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Kent Vickery: A Career in Ohio Valley Archaeology and Archaeological Training at UC
by Kate Harrell
Concluding a 33+ year career at the University of Cincinnati, Dr. Kent Vickery retired at the end of the Fall quarter 2003. Dr. Vickery was the Ohio Valley Archaeology specialist in the Department, with research interests in Archaic, Adena, Hopewell and Fort Ancient culture sites and assemblages. Because our immediate prehistoric locale was attractive to personages as pivotal to our national identity as Thomas Jefferson, Ohio Valley archaeology has had a long and fundamental influence on the history of the archaeological research in America.
Dr. Vickery's dedication to Ohio Valley prehistory extends well beyond the classroom. In 1975, he founded COVAS (the Central Ohio Valley Archaeological Society), a group that advocates for the recognition of our local prehistory and aspects of our historical patrimony. As a founding member of the Ohio Archaeological Council, Dr. Vickery championed a sense of urgency and concern for our endangered prehistoric sites and resources in the face of expanding populations and industry. His expertise in the study of Archaic Period hunters and gatherers--a constellation of early societies that foreshadow and likely encompasses the Mound Builders--was also honored this year by an official resolution from this statewide council.
Here at UC, Dr. Vickery participated in the founding of the Historic Preservation Certificate Program in the early 1980's, an interdisciplinary program unique for its time. Students across several disciplines, especially in the Departments of History, Anthropology, and DAAP Architecture benefited from his guidance.
I had the opportunity to sit down and speak with Dr. Vickery about his career at the University and about his thoughts concerning anthropology and archaeology. As a student, I was impressed by Dr. Vickery's enthusiastic attitude and commitment to education. One of my favorite comments he made was in reference to our department: "We're small but we're mighty. There are a lot of top notch scholars in the department"-- a sentiment indicative of Dr. Vickery's loyalty to the department and his respect for his colleagues as well as the students.
What have you enjoyed most about teaching at the University of Cincinnati?
"The accomplishments of my students…that's what I'm most proud of, anyway. It's very rewarding to see someone in whose career I had a part, maybe a minor part, but a part nonetheless and then they go on and distinguish themselves in a positive way in the discipline. I think that is very rewarding. I certainly enjoy seeing them get jobs…[to] advance the discipline."
Has there been any one aspect of teaching that you have learned the most from?
"You learn a lot. There's a type of fallacy [which states] that a professor is supposed to know more than a student. For example, the thesis chair is a guide. They have enough basic knowledge to say, ok you need to check this journal-they guide the student into avenues of research that then surpasses, sometimes by several magnitudes, what the prof actually knows. So in the process of guiding students through writing a thesis, they produce something and you look at it and you say, 'oh wow, I didn't know that!' And students bring different perspectives to the discipline."
What advice would you give to students who are interested in studying archaeology?
"Go for an MBA! (laughs) Get a grounding in the English language, know how to write, know how to think critically, get statistics, get some geology background, get a good solid grounding in anthropology, choose a university with a good representation of all four subjects- linguists are hard to find- find them anyway, take a diversity of courses, go to lots of conferences, meet lots of people, publish, get people to know who you are. At a conference, find the most interesting person you can find and whittle your way into having dinner with them."
What do you think the future holds for archaeology?
"DNA. I think that a lot of the really thorny questions that we have, a lot of things that we really do not know, the answer lies in DNA. For example, we don't jack about domestication of the gourd. It came from West Africa and somebody, somewhere, at some time domesticated it in the New World-and who and where and when, we don't know. Tobacco is another example. We've assumed for a long time that tobacco was domesticated somewhere in Mexico, maybe the coast, wherever. You will soon get a whole host of answers to questions, like, who was here first- the Caucasian or the Asiatic tribes. All kinds of controversies and speculations are going to come down to DNA. [The discipline] is getting more and more precise."
Anything else?
"Things to do to enhance your knowledge and gain many different perspectives on human variability: Read- read often and read lots. Develop an appreciation for data. Theory is nice and we need advances in theory to advance the discipline. But theory is a vacuum without data to back it up. Appreciate data, acquire data, analyze data."
Dr. Vickery is currently living with his wife, Karen, in Colorado. He stated that he plans to continue pursing research concerning the Archaic peoples of America. The Anthropology Department, as well as archaeological organizations in the Cincinnati area and the State of Ohio, will continue to realize the legacy of Dr. Vickery's research and dedication to education.
