Current GCAS member and supporter, and past member of the Mimbres Foundation, archaeologist Pat Gilman announces that the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society is in the preliminary stages of planning a field trip to the Mimbres Valley from Friday, March 10, through Sunday, March 12, 2023. They've booked a room at the Little Toad Creek Brewery for Friday dinner (March 10), hoping that they can also use the room for a brief Powerpoint overview of Mimbres archaeology presented by Pat Gilman herself.

AAHS is inviting GCAS members to join them for the March 10 dinner - dutch treat - and then join them for any or all parts of the weekend tour they have in mind. Pat reminds us that the AAHS is still in the early planning stages for this field trip, but she asks GCAS members to “Please let me know if you can join us for dinner and the show*.  The Little Toad Creek Brewery would like to know about how many people will be at dinner.  I don’t need to know if you will join us for any parts of the field trip itself, but I hope you can.  I want to show off what you all have done, and I’d like you to talk about it. And I’d like our members to be able to chat with you all who know so much about the local archaeology and the valley.”

Current GCAS member and supporter, and past member of the Mimbres Foundation, archaeologist Pat Gilman announces that the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society is in the preliminary stages of planning a field trip to the Mimbres Valley from Friday, March 10, through Sunday, March 12, 2023. They've booked a room at the Little Toad Creek Brewery for Friday dinner (March 10), hoping that they can also use the room for a brief Powerpoint overview of Mimbres archaeology presented by Pat Gilman herself.

AAHS is inviting GCAS members to join them for the March 10 dinner - dutch treat - and then join them for any or all parts of the weekend tour they have in mind. Pat reminds us that the AAHS is still in the early planning stages for this field trip, but she asks GCAS members to “Please let me know if you can join us for dinner and the show*.  The Little Toad Creek Brewery would like to know about how many people will be at dinner.  I don’t need to know if you will join us for any parts of the field trip itself, but I hope you can.  I want to show off what you all have done, and I’d like you to talk about it. And I’d like our members to be able to chat with you all who know so much about the local archaeology and the valley.”

This is an excellent opportunity to get acquainted with our neighbors in Arizona's AAHS so the GCAS is welcoming our members to this weekend event as both our monthly field trip AND our monthly meeting for March!

Current GCAS member and supporter, and past member of the Mimbres Foundation, archaeologist Pat Gilman announces that the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society is in the preliminary stages of planning a field trip to the Mimbres Valley from Friday, March 10, through Sunday, March 12, 2023. They've booked a room at the Little Toad Creek Brewery for Friday dinner (March 10), hoping that they can also use the room for a brief Powerpoint overview of Mimbres archaeology presented by Pat Gilman herself.

This is an excellent opportunity for GCAS members to get acquainted with our neighbors in Arizona's AAHS, so the GCAS has scheduled this weekend event as our March field trip - please join us!

On December 4, 2022, nineteen GCAS members and their guests- including our youngest visitor (age six months old!) - visited the Fleming Museum at WNMU. In addition to a guided tour of the Museum's main exhibits, museum director Danni Romero treated our group to the first-ever public showing of their most recent acquisition of Mimbres artifacts, the Clint and Dee (Delk) Johnson Collection.

Set aside time on Sunday, December 4, 2022, at 10:00AM - when the GCAS meets for this month's field trip at WNMU's Museum at Fleming Hall for a guided tour by museum director Danielle Romero. Come to view the new and innovative exhibits that Danni and her staff have already put on display, and hear about the museum's work in curating their vast collections. Ask about the museum's plans for future exhibits and how you can become involved in the process!

(For those unfamiliar, the entrance to the museum is across a small parking lot adjacent to the Aldo Leopold Charter School. From downtown Silver City, drive westbound along W 10th Street until it curves uphill and becomes N Louisiana Street right where the school and the museum are located, on the north side of the street. For more details, visit the museum's web page.) We'll see you there!

/s/ webmaster

The GCAS is always on the lookout for new places to visit, or to revisit places we've been in the past. Day trips are fun, but so are overnight adventures. We always welcome our members, from brand-new to our Grizzled Old Timers, to give our group your own ideas - where would YOU like to go for our November 6, 2022 field trip? Any other field trip? Archaeological sites and historic sites like forts, missions, & mines are all cool by us.

We've traveled as far afield as Paquime, Mexico; and as close to home as Gomez Peak. We've visited Three Rivers, and have recorded the rock art at the Dragonfly Petroglyph. Anything goes, near or far, with avocational archaeologists! Some of our members are willing to lead any field trips up their way -- but new leaders are welcome too! What do you know? What areas do you like the best? Please share with us - we want to keep exploring!

/s/ webmaster

This report and all photos come to us courtesy of GCAS member and trustee, Kathryn McCarroll.

The forecasts of heavy monsoon rains and bad road access were greatly exaggerated for the GCAS's August 7, 2022, field trip to Pitchfork Ranch in the Burro Mountains. The weather that Sunday turned out to be splendid. A ranch employee guided a group of about 20 GCAS members and friends to a couple of small sites located within ranch property.

The sites our group visited included a small historic stone-and-adobe structure, while at other nearby areas, the group found clusters of groundstone and broken metates that may have been washed down from their former locations by years of past flooding (photo over there on the right)....

...And of course, the group photographed potsherds with varied designs and styles before returning them to where they'd been found. (That's a bit of malachite the group found among the potsherds, adding to the adventure.)

Thank you for sharing those photos and news of the field trip, Kathryn!

/s/ webmaster

SBecause the first Sunday of July always collides with the July 4 holiday, the GCAS traditionally offers our "July" field trip at the end of June. So, let's all set aside time on Saturday, June 25, 2022, 10:00AM-12:00PM noon, to take our field trip to the 2022 Archaeology Fair hosted by Archaeology Southwest and the University of Arizona's Preservation Archaeology Field School at Gila River Farm in Cliff, New Mexico. The public is welcome and it's free of charge, so nothing could be better than joining GCAS members in learning about the project team's current discoveries through their informational exhibits, hands-on activities, and a brief site tour over easy terrain. General directions are: From the junction of Highways 180 and 211 in Cliff, drive 1 mile north, keep left (north) on Highway 293 and drive to Mile Marker 4. Just past MM 4, turn right into a driveway with a small sign that says, "Gila River Farm." Please use the parking area next to the large building down the driveway. Check their event flyer for more info: Download archaeology-fair-2022.pdf (455.6K). Learn more about the field school here, and here.

Safety measures will be in place so please be prepared to wear a mask and keep a safe distance. If you still have questions contact Archaeology Southwest. We'll see you at the Fair!

/s/ webmaster

Mark your calendar for Saturday, June 25, 2022, 10:00AM-12:00PM noon, to visit the 2022 Archaeology Fair hosted by Archaeology Southwest and the University of Arizona's Preservation Archaeology Field School at Gila River Farm in Cliff, New Mexico. All the public is invited and it's free of charge, so join GCAS members in learning about the project team's current archaeological investigations and research. Informational exhibits aplenty will be on display, and there will be hands-on activities for visitors of all ages to enjoy. Check their event flyer for directions: Download archaeology-fair-2022.pdf (455.6K). Learn more about the field school here, and here.

Safety measures will be in place so please be prepared to wear a mask and keep a safe distance. If you still have questions contact Archaeology Southwest. We'll see you at the Fair!

/s/ webmaster

On February 5, 2022, at 11:30 AM (Arizona/Mountain Standard Time), the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society will present a very special virtual field trip of the Mattocks Site located in Mimbres, New Mexico, at the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site. This Zoom presentation is free and open to the public but one must pre-register by visiting this page for more info and to follow the link there.

The GCAS's very own Marilyn Markel and Professor Emerita Pat Gilman, the supervising archaeologist for the 1970s Mattocks Site excavation, will lead the virtual tour through the site itself and the adjacent museum, while discussing the site's history and the future opportunities it offers for local educational programs and archaeological research facilities.

Register now, and we will see you there!

/s/ webmaster