Jamie Meece joined the CRA office in Hurricane, West Virginia, in 2007 as a Field Supervisor. Jamie holds an associate's degree in computer science from Vincennes University, a bachelor's degree in history from the University of Southern Indiana, and a master's degree in anthropology from Ball State University with an emphasis in archaeology and cultural resource management. He has participated in numerous phase I, II, and III projects and has supervised numerous phase I and II archaeological investigations throughout Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, and West Virginia. He belongs to several professional archaeological and historical organizations, including the Register of Professional Archaeologists, Lambda Alpha, and Phi Alpha Theta.
Jamie specializes in prehistoric archaeology, lithic analysis, projectile point typology, and raw material identification. He is trained in macro- and microscopic analysis, which are crucial in identifying raw materials given that a single chert type can vary greatly in color, texture, mineral, and fossil content even within the same outcrop. This type of study requires a working knowledge of published chert descriptions, recognizing the variations that can occur within a single chert type, paleontology (especially invertebrate macrofossils), geology, and mineralogy. Jamie's current research interest include locating existing and undocumented chert outcrops utilized by the prehistoric peoples of West Virginia and the surrounding states. Other research interests include the Archaic period, Archaic period settlement patterns and systems, the Late Archaic Riverton culture, the development of the bow and arrow (which was the subject of his master's degree thesis), and lithic technology in general.
In his off time, Jamie reads many books, and most of them are related to archaeology or a specific research interest. His other hobbies include reading classical Roman and Greek literature and the short stories of Edgar Allen Poe, astronomy, and listening to heavy metal music. Jamie was born and raised in southwestern Indiana.