Hopewell Archeology: Volume 4, Number 1, June 2000

1. The Converse Mounds: New Research on Michigan\u27s Greatest Hopewell Site By John R. Halsey State Archaeologist Michigan Historical Center Lansing The Converse Mounds (20 Kt 2) lay on the west side of the Grand River in the City of Grand Rapids, Michigan. From the late 1850s to the the mid-1880s, the area containing the mounds was platted and developed. The mounds ironically bear the name of the most important early developer of this area, James W. “Deacon” Converse. During these “improvements” the mounds were leveled by construction crews, the fill was pushed into low areas, and the mounds disappeared. Although local antiquarians undertook limited excavations in many of the mounds, no full reports survive, only partial accounts with little in the way of illustrations (e.g., Coffinberry 1962a, 1962b, 1964a, 1964b; Coffinberry and Strong 1876). Nevertheless, people were watching, and artifacts were recovered from both prehistoric burial pits and intrusive historic graves (Baxter 1891:15-18; Belknap 1922:41-45). 2. The John L. Cotter Award for Excellence in National Park Service Archeology PREFACE: In honor of the long and distinguished career of Dr. John L. Cotter and his pioneering contributions to professional archeology within the National Park System, this annual award was established to inspire student and professional archeologists to continue Dr. Cotter’s model of excellence. PURPOSE: To recognize a specific archeological project within a unit of the National Park System, conducted by National Park Service staff, cooperator, permittee, or consultant, and guided by senior National Park Service staff archeologist(s), each fiscal year, which meets or exceeds the criteria below. 3. News and Announcements New to Chillicothe Due to the delay in getting this issue of Hopewell Archeology in print, we have been slow to welcome Jennifer Pederson to the National Park Service. Jennifer is the National Park Archeologist at Hopewell Culture National Historical Park in Chillicothe. 4. Meeting Calendar Perspective on Middle Woodland at the Millennium Center for American Archaeology, Kampsville, Illinois, July 19–21, 2000. Contact Jodi O’Gorman (618) 653-4316. 2000 Southeastern Archaeological Conference The Crown Plaza Hotel, Macon, Georgia. November 8–11, 2000, Contact Adam King, Savannah River Archaeological Research Program, email: [email protected]. Joint Meeting of the Midwest Archeological Conference and Plains Anthropological Conference Radisson Hotel, St. Paul, Minnesota, November 9–12, 2000. Contact Mark Dudzik (612) 725-2411. 5. Front Yard Archeology: Hopewellian Occupation at the Szalay Site by Jeffrey J. Richner and William J. Volf The Szalay site was recorded and evaluated by Midwest Archeological Center teams at Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area during fieldwork in support of ongoing historic structure restoration efforts in Everett Village, Summit County, Ohio. The site is in the front yard of the historic Szalay House at Lock 27 of the Ohio and Erie Canal near the confluence of the Cuyahoga River and Furnace Run. The site was discovered during a shovel test inventory of a proposed leachfield that would serve the nearby Szalay and Osborne Houses