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Show by Bill Salt Lake City media had a field day in the past week reporting on Anasazi Digs, a private business owned by Howard Ransdell. Ransdell, who owns private land in the bottom ofMontezuma Canyon, has created a private business that allows people to dig in Anasazi ruins on his private land. The fee for a day of digging is $2,500 and the digger will be able to take home whatever artifacts are found during the days dig. All digs will be under the auspices of a trained archaeologist and apparently, Boyle only on ground that is at risk of erosion. The Salt Lake media nounced the admittedly decon- troversial plan, but unfortunately they misreported a number ofissues related to the controversy. Representative of the problem is a KSL-Tstory in which they stated it would cost $25,000 a day to dig and the graphic accompanying the story was headlined "Stolen Anasazi Heritage. Of course, KSL missed the price by 10 times. In addition, state law states that articles from private land cannot be V deadline for the December 19 & 26 The edition is Friday, flL December 14. The Sqn Juan Record will be closed December 24-2- for tember 11 terrorist attacks, the current war in Afghanistan, or BYlTs status with the Bowl Championship Series. The San Juan Record office has made a few changes in anticipation of the holiday season. In addition to the regular deadline for the December 19 paper, the deadline for the December 26 San Juan Record is also this Friday, December 14. The December 26 paper will be printed early. As a result, area residents may need to make advance plans. 1 The semesters Convocations lecture series at Southern Utah University concluded on December 6 with the traditional Grace A. Tanner Distinguished Facility Lecture. The recipient of the honor is Professor Jim Aton, of SUlTs language and literature department. The title of his presentation "12,000 Years on the San Juan River was based on his recently-publishe- d book, "River Flowing from the Sunrise, for which he won a major national award from the Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association. The Distinguished lecture .and reception are funded by The Grace A. Tanner Center, under the direction of Dr. Eugene Woolf. Aton also received a $1,500 honorarium. His lecture will be printed, bound and placed in the Special Collection of the SUU Library. Robert Aton and McPherson, were named the recipients, last summer, of the "Norris and Carol Hundley Award for the "most distinguished book on any historical subject. McPherson is a history professor at the Blanding campus of the College of East- Sunrise is a work of environ- - DO YOU HAVE ADEQUATE INSULATION? UY YOUR HEAYING COSTS! i-- jA 3 . ' . -- ,. r $9 PER BAG W ' CELLULOSE INSULATION Page 7 mental history (a fairly recent field of study which examines the interaction of people and land - past and present), telling the story of Hie lower San Juan River in southeastern Utah. Aton had a few inspirations for writing "River Flowing from the Sunrise. While completing research on river explorer John Wesley Powell, Aton studied through a National Endowment for the Hu- manities (NEH) grant with Donald Worster, a leading expert in environmental history at the University of Kansas. Aton is also an avid river runner who has a singular fondness for the San Juan. One of the most intriguing discoveries Aton says he made while writing the book is the influence of native cultures, from agricultural methods to city building, upon the land and river. "The most profound effects, however, have come from grazing and dams, Aton states. Aton has been river running since 1983. In the course of writing his book, he made some 30 trips, lasting six to eight days each, on the San Juan. Having written the ern Utah. book, he admits that he sees River Flowing from the the river differently now. the holiday season. :1h?Kr-v- ,-, - SUU distinguished faculty lecture on San Juan River - Record will close December 24 to 25 and December. 31 to January 1 for the holiday and December 31 THE SAN JUAN RECORD Wednesday, December 12, 2001 - In addition to printing a week early, the San Juan 5 - January stolen by the landowner. It is a controversial plan, however ofall the alternatives that could happen to Anasazi ruins on private land, this is one of the most responsible. For years, local landowners have carried the financial burden of the extensive Anasazi ruins on their properties. Regardless of how one feels about it, it should be reported responsibly, something that the Salt Lake media including television, print and radio failed to do. A Salt Lake Tribune article quotes Ray Matheny, an professor of archaeology at BYU, as stating, "Its the most sickening thing I have ever run across. Apparently, he has failed to remember the Sep- INCLUDING BLOWER Nearly every beach, cliff face, or bend in the river has a story behind it. In the last pages of the book, Aton put himself in a position that he says most of his historian colleagues avoid - that is, he made predictions about the San Juan Rivers future. "I believe it will definitely remain a federal river, protected and maintained by federal enagencies, the vironmentalist says. "And I think the Son Juan country will always be Utah's Indian country. The Navajo, Utes and Piutes have inhabited the area for at least 500 years. "The Navajo, in particular, Aton adds, "have the largest self-declar- ed say of all the tribes in the rivers destiny. Aton hopes that his research will inspire other environmental histories of rivers, as there havent been many done, he says. "I hope (it) gives different interested groups a new perspective on the San Juan River and other southwest rivers, as they are the lifeblood of the West. 4 We will be closed December 24 - 25 and December 31 - January Mevuf Qwuitmai. and JfapfUf New Ijea ! SAN JUAN BUILDING SUPPLY 1050 South Main St Blanding mmm r-- Tie J 435-678-20- 00 1 PAULR. MACDONALD D.D.S. 401 South Main Blanding, UT 84511 43 5I678I281 5 asrr L |