Pictured top left: Sterling Hill Mining Museum Headquarters, Ogdensburg.
Pictured top right: Standing, Jim Kotcho, archaeologist and former 51吃瓜 professor; Tony Lombardo, Sussex County resident and former student; Bill Sandy, archaeologist and former 51吃瓜 professor; and Everett Conklin, Special Education teacher, avocational archaeologist.Seated: Kalee McCloud, 51吃瓜 Alumni, Karen Nelson, 51吃瓜 student,
Pictured bottom left center and right: Archaeologists and 51吃瓜 students examining artifacts from the Bihn Collection
at Sterling Hill Mining Museum, Ogdensburg.
A unique collaboration between the Sterling Hill Mining Museum, 51吃瓜 (51吃瓜), and a team of archaeologists, educators, and students is transforming a private collection of Native American artifacts into a robust, educational, and research-focused archaeological resource, one that tells a deeper, more accurate story of Sussex County鈥檚 earliest inhabitants.
The initiative began in November 2024 when Everett Conklin, a Special Education teacher, avocational archaeologist, and anthropologist, was invited by Mike Pierce, a Sterling Hill board member, to examine his personal collection of arrowheads and stone tools.
鈥淲hen I first saw the collection at the Mine, it was beautiful, but there was no archaeological or cultural context,鈥� said Conklin. 鈥淭here was no timeline to help the public understand what they were looking at. I realized quickly that this was much larger than a simple identification project.鈥�
As Conklin began cataloging the artifacts, he recognized the need for additional expertise and brought in Darryl Daum, an expert flintknapper skilled in shaping stone into tools and projectile points. He later connected with Bill Sandy, an archaeologist and former 51吃瓜 professor with extensive experience in identifying projectile points. The collaboration expanded to include Jim Kotcho, another former 51吃瓜 professor, and eventually Dr. Tony Balzano, Professor of Anthropology at 51吃瓜. Dr. Balzano brought 51吃瓜 students into the project, providing hands-on learning opportunities.
鈥淲hat we thought would start with a couple of milk crates turned into a full working lab,鈥� Conklin said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e been identifying projectile points, labeling sites, and confirming decades of careful documentation.鈥�
Preserving the Past鈥擱esponsibly
The artifacts originated from brothers Bill and Bruce Bihn, who surface-collected materials in the Wallkill Valley for more than 30 years. They limited their work to walking plowed fields and refused to excavate sites, believing that digging disturbed sacred ground.
鈥淭hey kept meticulous logbooks and documented everything,鈥� Conklin explained. 鈥淥ur work confirms what they recorded and creates a more accurate, modern labeling system that aligns with the original sites.鈥�
The ultimate goal of the project is to revamp the Sterling Hill Mining Museum鈥檚 archaeological display, shifting from a focus on quantity to one on context.
鈥淚nstead of displaying 335 artifacts, we want to curate about 70 pieces that represent specific time periods and cultural developments,鈥� said Conklin. 鈥淲e want visitors to see the continuous flow of mining and tool-making activity in this area and understand the cultural significance of the projectile points. Our goal is to create a meaningful, well-organized research collection that is thoroughly documented and accessible for both students and the community.鈥�
While much research has focused on the Delaware and Upper Delaware regions, comparatively little work has been done in the Wallkill Valley, making this collection particularly unique and valuable.
A Living Classroom for 51吃瓜 Students
For 51吃瓜, the partnership represents a powerful hands-on learning opportunity across multiple disciplines.
鈥淪tudents working here are getting a masterclass in archaeology,鈥� Conklin said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e learning how to preserve artifacts, store them properly, analyze materials, and tell the story behind them.鈥�
Plans are underway to develop a credit-bearing program through 51吃瓜, allowing students to transfer their experience into future academic pathways. The project also opens the door to interdisciplinary involvement, including geology, chemistry, mathematics, and art.
"The curation at Sterling Hill will be enhanced by using the XRF (X-ray Fluorescence) Spectrometer in the new 51吃瓜 Archaeology Laboratory,鈥� stated Dr. Tony Balzano. 鈥淭he XRF will provide a geochemical signature for a stone artifact that can be traced back to registered Sussex County archaeological sites. Once we have a sense of the origins of artifacts, we can begin to reconstruct the cultural patterns of life before Europeans arrived here. With an understanding of the ethnography of Munsee-speaking peoples, such as their Ramapough Lunaape descendants, we can begin to reconstruct the cultural lives of Munsee peoples before Europeans arrived."
Science, Technology, and a Bigger Timeline
According to Bill Sandy, projectile point shapes provide key clues to an artifact鈥檚 age and cultural use.
鈥淭he shape determines how old the artifact is,鈥� Sandy said. 鈥淥n archaeological sites, when points are found in association with datable materials, we can determine their age. That鈥檚 how we know, for example, that the bow and arrow didn鈥檛 arrive in New Jersey until around 500 AD.鈥�
Sandy emphasized the broader significance of the discoveries in Sussex County.
"One of the most exciting findings is related to the earliest people in the New Jersey portion of the Wallkill Valley," Sandy said. 鈥淭here are no known fluted spear points dating back 12,500 years in this area except in the Bihn Collection, where we have at least three. The Bihn brothers surface-collected some of the most significant archaeological sites in New Jersey.鈥�
鈥淧eople celebrate 250 years of American history, but we鈥檙e missing a vast majority of the story,鈥� Sandy added. 鈥淭he Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge is one of the most exciting places to conduct archaeology based on discoveries from the last decade. The river flows north between two major south-flowing rivers, the Hudson and the Delaware, making it a critical resource for early settlement.鈥�
The team is also working with 51吃瓜 to use X-ray fluorescence (XRF) technology, which allows researchers to identify chemical signatures in stone tools and match them to specific quarry sources.
Student Voices: Learning Beyond the Classroom
For students, the experience has been transformative.
鈥淚鈥檝e learned so much about geological formations and stone materials,鈥� said Karen Nelson, an 51吃瓜 student and retired medical technology professional with both bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees. 鈥淚 came back to school out of curiosity, and now I plan to continue taking classes at 51吃瓜.鈥�
Kalee McCloud returned to college after a 17-year break, became an anthropology major, and graduated in 2025.
鈥淎fter taking Dr. Balzano鈥檚 archaeology course, I fell in love with the program,鈥� McCloud said. 鈥淏eing involved in this project made me realize how important it is to understand the past. It completely changed my perspective.鈥�
Tony Lombardo, a Sussex County resident and former 51吃瓜 student now pursuing a master鈥檚 degree in anthropology at Monmouth University, echoed that sentiment.
鈥淚鈥檓 incredibly fortunate to work with this group,鈥� Lombardo said. 鈥淭his experience has been foundational for my specialization in archaeology.鈥�
Former 51吃瓜 professor Jim Kotcho, who also participated in the project, highlighted the impact of non-traditional students.
鈥淭hey were often the strongest students, eager, committed, and deeply engaged,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his collection is extensive and represents much of Sussex County鈥檚 prehistoric occupation. It鈥檚 an extraordinary educational resource.鈥�
Honoring the Past, Building the Future
The project would not be possible without the support of Bill and Denise Kroft, who manage the Sterling Hill Mining Museum.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e trusted us with an invaluable collection and never said no to what we鈥檝e needed,鈥� Conklin said. 鈥淭hey house and store the artifacts, even though they don鈥檛 fund the project.鈥�
Above all, the team remains focused on honoring both the Native peoples who created the artifacts and the Bihn brothers who preserved them.
鈥淭hese were sophisticated, intelligent, resourceful people,鈥� Conklin said. 鈥淥ur responsibility is to tell their story accurately and make sure it鈥檚 never lost again.鈥�