On Tuesday, March 7, at 7:00 p.m., we’ll be having our monthly meeting live and in person, featuring…
Massachusetts Native Stone Tool Resources
with Joe Bagley, Boston City Archaeologist
The details…
With the Covid-19 epidemic in retreat, we are returning to live meetings. This month, Boston City Archaeologist Joe Bagley will discuss his ongoing work to document local lithic resources. These stone outcrops have been used by Massachusetts Native people in the production of stone tools for thousands of years. This talk will combine geology and culture, exploring the dozens of volcanic and metamorphic processes and locations of eastern Massachusetts rhyolite, quartzite, mylonite, argillite, volcanic tuff, and other stones used for tools. Joe will discuss the diversity of stone tool forms and materials used, and will include many hand samples to view in person. There will be a brief flint knapping demonstration. Joe is working on an upcoming Northeast Lithic Resource Identification Guide publication for use by local archaeologists, geologists, and fans of stone tools.
Joe Bagley joined the City Archaeology Program in 2011 as the fourth City Archaeologist for Boston since the program started in 1983. He manages a team of archaeologists working on collections housed at the City Archaeology Laboratory in West Roxbury, regulates archaeological sites in Boston, manages Rainsford Island, and conducts community archaeology projects throughout the city with a focus on highlighting underrepresented histories. Joe earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Archaeology from Boston University and a Master’s Degree in Historical Archaeology from the University of Massachusetts in Boston. He has published two books: A History of Boston in 50 Artifacts in 2016 and Boston’s Oldest Buildings and Where to Find Them in 2021. He specializes in Native lithic analysis and historic ceramics.