The Pennsylvania Archaeological Council will be hosting a research symposium on Friday, April 10, 2026, at the Society of Pennsylvania Archaeology 95th annual meeting in DuBois, PA.
The theme of the symposium will be “New Perspectives and Research on Native American Lifeways in the Upper Ohio River Valley (1050-1630 AD)”.
Those wishing to participate in the symposium should submit a paper title and an abstract of 150 words or less by March 2, 2026 to Amanda Filmyer (afilmyer@iup.edu), Sarah Neusius (sraahneusius@gmail.com), and Paul Raber (praber@heberlingassociates.com).
Papers are limited to 20 minutes and must relate to some aspect of the theme stated above.
The PAC symposium committee will evaluate each submission and notify the senior author by email of acceptance and/or any recommended changes based on the nature of the material. If needed, presenters can be granted an honorarium of $100 to defray the costs of travel and board. The PAC symposium committee plans to publish an edited volume or a thematic journal issue based on the results of the symposium. General queries may be sent to Amanda Filmyer (afilmyer@iup.edu).
Symposium Abstract: Beginning in the mid-twentieth century, excavations conducted by the Carnegie, academic institutions, and SPA chapters throughout the Upper Ohio River Valley defined a variety of cultural traditions that illuminated the diversity and complexity of Native American lifeways during the Late Precontact period (1050-1630 AD). Despite the abundance of archaeological data, studies on this region and time period suffer from an overreliance on cultural history paradigms, inaccessibility to gray literature, and a lack of publications that synthesize new archaeological data and interpretations with those introduced over 50 years ago. The goal of this symposium is to revisit the Late Precontact Period of the Upper Ohio River Valley by presenting previously unpublished archaeological data and analyses that add to the understanding of this period through the application of new technologies and interpretive
perspectives.
