In Memorium: Daniel G. Roberts

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In Memorium: Daniel G. Roberts
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Daniel G. Roberts passed away Memorial Day weekend from the effects of prostate cancer. Dan was a pioneer in the fields of cultural resource management, historical archaeology, and public archaeology. A native of Philadelphia, Dan received his B.A. from Beloit College and M.A. from Idaho State University. After completing his graduate work, he was hired in 1976 by the National Heritage Corporation of West Chester, PA, which became John Milner Associates (JMA). Dan rose from Archaeologist to Director of Cultural Resources to Vice President to President of JMA, ultimately retiring at the end of 2010. This tenure covered the formative years in CRM and Dan promoted quality scholarship and the responsibility to produce presentations and publications from CRM work, as well as the responsibility to make CRM studies accessible to the public. He directed work on a wide range of site types but is best known for his work on African American urban cemeteries, including the First African Baptist Church in Philadelphia and the African Burial Ground in New York City. Dan published in a variety of state, regional and national journals and was also the co-author of The Buried Past: An Archaeological History of Philadelphia.

Dan’s service to professional associations was unparalleled – he served as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Cultural Resources Association (ACRA) from 1995 to 2003, serving as Vice President from 1997-1998 and 2001-2003; on the Board of the Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA) from 2002-2004 and as an Associate Editor for Historical Archaeology from 1988-2004; on a variety of committees with both the SHA and the Society for American Archaeology (SAA); on the Grievance and Standards Board of the Register of Professional Archaeologists (RPA) (1991-1993); as Vice President (1997-2002) and President (1987-1989) of the Pennsylvania Archaeological Council; and as an Associate Editor for the Society for Pennsylvania Archaeology from 1988-2004. His stature in the field was such that he was selected as a Member of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation’s National Task Force on Archaeology representing the SAA, SHA, ACRA and the RPA. He is the recipient of the SAA’s Presidential Recognition Award and ACRA’s Board of Directors Award, as well as others. His commitment to public archaeology is recognized by the SHA’s award for excellence in public archaeology, which is given in his name.

While Dan’s life may have come to a close, his legacy continues. His wife B.J. Titus and his colleagues at John Milner Associates are planning a memorial service this fall. Donations in his memory may be made to either the Society for Historical Archaeology’s Daniel G. Roberts Award for Excellence in Public Historical Archaeology fund or the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.
[From the Society for Historical Archaeology Listserv, June 1, 2014.]

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20140612_inq_o-sroberts12-aDaniel G. Roberts, 66, archaeologist (Philadelphia Inquirer, June 13, 2014)
By Bonnie L. Cook, Inquirer Staff Writer
Daniel G. Roberts, 66, of Coatesville, a nationally known archaeologist, died of prostate cancer Saturday, May 24, at the Neighborhood Hospice in West Chester.

Starting in 2005, Mr. Roberts was president of John Milner Associates of West Chester, a historic preservation and cultural resources management firm.

His specialty was planning projects for culturally important sites – meshing environmental and engineering concerns with history and archaeology – and he did that in a dozen states along the Eastern seaboard.

Mr. Roberts was born in Philadelphia and raised in Glenside.

After receiving his bachelor’s degree from Beloit College and his master’s degree in anthropology from Idaho State University, he was hired in 1976 by the National Heritage Corp. of West Chester, which became John Milner Associates (JMA).

He was appointed director of JMA’s growing cultural resources department, where he developed the firm’s reputation for quality work on large-scale archaeological investigations.

He rose to vice president and then president of JMA, retiring at the end of 2010 due to illness.

Mr. Roberts emphasized scholarship and felt a responsibility to produce presentations and publications, and make them public.

He is best known for his work on African American urban cemeteries, including the First African Baptist Church Cemetery at 10th and Vine Streets.

In 1983, his firm was responsible for the recovery and analysis of the remains of 140 people who later were reburied in Delaware County.

The cemetery, dating to the first half of the 1800s, was uncovered during construction of the Center City Commuter Rail Tunnel.

Some of the deceased had ceramic plates over their stomachs and a coin placed near the head. Leather shoes were atop the coffin lid for their journey – old African customs pointing to the belief that material objects would be used in the afterlife.”I remember how respectfully the deceased were handled,” said his wife, Bette J. “B.J.” Titus.

In 1992, Penn Press published The Buried Past, a book that he coauthored with John L. Cotter and Michael Parrington. Some have called it the bible of the city’s archaeology.

In addition to his work at JMA, Mr. Roberts was active in associations, including the Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA), the Society for American Archaeology, and the Pennsylvania Archaeological Council.

In 2011, the SHA created an annual award to honor his contribution to excellence in public historical archaeology.

Mr. Roberts was an avid golfer and longtime member of Radley Run Country Club. At one time, he owned 50,000 first-edition vintage paperbacks, all in sleeves and displayed on shelves in his home. “It looked like a library,” his wife said.

Surviving, beside his wife of 19 years, are stepson Matthew S. Titus and his first wife, Marie W. Roberts, from whom he was divorced.

A memorial service is being planned for October.

Contributions may be made to the Society for Historical Archaeology, 13017 Wisteria Dr., No. 395, Germantown, Md., 20874, in care of the Daniel G. Roberts Award for Excellence in Public Historical Archaeology, or the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, via www.michaeljfox.org/.


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