This week in the archaeology lab of the State Museum of
Pennsylvania we have completed one major feat and have begun another. After
years of work with donated collections from eastern Pennsylvania sites, accessioning
over 40,000 artifacts from these sites, we can finally say that they are fully
processed, insuring their long-term curation. We have taken a deep breath to
enjoy this accomplishment, and are now turning our sights to recently donated collections
from western Pennsylvania.
The collections, donated by brothers Robert (Bob) and James
(Jim) Oshnock, arrived at the State Museum in June of 2014 and we are happy to
say, that as our lab shelves are now cleared of Delaware Valley artifacts,
processing has begun! Bob and Jim’s collection and documentation strategies
have led to the recordation of several hundred new archaeological sites in
western Pennsylvania, as well as the confirmation of site boundaries for
numerous previously recorded sites. The assemblages represent over 50 years of
collecting by the brothers, who began in 1966. It is estimated that the
collection includes around 50,000 artifacts, along with eleven binders of various
notes, maps and inventories. This is one of the largest documented collections donated
to the State Museum from sites across western PA, making it of considerable
importance in understanding the lives of prehistoric peoples in western
Pennsylvania and provides a useful comparative collection between sites from
other areas.
Bob and State Museum,
Section of Archaeology staff unloading the collections
State Museum, Section of Archaeology staff
unloading the collections
Jim Oshnock, Bob’s
nephew, Bob Oshnock and Jim Herbstritt of the State Museum looking over maps in
the archaeology lab (listed from left to right)
Bob Oshnock is recognized as a significant contributor to
the archaeology of western Pennsylvania due to his considerable efforts at
investigating, documenting and identifying sites. In 1984, Bob was appointed a
Regional Representative of the Section of Anthropology, Carnegie Museum of
Natural History. To this day Bob has continued to contribute to archaeology as
a member of Westmoreland Archaeological Society, Chapter 23, Society for
Pennsylvania Archaeology (SPA), Inc. through continued investigation,
research, recordation, presentation, publication (see list below in references)
and preservation of archaeological sites across western Pennsylvania. It was
Bob who convinced his brother Jim to also donate his collection to The State
Museum of Pennsylvania for long term curation and the opportunity for the
information and artifacts they gathered to be shared and used for research for
many years to come.
Bob presenting at the
2009 SPA annual meeting
Though the majority of the sites Bob and Jim investigated
were found through surface surveys, they have also conducted a few larger
excavations. Assisted by members of the Westmoreland Archaeological Society,
Bob directed the excavation of the Consol site (36Wm100) in Westmoreland county
between 2000 and 2015. This site is a multi-component prehistoric village site
with an Early Drew Phase Monongahela component and Middle Monongahela component.
Two overlapping village components with stockades are visibly present on this
site, as can be seen in the map below. To Bob’s credit, this excavation was
particularly well documented with extensive notes and annual reports. His work
has made a significant contribution to Monongahela research. He has continued to publish reports detailing the excavations and
findings at Consol (36 Wm100), proof of his continued devotion to preserving,
understanding and sharing the prehistory of western Pennsylvania.
Map of Consol site as
of 2013
Bob also played a significant role in the submission of
collections from two other collectors. Donated at the same time as the Oshnock
collection was the Jacob L. Grimm collection, which Bob prepared, as he did
with his collection by organizing documentation and artifacts, for submission
from Jacob Grimm’s widow, Beverly Grimm. He also played a role in packaging
another large assemblage, the Fred Veigh collection, which was accepted by the
State Museum in March of 2016. We are currently in the preliminary organizational
stages with this collection.
State Museum, Section
of Archaeology staff shelving the Veigh collection
So, with over 450 sites, from Westmoreland, Bedford, Indiana
and Fayette counties, making up the collection Bob and Jim have donated, the
State Museum of Pennsylvania archaeology lab is grateful for the immense effort
they have put forth to organize documentation and label artifacts with their
site numbers as we begin to delve into beginning stages of processing this very
large collection. And so, we continue
their legacy in preserving what these sites have to offer about western
Pennsylvania’s past and we would like to thank Bob and Jim for their commitment
to preserving the past for the future.
For additional reading on Bob and his brother Jim and their
donation to The State Museum, see the article in the summer 2017 Pennsylvania
Heritage magazine (Adkins 2017 - http://www.phmc.state.pa.us/portal/communities/pa-heritage/tocs/spring-2017.html).
For more information on the Consol site please visit Bob
Oshnock’s guest blog here: http://twipa.blogspot.com/2014/01/westmoreland-county.html
or look into some of his publications listed below.
References:
Adkins,
Sean
2017 The Oshnock Archaeology Collection. Pennsylvania Heritage Summer 2017:42-43.
Auffart, Albert, and Robert Oshnock
2011 Keyhole Features from the
Consol Site (36WM100). Pennsylvania Archaeologist 81(2): 44–53.
Oshnock, Robert
2000 Prehistoric
Usage of Loyalhanna Chert. Manuscript on file, Archaeology Section, State
Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, Pa.
2004 Consol Site
36Wm100, Report Number 2, Findings from the 2002-2003 Field Seasons. Manuscript on file, Archaeology Section,
State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, Pa.
2005 Consol Site,
36Wm100, Report Number 3, Findings from the 2004 Field Season. Manuscript on
file, Archaeology Section, State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, Pa.
2007 Consol Site,
36Wm100, Report Number 4, Findings from the 2005 & 2006 Field Season.
Manuscript on file, Archaeology Section, State Museum of Pennsylvania,
Harrisburg, Pa.
2012 Fluted Points from the
Loyalhanna Creek Watershed, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania
Archaeologist 82(1): 74–78.
2012 Early Woodland Features at
the Consol Site (36WM100), Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania
Archaeologist 82(2): 44–53.
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