Course Description:  This course is intended to offer students in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, history, or related fields, hands-on training in field and lab methodology. This year, research will focus on recovering archaeological resources at the c. 1695 Sherburne House in advance of the house’s reinterpretation as part of Portsmouth’s Quadricentennial Celebration in 2023.  Field trips, museum tours by experts, and required readings on Historical Archaeology will introduce students to various areas of historic specialization.  Scholarships are available!

This summer the museum offers a field session as well as a lab session. Students may choose either or both (the field session is not a pre-requisite for the lab session).

During the Field Session, students are trained in archaeological field techniques and learn to identify historic artifacts. This field school places a special emphasis on public archaeology and interpretation. Students interact with museum visitors daily, and are expected to offer interpretation of the site and the excavation activity.

During the Lab Session, students work in the Carter Collections Center laboratory to gain experience in processing, identifying, and cataloging artifacts recovered from the Penhallow site. Students are expected to prepare a blog post or interpretive panel to describe artifacts to museum visitors.

Lab School review: “one of my favorite parts…. because it allowed us to really use our minds to have to research and interpret our artifacts” -2018 student

Location: Strawbery Banke Museum is an outdoor living history museum located in historic Portsmouth, NH. Strawbery Banke archaeologists have conducted some of the largest urban archaeology projects in New Hampshire. Previous excavations at Strawbery Banke have revealed information on domestic life, immigration, building traditions, pottery manufacture, and other industries, and have demonstrated that Portsmouth is one of the richest sites for historical archaeology in northern New England.