The New Face of the College’s Public Archaeology Lab

Building on the success of over two decades, Washington College’s Public Archaeology Laboratory is making some changes, including getting a new name – the Past Is Present Archaeology Lab.  Established in 1999 with funding from the Maryland Historical Trust, the Lab was designed to support the Sociology/Anthropology Department’s new offering of archaeology courses, to sponsor regional archaeology projects on the Eastern Shore, and to engage students and the public in exploring the past.  Its projects have ranged in time from the Paleoindian period, stretching back 12,000 years, to the more recent past, and covered the length of the Eastern Shore, from Cecil County down to Somerset County. Students and faculty in the Lab have used sonar to search for shipwrecks on the Chester River, investigated the Dorchester County farm on which Harriet Tubman grew up, excavated 17^th and 18^th century sites in Chestertown and the surrounding counties, and used Geographic Information Systems to develop an archaeological predictive model for site locations in the Upper Shore – and that’s just a few of the many projects completed over the last 23 years.

“The number of students who started their professional path in the Public Archaeology Lab is astonishing, and this is an exciting new chapter in that story, said Michael Chiarappa, the College’s Director of Natural & Cultual Resource Initiatives. “Applied work to understand and save our past provides critical skills to our students, while the melding of cultural and natural resource management will help to forge alliances that are long overdue.”

In 2017, the Archaeology Lab moved from the ground floor of the Custom House to its current location at 210 S. Cross Street. From those downtown locations, its impact locally has been profound, hosting 11,000 visitors and school groups, working with almost 300 community volunteers, and mentoring 174 undergraduate interns in archaeology. The success of the program helped in the growth of archaeology and anthropology at the College, allowing Anthropology to branch off as its own department.  Its capabilities in terrestrial and marine archaeology, along with the power of geospatial analysis, are unusual for any small liberal arts college. With that success came the hiring of additional archaeologists and the construction of new teaching spaces on campus.  It is this successful growth that has prompted these exciting new changes and the birth of a new initiative at the Center for Environment & Society (CES).

The new Past Is Present Initiative is based on the premise that to understand where we are headed, we need to understand where we have been.  It explores the rich historical, cultural, and natural resources of the Eastern Shore to interpret the past, understand the present, and prepare for the future.  The initiative is overseen by Dr. Michael Chiarappa, a nationally respected environmental historian who joined the CES team last September to become the inaugural director of Cultural and Natural Resource Initiatives.  The position was funded with a $2.5 million endowment (including $1.25 million from the Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative Fund) to focus on environmental archaeology, cultural resource management and the linkages between heritage and natural resources.

The Department of Anthropology will continue to take on summer field schools in archaeology.  This allows the Past Is Present Archaeology Lab, under the continued supervision of archaeologist Elizabeth Seidel, to pivot to do more consulting, contract archaeology, and focus on environmental archaeology. The latter orientation is in keeping with the program’s connection to the College’s Center for Environment & Society.  Additionally, the program will build support for tourism as a regional economic engine by promoting the incredible historical, cultural, and natural resources of Maryland’s Eastern Shore.  This new trajectory will bring many exciting opportunities for student and community involvement, both in the field and at the lab. Seidel says, “We’re very proud of what we have accomplished since 1999 and are so excited to broaden our focus.  Providing hands-on, experiential learning opportunities for our students who are interested in archaeology, history, and the environment will continue to be a major theme as we move forward.  Of course, community members are always welcome to participate in our projects in the field or the lab.”

Stop by the Past Is Present Archaeology Lab at 210 S. Cross Street in Chestertown learn about the exciting projects going on and to find out how you can get involved.  The PIP Archaeology Lab will be open for First Friday on May 5^th from 5-7pm.  You can find out more at https://www.washcoll.edu/learn-by-doing/ces/archaeology-lab.php .