Strawbery Banke Museum 2026 Archaeological Field School

Location: Rollinsford, NH, USA

Season: June 1, 2026 to June 26, 2026

Session Dates: 6/1-6/12; 6/15-6/26

Application Deadline: May 29, 2026

Deadline Type: Rolling

Website: https://www.strawberybanke.org/archaeology

Program Type:
Field School

RPA Certified:
No

Affiliation:
Strawbery Banke Museum

Project Director:
Dr. Alexandra Martin

Project Description:

Join Dr. Alix Martin, Archaeologist, along with Dr. Tad Baker, Professor of History at Salem State University, for hands-on training in archaeological field and lab methods, now in its second year focused on the ca. 1701 Col. Paul Wentworth site in Rollinsford, NH. Students may join the Field Session to excavate, identify artifacts, and lead tours and/or the Lab Session to process, catalog, and interpret finds.

The Col. Paul and Abra Wentworth House was built ca. 1701 overlooking the area that became known as Rollinsford, New Hampshire and the Salmon Falls River. The house was a local landmark until 1936, when a Wentworth descendant dismantled the house and relocated the structure to Dover, Massachusetts. In 2002 the Association for Rollinsford Culture and History (ARCH) was founded with the central mission of returning the Wentworth House to Rollinsford. The house was repatriated to Rollinsford, on a neighboring parcel of land to its original foundation.

In 2025 ARCH secured permission from a new landowner to explore the property and so a new season of excavation was planned. The excavation was conducted in partnership among the Association for Rollinsford Culture and History, Strawbery Banke Museum and the museum’s Archaeologist Dr. Alexandra Martin, Dr. Emerson Baker of Salem State University, and the private landowner on whose land the Wentworth House was originally built. The research, excavations, and subsequent lab work were directed by Dr. Martin and Dr. Baker. The present excavations at Wentworth House took place in June 2025 and were intended to relocate the ca. 1701 foundation of the Wentworth House, and to establish an understanding of how other buildings were situated on the property. The excavations also offered the opportunity to recover information about how the property was used and to investigate the additions to the house. Of particular interest was identification of features associated with an outbuilding depicted on the 1936 Historic American Building Survey map, formerly used as a carriage house and slaves’ quarters. Both Paul Wentworth and his heir to the property, John Wentworth (Paul’s nephew), owned enslaved people, according to their probate records.

Period(s) of Occupation: Historic

Project Size: 1-24 participants

Minimum Length of Stay for Volunteers: 2 weeks

Minimum Age: 16

Experience Required: This field school does not require previous archaeological experience, though coursework in anthropology, archaeology, or history might be helpful. Students should be able to work well as part of a team. For the Field Session: Archaeological fieldwork can be demanding. Students should be able to tolerate physical activity in the summer weather. Students should also be comfortable kneeling, bent, or standing for long periods of time; and be able to lift heavy loads, climb in and out of deep trenches, and work on uneven terrain. If you are concerned about these requirements, please contact the instructor so that we can make accommodations for your involvement in the fieldwork without risk of injury to yourself or others, or damage to the integrity of the site.

Room and Board Arrangements:
Students are responsible for their own accommodations and transportation.

Academic Credit:
Students may arrange to receive academic credit through their university. Please contact museum archaeologist Dr. Alix Martin for more details at amartin@sbmuseum.org.