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MT-3887
March 29-April 2, 2010
Must commit to full session
Volunteers will work with FS archaeologists and University of Montana (U.M.) researchers to process a collection of thousands of artifacts from an historic mining area known as German Gulch, just west of Butte. Chinese and Euro-Americans lived in this area and worked the mines from the 1860s into the early 1900s. Excavations of German Gulch in the 1980s resulted in the most significant and diverse Chinese archaeological collection in the state of Montana. Some of the more significant artifacts include imported coconuts and Chinese dates, and all manner of Chinese ceramics. With your help, we will bring the collection up to modern standards of curation and conduct laboratory analysis on a selection of the artifacts.
Analyses of the artifacts from German Gulch will help specialists on the Beaverhead-Deerlodge NF understand the site and plan for its preservation and interpretation. Working at the U.M. Historical Archaeology Laboratory, PIT volunteers will assist University researchers and Forest Service archaeologists to clean, sort, process, and analyze the artifacts from the site. Volunteers will learn professional archaeological laboratory techniques, including how to identify and catalog artifacts. Other duties will include photography, database entry, and historical research on the artifacts. Please join us for this very interesting and unique opportunity!
Number of openings: 8
Special skills: Participants must be capable of sitting for long periods each day, and must be willing to handle sharp tools and artifacts; previous archaeological laboratory, photography, artifact analysis, and/or data entry experience helpful, but not required; Attention to detail is a must!
Minimum age: 18 years old
Facilities: F.S. housing available for a reduced cost at the F.S. Smokejumper's Base near the Missoula International Airport (approximately 5 miles from U.M.); Missoula is a full service community with hotels, motels, restaurants, and a full range of other amenities; volunteers responsible for own food, water, personal bedding if staying in Smokejumper's quarters, and own transportation to and from the University each day
Nearest towns: Project will be in Missoula on the University of Montana campus
Applications due: January 25, 2010
MT-3932
June 28-July 2, 2010
Must commit to full session
Come join Forest Service archaeologists in the Whitetail-Pipestone area on the beautiful Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest between Butte and Whitehall. FS staff and PIT volunteers will test excavate 5-10 prehistoric sites, which may reveal occupations dating all the way to 12,000 B.P. Site testing will help us to ascertain the extent of subsurface cultural deposits. These sites are in areas of heavy erosion, so the information gathered will not only help us to learn about prehistory in the area, but will help to determine what measures of protection and preservation may be needed.
Number of openings: 4
Special skills: None required
Minimum age: 18 years old
Facilities: Camping at the Delmoe Lake Campground; water, pit toilets; space for RVs up to 50', no hook-ups; FS will provide all food and a camp cook; volunteers responsible for personal camping equipment; lodging and other amenities available in Butte and Whitehall; volunteers opting to stay in Butte or Whitehall must provide own transportation to meeting area each day
Nearest towns: Butte, 15 miles; Whitehall, 20 miles
Applications due: April 26, 2010
MT-3910
September 18-26, 2010 (including weekends)
Must commit to full session
The PIT project at Morgan-Case Homestead enters its 12th season in September, 2010, and we will continue the loving restoration of this unique historic property. However, as the main building is now complete (thanks to years of dedication by PIT volunteers and District employees alike!), this year's efforts will focus on stabilization of the bunkhouse. PIT volunteers will join Forest staff and other historic preservation professionals to replace wall logs, install doors and trim, white wash interior wall logs, apply exterior daubing, and other general tasks we have time to fit in! Come see this wonderful preservation project finally come to fruition, meet interesting people, eat great food, and work in a beautiful setting while you watch moose near the creek and bighorn sheep on the hillside above you. See you in September!
Number of openings: 8
Special skills: Carpentry skills, experience with historic preservation helpful, but not required
Minimum age: 18 years old
Facilities: Onsite tent camping; outhouse/toilets, water, solar showers; limited space for one or two trailers, no hook-ups; very limited space available inside homestead (two bedrooms: one w/ double bed and single bed; one w/ double bed); volunteers who fly in to the project will receive accommodation priority; volunteers responsible for personal camping equipment; meals provided by an experienced cook, but volunteers are expected to help with dishes and camp chores
Nearest towns: Philipsburg, 40 miles
Applications due: July 19, 2010
MT-3913
July 11-16, 2010 (including weekends)
Must commit to full session
Savenac Nursery was established as a tree nursery 103 years ago on an abandoned homestead near St. Regis, Montana. Over the next 60 years of the Nursery's life, it was destroyed by fire (the Great Burn of 1910), rebuilt twice and, until its closure in 1969, had become the largest tree nursery in the Pacific Northwest. After Savenac's closure, operations were moved to the newer Coeur d'Alene Nursery, but 10 of the original buildings (built by the CCC), the landscaped grounds, and an arboretum of its exotic trees still remain. In 1999, Savenac was formally listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Tina Benitez, one of the many returning volunteers at Savenac, isin the final stages of editing her book on the Nursery's history.
This year will mark the Nursery's 15th annual PIT project as well as the 100th anniversary of the aforementioned "Great Burn", the catastrophic fire that engulfed most of Mineral County as well as surrounding western Montana. Volunteer projects at Savenac this year will focus on preparations for the commemoration of the fire on Saturday, August 21. As most of our volunteers know, there are many other tasks to keep us busy throughout the week, too, so we will tackle those projects as they arise. At the end of the week, PIT volunteers will be guests at the annual Savenac Old Timer's Day. This gathering attracts former nursery employees, members of the CCC, and many area residents to spend the day visiting and reminiscing about the "good old days" at Savenac. We encourage our hardworking volunteers to join us again on August 21st to help commemorate the traumatic fires of 1910. See you this summer for year 15!
Number of openings: 35
Special skills: Water bottle, work gloves, and safety goggles required; carpentry, painting, general grounds-keeping, and/or restoration skills helpful, but not required
Minimum age: 18 years old
Facilities: FS housing provided at no charge; water, bath facilities; tent camping and limited RV parking available on site, no hook-ups; meals provided by FS; lodging and other amenities available at Lincoln's Silver Dollar Bar and Motel next to the Nursery; St. Regis and Superior are full-service communities with hotels/motels, restaurants, and a full range of other amenities; volunteers responsible for personal bedding or camping equipment, water bottle, safety equipment and transportation
Nearest towns: St. Regis, 15 miles; Superior, 30 miles
Applications due: May 9, 2010