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The Second Week of the Second Session -- Slogging Through the Rain!

• July 15, 2008
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The second session of this year's field crew is still relatively new to the site but has already met several challenges, from learning to read the soil beneath their workboots, to dealing with inclement weather. Some of the new student archaeologists comment on the events of the past week at Ravenscroft.

At the beginning of the second week of working on the Ravenscroft site, we have been working in an area just north of Structure A, in the hopes of finding some remnants of other activities on the site and/or evidence of other buildings on the property. Last week we finished the removal of the topsoil, and this week we are working through the layer of soil that was built up after years of plowing this area for an agricultural exhibit in Colonial Williamsburg.

Upon reaching the base of this "plowzone," interesting features are becoming visible. The 1 by 1 meter unit that I am working in has begun showing a portion of some of the trenches dug and then refilled in 1954 by draftsman/architectural historian James M. Knight, when he was searching the area for brick and mortar foundations to rebuild. Also visible is an unknown feature that will need more detailed excavation to identify. While screening, or sifting, through the excavated dirt, vast amounts of artifact fragments have been found--pieces of various ceramics, glass, nails, shells, and animal bone, many of which are from the more recent past. (Apparently RC Cola was very popular here in the mid-twentieth century!) While we sometimes joke and ask each other, "have you found anything good?" in reality all artifacts play a significant role in determining the happenings of this site and, just as important, when they happened. By mapping exactly where on the site artifacts are found, what these objects are and when and where they were originally manufactured, archaeologists are able to get a better picture of when this site was occupied and what daily life might have consisted of at that certain period of time in history.

When first approaching the site, the intrigue of Structure A got me excited to "dig in" and maybe be able to assist the archaeologists in discerning what this building looked like, who lived here, and what they did. After realizing that we wouldn't be in the cellar of Structure A for some time and would be working just north of it I have to admit I was a little disappointed. However, after working in this area I have come to quickly realize its importance to the overall interpretation of the Ravenscroft site and have found that it stirs up just as much intrigue and excitement as though working within the structure itself. After studying the history of the site and noting historical references to other features on the property, such as orchards and other outbuildings, the idea of possibly being present when even a glimpse of this sort of discovery is made is thrilling. Inasmuch as this work can seem rather repetitive and meticulous, it is also exhilarating. We are digging our way through history. As the layers peal off, we are getting a clearer picture of what may have happened here over time; or, as it often seems, we are presented with more questions to answer. Even though finding fifty sherds of the same ceramic seems dull and insignificant to most, piecing those sherds together and seeing the beauty of the completed object makes all the work unearthing those sherds in the first place well worth it.

As I sit to write this entry we are well into our second week of field school at the Ravenscroft site. We have had some delays this week due to the weather. Archaeology is obviously done in the field, and we are always subject to the whims of Mother Nature. We pretty much work through anything, (actual) temperatures over 100 degrees and thunderstorms or heavy rain being the few exceptions. Earlier this week we experienced our first shortened day due to a fast moving thunderstorm. The first rumble was dismissed as the Fife and Drum Corps echoing distantly from Duke of Gloucester Street. The second was much more vocal and obvious in announcing its impending arrival. Typically it takes around 15 to 20 minutes at the end of each day to close our site. This includes troweling up any loose, packing up equipment such as buckets and shovels, and covering the site with waterproof tarps. The day the thunderstorm rolled in, the site was closed in around 5 minutes--amazing how the threat of lightning can inspire us to move quickly!

This has been an especially wet week. Excavation can take place in the rain, as long as it isn't too much at one time, however, once you begin digging through mud instead of dirt it's time to call it a day. Yesterday we set out ambitiously. Knowing a large rain storm would be arriving and our time would be limited, we were able to work for about two hours before packing up. The decision was made to return after lunch and a light drizzle made for a very muddy hour of digging before the rain got too hard and the site too messy to work effectively. Mornings after rain storms often involve having to bail water out of our tarps before uncovering the site. Keeping the site as dry as possible is important. For instance, the northern part of our site has several exposed features which are still being excavated, and if these get wet or muddy it can change their form and could possibly ruin their further analysis.

Water on an archaeological site can also sometimes be helpful, in controlled amounts of course. Often water is sprayed on features to help bring out changes in soil color to help with identifying where a feature starts or stops and is also used when taking photographs to ensure that their color is even. I suppose you could say archaeologists have a love/hate relationship with water! The rest of the week promises to be a wet one, but we have luckily not had to deal with the other problem of extreme heat, although it is July in Virginia and it is sure to come!

I recently moved to Virginia to attend the field school at the Colonial Williamsburg Ravenscroft site. I am originally from Michigan, a student at The University of Michigan-Dearborn majoring in Anthropology, but my strong interest in archaeology lured me down to Virginia to finish my undergrad career. I figured that this site would provide me with some insight into what an archaeologist's job entails. I also knew that the area was rich in historical artifacts, and that it would be a great opportunity for me to learn more about the origins of the area, and would provide a window into the early days of this country.

Currently we are wrapping up our second week out here. The landscape behind structure A is beginning to unfold as we are finally peeling away the remaining plowzone (a layer of soil that has been plowed several times since 1954). The units of plowzone that I have excavated contained many artifacts--oyster shells, glass, animal bones/teeth, and several different types of ceramics. These types of artifacts were most prevalent, but the most interesting artifact found within my unit was a "half dime" that dated back to 1856. I didn't know that such a coin had ever existed.

Features such as James Knight's 1954 trenches are now finally visible beneath the plowzone that we have removed. While working in my unit, it was exciting for me to be able to identify the trench on my own. As we reached subsoil (the yellow clay areas of soil that are "sterile" because they predate any human occupation), it became more apparent that we were finding areas that contained features due to the darker color of the soil. The Jimmy Knight trenches are darker in color which signifies to us that they need further excavation because they reflect a past activity on the site that interrupted the natural soil layers.

The removal of plowzone has been a very physically demanding process, especially in this 100 degree weather. We arrive on site at approximately 8:30 am and from that point we "dig in." I had never worked outdoors like this before, digging in the dirt under the hot sun, but it was incredibly rewarding with each completion of a unit (a 1 by 1 meter square). It was also, not to mention, a fantastic workout. I soon realized the importance of having a good, sturdy pair of shoes to wear out in the field due to the long hours of being on my feet in squatting positions and kicking a shovel into the solid ground. Did I mention the part where this is all actually fun? It certainly is.

I was speaking with a visitor about the cellar this morning and the possible uses of Structure A--a bakehouse, a store, or some sort of outbuilding for the main house Structure B. The conversation turned to the possible occupants of a Structure A's loft--enslaved residents of urban sites were known to live in the upstairs areas of houses and outbuildings. The visitors' tones of voice turned soft, and they leaned closer towards the cellar to get a better look. Archaeology, to me anyway, is all about representation, the underrepresentation of some groups of people in history, and overrepresentation of the individuals that made enormous, arching changes in history--like Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. It's important to ask the values and habits of the everyday person, whose history is not often written about. Their influence is ever-present.

The blending of ethnicities into American culture gives archaeology power and purpose. Earlier this week, my excavation partner and I found objects related to the leisure time of average people of the early twentieth century--marbles, an earring made of rhinestones, and fragments of RC Cola bottles. It isn't the "treasure" some visitors ask for, but it is representative of a time that's foggy in the minds of locals and tourists, when a vibrant African-American community was developing in this area of Williamsburg.

The "race, class, and gender" question is intimidating and all-consuming to many academic fields, but in representing the lower and middle classes, including African-Americans that occupied the Williamsburg area for centuries, historical archaeology and its public outreach has a new, empowering message. Many visitors can relate to those middle classes. A few can even remember playing with marbles in the backyard and drinking Coke or some other regional cola out of glass bottles. Such unwritten records become important in understanding the full scope of history, and visitors from all walks of life and ethnicities can thoroughly grasp their own heritage through an archaeological record that feels like their own piece of the past.

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