CENTER FOR
ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH
INTRODUCTION
The Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) is a not-for-profit, educational facility dedicated to archaeological research and long-term instruction of our archaeology students. Our goal is to provide a service to the community as well as superior quality archaeological training, by furnishing the available expertise to conduct cultural resource studies in accordance with state and federal legislation. The CAR operates as a research center within California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB).
The CAR has been active in cultural resource management (CRM) in central and southern California for over 18 years, having completed more than 600 CRM projects. Our long-term and continued presence in the area ensures our availability in the event follow-up work or further consultation is necessary. Our experience and familiarity with the historical and prehistoric archaeology in the southern San Joaquin Valley, Mojave Desert, and adjacent areas provide a distinct advantage in the reliable identification and evaluation of cultural resources for purposes of compliance with applicable government regulations.
Archaeological investigations are conducted at all levels: literature surveys and field inventory (Phase I ), testing and evaluation (Phase II), and data recovery (Phase III ). We possess equipment for field and laboratory processing and usually can provide timely preliminary reports (planning letter) within one week after fieldwork is completed. A full descriptive and analytical report follows as quickly as possible, allowing for special studies (e.g., soil studies, radiocarbon assessments, botanical and faunal analyses) to be completed.
The CAR has conducted archaeological projects of various sizes and complexities for the United States Government (e.g., Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, Park Service, Department of Energy, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Navy, Fish and Wildlife Service, HUD, FHA), the State of California (e.g., Caltrans, Department of Water and Power, Department of Parks and Recreation, Department of Forestry and Fire Protection), and numerous city, county, and other local government agencies, as well as various private concerns.
The CAR possesses a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Cultural Resource Use Permit to perform archaeological work on lands administered by BLM and can quickly obtain permits for Forest Service and other federal lands as necessary.
GENERAL AREAS OF EXPERTISE
The staff of the CAR specializes in prehistoric archaeology, where the Director (Mark Q. Sutton, Ph.D.), the Associate Director (Robert E. Parr, M.S.), and the Assistant Director (Jill K. Gardner, M.A.) have their primary research interests. All three are members of the Register of Professional Archaeologists (RPA) and meet the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for professional practice. Additional professional staff are engaged as needed for specialized assignments. Our contacts enable us to procure the services of specialist in historical archaeology, history, ethnography, etc.
GEOGRAPHIC AREAS OF EXPERTISE
Our geographic area of expertise includes the central and western Great Basin and central and southern California. This includes eastern California, the Mojave Desert, the Colorado Desert, the Tehachapi Mountains, the Sierra Nevada, the Coastal and Transverse Ranges, and the San Joaquin Valley.
REPORTS
All reports are prepared in-house. We use IBM computers with WordPerfect and Microsoft Word as our primary word-processing software. Other software used to compile our reports include ArcView Geographic Information Systems, Global Positioning Systems, CorelDraw, Microsoft Excel, SPSS, etc. We also employ students skilled in graphics to produce many of our report illustrations and maps.
