Digging Miami

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments This book was an effort long in the making. My good fortune to become Miami-Dade County’s first archaeologist was the beginning of a multitude of experiences that helped shape the contents of this book. I am profoundly indebted to Ivan Rodriquez, former director of the Miami-Dade County Historic Division, and historian Nancy Hoffmann, who hired me for that position. My work was improved by the contributions of countless others, including scholars, volunteers, and students. Some of those who were particularly helpful in reviewing the prose and facts of this book include Dr. John Reiger, Christopher Eck, George Luer, and Jim Clupper, who brought his skill as a librarian to this book. I am also indebted to Betty Jo Brownfield , Kim Perry, and especially my wife Debbie, who helped prepare the final drafts of this book. I want to particularly thank Tim Harrington for his graphics excellence in preparing this volume and his extraordinary patience helping to complete it. I am thankful that as a boy growing up in Miami I had the good fortune to meet Dan Laxson and attend his archaeological summer camp at the Museum of Science. Likewise, I was fortunate to meet my school chum Mark Greene, who was my first partner in archaeology. He and I documented some of the last vestiges of the Brickell Trading Post, which started me on a lifetime journey of curiosity and discovery about Miami’s past. Another boy searching Brickell Point was the late Stan Cooper. Although I didn’t meet him until we were adults, his stories of his boyhood Miami explorations greatly aided in my knowledge of the archaeological sites in the area. The earliest incarnations of this work bore the fruit of research conducted by historians Arva Parks and Margot Amnidown. Their research of Miami’s earliest pioneers was particularly valuable. The contributions of Willard Steele, historian and former officer of the Seminole Tribal Historic Preservation Office, have been significant. His Acknowledgments 252 fresh insights and exhaustive research about the Second Seminole War unraveled the location of many of Miami’s most important historic sites. He played a principal role in those investigations and was the catalyst for the discovery of Fort Henry. Contributions in the field by former park ranger Don Mattucci, particularly at Bill Baggs State Park, were important. Student contributions by David Allerton and Gina Demigone were invaluable. The field work and reports of Dr. Marilyn Masson, carried out at the Cutler Fossil site while she was still a student, were outstanding. Irving Eyster was an assistant to the county archaeologist in the early 1980s. He directed field classes at Brickell Park and Arch Creek, and his efforts added to the pool of knowledge about these sites. Other archaeological assistants to the county program included Debra Sandler and Jo Southard, both dedicated and diligent in their work. Volunteers Sue Goldman, Barbara Tansey, Jeannie McGuire, Beth Read, Lynda Green, and other members of the South Florida archaeology family provided tireless enthusiasm for advancing archaeological research in South Florida. Recent work by archaeologists from the Archaeological and Historical Conservancy, such as Joseph Mankowski, Ryan Franklin, and Bill Schaffer, provided important field data and analyses that helped shape this volume. Current Miami-Dade County archaeologist Jeff Ransom has been a continual force in preserving the community archaeological record. Other important contributors to the county’s archaeological programs have been former county archaeologist John Ricisak and former director of the Historic Preservation Division Chris Eck. A special thanks to surveyor Ted Riggs, who has always been available to provide professional surveys and maps for the numerous archaeological sites uncovered over the past thirty years. The late Dr. William Straight, an avocational historian, was a tireless researcher of the details of local archaeological discoveries and was generous with his time and knowledge. The Historical Museum of Southern Florida—now known as History Miami!—has provided long-term commitment to preserve Miami’s past. A tip of the hat to former director Randy Nimnicht of the Historical Museum , who helped develop the museum’s outstanding material collection from South Florida sites. Patricia Barahona, Dawn Hughes, and Becky Smith have greatly supported research for this book by making HMSF’s vast archives available. Thanks to Jorge Zamanillo of the Historical Mu- Acknowledgments 253 seum of Southern Florida, who spent many years working with the Archaeological and Historical Conservancy aiding in the documentation of local archaeological...