Public Archaeology and the Disappearing Ukrainian Farmsteads of ND (Yates, Rodriguez, Peliska)

Описание: 2023 CMA Conference

Presented by: Corey Yates, Mariel Rodriguez, and Charlie Peliska (KLJ Engineering)
Public Archaeology and the Disappearing Ukrainian Farmsteads of North Dakota: Educating the Public as Cultural Resource Mitigation

Starting in 2014, NDDOT began preparations on a major reconstruction of US Highway 85. Two sites were determined to be NRHP eligible: the Dolyniuk and Gregory Homesteads. Cultivated by Ukrainian immigrants at the turn of the twentieth century, these sites offer insight into the lives of two families from the Dniester Valley who immigrated near Belfield, North Dakota.

Due to adverse effects, mitigation was necessary. Fieldwork consisting of geospatial, surface, and sub-surface survey identified features and their functions and relations within the sites. Lab-work revealed the data potential of artifacts, providing insight into deposition and consumption patterns. The data recovery report provides a context for research into Ukrainian settlement in the area. Beyond standard data recovery, in 2022 NDDOT and KLJ created a pamphlet to serve as a public history document sharing the stories that could be learned from cultural work focused on these families’ homesteads.

This paper, presented by members of the KLJ cultural team, examines how a multi-disciplinary approach to mitigation resulted in a creative outreach project that has potential to enrich the future knowledge of both heritage professionals and the general public, resulting in the continued growth of collective memory even as sites and landscapes are altered.