Real Names Be Proof

As we dig out of the 14 inches of snow that have already fallen on us today, I thought it would be nice to share the acknowledgements for my book. It was a pleasure and a privilege to learn (and continue to learn) from so many amazing colleagues and friends over my nearly three decades as a professional student of archaeology and history.

Thank you to everyone who made my project possible and supported me along the way. I hope you’ll stay on for the next thirty years or so of my career. I have a feeling it’s going to be plenty bumpy.

Acknowledgements

This book has two origin stories. The most proximate is Michael Nassaney’s happy invitation to submit a proposal to the University Press of Florida’s The American Experience in Archaeological Perspective series for a book on the archaeology of the American experience. His support and that of incoming series editor Krysta Ryzewski, and Mary Puckett at the Press has been outstanding and deeply appreciated.

The other story starts with the Eastern Korinthia Archaeological Survey in Greece where my colleagues and mentors cultivated my interest in the modern period. Tim Gregory, Lita Tzortzopoulou-Gregory, Tom Tartaron, Daniel Pullen, P. Nick Kardulias, Dimitri Nakassis, and Richard Rothaus helped and encouraged me to document nearly-abandoned modern settlements in the southeastern Corinthia. David Pettegrew was an eager collaborator on this project. He and I returned to the site of Lakka Skoutara many times for almost two decades to document its changes and ongoing use. I continued this work with colleagues on the Western Argolid Regional Project where Dimitri Nakassis, Sarah James, Scott Gallimore, Guy Sanders, and Ioanna Antoniadou welcomed my interest in the modern period and team leaders Rachel Fernandez, Alyssa Friedman, Melanie Godsey, Machal Gradoz, Stephanie Steinke, and Joseph Frankl helped devise methods for documenting abandoned and near-abandoned modern sites within the methods developed for Mediterranean intensive pedestrian survey. My understanding of the archaeology of modern and early modern benefited immensely from sustained collaboration with Grace Erny and Dimitri Nakassis on the publication of the site of Chelmis and its landscape.

Some colleagues with whom I worked in Greece became close collaborators on my projects in the US. Richard Rothaus and Kostis Kourelis spent many hours traversing the Bakken discussing settlement, industrial archaeology, domestic space, and resource booms on The North Dakota Man Camp Project. This project was co-directed by Bret Weber and Richard Rothaus who shared their understanding of historical archaeology, housing, the history of the American West, and oral history methods during field work and as friends and colleagues. They also collaborated on the Alamogordo Atari Excavations which were directed by another alumnus of the Greek scene, Andrew Reinhard whose relentless interest in the archaeology in and of video games remains an inspiration. The conversations with Richard, Bret, and Kostis contributed immensely to this book. They also read chapters and provided moral support when my energy and spirits flagged.

While writing this book, I’ve had the pleasure of serving on the standing committee of the Contemporary and Historical Archaeology in Theory (CHAT) group. This opportunity came about through the encouragement of Rachael Kiddey and Hilary Orange who welcomed me to the CHAT ranks and pushed me to get involved. I deeply appreciate their scholarship, kindness, and approach to the discipline (and life).

My colleagues at the University of North Dakota have been generous and supportive while I toiled on this project. In the Department of History and American Indian Studies, Cynthia Prescott, Caroline Campbell, Eric Burin, Nikki Berg Burin, Ty Reese, Hans Broedel, and Jim Mochoruk listened to my ideas and gave me a congenial space to work them out. Former and current colleagues in the Department of English, Sheila Liming, David Haeselin, Adam Kitzes, Crystal Alberts, and Sharon Carson, not only allowed me to teach a graduate seminar on things in their department but also pushed me to reconsider disciplinary and epistemological borders. Mark Jendrysik from the Department of Political Science and Public Administration served as this books advisor on all things utopian. Michael Wittgraf and Todd Hebert reminded me of the value of music, art, and practice. Micah Bloom, of Minot State University, generously allowed me to use two images from his Codex project in this book. A University of North Dakota Arts and Humanities Scholarship Initiative Grant in 2018 helped fund this project by providing me with a course release.

While writing this book, I’ve also had the good fortune to serve on the Grand Forks Historic Preservation Commission with a cadre of dedicated colleagues who care deeply about the historical and contemporary past of their community. Gordon Iseminger, Paul Conlon, Sandy Slater, Doug Munski, Brian Carlson, and our chair Chuck Flemmer reminded me at our monthly meetings that our past is a community concern for and in the present.

My parents, Fred and Nancy Caraher, and my brothers, Joe and Fritz, kept me grounded over the years and supported my work in too many ways to count.

Finally, this book would not possible without the encouragement, humor, dogs (Argie the Bargepole and Milo), and love provided by Susan Caraher. I dedicate this book to her as a small gesture of my appreciation for her patience with me, enthusiasm for my schemes, and consistent tolerance for this project.