White Mountains Institute

Courses offered during Spring 2012

Archaeological Field Methods: Historical Archaeology at the Roxmont Estate (2 credits, HS 5630)
Instructor: Tanya Krajcik
Dates: June 4-15 (M-F)
Offered through the State Conservation and Rescue Archaeology Program (SCRAP).  The 2012 summer field school will focus on historic Roxmont estate site on Long Island in Moultonborough, NH.  The field school will feature both seminar and fieldwork components. In the first week of the course, specialists will lead seminars on archaeology, landscape history and design, and historical research and documentation. In the second week, participants will gain field experience by participating in survey, mapping, and excavation at the Roxmont site. Please contact the instructor (tanya.krajcik@dcr.nh.gov) for additional course information.

Courses offered during Summer 2012

Archaeological Field Methods: Further Investigations at the Jefferson VI Paleoindian Site
Instructor: Dr. Richard A. Boisvert
Dates: June 25 – August 3
The 2012 NH State Conservation and Rescue Archaeology Program (SCRAP) summer field school will continue research at the Jefferson VI Paleoindian site. The investigations will consist of site testing with small block excavations and additional shovel test pit survey on nearby landforms. Participants in the field school will document the site with detailed excavations and place it in a context with other Paleoindian sites in the immediate vicinity and the broader region. They will also have an opportunity to assist with public outreach by presentations to the general public and site tours. Participants will learn fundamental recovery and documentation techniques as well as basic artifact identification and field laboratory procedures. Hands-on instruction in the field will be supplemented by background readings, evening lectures by various affiliated scholars, and field trips to nearby Paleoindian sites.

NH Native Americans (1 credit, HS 5560 or AN 5140)
Instructor: Grace Fraser
Dates:  June 30 and July 1 with field trip to Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum in Warner.
The focus of this course will be Native American culture and will incorporate the four themes of history, preservation, arts and environment. A field trip to the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum is required as well as access to the internet in a classroom.

Tea and The White Mountains (1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: Khuan Chong
Dates: July 5 – July 7.
With inspiration from the culture of tea and the beauty of the White Mountains we hope to enrich our lives with the ancient experiences of the way of tea, poetry, art and literature from China.

The Covered Bridge in New England (1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: James Garvin
Dates: July 10-12
Through a combination of classroom lectures and field study of old and newer covered bridges near Plymouth, this course will introduce participants to the history of covered wood and wood-and-iron bridges in New England, discussing truss types, methods of fabrication, support systems, and current preservation issues.

Colonial Settlements in the White Mountains Region (1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: Rebecca More
Dates: July 17-19
Settlers from the colonies in Massachusetts Bay and seacoast New Hampshire began to penetrate the White Mountains region in the mid -18th century.  Participants in this one-credit course will use classroom lectures, discussions, field trips to examine the settlement history of the area both before and after the Revolution.  The course will also consider the kinds of primary sources available, including local historical societies and their archives and artifacts, and how they can be used to enrich our understanding of the challenges of settling the area.

Everyday life in a Brown Company Logging Camp
(1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: Linda Upham-Bornstein
Dates: July 26-28 (July 28th class to be held at the Northern Forest Heritage Park in Berlin)
Brown Company logging operations were studied and photographed by those inside and outside the papermaking industry.  The course will examine the reality of everyday life for loggers in the Northern Forest.  The Saturday class will meet at the Northern Forest Heritage Park in Berlin.

Recreation, Protection and Profit in Franconia Notch (1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: Maggie Stier
Dates: August 2-4 (August 4th class to be held at Franconia Notch State Park)
This course will explore the tensions between development and preservation in the celebrated landscape of Franconia Notch.   Designated a National Natural Landmark, Franconia Notch’s unique geology and scenery have attracted visitors for decades.  Striking the right balance between protecting natural resources, encouraging recreation, and  economic opportunity has been a challenge for many years as well.  This class will examine the major periods of transition and controversy for Franconia Notch, including hotel development, constructions of roads and railroads, the campaign for state ownership, development of the ski area and other recreational amenities, the controversy over the Interstate highway, and efforts to preserve and memorialize the Old Man of the Mountain.  It will conclude with a discussion of looming challenges within the current operational framework of the NH State Park system.

Foodways: Where Food, Culture & History Meet (1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: Millie Rahn
Dates: August 10-11
It’s said we are what we eat, but folklorists believe that what we eat symbolizes who we are. Food is central to our identities, and its customs, beliefs, production, preparation techniques and materials, rituals, and traditions are cultural artifacts called foodways. Foodways can teach larger lessons about culture–geography, history, chemistry, natural resources, economics, herbal lore and folk medicine, astronomy, climatology, religion, environmental sustainability, etc.–and about tradition and change. Together, these topics can demonstrate how the family story, the community history, and the significant events of humanity are regularly expressed through food, discovering the world through our daily bread, tortillas, pitas, pain, brot, ployes, and noodles. This course looks specifically at how foodways have helped to shape New England’s regional identity and sense of place over time.

Changing Times, Changing Places: the White Mountains Region of New Hampshire (1 credit, HS 5560)
Instructor: Linda Upham-Bornstein
Dates: August 17-18 (6 hours of the course will be an online component)
The White Mountains’ aesthetic beauty, rich forests, diverse topography and powerful waterways are the foundation upon which the region’s identity has taken shape.  This one credit course will introduce students the changing times and places in this unique region.  It will serve as the connecting string uniting all the diverse elements of the summer programs of the White Mountain Heritage Institute.