A researcher from the Cave Research Foundation will share his experiences documenting archaeological finds in the Cumberland Gap cave system during a talk on Tuesday, February 16.
Charles Finney will give a lecture titled “Cave of Remembered Dreams: Recording Cultural Resources in the Cumberland Gap Cave System” at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of UT’s McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture. The lecture is free and open to the public. A reception will follow.
Finney will highlight efforts by the Cave Research Foundation, in partnership with the National Park Service, to document the evidence of historical visitation in these caves and to connect graffiti to specific individuals.
Cumberland Gap is a natural passage through the eastern mountains that has been used extensively by various peoples over the millennia. In the first documented European survey, a remarkable cave was noted within the gap, and in historical times the caves within the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park were frequently visited by local residents, tourists, and Civil War soldiers.
Finney has worked on the Cumberland Gap Expedition of the Cave Research Foundation since 2003 and has assisted the cultural resources survey in the cave systems since 2010. His interests are in computer-aided analysis and documentation techniques and in supplemental historical research.
The event is organized by the East Tennessee Society of the Archaeological Institute of America and the McClung Museum. For more information, call 865-974-8279.
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CONTACT:
Aleydis Van de Moortel (865-974-8279, avdm@utk.edu)