Dr. Heather Rockwell

Areas of Expertise

• North American archaeology, historic preservation, geographic information systems, hunter-gatherers

Education

• B.A. in anthropology, Beloit College (2008)
• M.A. in anthropology, University of Tulsa (2010)
• Ph.D. in anthropology, University of Wyoming (2014)

View My CV

What's My Why?

My students are a huge part of my research team. From conducting backcountry archaeological fieldwork in Maine to conducting geophysical surveys at colonial area homes to analyzing artifacts in our lab, they participate in every part of my research process. An archaeologist by training, my work focuses on the first indigenous people who colonized North America over 13,000 years ago. I want to better understand how these communities settled this landscape and how they structured their communities.

Professional Experience

I have worked in a variety of historic preservation-related workplaces, from private cultural resource management firms to the federal government, and before joining Salve served as the deputy state historic preservation officer in Wyoming. I have had the opportunity to conduct archaeological in locations across the country and internationally. My current project is located in the North Maine Woods, a forested wilderness of over 3.5 million square miles.

Media Coverage

Boston Globe, WJAR News 10, NECN, New Hampshire Public Radio, ArchPod.net.

Selected Publications

Mackie, Madeline E., and Heather Rockwell. "Beyond market share: Accounting for doctoral program size in recent rates of anthropology faculty job placement." Plos one 18.5 (2023): e0285330.

Kitchel, Nathaniel R., Heather M. Rockwell, and Amanda Barker. "Red chert quarries in the Munsungun Lake formation: Moving beyond Norway Bluff." PaleoAmerica 6.2 (2020): 169-180.

Rockwell, Heather .M., Nathaniel R. Kitchel, and Heather McKee. "The Stevens Site: A Late Archaic Quarry Related Occupation in the Northern Interior of Maine. Northeast Anthropology. 93.94 (2024): 73-92.

Rockwell, Heather .M. and Nathaniel R. Kitchel, "Ice Age Origins." Etc. The Magazine of the Redwood Library and Athenaeum. Spring 2024 Issue: 2-4.