An Archaeological Curation-Needs Assessment for Fort Irwin, Naval Air Station, North Island, Edwards Air Force Base, Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms

Under the agreement of the Legacy Resource Management Program, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mandatory Center of Expertise for the Curation and Management of Archaeological Collections (MCX-CMAC), located at the St. Louis District, conducted an investigation of all archaeological materials and associated records in the care of NAS North Island, Edwards Air Force Base, Fort Irwin, and MCAGCC Twentynine Palms from July 22, 1992, to October 19, 1992, and September 16-20, 1993. The inspections of 18 separate repositories, including four military installations in 2 different states, produced evidence documenting widespread deterioration and neglect of many of the Air Force, Army, and Navy archaeological collections. None of the 18 repositories are in full compliance with 36 CFR Part 79 (Curation of Federally-Owned and Administered Archaeological Collections) and one-half were not designed for, or adapted to, the requirements of a modem curation center.