WARREN — The Trumbull County Historical Society on Wednesday announced the acquisition of a vast and historically significant archaeological collection decades in the making that permanently preserves the prehistory of the Mahoning Valley.

The archive was donated by the late Thomas R. Pigott of Southington, who died of cancer in July.

Pigott, a dedicated steward of local history, spent years curating the materials, which he collectively named The Pigott Archives, according to Savannah Moss, collections and research manager for the Trumbull County Historical Society.

The collection represents the life’s work of three local figures in Ohio archaeology: Pigott himself, the late Dr. Olaf Prufer and the late Charles “Chuck” Sofsky. It contains irreplaceable original research, documented artifacts, field notes and photographic records from some of the few archaeological excavations ever conducted in Trumbull County. They include:

• Chuck Sofsky’s World: the life’s work of Charles Sofsky, a self-described “doer” who founded the Warren Archaeological Society in 1953. His work led to the formal registration of the first 60 archaeological sites in Trumbull County. His collection includes materials from excavations at the Byler Mound, Morgan Village and the extensive Erskine Site.

• Dr. Olaf Prufer’s Legacy: Artifacts, photographs, and the personal library of Dr. Prufer, who was considered a preeminent figure in Ohio archaeology from his arrival from Harvard in 1959 until his death in 2008. The collection includes documentation from his seminal 1967-1968 excavations at the Late Woodland Libben Site in Ottawa County, one of the largest excavations carried out in Ohio in the last century. Pigott, a former student and friend of Dr. Prufer, penned the professor’s obituary in the Ohio Archaeologist.

Moss said Sofsky’s work is unpublished and Pigott was working on getting it published before he died.

“We have been working under the radar on this collection before we officially announced the acquisition,” she said.

The collection also includes materials from Robert Converse, longtime editor of the Ohio Archaeologist; thousands of scanned slides and documents that expand the region’s archaeological record; and hundreds of archaeological reference books.

“This collection is unprecedented,” Moss said.

She said Pigott reached out to the society last year and he died within a month of that initial contact, so it was a quick turnaround in terms of a planned acquisition.

Moss said the indigenous people’s history in the area is not well known, so the new collection will help people in the area understand it better.

“We have heard comments like ‘there weren’t any Native Americans in this area,’ but that is not true. We hope this collection will help shed light on the subject,” she said.

The TCHS now will begin the meticulous process of cataloging and conserving the collection.

“I joked with his (Pigott’s) daughter that we won’t finish cataloging it in my lifetime,” Moss said.

In the future, the historical society will establish a dedicated research room at the John Stark Edwards House to house The Pigott Collection & Archives, providing scholars, students and the community with an unprecedented window into the ancient history of the Mahoning Valley.

Moss said she has applied for a $118,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services to hire graduate students and two archaeologists from Kent State University to consult on the project, help train volunteers and help with cataloging. She said the grant application was submitted just a few weeks ago and she is hoping to learn later this year or early next year if it is successful.

Moss also said there are two volunteer undergraduate students from Youngstown State University who are helping to inventory photos from the Pigott collection.

For more information about The Pigott Collection & Archives or to inquire about supporting its conservation and the creation of the dedicated research room, contact the Trumbull County Historical Society at 330-394-4653 or visit www.trumbullcountyhistory.org. Moss said anyone interested in volunteering to help catalog the collection can contact her at the society.