An Early Leader for the Archaeological Resources Protection Act – In Memoriam: Martin Edward McAllister
Martin McAllister died at his home in Missoula, Montana on April 8, 2024. He was 75. For those even peripherally involved in the preservation of this nation’s cultural heritage resources for the past half century, Martin’s name and fame are widely known. It was my pleasure to meet Martin in 1993 when I was a new Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) for the Western District of Kentucky. With passage of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) in 1979, and with the history of Mound Builders and other Native American habitation in western Kentucky for thousands of years, it was inevitable that my District would have a looting problem.
After my involvement in the investigation of the systematic looting of Slack Farm in Union County, Kentucky in 1989, I was asked to attend my first ARPA training at Indiana University in Bloomington at which Martin was present. After that meeting, I was invited as one of the first three AUSA’s to conduct ARPA training nationwide. Myself, Wayne Dance from Utah, Dennis Kennedy from Virginia, and eventually others, participated in this training with Martin and Elwood (Woody) Jones from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Brunswick, Georgia.
In the years that followed, over 5,000 federal archaeologists, law enforcement officers, Tribal representatives and government attorneys passed through this program. Martin was the passionate driving force of our little group of instructors. Persons who passed through never forgot Martin, whether or not they remembered me. Passion for protecting archaeological resources, with the patience and humility which characterized him, was passed along to me and to many others who learned from him. It was my great privilege to call him a friend, and on one occasion, to visit Kathy and Martin at their home north of Missoula. I will never forget the views, the nearby magpie nest, and the trail on which he walked his beloved labrador retrievers every single day that he was in residence.
Martin left the FLETC program around 2001. I stayed with it until 2019 and now work for Archaeology Southwest. Martin and I kept in touch. A few years ago, he asked me and others to participate in a Society for American Archaeology seminar called, “The Future of ARPA.” I was happy to go where he needed me.
Once, I asked what his motivation was. He replied that he “just got sick and tired” of watching people post YouTube videos of themselves looting archaeological sites and wanted to do something. “What can we do?” he said. That was Martin! We parted with one of those characteristic McAllister firm handshakes. Ever since I’ve known Martin, we have exchanged Christmas cards. His would always be signed, “Martin, Kathy and dogs.” Last year I thought to add a note to my card thanking him for motivating me to teach ARPA for over 30 years. I’m glad that I did!
Randy Ream retired in 2019 after 35 years as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky. Randy taught ARPA classes for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) from 1993 at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, until 2019 at Asheville, North Carolina. Since retirement, Randy has served as a part time adviser on law enforcement matters to Archaeology Southwest and their Bureau of Indian Affairs Archaeological Assistance Group. He and his wife Lisa continue to reside in Louisville.