Todd J. Braje - Islands through Time: A Human and Ecological History of Californias Northern Channel Islands

Todd J. Brajeis professor of anthropology at San Diego State University with specialties in long-term human-environmental interactions, the archaeology of maritime societies, historical ecological approaches to understanding coastal hunter-gatherer-fishers, and the peopling of the New World. Braje has conducted archaeological and historical ecological research on the Northern Channel Islands for nearly 15 years and worked at sites ranging from 12,000-year-old lithic workshops to 19th-century Chinese abalone fishing camps. Braje has published two other books on Channel Islands archaeology and history, most recently Shellfish for the Celestial Empire: The Rise and Fall of Commercial Abalone Fishing in California(2016).

Jon M. Erlandsonis the executive director of University of Oregons Museum of Natural and Cultural History. He has worked on the Channel Islands for nearly 40 years and studies the origins and development of maritime societies, human dispersals, the peopling of the Americas, historical ecology, and the history of human impacts on marine fisheries and ecosystems. His field research focuses on Californias Channel Islands, but he has also worked extensively along Californias mainland coast, the Oregon coast, in Alaska, and in Iceland. Erlandson has published 20 books and more than 300 scholarly articles. In 2013, Erlandson was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Torben C. Rickis curator of Human Environmental Interactions and North American Archaeology in the Department of Anthropology at the Smithsonians National Museum of Natural History. Ricks research focuses on the archaeology and historical ecology of coastal and island peoples, especially on the North American Pacific and Atlantic coasts. He has active field projects on Californias Channel Islands, Santa Barbara County mainland, and the Chesapeake Bay that investigate ancient and modern human environmental interactions. Rick (along with Leslie A. Reeder-Myers) recently published Deception Island: Archaeology ofAnyapax, Anacapa Island, California(2018).

W e are grateful for contributions to the book by Courtney H. Buchanan, Alicia Cordero, Sue Diaz, Kristina M. Gill, Michael Glassow, Amy Gusick, Courtney A. Hofman, Kristin M. Hoppa, Martha Jaimes, Mena Moreno, Daniel Muhs, Jan Ward Olmstead, Jennifer Perry, Leslie Reeder-Myers, Deborah Sanchez, Georgiana Sanchez, Diane Valenzuela, Veronica Vasquez, Ren L. Vellanoweth, and Luhui Isha Waiya.

We are indebted to a variety of friends, colleagues, and mentors who have helped shape our thinking about Channel Islands archaeology, ecology, and natural history. At Channel Islands National Park, we thank Lulis Cuevas, Russell Galipeau, Kristin M. Hoppa, Ann Huston, Laura Kirn, Ethan McKinley, Kelly Minas, Don Morris, Mark Senning, Stephen Whitaker, and Ian Williams for all their help with field research and their willingness to share their vast knowledge of the Channel Islands. At the Nature Conservancy, Jennifer Baker, Christie Boser, David Dewey, John Knapp, Scott Morrison, Eamon OByrne, and John Randall have been instrumental in our research on Santa Cruz Island and for interpreting Channel Islands ecology. At the Smithsonian, we thank Terry Chesser, Rob Fleischer, Jesus Maldonado, Kathy Ralls, and Scott Sillett for their collaborations on island projects. At the University of Oregon, several academic generations of graduate students have contributed to a deeper understanding of the islands history, including Amira Ainis, Scott Byram, Molly Casperson, Deana Dartt, Eric Forgeng, Tracy Garcia, Nicolas Jew, Tony Largaespada, Rob Losey, Susan Norris, Mark Tveskov, Ren Vellanoweth, Lauren Willis, and Jason Younker.

One of the things that makes the Channel Islands so special is the rich community of researchers who work on their cultural and natural history. We thank all our friends and colleagues who have helped shape our thinking, including Jeanne Arnold, Julie Bernard, Paul Collins, Roger Colten, Robert DeLong, Kate Faulkner, Lynn Gamble, Kristina Gill, Mike Glassow, Anthony Graesch, Amy Gusick, Dan Guthrie, Courtney Hofman, Brian Holguin, Chris Jazwa, John Johnson, Doug Kennett, Mike Macko, Sharon Melin, Dan Muhs, Kathryn McEachern, Ken Niessen, Seth Newsome, Peter Paige, Jennifer Perry, Leslie Reeder-Myers, Dan Richards, Sam Spaulding, Heather Thakar, Jan Timbrook, Larry Wilcoxon, and many more, who we have met on boat rides to the islands, at island research stations, or at the California Islands Symposium.

We thank the members of the Chumash community who have worked with us or advised us over the years as consultants, colleagues, and tribal monitors. This includes Alicia Cordero, Sue Diaz, David Domingues, Mark Alow Garcia, Quintan Shup Garcia, Larry Goose Garnica, Brian Holguin, Martha Jaimes, Kote Lotah, Mena Moreno, Jan Ward Olmstead, Paula Pugh, Alan Salazar, Deborah Sanchez, Georgiana Sanchez, John Ruiz, Alan Thiessen, Julie Tumamait-Stenslie, Gil Unzueta, Diane Valenzuela, Veronica Vasquez, Matt Vestuto, Luhui Isha Waiya, and many others. We also thank the Santa Ynez Band of the Chumash Indians Elders Council for their continued support through the years. We thank them for their willingness to work with us and share knowledge of their rich cultural heritage and the legacy of the Chumash past, present, and future on the Channel Islands.

Finally, we thank our families for their support, especially while we were away on the islands.