Site Stewardship

THE STANISLAUS NATIONAL FOREST NEEDS YOUR HELP!

The Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 (ARPA) prohibits the excavation, removal, alteration, and the defacement of any archaeological resource located on public or land without a permit from the land managing agency.owever, over the last few years, the Forest has been the victim of many looting and vandalism incidences. These include:

• Four prehistoric sites consisting of bedrock mortars, flakes, and living areas have been looted by people digging and stealing artifacts.
• A rail car associated with the West Side Lumber Company was destroyed and its two trucks stolen.
• Bottles were stolen from a dump associated with an old cabin.
• Trumbull Peak Lookout vandalized by spray paint.
• Linkletter Lodge vandalized and items from within the lodge stolen. In 2001, someone started a fire on the balcony and nearly burned the lodge down.
• American Camp Guard Station nearly destroyed by vandalism.

THESE PEOPLE ARE STEALING THE HISTORY THAT BELONGS TO US ALL. We are doing all we can to prevent such problems, including increased patrols, using surveillance cameras in known "hot spots", and aggressively prosecuting those responsible. BUT WE CAN'T DO IT ALONE!

Please be our ears and eyes while you visit the Forest. Notify the Forest Service of any recent looting or vandalism.If the damage seems recent and no one is in the area, back out of the area and notify the Forest Service as soon as possible.We will take it from there.lease note that it is important that you do not walk around the site because you could be destroying valuable information, such as footprints and tire tracks, which could assist the Forest Service on identifying the looter or vandal.

If the act is in progress, follow these rules: if you can safely take photographs of the action, photographs of the vehicle and license plate, and can write down a description of what you saw, the person, and the license plate, then do so. However, NEVER APPROACH the person while they are in the act or try to detain the individual when they are leaving the vicinity. These people are often armed and should be considered dangerous. If you do not feel comfortable in the situation, then leave and notify the Forest Service as soon as possible.emember, heritage resources are important, but they are not worth your life!

The Stanislaus National Forest has a commitment to heritage resource protection. The Forest is seeking volunteers to become site stewards. With training, site stewards would monitor archaeological and historic sites to create a presence to prevent vandalism and to record and report these activities when they occur.or more information, see the Site Monitoring Program or contact one of the Heritage Staff at the office nearest you.