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The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Archaeology Field School is uncovering exciting discoveries right on its own campus. The Gehring Site at SIUE is located between Cahokia Creek and the bluffs, approximately 10 miles north of the Cahokia Mounds.  The field school, led by Susan Kooiman, PhD, assistant professor of anthropology, is a biennial course where anthropology students learn the basics of archaeological excavation. The campus and local community are also invited to visit and learn about the site and artifacts dating back more than 1000 years. 
 
Kooiman began leading the excavations after an extensive run by the previous lead archaeologist, Julie Zimmermann, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Anthropology. Zimmermann earned her doctorate at New York University, specializing in zooarchaeology, and she conducted excavations at the Gehring site between 2009 and 2018.  
 
"There are quite a few archaeologically rich regions on and around the SIUE campus. Native Americans have been living here for thousands of years, and there was a particularly dense population in this area beginning around 1000 years ago during the Mississippian period,” said Kooiman. “If you’ve ever heard about the Cahokia mounds, Cahokia was considered the capital during this period. The Mississippians were farmers who lived [in Cahokia and] on the outskirts. They grew many domesticated plants, sunflower, squash, and maize, which originally came from Mexico.” 
 
Research on the site has produced evidence of human presence during the Archaic period (8000-1000 BC). Studies also show an occupation of the Gehring site during the Middle Woodland period, which was 1,000 years earlier than the Mississippian period.

We had the opportunity to interview Dr. Kooiman, gain insight into the intricate process of archaeology, and learn what her team of students hope to find this summer. 
 
 
What did you find in past excavations? 

Dr. Zimmermann found evidence of two Mississippian houses at the site, along with features, such as ancient storage pits and hearths, dating to both the Middle Woodland and Mississippian periods. My very first year, we didn't find much; we dug this whole area, and there was nothing there. I was trying to fill in some blank spots that Dr. Zimmermann had not gotten to, but we did not find much. Last year, however, we did find... features. We knew one was Mississippian because we found a huge piece of Mississippian pottery on top of this feature. I was trying to figure out what was going on with the other features in that area – are they Middle Woodland? Do they date to a period between Middle Woodland and Mississippian called the Late Woodland? 
 
What are you hoping to find this summer?

We would really like to find more Middle Woodland stuff. We want to reveal more about the 2000-year-old materials to better understand that occupation of this site.

And what have you found thus far?

We found a new feature. Our features are typically a fire pit, hearth, or storage pit. This one had a lot of charcoal in it, and layers of ashy and dark zones, suggesting it was a hearth, or fire pit, that was used repeatedly. The artifacts in it suggest that it is not Mississippian, but older. We will be able to date the charcoal using radiocarbon dating, so we can find out approximately when it was used.

How do you uncover artifacts?

We dig horizontally. We dig across little bits at a time in case we run into anything like a feature. We dig slowly. We are constantly recording, drawing, and photographing over and over.

How do you figure out what period artifacts you discover are from?

When looking at pottery, Middle Woodland and Mississippian artifacts can be distinguished by two main features. Middle Woodland pottery is often textured on the outside, a technique known as cord marking. This texture feels gritty because Middle Woodlanders used grit (ground rock) as a temper in their clay. On the other hand, Mississippian pottery typically has smooth surfaces, as they used crushed shells as temper in their clay.  If archaeologists want to be exact, we use radiocarbon dating to determine the age of artifacts.

Anything else you would like to add?

I think it’s really important for a lot of people to remember that Native Americans lived here, and they lived here for very long time and they had very active and ever-changing cultures. And that’s one of the things that I think a lot of people don’t realize about this area. They don’t realize that they were people living here thousands of years before Europeans got here and so it’s one of my goals to bring more attention through the field school and outreach--bringing more attention to what archaeology is. Bring attention to the rich history and culture of Native Americans, and we’re also trying to engage more with Native Americans through this project as well. We have established a scholarship for Native Americans to come and take the field school so I’m hoping to continue and develop that relationship. Consulting more with the people whose ancestors lived here and making the general population aware of its long history. 
 
PHOTOS:  Susan Kooiman, PhD, assistant professor of anthropology; Myles Brumback, third-year student in the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS); Amaya Tillerson, third-year student in CAS