"13,000 Years of Iowa Culture"

IOWA ARCHAEOLOGY WEEK 1996

Iowa has been a crossroads of travelers, traders, pioneers, and settlers for at least 13,000 years. Indian cultures established a variety of settlements that ranged from small camps to large communities. The first European settlers initiated trade contacts and alliances with the Indians. Traces of both natives and newcomers abound throughout the state. This rich heritage of human settlement holds lessons for Iowans in many areas: agricultural diversity and sustainability, long-term effects of land-use practices, responses to environmental change, and cultural contact, continuity, and change, to name a few. The Iowa Archaeology Week theme for this year, "13,000 Years of Culture," focused attention to the entire span of human cultures the state has supported. This theme enhanced the Sesquicentennial celebration of Iowa statehood and placed it in a larger context.

The Office of the State Archaeologist sponsored Iowa Archaeology Week 1996 on September 14–22, with the assistance of the Iowa Archeological Society, the State Historical Society of Iowa, and dozens of county conservation boards, county historical societies, public libraries, museums, and state and national parks and preserves. Major funding was provided by the Iowa Humanities Board and National Endowment for the Humanities, with additional support for publications provided by the Iowa Archeological Society, State Historical Society of Iowa, and National Park Service.

Archaeology reveals that early Iowans developed fascinating and sophisticated technologies, that they struggled with environmental challenges, and that they revered their dead—that they were really not very different from people today. During Iowa Archaeology Week, the public learns that artifacts are invaluable sources of information on early peoples but that there is much more to archaeology than just artifacts. And archaeologists also show that evidence of ancient peoples’ lives is easily destroyed and lost and that this loss impoverishes us and our own descendants. Increasing public awareness of these facts helps to preserve our fragile links to the past.

In 1996, events at some of the significant archaeological sites in state parks and preserves complemented the many presentations, demonstrations, and displays that have become the core of Iowa Archaeology Week. Activities included book displays, exhibits, video presentations, and slide shows as well as demonstrations of traditional stone tool, pottery, and basket making, plus lectures and discussion sessions led by profes-sionally trained archaeologists and American Indian speakers. These volunteers draw from their training and personal backgrounds to answer the public's questions about how Indians lived and to emphasize that most of what we as a society know about the ancient past comes from the archaeological record left by previous cultures.

Iowa Archaeology Week fosters an annual partnership among several organizations. The Iowa Humanities Board continued to play a major role in the 1996 program by providing funds for promotional assistance and travel stipends for event presenters. A publicity release and event information form distributed to over 940 organizations across the state recruited event sponsors (Attachments A and B). Promotional publicity involved: (1) designing and printing 1,500 18" x 24" four-color posters and mailing them to hundreds of organizations, (2) printing 4,000 events calendars with widespread mailing and distribution, (3) newspaper articles and radio interviews about Iowa Archaeology Week in general, (4) newspaper and radio announcements of events in local communities, and (5) direct mailings to promote specific events. Schools, libraries and other organizations announced events in their newsletters and press releases. The OSA and the University of Iowa again provided central organizational support and fiscal man-agement, distributed publicity releases to communities statewide, and served as the principal contact for funding organizations. The Iowa Archeological Society, State Historical Society of Iowa, county conservation boards, local historical societies, museums, libraries, and private citizens organized local events (Table 1).

The Iowa Archeological Society, a key partner, provided publicity in its Newsletter and aided in publication of event calendars and promotional posters. IAS chapters based in Glenwood, Ottumwa, and Cherokee again played major roles in bringing programs to Iowans of all ages. The State Historical Society of Iowa and the National Park Service again provided funding for calendar and poster printing. The Association of Iowa Archaeologists made a contribution toward program expenses, and its members assisted as event presenters throughout the state (Table 2). The Iowa Sesquicentennial Commission endorsed Iowa Archaeology Week as an official Sesquicentennial event, allowing use of the "Iowa 150" logo and adding the program to statewide calendars of events.

Seventy-one events were hosted in 1996. Events were held in 43 communities in 35 counties statewide (Table 3, Figure 1). Archaeology Week events were hosted in rural areas as well as population centers across the state. The populations of communities hosting events range from 224 to 193,187 with an average population of about 20,795 people. Events were held at 21 locations that had not previously hosted an Iowa Archaeology Week event. Nine communities have hosted at least one event in each of four years, and six more have hosted an event for the last three years. About 55 percent of the event sponsors, 39 of 71, returned attendance information from their events. These forms indicate attendance to have been at least 4,522. Thirty-four people volunteered as presenters. More than 50 people were involved in event planning and preparations.

Evaluation forms for participants were sent to event sponsors in August with their calendar packets (Attachment C). Approximately 3 percent of the participants (141 of 4,522) filled out the voluntary evaluation forms, which either the participants or the event sponsors sent to the OSA. The participants who responded indicated a diverse occupa-tional background, with a total of 45 occupations represented by 100 participants. Only nine of the 45 occupations were indicated by more than one participant. The occupations listed most frequently were homemaker (14%), teacher (13%), farmer (11%), and student (10%). The participants indicated a highly varied educational background as well. Almost half of the participants, 59 of 120, stated the highest educational degree they held was at the baccalaureate level. One quarter, 30 of 120, indicated they held a high school diploma. About 11 percent indicated they held an advanced degree (masters, doctorate, or professional), about 4 percent held a two-year college or technical school degree, and nearly 10 percent indicated they had attended fewer than 12 years of school.

Voluntary evaluation forms asked participants to provide information how they found out about the event they attended. Responses indicated 66 out of 166 participants (nearly 40 percent) learned about Archaeology Week events though newspaper announcements. Forty-two respondents (about 25 per-cent) heard about Archaeology Week through word of mouth. Twenty-six participants (about 16 percent) saw an events calendar or poster. Only thirteen respondents (about 8 percent) received the calendar in the mail.

The evaluation forms asked participants to rate six aspects of each event: (1) overall quality, (2) research and event preparation, (3) informational value, (4) level of enjoyment, (5) how well the program was advertised, and (6) quality of the facilities. About 92 percent of the participants, 128 of 138, indicated they rated the event as above average to excellent. About 97 percent, 134 of 138 participants, rated research and preparation as above average to excellent. About 96 percent of respondents, 134 of 139, rated the informational value of the event as above average to excellent, and 87 percent, 121 of 139, rated their level of enjoyment as above average to excellent. Nearly 47 percent, 61 of 131, rated the effectiveness of promotion as above average to excellent, but about the same number, 62 of 131, gave this category only an average rating. About 86 percent of the responding participants, 118 of 137, rated event facilities as above average to excellent.

Iowa Archaeology Week reaches out to a diverse audience. It attracts the firefighter, millwright, nurse, farmer, engineer, and homemaker to join together in communities across the state. A cross-section of Iowans join together at events in towns large and small to hear about the state’s human past. These events encourage appreciation for the diversity of culture and the similarities within the human condition.

Iowa Archaeology Week is rapidly becoming an institution in the state, exemplified by the Iowa Humanities Board’s recognition of Iowa Archaeology Week 1995 as Outstanding Project in the Public Humanities. Iowa Archaeology Week 1996 continued this tradition by involving dozens of organizations and thousands of individuals. Eighty communities have hosted at least one event since 1993. One of the most encouraging facts about Iowa Archaeology Week is its growth: 18 new communities hosted events in 1996. And while new communities host events each year, long term involvement is demonstrated by many event hosts as well.

There is much more to do. Program evaluations indicate a need for more effective promotion. In 1997 we plan to obtain extensive television coverage and feature articles in Sunday newspapers. We are seeking corporate sponsorship to heighten program visibility and to diversify the support base. And we will use the World Wide Web to reach even more individuals, schools, and media outlets.

Future events should work toward emphasizing key elements that have comprised the message of Iowa Archaeology Week since the beginning: (1) increase public awareness of Iowa’s archaeological heritage, (2) convey the sense that archaeological sites are fragile, non-renewable sources of information about past peoples and their cultures, and (3) demonstrate the public may become involved in Iowa archaeology and that there are many ways they may help protect, preserve, and enhance the knowledge of the past. These lessons from the past will foster appreciation of diversity today and encourage new ideas for the future.