Historical Archaeological Investigations at Dam Construction Camps in Central Arizona: First Annual Report

In June 1986, the Bureau of Reclamation awarded a three-year contract for historical archaeological studies as part of the mitigation program for the Central Arizona Project's Regulatory Storage Division, designated as Plan 6. This study focuses on reconstructing the social history of the workers and their families who lived in several temporary dam construction camps dating from the 1890s to 1940s. The first chapter discusses experience in managing the study during the first year of the project. The methods used to pursue archaeological fieldwork, laboratory analysis and historical research are described and evaluated in subsequent chapters. In the final chapter preliminary research implications are summarized for each of the four research themes: (1) camp demography, (2) daily living conditions in the camps, (3) the work environment and (4) relationships among the many ethnic groups that came together in the camps.