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History and Archaeology Bulletin Board 2000

Getting the facts right

Posted by Lex Palmer on April 08, 2000 at 12:39:10:

My background is as a professional historical archaeologist and architectural historian. The most professional approach is to use the best of both disciplines. Having lived and worked in Virginia City, Nevada (with an expertise in mining history), I must correct Mr. Chippindale's Thumbnail and caption associated with his rebuttal- "Log buildings in Virginia City, Nevada, may appeal to tourists as frontier-like, but the town's original structures are the elegant ones with iron-framed windows and verandahs." Virginia City does not currently have any log cabins. The original Gold Hill and Virginia City buildings from 1859 were a combination of dugouts, log cabins, and milled lumber. The current brick buildings pictured in the thumbnail became common after a disasterous fire in 1875 destroyed 2/3rds of the town. I guess this is an example of where archaeologists should be more careful researching the history behind the physical artifacts.

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