The Fiske Center Blog

Weblog for the Fiske Center for Archaeological Research at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

Summer Field Programs

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We have two field schools running this summer from May 27th to June 27th.

Participants in the 2013 archaeological field school in Plymouth.

Participants in the 2013 archaeological field school in Plymouth.

Field School in Plymouth, Massachusetts
The field class will take place at a series of sites in Plymouth, Massachusetts. This summer’s work is part of “Project 400: The Plymouth Colony Archaeological Survey,” a broad project of site survey and excavation leading up the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Colony in 2020. In 2014 the focus will be on surface reconnaissance and mapping of a series of sites, shallow geophysical remote sensing, and test excavations in downtown Plymouth. Through daily archaeological fieldwork and laboratory analysis students will learn the process of field recording, mapping, excavation, sample collection, and basic artifact analysis in historical archaeology. The course includes a special emphasis on shallow geophysics for mapping subsurface deposits, and students will learn how remote sensing techniques are applied to site analysis, excavation, and interpretation. A series of trips to local museums and sites is included as part of the class.
For more information, or to register:
http://www.umb.edu/academics/caps/summer_programs/field_study/archaeological_plymouth

 

Field School at Hassanamesit Woods in Grafton, MA
The Hassanamesit Woods Project is a collaborative effort involving the Fiske Center for Archaeological Research, the Town of Grafton, Massachusetts, and the Nipmuc Nation. The goals of the project are to use archaeology and geophysical survey to explore the history and heritage of the Nipmuc people of Massachusetts. Previous excavations have focused on the 200-acre parcel known today as Hassanamesit Woods. Previous excavations have demonstrated that the parcel was part of Nipmuc country for at least 4,000 years. The chief focus of our research has been the Sarah Burnee Phillips/Sarah Boston farmstead that was a Nipmuc residence between 1750 and 1840. Work has also focused on the Eighteenth Century home site of Deborah Newman, a Nipmuc woman who was a contemporary of Sarah Boston’s and was part of the same Hassanamesit community.

During the summer of 2014 excavations will focus on the Deborah Newman site and the surrounding area of Keith Hill in Grafton, Massachusetts. Students will gain training in large-scale block excavation, stratigraphic interpretation, field recording, material culture identification and mapping. Students will also have the opportunity to work with specialists from the Fiske Center who specialize in geophysical survey and remote sensing. These techniques will be used to carry out geophysical surveys of additional sites in collaboration with the Nipmuc Nation.
For more information, or to register:

http://www.umb.edu/academics/caps/summer_programs/field_study/hassanamesitt

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