With the new year, it’s a good time to take a look at the archaeology organizations across Maryland. We invite you to come learn about groups engaged in archaeology around the state, what they are working on, and what opportunities are available for those interested in getting involved in archaeology. We will discuss organizations such as the Archaeological Society of Maryland, which has several chapters that meet throughout the state, as well as the public archaeology programs run by the Maryland Historical Trust.
Update, we will also be joined by Zachary Singer a research archeologist in the Office of Research, Survey, and Registration at the Maryland Historical Trust (MHT). Zachary will be letting club members know about how they can get involved with archaeological projects at the MHT this year.
For this meeting, we will be joined by club members Kat Sterner, an anthropological archaeology professor at Towson University and Katharine Fernstrom, Vice President of ASM and President of Central Chapter. They will provide the club with information on other archaeology opportunities in Maryland.
This meeting will take place over Zoom. To receive the Zoom link, you must register for the meeting.
Dr. Sterner is an anthropological archaeologist studying community organization and stone tool manufacture and use among pre-contact Native American groups in the Eastern Woodlands of North America. She is a proponent of public archaeology, collaborative interpretation with descendant communities, and engagement with the avocational archaeologists. Dr. Sterner is the director of the Baltimore Community Archaeology Lab. She regularly conducts field work in Baltimore City and County Parks.
Dr. Fernstrom’s geographic specialties are Native America and Melanesia. Her topical and theoretical specialties are archaeology, ethnohistory, art and material culture as these relate to systems of exchange and communication, and social organization. She has done archaeological fieldwork in Maryland, Arizona, New Mexico, and Illinois. From 1987 to 2002 she was a member of the curatorial staff at The Baltimore Museum of Art where she served as Associate Curator of the Arts of Africa, the Americas, and Oceania. Her current projects include developing an exhibition of works on paper by Inuit artist Myra Kukiiyaut, researching Tiffany & Co.’s use of Native American design at the 1893 Columbus Exposition, and exploring the unified history of American murals including Baltimore City.
Dr. Singer's interest in Maryland archeology was first piqued as a student at Towson High School, when he interned at Towson University, studying the Paleoindian assemblage. Zac earned his M.A. and Ph.D. at the University of Connecticut where he excavated and analyzed New England Paleoindian sites. Zac’s major research interest is Maryland’s prehistoric occupations with a particular focus on studying the Paleoindian period to refine interpretations of Maryland’s earliest inhabitants. Zac is also keen on collections based research, analyzing (or re-analyzing) artifact collections generated by both professional and avocational archeologists in Maryland.
