NEARA will be holding the Spring 2026 NEARA Conference, including the Annual General Meeting, online via Zoom on May 2nd. The Zoom meeting is just a part of a series of exciting events happening across the northeast from April through June. Join us at as many events as you can.
We had originally reserved Camp Wightman in North Stonington CT for the spring conference, but that reservation fell through, and we were not able to find an available venue for late April in both quality and price in that area. Hence the decision to hold the Annual General Meeting and have talks via Zoom. The big benefit is that you won't incur any hotel room costs, nor will you be paying for the hotel meeting costs (hall and food).
But we really want people to get together, so are hosting get-togethers at a few locations, and field trips will occur at various locations in the northeast. And we have decided to extend the nature of conference-related events to include activities beyond the usual field trips.
The virtual meeting will be on May 2nd and will be free to all.
10:00 AM: Reports by the President, Treasurer, and some Committees.
10:30 AM: John DiMarco, A historiography of historic contact and rescue in New York
11:30 AM: Updates from Chapter Coordinators on latest research and upcoming events.
1:00 PM: Perry Donham, Methodology for field testing deliberate stone placement and alignments in Foxborough
2:00 PM: Mike Johnson, Predictive modeling and innovative sampling in early site discovery in Virginia
To make watching the presentations more convivial, we are arranging watch parties at several locations:
We encourage all members to organize their own local watch parties where you can gather with fellow members and enjoy the meeting together. Learn about the new sites and research being done in your area.
If you are interested in setting up a watch party, please contact spring26@neara.org for assitance.
April 18: Explore sites around Henniker NH, including petroglyphs and other intriguing stone structures. Contact Devon Toland at NH-coord@neara.org for more information.
April 19: There is a field trip to Boynton Park in Worcester MA, including a possible Native American amphitheater. That will be followed by a visit to Upton Chamber in Upton MA. We would also like to conduct a drone workshop, so we can compare notes on how to use drones for recording sites. Contact Peter Anick at MA-coord@neara.org for more information.
April 19: We will view the Taylortown Cairns in Morris County NJ Sunday morning, followed by lunch and then a visit to Tripod Rock. Pre-register with Martin Rapp at vicepresident2@neara.org.
April 26: We're going to view stone chambers in Silver Lake Preserve in West Harrison NY. Contact Fleur Fairman at NY-coord@neara.org for more information.
May 2: The online meeting will be held on May 2nd starting at 10am. Details are above.
NH Chapter Coordinator Devon Toland will be hosting a watch party at his home in Nottingham NH, which will include a potluck meal. All members from neighboring state -- even our friends from Quebec -- are invited to attend! Contact Devon at NH-coord@neara.org.
CT chapter coordinator Vance Tiede will be hosting a watch party at the Atwater Memorial Library in North Branford CT. Contact Vance at CT-coord@neara.org.
May 2: following the Zoom meeting, we are planning a visit to the Quinnipiac Dawnland Museum in Guilford CT. Contact Vance Tiede at CT-coord@neara.org for more information.
May 15-17: NEARA Weekend Site Visit to the "Ancient Ruins" of LeTerrain, Canada, located 5 hours NW from Burlington VT. Options include a day visit or overnight stays of one, two, or three nights.
Details are now available at LeTerrain Field Expedition Weekend.
NEW! A special page for direct booking the NEARA event is now open at LeTerrain's NEARA sign-up page.
Or contact Terry Deveau at Atlantic-Canada-coord@neara.org for more information.
NEW! A field trip is planned to Lincoln Woods State Park in Lincoln RI, followed by a lunch get-together. Date is to be determined. Contact Ron Lapierre at RI-coord@neara.org for more information.
Join the conversation by being a member of the NEARA Forum, forum@neara.org. It's a great platform for sharing your thoughts and questions and connecting with NEARA members.
It takes a lot of work to assemble a good program for a conference. We would like it if all NEARA members would give us their suggestions for speakers who they would like to see. So we have created a form for you to fill out for each person you recommend: Suggest a Speaker