New Go Fund Me Project
to excavate the Howard House storm cellar!
Robert E. Howard House Go Fund Me Project
In an effort to shed more light on Robert E. Howard the man, Project Pride, the owners of the Robert E. Howard House and Museum are partnering with the National Park Service (NPS) and the Southeastern Archaeology Foundation (SEAF) to sponsor an archaeological excavation at the house where Howard grew up, lived and died, and wrote his powerful and influential fiction.
The Howard House was placed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 1994 and today it has been restored to its period appearance in the 1930s. The Robert E. Howard House and Museum is now a tourist destination for countless fans from around the world who make the pilgrim to Cross Plains to see the place where whole worlds were created in the mind of one man. It is also the site for the annual gathering of fans known as Howard Days on the second weekend in June.
At the Howard Days gathering in 2017, Floyd Carter, Jr. who was a member of the family who purchased the home in 1970, told several Howard scholars and attendees about the presence of a storm cellar behind the house that was now filled in and buried. Carter suggested that there was a lot of material, possibly from the Howards, buried in the cellar that might be recovered if it were excavated. NPS archaeologist and Howard scholar Jeffrey Shanks was present and talked with Mr. Carter at length about his memories of the cellar. This led to discussions with Project Pride about the possibility of a professional archaeological excavation to see what could found. Because the Museum has only a handful of items from the Howards, recovering any artifacts that date from the period when Robert and his family lived there would add significantly to the collection.
The Project:
In January, the Project Pride Board of Directors approved Shanks's proposal for the NPS to uncover and excavate the storm cellar, process and analyze the artifacts recovered, and write the official report. The excavation will also be an educational opportunity for the Cross Plains community and local schools to teach about archaeology and the importance of preserving our shared cultural heritage.
Since the Howard House is on the National Register of Historic Places and one of the missions of the National Park Service is to provide technical assistance to NRHP sites, Shanks was able to secure funding to cover the salary costs for himself and another NPS archaeologist, Thadra Stanton, to carry out the project, including excavation, artifact analysis, and report write-up -- a cost of approximately $20,000. Project Pride and the Cross Plains community will be donating lodging for the archaeological team as well as some supplies and much-needed volunteer labor. Noted Howard experts from The Robert E. Howard Foundation will be present to assist as well.
The remaining project costs are the travel expenses for the team and salary for an NPS Archaeological Technician to assist Shanks and Stanton. These costs are estimated at $3800. Shanks approached the Southeastern Archaeology Foundation (SEAF), a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation that assists and supports NPS archaeological projects, to assist in securing the remaining needed funds. In order to do so, SEAF has launched this GoFundMe crowd-sourcing campaign to raise those funds.
This is where you come in! If you are fan of Robert E. Howard and his stories or just support archaeology and cultural resource preservation, we can use your financial assistance and generosity. Because SEAF is a 501(c)3 any contribution you make is tax deductible. We are offering several donation levels with different gifts including the official project T-Shirt and copies of the forthcoming archaeological report. You can even join the team in Cross Plains and participate in the excavation!
NOTE: Any funds received in excess of the required amount will be donated to Project Pride to help with their ongoing costs in maintaining the the Robert E. Howard House and Museum.
Robert E. Howard House Go Fund Me Project
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