2023 AAC Fall Conference
Central Arizona Archaeology
Friday, September 15 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday, September 16, 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Cliff Castle Casino Lodge, Camp Verde, Arizona and simulcast on ZOOM
This year’s conference theme is Central Arizona Archaeology with a focus on recent projects conducted in the Tonto Basin and Verde Valley. The abstract submission period is now closed!
AAC strives to ensure that all presentations are developed and presented in an appropriate and respectful way. Presentations with drawings, photographs, or other visual depictions of human remains or funerary objects will not be allowed.
AAC will host five additional events for students and recent graduates on Saturday, September 16 at the Verde Valley Archaeology Center . Saturday events were developed to provide students with mentoring, training, and skills that would be useful resume builders for cultural resource management jobs. Spaces for Saturday's events are limited. Contact aacpresident@azarchaeology.org for details and availability.
In-person attendance has been sold out. Only tickets to view the virtual live-stream are still available.
Sponsors
The conference is free to attend for AAC members; however, donations from the professional archaeological community help underwrite conference expenses. Thank you to our conference sponsors and vendors! (interested in becoming a sponsor? Visit our store or contact us at aac@azarchaeology.org). Click on the logos below to view company websites. We very much appreciate your support of AAC!
Venue
The conference will be held at the Cliff Castle Casino Lodge, Jerome Room (333 Middle Verde Road, Camp Verde AZ 86322). The Conference proceedings will run on Friday from 9:30-5:00. Free lunch will be provided by the Verde Valley Archaeology Center from 12:00-2:00. On Saturday, student events will be held at the Verde Valley Archaeology Center.
A room block is available at The Lodge for participants wishing to stay overnight on Friday, September 15. Special rates for the room block are $119/night. Reservations can be made by calling 800-524-6343 and referencing GROUP CODE: 230914AZAL. Reservations must be made by Wednesday, August 15.
Nearby Lodging
Other nearby lodging options include:
| Comfort Inn Camp Verde | Days Inn by Wyndham Camp Verde |
| The Copper Hotel | Fort Verde Suites |
Travel Assistance
The AAC will offer a limited number of free hotel rooms on Friday night for students and recent graduates. Hotel rooms are available for a limited number of participants. Travel assistance requests will be considered and filled as they are received. Please contact aacpresident@azarchaeology.org soon!
Nearby Dining
Cliff Castle Casino and Hotel offers many dining options for buffet, intimate dining, made-to-order, grab-and-go, cofee, beer, cocktails, and light snacks. Other nearby restaurants in the area include:
| La Fonda Mexican Restaurant | El Patio Bar and Grill |
| Babe's Round Up | Crusty's Pizza |
| Thai Garden | |
| Low Places Bar and Grill | Moscato Italian Restaurant |
Conference Program
Friday, September 15, 2023 (Cliff Castle Casino, Jerome Room)
9:30-9:50am Welcome and Apache History Talk
Vincent Randall (Yavapai-Apache Nation)
9:50-10:10am Welcome and Yavapai History Talk
Gertrude Smith (Yavapai-Apache Nation)
10:10-10:30am Geography and Settlement Patterns of the Verde Valley
Josh Edwards (Cornerstone Environmental) and Bruce Phillips (BGP Consulting)
10:30-10:50am Sycamore Canyon Cliff Dwelling Stabilization, Then and Now
Matt Guebard (NPS), John Rose (Prescott National Forest), and Denise Ryan (frmr NPS)
10:50-11:00am BREAK
11:00-11:20am The Benefits of Collaboration, Synergy, Technology, and Volunteer Expertise in the Verde Valley and Beyond
Spence Gustav (Friends of the Forest)
11:20-11:40am Applying Radiocarbon Dating to Meteoritic Material Found at the Red Creek Ruin
Kenneth Zoll (VVAC)
11:40am-12:00pm Rock Art of the Red Rocks
Peter Pilles, Jr. (Coconino National Forest)
12:00-2:00pm VVAC Networking Lunch Event
Free Lunch provided by the Verde Valley Archaeology Center
2:00-2:20pm Hunters, Farmers and Weavers from Beaver Creek: What the Dyck Cliff Dwellings Perishable Collection Tells Us About the Southern SinaguaTodd Bostwick (VVAC)
2:20-2:40pm Are Grinding Tools Sentient?: The View from Fitzmaurice Pueblo
Andrew Christenson (Museum of Indigenous Peoples)
2:40-3:00pm Below and Beyond Perry Mesa: The Archaeology of Greater West Verde
R.E. Burillo (Chronicle Heritage) and Angela Huster (Chronicle Heritage)
3:40-3:20pm Red Dawn: A Late 11th-Century Sinagua Migration in Central Arizona
Joseph Creary (independent), Thatcher Seltzer-Rogers (UNM), and Stephen Germick (retired)
3:20-3:40pm A Preliminary Assessment of Hohokam Identity in the Lower Tonto Basin
Chris Caseldine (ASU) and Alexis Malone (ASU)
3:40-3:50pm BREAK
3:50-4:10pm From Snaketown to Schoolhouse Point: Examining Variability among Platform Mounds
Chris Loendorf (GRIC), Glen Rice (ASU), and Arleyn Simon (ASU)
4:10-4:30pm Recent Work in the Northern Periphery: The I-17 New River to Anthem Project
Erina Gruner (Desert Archaeology) and John Marshall (Desert Archaeology)
4:30-4:50pm Working Together to Refine the Typologies in order to Distinguish Between Similar Technological Ceramic Traits Between the Hohokam/Akimel O'odham and Patayan Cultural Groups
Linda Morgan (Gila River Indian Community)
Saturday, September 16, 2023 (Verde Valley Archaeology Center)
9:00am-12:00pm Central Arizona Ceramic Identification Workshop
Learn about identifying central Arizona ceramics with NAU/MNA archaeologist and ceramicist Dr. Kelley Hays-Gilpin.
12:30-1:00pm Grant Writing Training
Learn about successful grant writing strategies with University of Toronto Archaeologist Dr. Lindsay Montgomery.
1:00-1:30pm AAC Student Listening Session and Discussion on Student Mentorship
Meet with the AAC Board-of-Directors and provide your perspective on the development of an AAC sponsored student mentorship program.
1:30-4:00pm Optional V Bar V Field Trip
Join the Verde Valley Archaeology Center for a tour of the V-Bar-V Heritage Site.
Conference Recording
2024 Arizona Archaeological Council