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Annual
Collier Lodge dig begins Monday
By A mysterious cabin and a
river bank potentially loaded with historical artifacts will be the
focus of this year's Collier Lodge dig, which will begin July 6.
Collier
dig will resume July 4, 2009 By Charles M.
Bartholomew, Post-Tribune correspondent KOUTS -- Field work for the Kankakee Valley Historical Society's
archaeology project at Historical He said no experience is necessary to join the crews excavating the
site around the Collier Lodge, the last abandoned hunting club standing
in the area that was once the Grand Kankakee Marsh, which attracted
hunters to Under contract with Notre Dame anthropology professor In the first year, Schurr said a dig such as this usually goes for five years, but this is the seventh summer for what he has called "the richest site I've ever seen." "Mark says he's 'chasing the cabin' this summer," said Hodson, referring to the partially-uncovered foundation of a 170-year-old log structure that was the focus of last year's digging. Hodson said Schurr also has plans to open new units along the He said the long-term plan is to restore the lodge as a museum and have it listed on the National Registers of Historic and Prehistoric Places. Digging will go on Monday through Thursday until July 23, starting at 9 a.m. every morning. If it rains, workers will do sorting and cataloging of artifacts in a nearby barn. The all-volunteer project has attracted experienced amateurs from all over the world, but Hodson said there is work for anyone, from "screening" shovelfuls of dirt to labeling specimen bags under the direction of unit leaders. Spectators can watch for free, but participating requires payment of the society's annual dues of $30 for individuals or $40 per family. Equipment is provided, but mosquito repellent is highly recommended. There is no age limit, but a parent or guardian must sign a release for a minor.
Pre-dig Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey pictures taken July 1, 2009
Historical
society continues digging out old structure
By
There's
a mystery lurking under the banks of the Dig
for Collier Lodge begins July
7, 2009 By
Charles M. Bartholomew, Post-Tribune correspondent KOUTS
-- On the first morning of the seventh annual archaeology dig at the
Collier Lodge, the air was filled with anticipation and the aroma of
mosquito repellent. Thirty
people, a typical daily work crew in past years, followed University of
Notre Dame anthropology professor Hauling
a surveyor's transit to a shaded spot in the field by the abandoned
hunting lodge, he told Jared Carter from John
Hodson, president of lodge owners, the Kankakee Valley Historical
Society, and Schurr are expecting more than 100 volunteers from all
parts of the country and beyond to spend at least a day working on the
three-week project, some getting their very first taste of archaeology. "Every
mistake I'm telling you, I learned the hard way," Schurr said. Hodson
used a video camera to document the work for the society's applications
to have the site listed on the National Registers of Historic and
Prehistoric Places, an important step in getting grants to fund
restoration of the deteriorating building. Megan
Geurts, 23, who graduated from "I
met him (Schurr) last summer while doing a field school at Angel Mounds.
I heard about this and e-mailed him. He said I could be a unit
leader," she said. Schurr
said Geurts will be overseeing work on one of several unit excavations
at Feature No. 25, which may have been the basement of a cabin about 170
years old, a few meters from the southeast corner of the lodge. "We
want to get to the bottom of the feature. If we find household items, it
may be a home. If we find piles of sawdust, it may have been the sawmill
that was here somewhere," he said. Anyone
of any age, with or without experience, can show up any morning at 9
a.m. and pay the $30 annual membership dues to join the dig for as many
days as desired. Spectators can watch for free. The lodge is located on
Ring,
half dime, dinner plate unearthed at July 11, 2009 By Charles M.
Bartholomew, Post-Tribune correspondent BAUMS BRIDGE -- Highlights of the first week of digging at the Collier Lodge include a collector's ring, a 172-year-old "half dime," a gold-trimmed dinner plate, and the first visit to the project by American Indians. Notre Dame anthropology professor Schurr and his workers opened five square-edged units up to 3 feet deep next to the lodge, some that were filled in after last year's dig. This is the seventh year for the project. "We found another roasting pit. We're working very carefully through the different levels, so we're going slower," he said. Schurr said the immediate goal is to determine the extent of what he calls Feature No. 25 that was uncovered last year, the cellar of a cabin that could be either a home or a sawmill from the days when the river crossing was known as Eaton's Ferry. "We'll know next week," he said. KVHS president John Hodson displayed several finds from the first week: * an 1837 half dime * pottery and handmade bricks dating from 1795-1820 * a large fragment of a gilt-edged dinner plate. Joining the dig Thursday morning were three young members of the
Pokagon band of the Potawatomi Indians and a fourth American Indian from
another Midwestern tribe. They declined to be interviewed, referring
questions to the Pokagon office in Hodson said the Potawatomi had approached them last year about coming to the site, but a mutually agreeable time couldn't be worked out. Collier Lodge dig in 7th year of unearthing artifacts
Posted: Tuesday, July 14, 2009
12:00 am It may not be as exotic as Africa, but the Collier Lodge dig site
along the Kankakee River still holds appeal for Sophie Wojihoski, who
has spent her life traveling around the world unearthing bits of ancient
history in places such as "We did things a little differently in This is the fifth year the 89-year-old has participated at the annual
Collier Lodge dig, sponsored by the Kankakee Valley Historical Society.
She said that while she often finds animal bones, occasionally something
more interesting shows up. "Last week I found a silver ring. It had a face on it that
looked like a devil," Wojihoski said. "If these artifacts
could only talk to us and tell us the truth -- it's exciting. It makes
us want to know more." Later identified as a Waffen-SS German ring from World War II, it is
one of many finds to come out of this year's dig. Historical society
President John Hodson said the dig, now in its seventh year, also has
found pieces of pottery and coins, as well as a number of unanswered
questions. "It's all so interesting -- like a story unfolding year after
year," Hodson said. "We always come up with something at the
end of the dig, and then we have to wait a whole year to find out
more." Mysteries that remain from last year include an underground structure
believed to be some sort of cabin. Figuring out the cabin's dimensions
has been the focus of this year's excavation, now in its second week. "Our main game plan for this week is to figure out how the cabin
was built and how big it is," dig leader Schurr said volunteers also are focusing on a prehistoric roasting
pit discovered last week, as well as a variety of 1-cent pieces dating
back to the 1830s and '40s. "The way this site is, you have historic stuff with prehistoric
stuff underneath it," Schurr said. "We have successive layers
of human activity." The dig is scheduled to run through July 23 and still is taking
volunteers. No previous experience is necessary for participation. For
more information, visit http://kankakeevalleyhistoricalsociety.org. Excavation
calling all diggers July 22, 2009 By
Charles M. Bartholomew , Post-Tribune correspondent This week is the last chance for amateur archaeologists looking for real digging experience to "Come on down!" Kankakee Valley Historical Society president John Hodson said more
people than ever before answered the call last week to view and
participate in the unearthing of history and prehistory at the Collier
Lodge on the "About two dozen in their cars arrived in a convoy from On Thursday, a second group of two adults and two children from the Pokagon Band of the Potawatomi Indians came to join in the excavation of a newly uncovered Native American roasting pit that will share the focus of the final week of this summer's project with the foundation of a cabin-like structure that has already produced a number of pioneer artifacts. "There's been so much going on. The last few days are always the most exciting," said Hodson, remembering the traces of the cabin that first appeared on the final day of the 2008 dig. He has spiced up the Web site www.kankakeevalleyhistoricalsociety.org with daily updates that include the "Hit of the Day," such as the 1849 one-cent piece found on July 13, an 1880 brass button found on July 14, and a Civil War-era uniform button from the Waterbury Button Co. in Connecticut on Wednesday. "The company started in 1812. I checked their Web site. We've found a lot of buttons of bone, metal and mother-of-pearl," he said. A few of the half-dozen "units," some down to almost four feet deep, have yielded a large number of bricks, both handmade and manufactured from molds that the society would like to use in some way. "We thought of having some of them engraved to sell as souvenirs, but the state Antiquities Law was revised last year to cover everything up to 1870. Now we're looking into using them to partially rebuild a wall to demonstrate different brickmaking technologies," Hodson said. The last day for the 2009 dig is Thursday. Anyone who wants pay the $30 annual society membership fee and join in the dig is welcome and spectators are free. There are jobs for everyone, regardless of experience. Work usually lasts from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. To reach the Collier Lodge, from Digging down to the root| Posted: Thursday, July 23,
2009 12:00 am KOUTS | The Kankakee Valley Historical Society hit bottom Wednesday as the final week of the annual Collier Lodge archaeological dig came to an end. "We finally made it down to the bottom of our mystery
feature," said dig leader Extending 4 1/2 feet under ground, the cellar feature has puzzled
Schurr and his team of amateur archaeologists for the past two years as
they've excavated the site surrounding the historic Collier Lodge on
Baum's "Part of the mystery is solved," Schurr said. "The problem with archaeology is that every time you solve one mystery, you get another." Previously thought to be a cabin, Shurr said the cellar likely extends beneath the lodge, indicating that another building once stood close to that location. What that building was, however, remains to be answered. "Neat stuff always comes up at the end of our dig, and then we have to wait until next year," said Historical Society President John Hodson. "It's been a successful year." A number of artifacts representing 3,000 years of history have been
discovered since members of the KVHS started digging three weeks ago
along the Hodson said volunteers with ranging archaeological backgrounds came
from all over the Scott Duncan, of "It's fascinating to watch," Kiersten Friend, of Wheatfield, said her love for history drew her to
the Collier site. Like "I'm gaining an appreciation for the history of this area," Friend said. "I didn't realize how far it goes back." Project
reveals cabin foundation, artifacts July 23, 2009 By Charles M.
Bartholomew, Post-Tribune correspondent On Tuesday, with two full days left before the end of this summer's three-week project, the University of Notre Dame professor and his crew of volunteers caught the cabin. "Yes, we think we did. You can see that wood there, it's like a timber," he said, pointing at the remains of a beam at the bottom of a four-foot-deep section of the system of trenches near the southeast corner of the former hunting lodge. Starting with a small corner of a foundation that emerged at end of last year's excavation, "the cabin" absorbed everyone's interest as they deepened old units and opened new ones, trying to determine the extent and purpose of the structure that dates to the 1830s when the location was known as Eaton's Ferry. "This could be a root cellar," said volunteer Art Nelson, looking up from his work. Schurr said the wood may have been put there as a wall reinforcement in the sandy dirt. "You'd need a line of logs to hold it up. This gives us firm evidence we're digging in a cellar. We're going to get to the bottom before we close it up for the year," he said. He said that the digging still hasn't reached the west wall of whatever occupied the ground, but it's clear the lodge building covers part of where the cabin stood. "We know now that it was demolished before the lodge was built," Schurr said. He said work has been going slow, because the digging gets "more and more interesting" as they uncover more of the cellar. "We're finding lots more stuff, getting more of the story as it becomes more defined," said volunteer Bridget Murray, scraping the soil in another trench. She said bigger pieces of pottery and dishes have turned up, allowing them to begin to fit some of them together. "We could use a jigsaw puzzle expert in the lab," she said. Schurr said the volunteers will spend most of the last day of the 2009 dig covering the units to protect them until next year. See pictures of activity and artifacts in the "2009 Collier
Lodge Dig Photo Gallery" at www.kankakeevalleyhistoricalsociety.org.
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