Natural History Society of Maryland
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Transforming Southern Maryland Landforms: 40 years of Archaeological Observations

When
17 Jun 2026
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Location
Online via Zoom

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Education for All
Suggested Donation $5
NHSM Archaeology Club
NHSM Member
Suggested Donation $5

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For the June meeting of the NHSM Archaeology club we will be joined by James G. Gibb, Research Associate at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center/Smithsonian Environmental Archaeology Laboratory to discuss issues surrounding the movement of soil and its effects on archaeological sites in Maryland.

Conducting archaeological investigations in Maryland, and particularly in the five southern counties, since 1987, one observation consistently emerges from each of the 300 projects I have completed: the landforms—the topography and hydrology—that we see today are products of radical changes. Some were intentional, most were not. In this presentation I provide a handful of seemingly unrelated research projects that intersect at a 300 year old process in the region: the erosion and redeposition of soils, in some cases blanketing and protecting sites, in many others destroying them.

Jim Gibb majored in anthropology as an undergraduate at Stony Brook University (1978). He earned his master’s degree (1985) and doctorate (1994) at Binghamton University, and a certificate in computer-aided design and drafting at Anne Arundel Community College. He has run his own consulting firm since 1989. Jim Gibb also is the founder and chief archaeologist of the Smithsonian Environmental Archaeology Laboratory (SEAL) at Smithsonian’s Environmental Research Center in Edgewater, Maryland. Jim lives just outside of Annapolis, Maryland.

This meeting will be over Zoom to receive the Zoom link you will need to register for this event.

The Natural History Society of Maryland is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation and contributions are tax-deductible.

The mission of the Natural History Society of Maryland is to foster stewardship of Maryland’s natural heritage by conserving its natural history collections, educating its citizenry, and inspiring its youth to pursue careers in the natural sciences.