2021 UConn Field School in Contact Period & Battlefield Archaeology

Location: Storrs, Mansfield, CT, USA

Season: May 24, 2021 to July 2, 2021

Session Dates: 05/24/2021 through 07/02/2021

Application Deadline: May 10, 2021

Deadline Type: Contact for Details

Website: https://anthropology.uconn.edu/field-training/battlefield-archaeology/

Program Type:
Field School

RPA Certified:
No

Affiliation:
University of Connecticut

Project Director:
Kevin McBride

Project Description:

The University of Connecticut will offer a field school in Contact Period & Battlefield Archaeology focused on sites associated with the Pequot War of 1636-1637. The Battle of Mistick Fort: English Withdrawal & Pequot Counterattack took place on May 26, 1637 immediately following the English & allied Native attack on the Pequot fortified village at Mistick. Fieldwork will focus on documenting the intense fighting along the four-mile route of the English withdrawal and on excavating the Calluna Hill site, a Pequot village burned by the English during their withdrawal. This domestic site has remained undisturbed since it was abandoned and provides a unique opportunity to examine Pequot domestic architecture and space, foodways, and material culture. The battlefield project is funded by grants from the National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program and is part of a long-term effort to document the Battlefields of the Pequot War (Visit www.pequotwar.org for additional information).

The 2021 UConn field school will be based at the UConn Storrs campus with fieldwork taking place at Mystic (Groton), Connecticut, USA. The 6-week, 6-credit field school will include training in standard archaeological field survey and excavation, artifact conservation, household shell midden analysis, cataloguing, identification and analysis of 17th Century material culture and analysis of primary sources. Training will also be provided in research and field methods specific to battlefield archaeology including use of military terrain models, metal detecting survey, and GPS/GIS applications. The field school provides a unique opportunity for students to work on a nationally significant collaborative research project alongside tribal members, archaeologists and military historians. In addition to the fieldwork, students will participate in training workshops in laboratory and research methods, attend guest lectures, complete assigned readings and maintain a daily field journal.

Period(s) of Occupation: Excavate and early 17th-century Pequot War battlefield and at a village site burned by the English on May 26, 1637 in Mystic and Groton, CT associated with the Pequot War of 1636-1637.

Notes:
All students must fill out an application in order to be considered for the field school and receive a permission number so that they can register. Contact Dr. Kevin McBride (kevin.mcbride@uconn.edu) via e-mail for an application and more information on the field school. COVID-19 safety precautions will be put into place. For more information on UConn's Summer Course programs, check out: https://summersession.uconn.edu

Project Size: 1-24 participants

Minimum Age: 18

Experience Required: No experience required.

Room and Board Arrangements:
Summer 2021 housing will approved on a very limited basis.  Please visit UConn Residential Life for more information: https://reslife.uconn.edu/summer-housing/

Academic Credit:
This is a 6-week, 6-credit field school. Summer Session courses are paid on a per-credit basis at a rate of $601 per credit hour. If you choose the full six-week program, your cost will be $3,606. In addition, there is a $75 lab fee, payable on the first day of class.