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Kentucky Heritage Council

Archaeology Conference

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About the Conference

The 43rd annual KHC Archaeology Conference is hosted by KHC Site Protection Program staff to highlight historic and prehistoric cultural resources and as an opportunity for archaeologists and historic preservation and allied professionals to share information and research findings about their work. KHC serves as the state historic preservation office. 

The 2026 KHC Archaeology Conference will be held February 27th - March ​1, 2026 at Carter Caves State Resort Park. ​

Registration this year is COMPLETELY online in advance. 

Fees are as follows:
          • $35 – standard registration
          • $20 – student registration
          • Dinner on Friday is an additional $25 (menu below)

The deadline for conference registration has passed, and online registration has been closed.

Conference Schedule & Details

Friday
  • ​We’ll kick off the conference at 4:00 pm on Friday, February 27, 2026, with a Kentucky Archaeologists Roundtable. Phil Mink, Brian Mabelitini, and Lisa Guerre of the University of Kentucky, Office of State Archaeology, will be presenting the updated Kentucky archaeological site forms. 
  • Dinner ($25 add to registration) will follow at 6:30 pm. The menu for dinner is: 
    • Fried chicken or vegetable lasagna
    • Roasted new potatoes
    • Honey glazed carrots
    • Fried okra
    • ​Chocolate cake or apple cobbler
Saturday
  • We anticipate paper presentations will run from 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM. 
​Sunday 
  • We anticipate paper presentations will run from 8:30 – 11 AM. Papers will be focused on historic archaeology.
  • ​At least one tour will be available Sunday afternoon. There is an optional cave tour through Cascade Cave led by Carter Caves staff. On-site registration for the tour is at noon on Sunday. The cost is $11.00 and can be paid at the park’s Welcome Center. The tour will depart at 12:30 and return at 3:30. There is a cap of 30 people for this tour.

Abstracts for presentations are due no later than January 19, 2026. 

Accomodations 

1.14.26 | Update on hotel reservations - Carter Caves is now fully booked and does not have any rooms available. Greenbo Lake State Resort Park is 42 minutes away, and they have rooms available at this time. You can reach their reservation desk at 606.473.7324.​

Conference Registration closes on January 27, 2026.​
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If you have questions, please reach out to Nicole.Konkol@ky.gov​ 
Contact Nicole.Konkol@ky.gov if you'd like to present a paper at the KHC Archaeology Conference