Dear Colleagues,

  Due to a family commitment, Jon Blaydes will not be able to present his research on the Delaware River shipwreck, instead Tabitha Hilliard will be presenting on the archaeology of horse tack. 

All the best,

Rich Veit

Dear Friends,

  The ASNJ's annual summer field project will be held at White Hill Mansion in Fieldsboro, New Jersey.  The site is located at  217 Fourth Street in Fieldsboro, NJ.  The Mansion was built circa 1750.  The property is sure to yield colonial as well as Native American artifacts.  The link below should allow you to sign up.

All the best,

Rich Veit


http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090D49ACAD2FA64-fieldsboro

May meetings

 Cherry Hill: Looking Below the Surface

 Tuesday, May 14, 7:00 PM

Conference Center Cherry Hill Public Library (Lower Level)

FREE and Open to the Public

 

Please note, no cemetery tour at the meeting on May 18th.

Archaeological Society of NJ meeting

Saturday, May 18, 2013

*All sessions are held at the historic Croft Farmhouse 

 11:00-12:00: Board Meeting

 12:00-12:30: Lunch

 12:30: President’s Welcome

 12:45: The Cherry Hill Site (28Ca2): A prehistoric window on early Camden County New Jersey, Presented by Tony Bonfiglio and Jack Cresson

 1:15:  Results of Archaeology at the Madeira I Site, Moorestown, NJ, Presented by Ilene Grossman Bailey 

1:45-2:00: Break 

2:00-2:30:  The Mystery of the Woodbury Creek Wreck, Presented by Jonathan Blaydes 

2:30-2:45:  Archaeology at the Kay Evans Farm (Croft Farm, Cherry Hill), Presented by Michael Gall

http://www.chtownship.com/government/departments/recreation/croft.asp

 

Volunteer Days this summer

On  Saturdays from June 1 to July 6,  2013,  ASNJ members can volunteer at Monmouth University's field school in Fieldsboro. For more information or to sign up, go to:

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090D49ACAD2FA64-fieldsboro

Cherry Hill Township Welcomes the Archaeological Society of New Jersey for their quarterly meeting in May!  

Learn more about archaeology in our community with these FREE programs and lectures:

 Cherry Hill: Looking Below the Surface

 Tuesday, May 14, 7:00 PM

Conference Center Cherry Hill Public Library (Lower Level)

FREE and Open to the Public

 Evidence of the past are all around us - from old place names, street names, churches, houses, and cemeteries.  But what lies beneath?  Archaeology gives us stories to tell about Native Americans who lived in this area for thousands of years as well as the lives of farmers and others who lived here before suburban development. Dr. Ilene Grossman-Bailey, a Cherry Hill native (CHHSW class of '75), professional archaeologist, and president of the Archaeological Society of New Jersey, will present an overview on Cherry Hill archaeology and archaeological sites.

Want to learn more?  See the full agenda for the ASNJ Quarterly Conference at Croft Farm on Saturday, May 18^th or contact chhc@chtownship.com or 488-7886 for details.

Archaeological Society of NJ

Saturday, May 18, 2013

*All sessions are held at the historic Croft Farmhouse unless otherwise noted

 10:00:  Walking Tour of Colestown Cemetery, with Professor Richard Veit

*Meet at Colestown Cemetery (intersection of Church Road and Kings Highway)

 11:00-12:00: Board Meeting

 12:00-12:30: Lunch

 12:30: President’s Welcome

 12:45: The Cherry Hill Site (28Ca2): A prehistoric window on early Camden County New Jersey, Presented by Tony Bonfiglio and Jack Cresson

 1:15:  Results of Archaeology at the Madeira I Site, Moorestown, NJ, Presented by Ilene Grossman Bailey 

1:45-2:00: Break 

2:00-2:30:  The Mystery of the Woodbury Creek Wreck, Presented by Jonathan Blaydes 

2:30-2:45:  Archaeology at the Kay Evans Farm (Croft Farm, Cherry Hill), Presented by Michael Gall

 

Scudders Falls and the Intelligent Whale! Oh my. ASNJ March 16 mtg.

ASNJ MEETING

AT EAST JERSEY OLD TOWN

PISCATAWAY, NJ

March 16, 2013

Indian Queen Tavern

East Jersey Old Town

Open to the public, free, and free parking

Board Meeting 11:00 to 12:00

Lunch 12:00-12:45 (bring your lunch)

1:00 Opening Remarks and President’s Welcome

Lecture Series

System Flexibility:  Multiple subsistence in Lenape subsistence along the Middle Delaware River, the view from Scudder Falls.

Brian Albright and John Lawrence, AECOM

Data recovery investigations at two precontact sites on either side of the Delaware River, the Reeders Creek West site (28Me360) and the River Road site (36Bu379) allowed investigators the opportunity to review settlement pattern data from a broad region on both sides of the middle Delaware River.  Findings argue against a homogenous Lenape subsistence strategy in favor of strategies determined by intergroup variation and immediate resource availability. Evidence for the use of cultigens and intensive wild plant collection at the end of the Woodland period does not appear to have altered this adaptation.

“Viewing the Different Encampments, Which is Undoubtedly One of the Finest Sights in the World”: Archaeological Evidence for Revolutionary War Campsites at Raritan Landing in Piscataway, New Jersey

Richard Veit, Monmouth University

After suffering stunning defeats in the winter of 1776 at Trenton and Princeton, the British and Hessian forces regrouped in a defensive ring around New Brunswick, New Jersey.  Encampments were established across the river at Raritan Landing in Piscataway.  While many men were quartered in houses, others occupied huts and even tents.  Amateur metal detectorists initially identified the clusters of Revolutionary War artifacts in the vicinity of Raritan Landing.  During extensive data recovery excavations in this area conducted as part of the Route 18 extension project, the extent and nature of these deposits was more fully investigated.  Subsequent fieldwork on other sites in nearby Highland Park, and Edison Township has more fully revealed the remains of these camps.  This paper employs GIS mapping, historical research and detailed artifact analysis to provide a rare glimpse of a winter camp employed by the Crown forces during the American Revolution.  

2:00 – 2:15 Break

“At the Mantion House” - Settling the Estate of Cornelius Low

Mark Nonestied – Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission

Cornelius Low, one of the wealthiest individuals in the Raritan River Valley, died in 1777; some thirty five years later, in 1812, his estate was finally settled. His son Nicholas, the executor of the estate, kept the accounting records that documented approximately 600 transactions to liquidate his father’s holdings. These records were recently uncovered and interpreted; they shed light on the Low family, Raritan Landing, and the complexities of settling an estate during the post-Revolutionary Period -- especially for a person whose loyalty to the American cause was questionable.  

Today the Cornelius Low House serves as the Middlesex County Museum and the interpretation of this document has lead to additional investigation by museum staff  including the opening of the historic Low family vault in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.  

“Headed Back for the Raritan Docks” - John Holland’s Innovative Submarine

Douglas Aumack – Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission

In March of 1898, in the waters off of Perth Amboy, John Holland demonstrated the latest submersible technology. Holland’s submarine was an improvement over the earlier hand-propelled vessels of the Civil War period. His innovative gas and electric powered submarine was of great interest to the United States Navy, whose representatives inspected the vessel at the Raritan Dock Company in Perth Amboy.

This lecture explores a watershed period in the development of submarine technology. Mr. Aumack will discuss the earliest versions from the Civil War period and the improvements that continued throughout the late 1800s. Research on central New Jersey connections to submarine history and the Naval trials that took place in Perth Amboy will also be discussed.

3:00 Program Conclusion

January 19... was a great success

Tour of NJSM storage was fascinating... about a 1000 research projects down there
Board meeting:
2010 bulletin will out in about 1 month thanks to the hard work of Jim Lee
Sevrie Corson was elected to the board to the seat vacated by Poul Graverson
Jack Cresson received a Lifetime Achievement Award...presented by Alan Mounier
Upcoming meetings/events:
March 16 East Jersey Olde Towne, Piscataway
May 11 Spirit of the Jerseys
May 18 Croft Farm, Cherry Hill including tour of 18th c. Colestown Cemetery
Sat. May 25, June, July 5, volunteer at the White Hill dig run by Monmouth University
Sept. 14-15
October -  TBA
Great talks by Deirdre, Kate, Blair, and presentations on Jacks Reef by Jesse, Michael, and Alan