During the Summer 2004 field season, we are excavating deposits in and around the Spanish-colonial/Mexican foundation found last season. Three main areas of research motivate our steps forward: 1) the foundation itself, 2) a historic trash deposit located roughly 20 meters south of the foundation, and 3) a yard area in between the two. We are excavating these areas in square holes measuring one meter by one meter. We call each square meter area a “unit,” and this helps us track the location of everything we find. Before we started new excavations this summer, we re-opened the units that had been dug the summer before. Since Monday, June 21, we have started fifteen new units. Our focus in these new excavations is clarifying the stratigraphy (soil layers) in these archaeological deposits. Our team is very excited about what we may find.

Our project has received a lot of attention this week. First, Mike Sugarman interviewed us for an exciting KCBS radio spot. Later that day, TV channel KRON4 highlighted us on the evening news with an awesome video presentation with Mike Lyon reporting. NBC11 also filmed our excavation and presented a remarkable segment on the early evening news. All this coverage generated a lot of interest in our volunteer program and many visitors stopped by the site after learning about the dig. We are very happy to see the public take an interest in this project and we hope to see more of you soon.

In each unit, our first task is to remove the near-surface sod and topsoil that rest above the earlier historic deposits. In many units, this topsoil contains a few American period artifacts, such as these colored glass marbles, this plastic toy soldier, and a doll’s leg. The term “American period” refers to anytime after 1846, when the United States acquired California. We are not yet able to tell what the doll’s leg is made of, but it appears to be manufactured from Bakelite, an early synthetic substance used from the late 1800s onward. This material can sometimes be mistaken for ceramic porcelain. We shall see what future laboratory analysis reveals.

Last Friday, June 25, hundreds of kids arrived at the Presidio for an afternoon of fun and to celebrate the founding of the Presidio of San Francisco in 1776. The day was filled with many activities related to the Presidio’s history including art, music, and storytelling. There was also a chance to learn about the archaeology of the Presidio with some hands-on activities and tours of our site at El Polin Spring. The research team members were on-hand to guide our young visitors through the site and show them the foundations of an old adobe house that we have uncovered in our excavations. Later that weekend, on Sunday, June 27, Los Californianos reenacted the arrival of the Anza Expedition. Following this commemoration, members of our research team guided members of Los Californianos to view the archaeological site at El Polín Spring.

In addition to these public activities, our research team has been involved in very technical analysis of site soils this week. On Monday, Geoarchaeologist Jack Meyer from the Anthropological Studies Center at Sonoma State University paid us a visit. We sought his expertise to help us understand the stratigraphy of the site. Working with Project Director Barb Voss and Geoarchaeology Intern Erica Simmons, Meyer focused on one excavation area that has a very complex soil profile. We learned that these soils are even more complex than we thought. Last year we thought we had reached the bottom of any cultural deposits. However, we now know from Meyer’s analysis that there could be even more discoveries below this already five foot deep excavation! Abrupt changes in the soil color and texture tipped us off.

This week, we recovered a piece of leather in our excavations. It is similar to the many leather artifacts excavated at Crissy Field in the mid-1990s. We are excited because this is the first well-preserved leather artifact found at El Polín Spring. The size and shape of the leather indicate that it was most likely the sole of a small shoe. The artifact is pictured here, placed next to a child’s shoe from the Crissy Field collection, which dates between 1890 and 1912.