REU Project

This summer my goal is to the trace the history of land use in the Huron Creek Watershed. The Huron Creek Watershed is a small watershed here in Houghton, but it has an incredible history. The miners utilized the creek as a power source the processing of copper, and most recently the creek diverted and rerouted at the absolute mercy of commercial development. My objective is to see just how the creek was used over the last one hundred and fifty years, and what impact these uses have had on the environmental quality of the watershed. This information will then be used in helping to define a “sense of place.” With a sense of place you can be begin to try and develop strategies for bringing the stream back closer to its natural makeup. I am just one of three parts of this group, which has an ultimate goal of laying the foundation for the eventual development of a watershed management plan for the creek.

Personal Information

I am easy going guy who loves sports, definitely not a photographer! I am originally from Hancock, Michigan, and yes I am a “yooper”. I took a few years off from school before returning about three years ago. I am a Social Science major here at tech, specializing in the history of technology and the impact of technology on the environment. While off on my break I spent my time as a ski bum in Alta, Utah, living in a mid-mountain restaurant, and skiing as much as possible.
At MTU I am a founding member of the 4S club, and hope to get involved with the Sustainability Committee (ESC) this year. I am currently helping to start up two programs of interest; one is helping to get high school students a chance to get out and try archaeological field techniques while seeing the devastating environmental effects that technology can produce, the other project I am hoping to start this fall is a Social Sciences Learning Center.
This fall and spring I will be taking the research I am doing this summer one step further, working on documentation of the Isle Royale Copper Mine for my senior thesis.
In the future I hope to attend graduate school with a focus in public history, history of technology, environmental policy, or a combination of all three!