Encore: Cedar Rapids' Beer Cave
July 27, 2016
Hosted by Dr. Joseph Schuldenrein
[Download MP3] [itunes] [Bookmark Episode]
Guest Information
Episode Description
About a year ago the Iowa Dept. of Transportation discovered a sinkhole near Interstate 380 in Cedar Rapids. They found the sinkhole was the site of a 150 year old beer cave. Back in the 1850s Cedar Rapids built extensive beers caves to age and store beer under the breweries. The caves were abandoned following Prohibition. While the interstate has not been damaged, the Iowa DOT is planning to seal up the cave. The space is partially filled with debris and poses safety risks to people. Most importantly, officials don’t want the sinkhole to get bigger. Researching Iowa's beer caves is exciting because it enables archaeologists to study the community’s past. The brewery caves, the history of their use, and their construction provides information about 19th century industries, immigrant lifeways , and the ongoing social and the economic evolution of Iowan cities. For our interview today, the Indy team is joined by Brennan Dolan, from Iowa DOT, to tell us about the project.
Indiana Jones: Myth, Reality and 21st Century Archaeology
Archives Available on VoiceAmerica Variety Channel
This show targets an audience interested in archaeology. It explores myths surrounding this exotic, often misunderstood field and acquaints listeners with the contemporary practice of unearthing the human past. Themes range from Dr. Schuldenrein’s own “Indiana Jones”-like adventures in the land of the Bible to his team’s archaeological forensics effort to unearth Kurdish mass graves in Iraq. That undertaking helped convict Saddam Hussein in 2006. Topical issues contribute to the evolution vs. creationism controversy based on updated fossil records and innovative DNA studies. An episode highlights the main funding source for archaeology in the U.S. (Hint: the oil and gas industry). Experts reveal the latest high-tech approaches to buried archaeological landscapes that provide clues to understanding climate change, past, present and future.
Dr. Joseph Schuldenrein
Joseph Schuldenrein is president and senior scientist of Geoarcheology Research Associates (GRA) in Yonkers, New York. He has been a Visiting Scholar at New York University since 1996. His professional expertise is in geoarchaeology, a sub-discipline that introduces earth science techniques to traditional archaeological excavation. Joe has worked extensively across North America and the Old World. He received his doctorate in 1983 at the University of Chicago. Recent research in North America has concentrated on the urban archaeology of New York City and Native American landscapes of the Atlantic Coast. Joe’s projects in South Asia have ranged from Human Origins investigations to the beginnings of civilization of the Indus Valley. During the Iraq war Dr. Schuldenrein’s team helped direct a forensic archaeological mission in support of the Saddam Hussein prosecution. His newest venture is an assessment of Cultural Heritage Sites in war-torn Afghanistan (2011). Dr. Schuldenrein publishes widely in numerous archaeological and geological journals. He is a reviewer for American Antiquity, Geoarchaeology, and Quaternary Science Reviews. He has acted as Principal Investigator or Consulting Scientist for grants awarded by the National Science Foundation, Wenner-Gren, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Institute for Aegean Prehistory. Dr. Schuldenrein has been interviewed for PBS, as well as national and regional TV and radio outlets over the past 30 years.
