Apr 30Desert Archaelogy ceramicist James M. Heidke wrote this tribute to the late Diana Kamilli and her contributions to ceramic provenance studies in Arizona. Diana Chapman Kamilli passed away in early August of last year, after a short illness. This belated Field Journal entry seeks to recognize the important contribution that…
Feb 1Homer Thiel tells the story of a prominent Black businesswoman who built successful culinary ventures in both Phoenix and Tucson in the late 1800s. Hundreds of African Americans arrived in the Territory of Arizona between 1856 and 1912. Early on these included escaped enslaved men such as Hampton Brown. After…
May 26Water is the the desert's most precious resource. As modern communities in the West grapple with dwindling supplies, Homer Thiel explores how people living near Tucson in the mid-19th century acquired water for their homes and gardens. People need water for drinking, cooking, washing, and watering plants, among other uses.…
Jan 30Homer Thiel winds the history machine back a few decades from the previous posts to look at life in Tucson during the time of transition from Mexican to US governance. Mexico achieved independence from Spain in 1821. In the years afterward, many changes occurred in the small fortress community of…
Sep 14Homer Thiel discusses what we learned about the Chinese men who came to Tucson while working on the railroad in the late 1800s and stayed here to make lives for themselves. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a housing development was constructed along the road leading to the summit…
Feb 21Homer Thiel uses historical documents and archaeological data to bring together the story of Hampton Brown, a formerly enslaved man who lived in Territorial period Tucson after escaping from Texas. Peter Enneson assisted with the research for this post. One of the first African-Americans to arrive in Arizona during the…
Oct 22Homer Thiel examines the lives of people who have often been rendered invisible in history: the women who lived in the Tucson Presidio in the 18th and 19th centuries. Tucson, Arizona was a Spanish and Mexican military fortress (the Presidio San Agustín del Tucson) between 1776 and 1856. During this…
Jun 29Historical archaeologist Homer Thiel comes to the rescue with tales of cold, sweet historical relief from the heat. Tucson and much of the rest of the Southwestern United States are undergoing record-breaking heat. In was hot in the past too, especially in early Territorial period (1856-1912) Tucson. One way to…
Aug 12The upcoming opening of a new building prompts Desert Archaeology project director Mike Diehl to revisit an early Tucson architect, his brickyard, and the workers who made the bricks that built city landmarks. In Autumn 2020, the Monier Building, a mixed-use 122 unit residential and 13,000 square foot commercial space,…
Apr 8Historical archaeologist Homer Thiel provided information for a newspaper article on the 1918 Spanish flu, published by the Arizona Daily Star on April 6, 2020. This blog entry is an expanded presentation of Homer's research on the history of epidemics in the Tucson area. The appearance of the COVID-19 virus…