For those unfamiliar with Old Pueblo Archaeology Center [photo on right via OPAC], it is an organization headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, devoted to education and preservation of historic and archaeological sites and artifacts throughout the region of the US Southwest and Mexico Northwest. They serve as a clearinghouse for events, tours, educational programs, and volunteer opportunities for individuals including students of all ages, professionals, and interested nonprofessionals.

Archaeologist Karl Laumbach has devoted his life to a greater understanding of our region's past and how that past informs our future. His official biography gives a brief glimpse into his work:

Raised on a northeastern New Mexico ranch, Karl Laumbach has pursued an archaeological career in southern New Mexico since 1974. A graduate of New Mexico State University, he spent nine years directing projects for the NMSU contract archaeology program before joining Human Systems Research, Inc. (HSR) in 1983. After serving as Executive Director of the organization for 10 years, he is now an Associate Director for HSR. His research interests are varied, including land grant research in his native northeastern New Mexico, the pueblo archaeology of southern New Mexico, and the history and archaeology of the Apache. Fascinated with the history of south central New Mexico, Karl has been involved in recording sites and collecting local history in that area for the last 40 plus years. His interaction with private landowners has been integral in the preservation of several archaeological sites. He is currently in the 20th year of the Cañada Alamosa Project, a research effort that is exploring the last 4000 years of human occupation and environmental change in the Rio Alamosa drainage of Socorro and Sierra Counties.

Bonus: Laumbach is slated to speak at our next GCAS meeting on September 18, 2019, about "The Elk Ridge Story" - his narrative of his experiences at a Mimbres Valley archaeological site significant to us all. Everyone is welcome to join us at the Roundup Lodge at 91 Aklin Hill Road in San Lorenzo/Mimbres, New Mexico.Our final potluck of the season begins at 6:00 PM followed by our GCAS general meeting. Karl Laumbach will present his talk at about 7:00 PM. We'll see you there!

/s/ webmaster [photo by Bob Gamboa]

The Microwave Site has no microwave tower. Not that there's anything wrong with that. It once had one.

This site in southwestern New Mexico is very well known to locals who have been camping here - and gathering potsherds and stones from pueblo walls - for many decades.

The 2019 Southwest Kiln Conference is set for the weekend of October 4 through October 6 in Globe, Arizona. This event emphasizes archaeological research and hands-on techniques in the fields of prehistoric pottery replication and experimental archaeology. It is open to the public and attendance is free.

Meet Dr. Paul Minnis. He earned his PhD at the University of Michigan in 1981 and holds the title of Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at the University of Oklahoma in Norman. During his career he has authored, co-authored, or edited at least 12 books in addition to having written numerous journal articles and book chapters. Now retired and living in Tucson, Arizona, he speaks at professional conferences and in more informal presentations to the general public on topics such as prehispanic trade and cultural networks; and how ancient farming practices can enhance our modern world's food supply.

Robert J. Stokes, PhD, has just edited and published a book directed at the professional that we avocational enthusiasts can enjoy as well. Communities and Households in the Greater American Southwest: New Perspectives and Case Studies is  published by the University Press of Colorado. It is a collection of a dozen authors' latest research into how the Southwest's ancient cultures organized their families, households, and communities to live and work with one another to make the best use of their land and resources.

The reader will discover that the authors' points of view may vary but all offer insights into how recent findings from archaeological excavations inform new perspectives of how ancient cultures organized their societies. Examples include a chapter written by Dr. Stokes himself examining how landless families and households influenced Classic Period Mimbres communities. Another chapter by Barbara Roth, PhD, illustrates patterns of community development at New Mexico's Harris site; and a chapter by Deni Seymour, PhD, provides an intriguing analysis of ancient cultures' migration habits. There is much more in this volume to interest the armchair archaeologist and sociology maven. Find more 411 at http://bit.ly/2LoBaKt or via Amazon, and get you some!

/s/ webmaster

The 2019 Southwest Kiln Conference will be taking place during the weekend of October 4 through October 6 in Globe, Arizona. This event is open to the public and attendance is free. This annual conference focuses on both archaeological research and hands-on techniques in the fields of prehistoric pottery replication and experimental archaeology.

Our previous post featured the fine work that Archaeology Southwest Field School students display as part of their public outreach duties. The second portion of the June 29, 2019, GCAS field trip to the Gila River Farm included a tour of this season's Field School excavations. Of particular interest was evidence the Field School uncovered of cultural convergence. In a multi-room pueblo complex, the crew found artifacts of various 14th-Century Puebloan cultures including Mimbres-Mogollon (with their distinctive wall and floor construction features), and Kayenta (with their unique ceramics including Kayenta perforated plates). It became clear from the excavations that people of different cultures, practices, and languages, migrating in and out of the region, found ways to live and work together long-term. We in the 21st Century could take a lesson.

If you happen to be traveling along Highway 70 between Lordsburg, New Mexico, and Phoenix, Arizona, you may want to plan an extra 45 minutes to make a quick side trip when you reach Thatcher, Arizona. The Eastern Arizona College in Thatcher proudly displays the Native American artifacts collected from numerous sites throughout Arizona and New Mexico by the well-trained avocational archaeologists Jack and Vera Mills during the four decades from the 1940s through the 1970s. [Far left photo via eac.edu; near left photo via travel2arizona.com.]

The 2019 Southwest Kiln Conference will be taking place during the weekend of October 4, 2019 - October 6, 2019 in Globe, Arizona, and everyone is invited. The organizers stress that "...attendance is free and open to the public so come up to Globe and learn about the exciting things being done in the fields of prehistoric pottery replication and experimental archaeology."