**ARCHAEOLOGY AT HOME: A PARTNERSHIP IN PENSACOLA FLORIDA**

Judith A. Bense

**Introduction**

There is something very special about an archaeological site. Perhaps it
is the silence surrounding the artifacts which once were a part of life.
Perhaps it is the recognition of our own mortality and the inevitable
loss of context of things that are important to us and that identify us
as individuals and a society. Most people generally understand that an
archaeologist is trained to decipher the material from sites to
reconstruct past ways of life. Despite this general perception, several
misunderstandings are also prevalent: 1) the most important
archaeological sites are somewhere else (Egypt, Mexico, Europe, China)
and not in the United States, 2) there is no important archaeology in
their hometown, and 3) archaeologists think the spectacular artifacts
are the most important. These misconceptions have been aggravated by the
general avoidance of the public by many American archaeologists and has
fostered an ever-increasing destruction rate of archaeological sites in
the United States.

Things are finally beginning to change as more and more archaeologists
realize that just like some natural resources, archaeological sites can
be virtually eliminated during our generation. So, on the coat tails of
the successful environmental movement, some alarmed archaeologists have
become active as our non-renewable resources are pushed up by
bulldozer\'s blades without any protection. This article presents a case
study about how a small group of alarmed people, using the organized
tactics of the friends of the environment have changed the perception
and attitudes toward archaeological sites in a community. The key to
this shift in attitude was organization, persistence and working within
the system to develop and implement local legislation and pressures
which protect and conserve archaeological sites in the Pensacola,
Florida area. As a result a mutual partnership has developed within the
community. This partnership consists of professional archaeologists, a
strong citizen advocacy group, the City of Pensacola, the media and the
historic preservation organization. This article explains how this
partnership developed, how it works and the kind of interrelationships
which sustain it. It is hoped that the realistic approach to archaeology
in Pensacola can be repeated in other communities in the United States.

**Partnership in Pensacola**

The answer to why there is a community archeology program in Pensacola
is simple: the existing well-intended but archaeologically uninformed
leadership in Pensacola was essentially destroying the heart of one of
the most significant archaeological areas in the state and was going to
continue doing it because they perceived that they were doing nothing
wrong. No one had raised a voice in protest and unless something was
done it would continue at an ever-increasing pace. Therefore, Pensacola
picked us rather than the reverse. This is our home and what happens
here to the archaeological resources on \"our watch\" is our
responsibility. However trite this sounds, it is the driving force of
the Pensacola archaeology program: either we find a way to protect
archaeological sites at the local level or they will be destroyed and we
will be at fault. By looking the other way professional and avocatioinal
archaeologists as well as the general public were allowing it to happen.
That was a poor legacy to leave for the next generation. It was
unacceptable.

Pensacola is an old town. It was a colonial military settlement
permanently established by the Spanish in 1698 and it has been occupied
ever since. The present urban core is in the same location as it has
been for over 250 years, while the remainder of the city has sprawled
into the interior and along the bays. Pensacola has a metropolitan
population of approximately 250,000 and is the regional center for West
Florida. It is located on the northern Gulf Coast of Florida out of the
high growth more tropical areas to the south. Approximately 50% of the
payroll in Pensacola is military and government related (especially
Navy) with the remainder made up of heavy industry, tourism and
retirement. The higher education institutions include Pensacola Junior
College and the University of West Florida (UWF).

In the late 1970\'s, large scale urban renewal began in Pensacola and
demolition of block after block of deteriorated buildings as well as
excavations were common place in the older areas of the city. Associated
with these activities, unfortunately, was an increasing unintended yet
devastating destruction of significant archaeological deposits from the
Indian, Colonial, and Early American occupations of Pensacola. One of
the largest building programs was \"Direction 85\" which included a 12
million dollar civic center, an 8 million dollar city hall, and a new
police station all in the downtown area. By this time, an archaeology
program was being established at the University of West Florida and
University archaeologists and students saw first hand the unintended
destruction. Despite being untrained in historic archaeology materials
and literature and no sources of funds, a core group of alarmed
professional archaeologists, historians and concerned friends of
archaeology felt forced to do something to bring this destruction under
control.

**The First Partnership**

The first partnership in the Pensacola archaeology movement was between
concerned professional and avocational archaeologists. This small group
had the simple but immediate goal of finding a way to prevent this
almost constant destruction of archaeological sites in downtown
Pensacola. These first partners developed a key ingredient of the
ensuing larger and successful archaeology movement in Pensacola. They
recognized that a confrontational approach would not be productive and
that a positive, pragmatic yet assertive approach would be the most
effective means of reaching a solution. No longer would we sit on the
sidelines and wring our hands complaining about lack of funding,
training, and the like. These partners were advocates who used pubic
pressure, negotiation, whistle blowing, and persistence to protect and
conserve archaeological resources in Pensacola.

This first partnership successfully developed and pushed through city
legislation in 1985 to protect archaeological sites on city-owned
property, in rights-of-way, and on city sponsored projects. While not
comprehensive, this accomplished the goal of protecting sites that were
being destroyed indiscriminately in the urban renewal process which was
sponsored primarily by the city. It should be noted that the
archaeological review resolution is not tailored to Pensacola, it is a
carbon copy of federal level Section 106 compliance procedures found in
the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. For further information
and background about the Pensacola archaeological review resolution
(Bense 1987).

In addition, the group approached private companies and developers
planning construction projects for which no compliance was required with
unsolicited proposals to at least survey the parcel to determine if
significant archaeological deposits were going to be damaged. If this
was the case, negotiations were held with the developer until sponsored
archaeological investigations were agreed to. The approach remained the
same: positive, pragmatic and persistent. One of these unsolicited,
non-compliance projects sponsored by the local electric utility, Gulf
Power Company, won the first Department of Interior\'s National Public
Service Award for archaeology awarded to a public utility.

**The Second Partnership**

With the passage of the archaeological review resolution the City became
the third partner in Pensacola archaeology. Compliance archaeology
projects generated by the archaeology resolution began to be regularly
performed. These projects included street improvements, affordable
housing developments, and utility improvements.

In addition, the three partners designed and implemented an
archaeological survey of the City of Pensacola using their own resources
as well as grants from private foundations. Each of the partners
contributed their share and this project exemplifies the partnership
approach to Pensacola archaeology. The University contributed the
professional archaeologist\'s salary for teaching archaeology students,
facilities and equipment. The archaeological society provided volunteer
labor and obtained a large grant from a private foundation to pay for
two trained supervisors (experienced students), supplies and report
production costs. The City paid for the costs of supervisors and
supplies for a survey of city owned property. This survey resulted in a
professional quality technical product (Bense 1989) that can be used by
City staff as well as professional archaeologists in planning and making
management decisions which could effect significant archaeological
deposits.

A fourth partner was also brought into the Pensacola archaeology
movement during the city survey: the media (see Milanich this volume for
information on using the media to educate the public about archaeology).
It was realized early on that one of the major obstacles to
archaeological site conservation was an uninformed public. While a small
group of people (less than 50 at the time) knew that Pensacola had large
areas of archaeological deposits that were generally in excellent
condition, no one else did. Therefore, a high profile public education
campaign was initiated to teach the who, what, when, where and why of
Pensacola archaeology. However, the vast majority of people do not read
books or journals and do not regularly attend classes or meetings on
archaeology. That meant that they were not going to come to us.
Therefore, we had to go to them by placing archaeology information in
the things they did read, watch and listen to, i.e. the newspaper,
television, and radio.

Subsequently, much attention and time was devoted to the media. Events
such as ground breakings, kickoffs, and press conferences became a
regular part of most archaeology projects. The press corps was
cultivated by quick leads on new discoveries and \"finds\". Articles
began to appear with increasing frequency. Editorials summarized the
articles and added credibility to archaeology, to the power structure,
as well as the general public. A weekly radio program on archaeology in
Pensacola, boradcast on the local segment of the National Public Radio
Station at the University, provided archaeological information to the
public many of whom were temporarily captive in their cars on their way
home. This public education mechanism has become a mainstay of
increasing archaeology awareness in Pensacola.

**The Final Partnership**

The last, but far from least, partner brought into active participation
in Pensacola archaeology was the local historic preservation board. This
had been a typical historic house restoration and museum-oriented
organization supported by state historic preservation funds. Its primary
missions were to prevent demolition of historic structures and establish
historic architectural districts. This had been successful and the
historic district in downtown Pensacola continues to draw over 100,000
people annually, including public school children on field trips to the
\"Old City\" of Pensacola to experience Pensacola history by viewing the
restored buildings and visiting the museums. Only one thing was missing
in this historic experience: the archaeology. Because of the combination
of an existing audience and an excellent archaeological record
containing the authentic though buried pieces of Pensacola\'s ancient
and historic past, it was decided to expose and develop the
archaeological deposits which lie just beneath the surface in the \"Old
City\".

The first step was to simply move the base of operations from the
University (located on the fringe of town) to the heart of the historic
district to establish a presence for archaeology there. The Historic
Pensacola Preservation Board (HPPB) was requested and has since provided
several field headquarters in the historic district for all archaeology
projects in the downtown area. This includes city compliance, university
field schools and youth archaeology programs.

The second step was to design a high profile public archaeology project
which focused on the Colonial Period forts which were in downtown
Pensacola. This concept resulted in a \"Colonial Archaeological Trail\"
project which was the first archaeology project to receive a special
big-ticket legislative grant from the State of Florida. The trail is now
open with three outdoor exhibits, a brochure and an Archaeology Center
in the heart of the Historic District where visitors can see artifacts
and maps from Colonial Pensacola on exhibit. Archaeology is becoming a
part of historic preservation in Pensacola. It has provided a new and
continuing source of public interest in the Historic District and now
presents the full spectrum of historical resources to the public.

**How the Partnership Method Works:**

**The Fort of Pensacola Example**

In the seemingly constant stream of city construction projects in the
historic \"Old City\" area, a large utility and street scape improvement
project was designed for several blocks which completely crossed through
the colonial fort area of Pensacola. Plans called for massive new
utilities, street surfaces, street lights, sidewalks and scores of large
trees were to be planted. In addition, much of the existing buried
utilities were to be removed and new lines were to be placed in deep
trenches. When the plans went out for bid the City Consulting
Archaeologist developed a compliance plan that began with a modest
testing of several sidewalk areas and the identification of several
areas of significant deposits which would be impacted.

On the second day of construction, as the asphalt was being removed in
an area thought to be previously disturbed, a British cannon was
discovered. The press was notified and while it was being hoisted from
the street with the cameras rolling, foundations from a colonial
building inside the 200 year old fort were exposed in the street. With
the press already there, a second story developed: the British Fort of
Pensacola. This became the largest archaeological event in Pensacola and
as more and more of the fort was exposed in the street public
fascination grew. Finally the stockade remnants and interior buildings
in the main gate area were exposed. This gate happens to be the one that
Andrew Jackson walked through to accept Florida from Spain in 1821
resulting in the first official American flag over the state. This
construction project was in the heart of Pensacola, in the street, right
next to a park, and at the foot of the largest museum in the historic
district. Public accessibility was excellent. Hundreds of people came to
watch the 200 year old archaeological site being brought into the late
20th century. People wanted maps to see how the remnants of the old fort
fit into today\'s environment. They were excited and were eager to sign
petitions to save the site for the public. The partners then went to
work.

More funding had to be secured from the city as this was an unexpected
discovery and an expensive one. The University lead the way with the
President attending a crucial budget meeting of City staff which
resulted in additional funding for the project. Scores of volunteers
from the archaeological society provided the labor and staffed an
information table for the public. This meant that the only paid staff
were three supervisors and a public tour guide. The media took to this
story and the uncovering of this piece of colonial Pensacola grew into a
national story appearing on ABC\'s Good Morning America and twice on CNN
as well as receiving extensive local coverage. A \"fort watch\" was held
by the local newspaper and several editorials appeared throughout the
duration of the project. The public and press immediately were concerned
that the City would destroy the fort and its buildings by putting a
large storm water main through it. A petition circulated to close the
street, excavate the fort, and turn it into a upscale outdoor
archaeology exhibit to be incorporate into the Colonial Archaeological
Trail. The Historic Pensacola Preservation Board immediately put the
cannon on display and pressed hard for the street closing. Regular tours
of the area incorporated the excavations and the media used the historic
preservation staff for stories and background.

The result was a typical negotiation between the partners. Each had a
range of priorities within which a plan could be acceptable; however,
the most powerful partner was now the public. The City knew that if the
site was destroyed, the public would rise up and literally storm city
hall. The public\'s interests in this case was represented by the City
Consulting Archaeologist and in the negotiations held the highest
position. The City felt pressure to keep the street in, but could avoid
impacting the site by eliminating parking and moving the street to the
far side of the right-of-way. The Preservation Board and staff requested
additional budget funds from the state for the excavation and
interpretation of the site. The press kept the pressure on.

The compromise plan was a city funded documentation and limited sampling
of the colonial features. The street design was changed to a serpentine
pattern around the intact deposits and the utility trench was placed on
the other side of the street from the fort. The City provided sturdy
filter cloth to cover the site and two feet of fill to buffer it from
impacts. The legislative delegation is now being lobbied to keep the
funds in the preservation board budget so that the excavation and
exhibit can continue. Even if it takes longer to secure the funding,
everyone knows that this site was saved because the City had
professional archaeologists on the job on their payroll and because of
the archaeological review resolution. The question of the worth of the
resolution is now answered.

Everyone came out a winner (as well as a paying partner) in this
project. The University archaeologists recovered priceless information
and protected nationally significant deposits. The City wears the white
hat because it had the leadership to have archaeologists on the job when
the construction took place and paid its way. The historic preservation
board took the lead in initiating the large funding request, providing
historical information, and exhibiting the main artifact: the cannon.
The archaeological society provided the labor, telephones, and an
information table. As a result they gained scores of new members. The
media had a field day and the reliable reporters had bylines and feature
stories for several weeks. This is how it works in Pensacola and we
handle it one project at a time giving each partner their respect yet
demanding that each shoulders their responsibility.

**Conclusion**

Pensacola archaeology is now alive and well because concerned residents
realized that it was up to them to find a way to stop the irreversible
destruction of our archaeological deposits. This is not an especially
rich, poor, big or small city. The residents here consist of the full
spectrum of American citizens. This partnership approach can be
developed between the key players in any town. The essential ingredient
is the acceptance of responsibility by the archaeological community,
both professional and avocational, that something can be done to stop
the destruction and neglect of non-renewable archaeological resources.
It is possible to mainstream archaeology. The long suit in all this is
that the public already has a natural interest in archaeology and once
educated and involved in it, they have the power to make changes (see
Pokotylo this volume for additional discussion concerning public
attitudes about archaeology). This is the key to the growing strength of
Pensacola archaeology. Now almost all of the 250,000 people living here
know that there is archaeology in Pensacola and it is a valuable
community resource. It can be managed just like other public concerns
such as water, runoff, air quality and the like. It is time to start the
involvement now before more archaeological sites are gone and we leave a
biased legacy for future generations.

**References Cited**

Bense, J. A. (1987) Development of a Management System for
Archaeological Resources in Pensacola, Florida. In Living in Cities:
Current Research in Urban Archaeology. Special Publication Series,
Number 5.

\-\-\-- (1989) The Pensacola Archaeological Survey, Technical Report,
Volumes I and II. Publication Number 1. Pensacola Archaeological
Society. Pensacola, Florida.

The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665; 80
STAT. 915; 16 U.S.C. 470) as amended by P.L. 91-243, P.L. 93-54, P.L.
94-422, P.L. 94-458, P.L. 96-199, P.L. 96-244 and 96-515.