Cultural Resources Assessment Research Articles

Assessing Vulnerability and Prioritization of Cultural Assets for Climate Change Planning in Collier County, Southwest Florida

Cultural resources are often overlooked in climate change and resiliency planning, despite them being integral to community identity and the restoration of a sense of normalcy after significant weather events. This vulnerability assessment demonstrates how cultural resources can be included in planning efforts, and how they can be prioritized based on specific criteria. To complete this assessment, a working group with local land managers and cultural resource professionals was formed, and members employed a sophisticated Geo Tool, ACUNE (Adaptation of Coastal Urban and Natural Ecosystems) for climate adaptation, to predict how cultural resources throughout Collier County, Florida, would be impacted in two specific climate scenarios. The working group selected ten significant sites in the county and used ACUNE to prioritize action at these sites, using a matrix of hazard exposure, sensitivity, adaptive capacity, and the environmental, social, and economic consequences of the loss of these sites. Based on the results of our case study vulnerability assessment of cultural resources in Collier County, the next decade (2020 to 2030) has the potential to increase the number of sites at risk of storm flooding from 267 to 318, alerting managers that immediate action is needed for the sites of greatest value. The analysis of 10 case study sites is presented to demonstrate an approach for land managers and other cultural resource professionals to prioritize action at their own sites.

Construction and Empirical Study on the Value Assessment System of Traditional Cultural Resources: Taking Shandong Province in China as an Example

Accurate value assessment is the cornerstone and key to ensuring the effective protection, inheritance, and utilization of traditional cultural resources. Based on existing study and relevant literature on cultural resource assessment, combined with the characteristics of traditional cultural resources themselves, this study has constructed a general index system for evaluating traditional cultural resources from four dimensions: resource quality, development conditions, resource value and resource utility. The analytic hierarchy process(AHP) was used to determine the weight of each factor of the criteria layer and each evaluating index of the index layer, and a traditional cultural resource value assessment model was constructed by combining the scoring method of the ultimate indicator. Subsequently, based on the empirical evaluation of traditional cultural resources in Shandong Province, this study puts forward relevant suggestions for effective protection, inheritance and utilization of traditional cultural resources from the perspectives of government, enterprises and society.

Solutions for Developing Vietnam Tourism via Assessment of Cultural Resources' Attractiveness

Solutions for Developing Vietnam Tourism via Assessment of Cultural Resources' Attractiveness

Makah Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Resource Assessment: A preliminary framework to utilize traditional knowledge in climate change planning

Author(s): Chang, Michael; Kennard, Haley; Nelson, Laura; Wrubel, Katie; Gagnon, Seraphina; Monette, Rebekah; Ledford, Janine | Abstract: Since time immemorial, Qwidicca?a•tx, or the Makah Tribe, have lived on the northwest Olympic Peninsula in what is currently Washington state. Climate change has already impacted the Makah Tribe and will continue to do so in the future. Our history, archaeological archives, stories, and knowledge have proven that the Makah Tribe has an extensive history of adapting to changing climates. Traditional, cultural, and Indigenous knowledges can play an important role in climate adaptation planning, and for tribes and Indigenous peoples it can be a crucial component in ensuring that planning strategies and outcomes are culturally appropriate and aligned with community values. The Makah Climate Change Workgroup, an internal workgroup of the Makah Tribe, has begun a Makah Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Resource Assessment to complement and inform our Makah Climate Impacts Assessment and Makah Climate Adaptation Plan. In this presentation, we outline our preliminary framework demonstrating how tribes and Indigenous groups can utilize traditional and Indigenous knowledges within their own planning processes in the following ways: to (1) provide historical baselines and fill in gaps in monitoring data; (2) identify cultural resources that are vulnerable to future climate change; (3) identify potential climate adaptation and mitigation strategies; and (4) engage the community on climate change impacts.

Cultural Resources Assessment of a Historic Cistern (41GU211) Inadvertent Discovery for the Medlin Street Police Parking Lot Project, City of Seguin, Guadalupe County, Texas

In November 2019, under contract with the City of Seguin (the City), TRC Environmental Corporation (TRC) conducted in field documentation of an inadvertent discovery consisting of a cistern (41GU211) identified in October 2019. The cistern was discovered during active construction of an asphalt parking lot for the Seguin City Police Department, located within the City of Seguin, Guadalupe County, Texas. Additionally, the City identified a single grave marker prior to construction located in the northwest corner of the Area of Potential Effects (APE), defined as the approximately 0.50-acre proposed parking lot. This area was also visually surveyed by TRC cultural personnel to ensure that it was avoided during construction activities. In tandem with this effort, TRC cultural personnel conducted archival research consisting of a review of the Texas Historical Commission Archeological Sites-Atlas (THC-Atlas) for the tract of land on which the inadvertent discovery/cistern is located.

Cultural Resource Assessment and Archival Research for the Proposed Galveston-Bolivar Causeway Galveston County, Texas

In 2008, following a cultural resources remote-sensing survey for the Proposed Galveston-Bolivar Causeway Project, PBS&J was contracted by the Texas Department of Transportation to perform three studies as supplements to the original investigation. These studies comprised a hydraulic probing investigation at the Old Port Bolivar slip in the area of a charted historic shipwreck; a review of historic maps and aerial photography of the Area of Potential Effect (APE); and an assessment of a collection of abandoned hulks at the northwestern tip of Bolivar Peninsula. All three studies were completed between June and August 2008. The hydraulic probing investigation at the Old Port Bolivar slip located the remains of a potential submerged shipwreck site measuring approximately 40 x 11 feet at a depth of 17–18 feet below the water surface. PBS&J also examined over 40 historic maps from the collections of the National Archives in Washington, D.C. The investigation of historic maps isolated at least 12 shipwrecks within the APE. Historic Tobin aerial photos of the APE acquired by PBS&J were limited to the sets available from 1930 and 1956. One shipwreck anomaly discovered during the 2007 Galveston-Bolivar Causeway remote-sensing survey was captured in the 1956 aerial. The incomplete coverage area of the 1930 photography prevented a review of other known targets. An investigation of the abandoned hulks at Bolivar Peninsula determined that 16 barges are arranged in three primary groups. These barges have either ferrous or wooden hulls; most of the hulks are submerged. Research did not discover parallels for the types of barges examined by PBS&J, but review of barge construction history indicates many of these hulks could likely predate World War II.

National Register Evaluation of Eight Sites at Camp Swift Army National Guard Training Center, Bastrop County, Texas: Swift V

The Texas Army National Guard (TXARNG) conducts military training on Camp Swift, an approximately 11,500-acre tract in northern Bastrop County, Texas. The TXARNG is responsible for complying with federal legislation regarding the assessment and management of environmental and cultural resources. An earlier cultural resources assessment by the Center for Archaeological Studies (CAS), Texas State University-San Marcos, conducted under compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NRHP), identifi ed 11 sites deemed potentially capable of contributing meaningful information on the record of prehistoric human occupation at Camp Swift. In particular, Criterion D of National Park Service Rule 36 CFR Part 60, addressing sites or properties that have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history, is often used for assessing the potential NRHP eligibility of Camp Swift prehistoric sites. These 11 sites were shown by survey and shovel tests to contain or potentially contain signifi cant cultural deposits including intact burned rock features. Eight of these sites (41BP105, 41BP111, 41BP113, 41BP118, 41BP121, 41BP471, 41BP491, 41BP528), containing robust deposits but no specifi c features, were selected for more extensive examination before recommendations for additional research could be fi nalized. This work was carried out by CAS archaeologists in October of 2005. The remaining three (41BP91, 41BP100, 41BP471) will be examined in more detail through a combination of hand-excavated units and backhoe trenching in a future effort. The current report describes the results of work carried out at the eight sites, evaluates those fi ndings in a local and regional culture historical framework, and provides recommendations to the TXARNG for treatment of those sites so that they can fulfi ll their Section 106 obligations.

Territorialization, science and the colonial state: the case of Highway 55 in Minnesota

This paper examines a recent conflict over the rerouting of Highway 55 in the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota. During a three-year struggle over the project, a group of indigenous people argued that the space where the highway would pass was sacred and of historical importance. We analyse a Cultural Resource Assessment prepared by a team of scientists that responded to these claims and cleared the way for the reroute. Our reading, which draws from the literatures of postcolonial studies and sociology of science, examines the way scientific claims are made to evaluate the sacredness of the site. We find that science works to produce the effect of state territorialization - or the iterative making of the space of the state - by placing ecological phenomena and indigenous testimony ‘within’ a non-sacred Minnesotan space.

Review: Channel Islands National Park and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary: Submerged Cultural Resources Assessment. Intermountain Cultural Resource Centers Professional Paper Number 56, by Don P. Morris and James Lima

Review: <i>Channel Islands National Park and Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary: Submerged Cultural Resources Assessment. Intermountain Cultural Resource Centers Professional Paper Number 56</i>, by Don P. Morris and James Lima

Archeological Assessment of Historic and Prehistoric Sites Alone U.S. 87 Sterling County, Texas

Archeological investigations were undertaken along U.S. 87 in Sterling County by archeologists from the Environmental Affairs Division of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) with the assistance of TxDOT's San Angelo District Office. The effort included identification and assessment of cultural resources that would be impacted by the proposed widening of approximately three miles of U.S. 87 beginning 4.6 miles northwest of State Highway 163 in Sterling County (Figure 1). The investigations were carried out as part of TxDOT's efforts to identify historic and prehistoric properties eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (National Register) that might be affected by the undertaking.

Inventory and Assessment of Cultural Resources Above the 1,551.5-Foot Contour Line, Stacy Reservoir Recreation Areas, Concho, Coleman, and Runnels Counties, Texas

Inventory and Assessment of Cultural Resources Above the 1,551.5-Foot Contour Line, Stacy Reservoir Recreation Areas, Concho, Coleman, and Runnels Counties, Texas

Chipped Stone and Adobe: A Cultural Resources Assessment of the Proposed Applewhite Reservoir, Bexar County, Texas

Cultural resources investigations conducted during 1981 and 1984 for the proposed Applewhite Reservoir of southwest Bexar County, Texas, identified a total of 78 archaeological sites. Additionally, seven previously recorded sites in the Medio Creek confluence area were revisited and reassessed, bringing the total number of sites within the proposed reservoir to 85. Descriptions of these sites, evaluations of their significance, and recommendations for further work are presented in the report. Events and cultural changes related to the project area are also summarized. Limited testing data from 13 sites first identified in 1981 and recommended for further work in the 1984 studies are detailed.

Archaeology of the Brasada: A Cultural Resources Assessment of the Chevron Resources Company Properties in Northeastern Duval County, Texas

Within the past decade, cultural resource management has become an increasingly significant aspect of archaeological investigations in southern Texas. Twenty-five new sites were identified, recorded, and assessed as the result of a 4000-acre cultural resources survey in northeastern Duval County, southern Texas, by the Center for Archaeological Research, The University of Texas at San Antonio, from October to December 1981. The investigations were carried out under the requirements and guidelines of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, the Vernon Texas Civil Statute 4590f, as amended, and the Guidelines for Archeological Investigations of Mining Areas in Texas (Texas Historical Commission 1981).

Archaeological Investigations at Eisenhower Park, Northern Bexar County, Texas

During December 1985, a cultural resources assessment was made within the 350-acre property of Eisenhower Park in northern Bexar County, Texas. Systematic survey of the property and limited subsurface testing at four newly recorded and two previously recorded prehistoric sites were done. All sites are characterized by a deflated scatter of lithic debris. None of the sites examined are deemed potentially eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places or to be designated as a State Archeological Landmark.

Survey, Testing and Assessment of Cultural Resources in Portions of Willacy County Drainage District No. 1, Willacy County, Texas

Two archeological projects were undertaken in the fall of 1982 by Prewitt and Associates, Inc. Both projects were authorized by the Willacy County Drainage District No. 1. The first investigation was an archeological survey to locate, record and assess previously unknown cultural resources which potentially could be affected by proposed drainage ditch development (Main Floodway Channel) in the central county area. Field inspections of this proposed alignment detected 24 archeological sites. Fourteen of these recorded sites are classified as isolated finds which are presumed to be prehistoric . The remaining ten resources are classified as sites, six containing prehistoric materials and four attributed to the recent (post-1900) historic past. Five of the prehistoric sites, 41WY84, 41WY86 , 41WY89, 41WY90 and 41WY91, were assessed initially as having high information yield potential, and testing was considered warranted prior to the construction of the Main Floodway Channel to more fully assess the potential eligibility of these sites for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. This recommendation for testing prompted the second project which involved test excavations at site 41WY84. Site 41WY84 was selected from the five prehistoric sites for testing to better assess the nature and condition of these resources. It is concluded from the data recovered that site 41WY84 contains thinly dispersed cultural materials in a highly disturbed context and therefore does not warrant nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. On the basis of these testing results, archeological clearance for the proposed Willacy County Drainage District No. 1 Main Floodway Channel is recommended.

Cultural Resources Assessment of Midland North Loop Midland County, Texas

Cultural resources assessment and archaeological testing was conducted on the proposed Midland North Loop by the State Department of Highways and Public Transportation (SDHPT) during the period October 4 through October 7, 1983, by a member of the SDHPT cultural resources staff and local SDHPT assistants. Additional collaboration was received from Dr. Michael Collins and other members of the Midland Archeological Society. The area within the proposed project is rural farm and ranchland with some urban development. The area is level to nearly level farmland with stable and active dunes. Drainage in the area consists primarily of playas. The project involves construction of a four-lane divided road-way with access roads. The area under investigation involves existing roadways and new location (Fig. 1). Two archaeological sites in the vicinity had been reported previously and were recommended for additional investigation (Fig. 1).

The East Chacon Project Project: 11,000 Years of Prehistory Along the Upper Nueces River, Southern Texas

During 1981 and 1982, the Center for Archaeological Research, The University of Texas at San Antonio, conducted a cultural resources assessment of ca. 30,000 acres leased to the Carter Mining Company in Uvalde and Zavala Counties, Texas. Known as the East Chacon project, the survey was undertaken to identify and assess the cultural resources of the locality prior to potential modification or destruction due to proposed mining operations. Archaeological and historical sites (149) were identified and recorded that represent a span of human activities from approximately 11,000 B.P. to the Historic period. A detailed description of these site locations, interpretations of their cultural environmental contexts, and determinations of potential eligibility to the National Register of Historic Places are presented in this report.