Oxford stone mound
Content related to the removal of the stone mound located behind the Oxford Exchange shopping center
Experts refute claims in 2nd mound report
Some experts and academics around the state are disagreeing with a University of Alabama archaeologist’s report concluding a pile of stones in Oxford is a natural phenomenon — not built by American Indians centuries ago.
Feb 09, 2010 |  52 comments | 117 117 recommendations | email to a friend
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Alabama archaeologist releases report
A University of Alabama archaeologist has released a report stating his case that a stone mound in Oxford was created by natural forces and not by Native Americans centuries ago as was indicated in a report he signed last year.
Feb 02, 2010 |  3 comments | 30 30 recommendations | email to a friend
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UA professor defends claims about Oxford mound
OXFORD — A University of Alabama archaeologist Wednesday said more investigation had led him to believe natural forces created a pile of stones that an earlier report bearing his signature said had been erected by humans hundreds of years ago.
Jan 28, 2010 |  49 comments | 92 92 recommendations | email to a friend
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UA expert: 'Mound' is still there
OXFORD — A University of Alabama archaeologist Tuesday told the City Council natural forces created a stone mound that was the source of controversy in 2009, contradicting a report he signed last year, which claimed the mound was likely made by human hands about 1,000 years ago.
Jan 27, 2010 |  54 comments | 104 104 recommendations | email to a friend
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Cashing in on history: Moundville brings money to west Alabama, but price is too high for Oxford
Centuries ago, American Indians settled in an area near Tuscaloosa, where they built towering mounds and a thriving cultural center. Today the area is known as the Moundville Archaeological Park and it too is thriving — drawing thousands of visitors and generating millions for the economy of west Alabama each year.
Jan 23, 2010 |  9 comments | 68 68 recommendations | email to a friend
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Related Letters and Editorials
Debating Star’s coverage of Oxford mound
I want to clarify the record in regards to a Jan. 28 story in The Star, “UA professor defends claims about Oxford mound,” that discussed my credentials without mentioning the credentials I do have.
Feb 02, 2010 |  50 comments | 23 23 recommendations | email to a friend
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Mound of embarrassment
I am embarrassed every time I read an article like I read this morning in The Star. It was written by reporter Patrick McCreless about our rich Native American culture in Oxford. He is obviously a man of knowledge and culture. He knows what a rich Indian history we have. Oxford, listen and learn from him.
Jan 29, 2010 |  0 comments | 23 23 recommendations | email to a friend
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Buried in Oxford: Secrecy is a damning trait
Of all the troubling aspects surrounding the ongoing saga of Native American sites in Oxford, one has bubbled to the top. It's the secrecy.
Jan 25, 2010 |  4 comments | 32 32 recommendations | email to a friend
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Fighting for their beliefs
I have heard of "fair-weather" friends, but this is the first time I've heard of "fair-weather" Indians. The modern-day Indians aren't like those we were raised with in the westerns. They would be out there fighting for what they believed in, no matter the weather.
Sep 11, 2009 |  8 comments | 23 23 recommendations | email to a friend
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A good end to bad story? Securing stone mound's legacy
There's no reason to shed tears anymore over the Native American stone mound in Oxford. What's done is done. The hill is unsightly, equal parts eyesore and embarrassment for Mayor Leon Smith and the city. There is much blame and shame to go around Oxford City Hall. There is no magic wand anyone can wave to return the hill to its prior state.
Sep 03, 2009 |  2 comments | 28 28 recommendations | email to a friend
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Related Documents
University of Alabama report on Oxford stone mound
The report regarding the stone mound in Oxford from the University of Alabama Office of Archaeological Research.
Jul 09, 2009 |  11 comments | 141 141 recommendations | email to a friend
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Letter from Gov. Riley to blogger
Gov. Bob Riley's letter to a blogger concerning the stone mound in Oxford.
Jul 21, 2009 |  0 comments | 57 57 recommendations | email to a friend
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Letter from Mayor Leon Smith regarding Oxford stone mound
A July 27 letter from Mayor Leon Smith stating that the Oxford stone mound is manmade.
Jul 29, 2009 |  0 comments | 73 73 recommendations | email to a friend
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Document: Archaeological monitoring of dismantling of Site 1Ca636 (part 1)
Part one of the University of Alabama archaeological report supporting a natural origin for the Oxford mound.
Feb 02, 2010 |  2 comments | 59 59 recommendations | email to a friend
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Document: Archaeological monitoring of dismantling of Site 1Ca636 (part 2)
Part two of the University of Alabama archaeological report supporting a natural origin for the Oxford mound.
Feb 02, 2010 |  0 comments | 45 45 recommendations | email to a friend
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Today's Events
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Tuesday, 18, 2013
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Pond Spring- The Gener... 3:50 PM
Oxford Farmers market 12:00 AM to 11:59 PM
Join us for the kick-off of Oxford's first...
Oxford Farmers market 12:00 AM to 11:59 PM
Join us for the kick-off of Oxford's first...
They're headed to a Game 7
by Associated Press
Jun 18, 2013 | 0 views |  0 comments | 3 3 recommendations | email to a friend | print
San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker (9) and Miami Heat forward LeBron James (6) collide during the second half. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker (9) and Miami Heat forward LeBron James (6) collide during the second half. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
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MIAMI — LeBron James led a title-saving charge, and now his crown will be on the line one more time in Game 7. James powered Miami to a frantic fourth-quarter rally and overtime escape as the Heat beat the San Antonio Spurs 103-100 on Tuesday night to extend the NBA Finals as far as they can go and keep their repeat chances alive. Losing his headband but keeping his cool while playing the entire second half and overtime, James finished with 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, making the go-ahead basket with 1:43 remaining in the extra period. Tim Duncan scored 30 points for the Spurs, his most in an NBA Finals game since Game 1 in 2003, but was shut out after the third quarter. He added 17 rebounds. Game 7 will be here Thursday, the NBA's first do-or-die game to determine its champion since the Lakers beat the Celtics in 2010. The Spurs looked headed to a fifth title in five chances when they built a 13-point lead with under 4 minutes left in the third quarter, then grabbed a five-point edge late in regulation after blowing the lead. But James hit a 3-pointer before Ray Allen tied it with another with 5.2 seconds remaining in regulation. James was just 3 of 12 after three quarters, the Heat trailing by 10 and frustration apparent among the players and panic setting in among the fans. Nothing to worry. Not with James playing like this. He finished 11 of 26, even making a steal after his basket had given Miami a 101-100 edge in the OT. Before that, he was 12 minutes from hearing the familiar criticisms about not being able to get it done, from having to watch a team celebrate on his home floor again. Then he changed the game and erased that story. The Heat, who haven't lost consecutive games since Jan. 8 and 10, had too much defense and way too much James for the Spurs in the final 17 minutes. They are trying to become fourth team to win the final two games at home since the NBA went to the 2-3-2 format for the finals in 1985. James came in averaging 31.5 points in elimination games, highest in NBA history, according to a stat provided through the NBA by the Elias Sports Bureau. This wasn't quite the 45-point performance in Game 6 of last year's Eastern Conference finals in Boston, but given the higher stakes may go down as more important — if the Heat follow it with another victory Thursday. The Heat were in the same place as they were in 2011 at the end of their Big Three's first season together, coming home from Texas facing a 3-2 deficit in the finals. This is a different team. And oh, what a different James. They said they welcomed this challenge, a chance to show they how much mentally tougher they were than the team the Dallas Mavericks easily handled in Game 6 that night. James made sure they did, looking nothing like the player who was so bad in the fourth quarters during that series. He was simply unstoppable down the stretch of this one. Kawhi Leonard had 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Spurs. Tony Parker had 19 points and eight assists, but shot just 6 of 23 from the field. The Spurs had one final chance down 103-100, but Chris Bosh blocked Danny Green's 3-pointer from the corner as time expired. Bosh had said Green wouldn't get open the way he has all series — and he didn't.
Editorial: Schools on trial — In Anniston, improving education remains the ultimate goal
by The Anniston Star Editorial Board
Jun 18, 2013 | 229 views |  0 comments | 8 8 recommendations | email to a friend | print
Any cocoon of stability that may have surrounded Anniston Middle School is now shattered. Last month, after decades of debate, the Anniston Board of Education voted to close the school on Alabama 21 and move its students to other campuses as part of a system-wide reorganization and cost-cutting measure. Last week, Superintendent Joan Frazier announced her retirement for June 2014, meaning someone else — possibly from outside the system hierarchy — will shepherd the system through the middle school’s closure. And Tuesday, the state Board of Education included Anniston Middle on its list of “failing” schools that, as part of the Alabama Accountability Act, will allow parents zoned for AMS to receive tax credits if they transfer elsewhere. For the Anniston Board of Education, the state board’s list of 78 “failing” schools represents two different headlines — both significant. No other Anniston schools made the list. (For that matter, Anniston Middle was the only school in Calhoun County to be deemed “failing” by the state board.) Anniston High School, whose dropout and graduation rates have long been serious civic concerns, and the system’s five elementary schools are free of both the stigma and the practicality of being considered “failing” institutions. We are glad that’s the case. But the other headline didn’t bring a sigh of relief to a city desperate to use public education in its efforts to reinvent the city’s outlook on vital matters such as job creation, economic growth and crime reduction. A city without vibrant and well-supported public schools is a city that struggles to educate its children and sustain its future. A city without successful public schools is a city that faces stagnation and decline, not prosperity. That is Anniston’s struggle today. Our advice is to consider Anniston Middle School’s label as a “failing” school as part old news and part opportunity. Don’t overreact. Instead, see Anniston Middle as what it is — a school already destined for closure. That’s not a rationalization; it’s a fact. What’s important now is the system’s still-developing reorganization that, once completed, is expected to lessen the system’s fiscal concerns. More important, still, is this community’s understanding that the education of the children within Anniston’s public schools must be a grade-A priority. It is not the priority solely of the city’s educators or its black community, whose children are overwhelmingly the majority of the city’s schools. It must be a priority for all who want Anniston to prosper. Make no mistake: We are disappointed that the state considers Anniston Middle School a “failing” school. But we cannot lose focus on the larger, vital picture — the reinvention of Anniston’s school system and the improvement of its public education. The ailments are well known. Repairing them with hard work and rational decisions is the key.
Editorial: In Alabama, best path is to scrap this wishful policy
by The Anniston Star Editorial Board
Jun 18, 2013 | 87 views |  0 comments | 6 6 recommendations | email to a friend | print
Tommy Bice, the state’s superintendent of education, had the unenviable task Tuesday of carrying out a poorly conceived policy that, its authors assure us, is designed to raise the quality of Alabama public schools. Playing the good soldier, Bice produced a list of failing schools as defined by the so-called Alabama Accountability Act, the controversial law handed down earlier this year by Montgomery’s ruling Republicans. The strict definition of failing, Bice said Tuesday, meant he was “unable to remove a school from the list although they’ve shown improvement.” Sadly, that’s merely the start of the problems with this policy. As private school administrators from Calhoun County told The Star earlier this year, the law’s intent — allowing students in “failing” schools to transfer to a private school or better public school — almost certainly won’t work. The law’s tax credit — approximately $3,500 annually — won’t be enough to cover private school tuition. What’s more, private schools are balking at accepting state-administered scholarship dollars. Public schools are under no obligation to take transfers from failing schools. Several local districts have confirmed to The Star that they aren’t interested in taking on these new students. In Anniston and elsewhere across Alabama, there’s also the matter of a federal court order concerning desegregation that severely limits student transfers between public schools. All this adds up to a law that seems unlikely to have the intended effect. The shame is that Alabama’s public schools desperately need improvement. Of course, the 78 schools listed Tuesday as “failing” need help, but so does the entire state, especially when considering our ranking in national comparisons of student achievement. Perhaps the best path forward would be for the Legislature and the governor to scrap this policy’s wishful thinking and head back to the drawing board. Putting Alabama’s schools on the path to excellence will require a greater investment, in money, of course, but also in tougher standards for teachers and students.
Speak Out: The state of foreign missions
by our readers
Jun 18, 2013 | 69 views |  0 comments | 5 5 recommendations | email to a friend | print
Today, one assumes that much of our commerce and industry have gone overseas — primarily to China. We further assume that China is a nation of non-traditional religious values, living virtually in the Stone Age with hostile attitudes toward Christianity. It may surprise the Christian community that China is now the largest Bible publisher in the world. Amity Publishing in Birmingham recently opened a sprawling printing complex in Nanjing dedicated just to the Holy Bible and is scheduled to turn out 12 million Bibles per year. But the unique twist is that local Chinese caught with an Amity printed Bible do not face harassment and are at liberty to practice their Christian faith just as they would be in America. This is a remarkable feat accomplished by the missionary effort of the Christian community. By relocating and vastly expanding the publishing arm of the effort and making it a Chinese industry, worldwide missionaries have been able to establish themselves permanently and become accepted for what they are in the previously most obstinate mission field ever targeted. To say foreign mission work has come a long way in the past 40 to 50 years would be the understatement of the year. If only U.S. foreign missionary Lottie Moon, who starved herself trying to save hungry Chinese on the mission field, could know this feat today. James W. Anderson
Talladega
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