be returned to the sender. A link to these forms may be found
on the OHA website at:
Justification: There
is currently a backlog of data buried in reports and awaiting
AHRS entry. OHA staff and interns presently must "excavate"
essential information from the depths of reports. This can be
a daunting and time consuming task, particularly for interns
not yet seasoned in Alaska archaeology or cultural resource management.
The intent of the cover sheet is to redirect this burden to
the report authors. The authors are generally the most familiar
with their report contents, and can capture summary data quickly
and accurately. This small time investment will ultimately benefit
all AHRS users by making database entries more current and accurate.
Similar sheets are being used successfully by most other states.
For questions and comments contact:
Dave McMahan, State Archaeologist
Alaska Office of History and Archaeology
550 W. 7th Avenue, Suite 1310
Anchorage, AK 99501 Office: (907) 269-8723
Fax: (907) 269-8908
e-mail: dave_mcmahan@dnr.state.ak.us
Job Postings: OHA is expects to recruit
for an Archaeologist I position in the spring of 2006. The position
will be split between the Archaeological Survey Unit (contact
Alan DePew, 907-269-8713) and the AHRS Unit (contact Dave McMahan,
907-269-8723). OHA periodically hires archaeology and history
assistants under the Alaska
Conservation Corps (ACC) and DNR
College Internship programs, which are restricted to Alaska
residents. OHA also participates in the Volunteers
in Parks (VIP) program to secure volunteers for archaeological
field projects. While VIP hires do not receive wages for their
services, they typically are provided accommodations and food
or a field perdiem. These positions are restricted to U.S. citizens,
and may be of particular interest to college anthropology students
and others wishing to obtain field experience. Please call OHA
(907-269-8721) to inquire about the ACC, Internship, or VIP positions
State Permits: Cultural resources on
State lands require an Alaska Field Archaeology Permit,
which provides authorization from OHA and the agency(ies)
responsible for land management (i.e., ADOT&PF, DNR Lands,
State Pipeline Coordinator, etc.). This includes DOT Right-of-Way
corridors, State tidelands, and State submerged lands (i.e.,
most areas within three miles of the coast). An application may
be found online (see link, below). Please allow 30 days for
processing. Upon request, we will make an effort to process
these permits on short notice. However, please consider that
they must often be circulated to agency officials in other regions
of the state and are beyond our control. Please note that the
form undergoes periodic updates. Please make sure you have the
latest version from the website.
AHRS News: At long last --- the AHRS
database has been moved from dBase III+ into an Oracle format!
This data conversion, completed in September 2002, was preceded
by a successful pilot study to test the feasibility of a conversion.
The dBase version is being used for daily operations while the
beta Oracle version is being tested and evaluated by staff.
The Oracle database, located on the State's internal server,
is currently available to authorized users with access to the
State Network. It is accessed via a customized web-based tabular
data screen which allows for new entries, edits, queries, and
imports/exports. Design allows for import/export of dBase III+
files, which are importable into ACCESS and other popular databases.
Data may also be exported in a generic "comma-delimited"
version and in a "semi-colon" delimited version that
is compatible with All Topo Maps, Topographical Map Viewer (iGage
Mapping Corporation). In other words --- users will be able to
filter for a particular quadrangle and/or other delimitors, export
the data to AllTopo, and export the data directly into a GPS
unit for use in the field!
Following
an evaluation of the Oracle beta version, new updates
were added during the winter of 2002. State programmers are now
focusing their attention on "EAHRS," an electronic
AHRS form that will be available over the web. The form data
will not be linked to the Oracle database immediately, but is
intended to be a pilot program that will guide further Oracle
development. OHA views this as an opportunity to assess the current
AHRS structure and consider changes that will make the AHRS more
consistent with National Register guidelines. The conversion
project will eventually include the integration of ancillary
databases, such as the NATREG (National Register), SuRF (Survey
Record File), and Review and Compliance correspondence databases.
Keep in mind that we have a long way to go to reach our goals.
Even after the infrastructure is in place, it will require a
lot of labor to address some of the poorly populated fields to
make them usable.
Concurrent
with the conversion of the AHRS to an Oracle format, were are
undertaking a scanning project to make reports, maps, and other
documents on file at OHA more readily available to our users.
These documents, which include thousands of gray literature reports
that are difficult to find elsewhere, will eventually be available
to qualified researchers through a web interface. The system
is currently being used by OHA staff, although only about 10%
of the reports have been entered.
Underwater Archaeology OHA is charged
with protecting historic resources on/in state intertidal and
submerged lands (i.e., most lands within 3 miles of shore). To
meet this responsibility, OHA has facilitated cooperative grant
proposals with qualified researchers, has participated in national
initiatives, and is attempting to establish outreach programs
with local dive communities. In May 2004, OHA collaborated with
scholars from the U.S. Minerals Management Service, National
Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, consulting maritime archaeologist
John Jensen, and the PBS show "History Detectives"
to document the partially submerged remains of the steamship
S.S.
Portland. In July 2004, OHA collaborated with East Carolina
University to document the Russian-American Company bark Kad'yak,
that sank off Kodiak in 1860. The discovery was made possible
by the years of archival research by Mike Yarborough, Kathy Arndt,
and others. The wreck was discovered on state submerged lands
in July 2003 by a team of volunteer divers led by Brad Stevens
and overseen by State Archaeologist Dave McMahan. The 2004 Kad'yak
documentation effort constituted the first substantive underwater
archaeology in Alaska. OHA, in collaboration with Evgenia Anichtchenko
and Jason Rogers, has recently been awarded a NPS Beringia grant
to publish a bilingual discussion of the Kad'yak Project. Other
collaborative projects are being planned for the spring of 2006.
OHA was awarded a NOAA/OE grant to collect baseline information
on several shipwrecks that are popular recreational dive sites
in Southeast Alaska. This project is a collaborative effort of
OHA, UAF, MMS, NOAA, and the University of Rhode Island.
OHA has acquired a series of 11 training
videos entitled "Diving Into History: An Introductory Course
in Underwater Archeology." This series, produced by the
Maritime Archaeological and Historical Society (MAHS) with a
grant from the Maryland SHPO, is designed to train avocational
underwater archaeologists to assist in the documentation of submerged
sites. For more information, go to the MAHS
webssite or contact Dave McMahan about the training videos.
Office of History and Archaeology
Alaska Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation
550 W. 7th Ave., Suite 1310, Anchorage, Alaska 99501-3565
(907) 269-8721. FAX (907) 269-8908, e-mail: oha@alaska.net
