Uncovering and Interpreting the Acequia Madre at Mission Santa Clara de Asís

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Roads, Rivers, Rails and Trails (and more): The Archaeology of Linear Historic Properties" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Urban archaeology is challenging, especially when discontinuous projects, separated by both space and time, affect the same linear resource. Such is the case at Mission Santa Clara de Asís, which lies beneath Santa Clara University and numerous individually owned properties. For years, construction projects conducted at the university have impacted sections of the hand-dug acequia madre, or mother (main) canal and attached “feeder ditches”, clearly associated with the ongoing operations of the mission. In 2019, archaeologists on a neighboring property uncovered what is currently interpreted to be a mission holding pond or reservoir. This reservoir and acequia were both constructed, in part, to supply water to the former agricultural fields and orchard. Despite being several hundred meters apart, these sections of canal and newly-discovered reservoir highlight the importance of wide-area exposure, enhanced horizontal control, and emphasis on the discussion of broader cultural landscapes when designing effective cultural resource mitigation programs.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Roads, Rivers, Rails and Trails (and more): The Archaeology of Linear Historic Properties   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 234