Lecture on "Crackpots and Cracked Pots: Odd and Eccentric Theories about American Archeology April 13, 2008

Fred Christensen, a college history lecturer from downstate Illinois, will survey bizarre and controversial theories about pre-contact Native peoples of North America and elsewhere in a presentation Sunday, April 13, 2008, at 1 p.m. at the Mitchell Museum of the American Indian, 3001 Central St., Evanston.

In his talk titled "Crackpots and Cracked Pots: Odd and Eccentric Theories about American Archeology, Christensen will examine claims that 15th-century Chinese explorers discovered America first, that early civilizations had contact with ancient astronauts from outer space, and that the Mandan Indians of the Great Plains are descendents of seafaring Welsh explorers of the Middle Ages.

He'll also discuss old theories that made sense in their day but have since been discarded by most scholars, such as the early 19th-century belief that the mysterious Midwest mound builders in places like Cahokia, Ill., were a lost race of non-Indian people.

We'll look at ideas that range from the unorthodox to the preposterous, Christensen promises.

Christensen, who holds a masters degree in history from the University of Kentucky, was an assistant professor of military science at the University of Illinois and taught at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. He currently teaches noncredit history courses at Champaigns Parkland College and at the University of Illinois.

Admission to the presentation is free with an entrance donation to the museum. Suggested donation is $5 for adults; $2.50 for seniors, students, and children. Maximum suggested admission per family is $10. For information, phone (847) 475-1030. On the Net: www.mitchellmuseum.org.

Event submitted by Eventful.com on behalf of natsilv.