Campus Archaeology Internship for Spring 2010

Summer Intern Dan Tooman screens with Grad Student Charlotte Cable.

The MSU Campus Archaeology Program is looking for one undergraduate intern for the spring of 2010. The intern will have numerous responsibilities, including working in the lab, excavations, public engagement about findings, and engaging in a special research project. The intern will be responsible for updating  the public about their work through the Intern blog (http://capintern.wordpress.com). This position provides a unique opportunity for students interested in archaeology and public history. It is expected that applicants will have attended an archaeological field school. This internship will be for credit through the college of Social Science.

Applications are due next Friday, December 11th. They can be emailed to Campus Archaeologist Terry Brock at brockter@msu.edu, or turned in to the Department of Anthropology, Baker Hall, Room 355. You can access an application by visiting the Internship Page on our homepage.

Some new faces at Campus Archaeology

Although it has taken a while for them to get up, we wanted to introduce our three new interns for the fall semester: Jeff Gepper, Jen Allen, and David Lewandowski. All three are undergraduate students at MSU, and each offers a unique skill set that we are putting to use this semester. Jeff is learning about GIS mapping, and will be putting together a site map of West Circle Drive. Jen is a double History/Anthropology Major, and has been working on getting ready for the demolition of Morrill Hall. David has experience working in public archaeology, and has been diligently working on putting together historical data about College Hall, which he will be turning into a final report about that project. Please click on these links to see their introductory blog posts over at the Intern Blog. Make sure to ask them some good, tough questions!!

We also have a professorial assistant this semester, named Patricia Cashen. An Anthropology Major, Patricia is working on developing an ethnohistory of the early college from a student perspective, particularly their descriptions of daily life and their interactions with the landscape.

Lastly, two graduate students are working on special projects this year. Joann Wallace, a first year graduate student, is working on developing a model for prehistoric sites at Michigan State University. Grace Krause, another first year graduate student, will be working on a project relating to food consumption at the early college.

Welcome to the new students working with Campus Archaeology!!

College Hall Testing Complete

This past Tuesday, the Campus Archaeology Program completed their testing at College Hall, in an effort to determine whether or not a summer field school would be possible at the site. Unfortunately, the results are not favorable.

The Artillery Garage, built in 1918. Photo courtesy of MSU Archives and Historical Collections

The extensive historical survey, and the photographs that were discovered, certainly indicate that much of the material culture that would have been located just south of  Beaumont Tower were removed in 1918 and prior to the construction of the Tower in 1928. Archaeological work indicates that after much of the building was torn down in 1918, it was transferred to an area located off the intersection of Beal and Kalamazoo Street to serve as fill along the river. The leftover foundations were used to construct an artillery garage that stood for nearly 10 years. This shed housed 16 army trucks, and used part of the walls of College Hall. It was probably taken down in the mid to late 1920s, as minutes from Board of Trustees meetings in 1927 ask for the foundations of College Hall to be removed.

Southeast corner of Beaumont Tower, 1928. Photo courtesy of MSU Archives and Historical Collections.

The photographs of Beaumont being built in 1928 provide the best evidence supporting the lack of remains. The first photo, taken of the Southeast corner of Beaumont Tower, shows that the sidewalk under which we discovered the northeast corner of College Hall was in tact during the construction of Beaumont. This explains the walls preservation. The second photo, taken from the Southwest corner of Beaumont Tower, shows that a good deal of earth was removed along the West side of the sidewalk, in order to provide a deep footing for the Tower. This is where the interior of College Hall would have been.

Our test units attempted to locate the West and South walls of the building. What resulted was some rubble of possible foundations stones, but nothing in situ. It is likely that much of the building was cleared out when Beaumont was built, and then redistributed across the site when the began to fill in the area that was excavated. The Northeast corner, however, was preserved underneath the sidewalk. Along the South end, a good deal of disturbance also came from the installation of steam, irrigation, and communication lines, limiting the areas possible for excavations, and further disturbing the deposits.

Southwest corner of Beaumont Tower, 1928. Photo courtesy of MSU Archives and Historical Collections.

All is not lost, however. The discovery of the northeast corner, provided further insight into the difficult, early phases of the Agricultural College. The poor construction of the foundation, as evidenced by the use of small river stones and poor mortar, corroborate the historical record which indicates that the building was poorly built. The graffiti covered walls showed how manual labor by the students was a regular part of student life. This was further emphasized by the work done by the football team in 1918, who moved the remains of College Hall to their current resting spot at Kalamazoo and Beal Street.

Northeast Corner of College Hall Foundation, 2009. Note the rounded stones and bricks used in foundation.

This movement of the building’s remains also provide a glimpse into a period of transition and expansion, as Michigan Agricultural College became Michigan State College in 1925. Symbolized by the falling down of College Hall, and made permanent by the construction of Beaumont Tower, this transition included the construction of new, larger buildings such as the Memorial Student Union, the new Library (now Museum), and the addition of larger athletic facilities South of the Red Cedar River. Remains of College Hall were, therefore, discovered in two places, each a critical piece of this transition from MAC to MSC. The first is underneath the 1920s version of the Bridge to Future: the bricks of College Hall support the Kalamazoo Street Bridge, built as a link to South Campus. The foundation of College Hall rests in the shadow of Beaumont Tower, which symbolizes the advancement of Michigan State College as the founding Land Grant College, and continues to stand today as a reminder of our Univerisity’s heritage. Despite the fact that a field school at College Hall will not be possible, a significant amount of detail can be gleaned when what was discovered is put in a larger context.

Regarding a field school, we are still investigating other possibilities, so all is not lost in that regard as well. Additional opportunities are available, and will make an announcement soon. Stay tuned!

The Archaeology of Student Labor

For those of you who follow us on Twitter, you may remember this tweet photo from the left. We found this piece of mortar while we were working at the Beal Street excavations. These excavations uncovered an extraordinary amount of brick rubble that was being used as fill to prevent the river from flooding. We were unsure as to where these bricks were coming from. We could deduce two things: first, it was one of the older buildings on campus because of the presence of cut nails and campus-made bricks; and second, it was a building that existed into the 19th century, because we also found wire nails. There was so much construction happening on campus during the first part of the 19th century, however, it was difficult to know for sure what building these bricks were from. This piece of mortar was picked up among this brick rubble. It is a fascinating piece: clearly some graffiti of the letters “Moor” written a plaster wall in this mysterious building. Such a find is incredibly rare; it is not often that you discover writing of any sort archaeologically.

Fast-forward to the past week. We have been getting ready for phase II excavations at College Hall, in an effort to determine whether or not a field school would be appropriate for this coming summer. This has required some more work in the archives, focusing primarily on when College Hall was torn down. This happened after the south part of the building collapsed in 1918. The MAC football team helped to remove the rest of building. What we discovered in the archives was fascinating, in particular the photo to the right, which was written by a group of students who were doing repairs on College Hall in 1887. The graffiti reads, “Darn Hard Job”, and then lists seven students who did the work during the week of May 13-20. As you can see, the first name on that list, Alexander Moore, matches the piece of graffitied plaster that we found at the Beal Street excavations this summer (click on the image for a closer look!).

I can’t emphasize how rare this is. The odds that we would find the artifact at Beal Street in the first place is rare. The fact that someone actually took a picture of the same artifact in its original context in 1918 is equally rare, let alone the fact that the photograph was preserved in the MSU Historical Archives. This is incredibly important for our analysis because it solidifies the identification of the bricks that were found at Beal Street: they were the remains of College Hall.

This is a find that also speaks to the typical life of a student in 1887 and in 1918; a life that accounts for the taking of this photograph. In 1887, these students were working on renovating College Hall; a typical occurrence for students of that time period. Part of a Land Grant education at that time was to provide three hours of manual labor every day. Repairs on buildings, it could be surmised, would be part of that work.

In 1918, students were yet again put to work on College Hall. Members of the football team removed the remains of the structure, presumably redepositing the remains at the site of our Beal Street excavations.No doubt, this was difficult work, leading them to snap a photograph when they realized they were not the first MAC students to have worked on that building, commiserating with the description of that work as a “darn hard job”.

Things have obviously changed: although our Land Grant values are still evident in the difficult work that many of our students do in the field and through their practical education, it is rare to find the football team shoveling walks, or the student body out raking leaves, repairing the utilities, or painting offices, under the watchful eye of faculty members. Now, this work is left in the dutiful and capable hands of the MSU Physical Plant, who, I can attest, put just as much care and effort into their “darn hard jobs”.

If we do have the chance to do a field school again this summer, however, students will yet again be working on College Hall, continuing the legacy of those students who preceded them. They will be rediscovering, as those students did in 1918, the tradition of hard work and manual labor that this university was founded on, carried out by students such as Alexander Moore and his friends.

Special thanks to the MSU Archives and Historical Collections for access to their goodies, and for the reproduction of the photograph above.

College Hall Revisited

The foundation of College Hall. Photo courtesy of University Relations.

A couple weeks ago, the Campus Archaeology Program discovered the northeast foundation of College Hall, the first building built on MSU’s campus. Next week, on Thursday the 22nd and Friday the 23rd, the Campus Archaeology Program will return to the site to see just how much more work can be done.

This excavation is called a Phase II Project. The purpose is to further investigate an archaeological site to determine if a full scale excavation (Phase III) project is necessary. This will be done by selecting two areas for excavation units to be put in. These units will help us determine how much of the building is still remaining, and what types of artifacts may still be left inside the structure. After we complete a Phase II, we will be able to determine if a Phase III project might be possible. Such a project may be a field school this coming summer for undergraduate students to take part in learning how archaeology is performed. However, this cannot be determined without doing excavations next week.

Please feel free to stop by, see what we are finding, and to ask questions about this historic space. As always, you can follow us on Twitter or Facebook, and see what we are finding as we find it!

College Hall, first academic building at MSU, Found

Last week, Campus Archaeology performed survey at Beaumont Tower, to investigate the area below sidewalks that were being replaced. Underneath sidwalks located under the southeast corner of Beaumont, foundation stones were located. There is little doubt that these stones are the original foundations of College Hall, the first building built on MSU’s campus.

Our excavations, completed with the express purpose of uncovering the foundation stones and identifying whether or not the building was in place, were completed in two days. Once completely uncovered, most of the Northeast corner of the building was visible. The structure was only located 30 cm. below the surface, and only 30 cm. the foundation was still left. However, it was clear that there were stones and mortar that were still connected and in place, spanning 3.5 meters South, into the area which still has concrete sidewalks on top of it.

As discussed earlier, this building met an unfortunate demise, falling to the ground in 1918 due to its shoddy construction. Inspections of the building in 1916 had indicated that part of the building was built over a tree stump, that the homemade bricks were crumbling, and that the walls themselves were hollow. Our excavations corroborate this evidence, providing more support for the terrible construction. River stones were used, most likely pulled from the Red Cedar. These stones smooth edges are typically poor construction material. Additionally, small stones were used at the bottom of the foundation, implying that the first stones taken from the river were used as the very basis for the three story structure; this is not good building technique.

Regardless,this building was the literal foundation of MSU and Land Grant Education. The first classes that brought the concepts of a scientific approach to agriculture were taught here; students who normally would have been denied an education elsewhere were given opportunities within this building. Some of the great professors such as Kedzie, Beal, and Abbot taught in this structure. Henry A. Haigh, an 1874 graduate, highlighted the significance of this building when he argued that it should be kept standing:

Great and useful institutions have institutions have good, inspiring traditions…And in this spirit I would urge the preservation of old College Hall, the one remaining monument of the trials and triumphs of long ago. I hope that it may never be razed from the commanding spot where it has stood these four and fifty years…I would keep, preserve, strengthen, restore, and fondly cherish the old structure forever, in memory of the dear, dead days that are gone…Bind up its bruises with bands of steel and masonry, and keep it in loving memory of those devoted and heroic sould whose lives were lavished in the founding and up-buliding of this first of the plain people’s greatpractical schools. Keep it with utmost care, as a repository for the mementoes of the progress toward better farming, better mechanics, better applied physics, and better and broader human life.

We have not yet decided what the best approach to further investigation of the site will be. More testing will need to be completed to determine how much of the building may still remain. For now, we are simply excited that Haigh’s wish, that the building never be razed, is still partly in tact.

More survey, today at Beaumont Tower

The Campus Archaeology Program will be performing Phase I survey at Beaumont Tower tomorrow, September 16. This was the site of the original classroom building that was built in 1856 called College Hall.

It served as a classroom and laboratory building, and by 1916, plans were made to reconstruct this building into a Student Union. However, it turned out the building was built on wood planks, one corner used part of a tree stump as a foundation, the brick walls were hollow, and the bricks were soft due to their homemade construction. In August of 1918, while the marching band played the Star Spangled Banner at a war trainee retreat, the building collapsed. It was later replaced by the Beaumont Tower to commemorate the beginnings of the college.

Landscape Services is removing sidewalks all throughout West Circle, and will be replacing sidewalks next to the Tower. This will provide Campus Archaeology a chance to survey near the building and underneath these sidewalks, before the new cement is poured.

As always, please stop by and pay us a visit, or follow our updates on Twitter or Facebook!

Survey Spot: Cowles House

This Thursday, the Campus Archaeology Program will be engaging in archaeological survey behind Cowles House, known to most as the President’s House. This building is the oldest standing at MSU, and was built as one of the original Faculty Row homes in 1857. It was home to MAC’s earliest presidents, Williams and Abott, and also to the professors of Botany, such as William J. Beal and Ernst Bessey. It was also home to President Hannah, and, most recently, to President McPherson. Currently, it is used as a banquet hall. Since its construction, the building has been modified significantly; only a portion of the original building is still evident, and it is much larger than its original size.

Cowle's House in 1934.

Our hope is to find intact deposits in the backyard of the building. Previous excavations at Saints’ Rest have indicated that refuse was disposed of in the back of the dormitories, and this is typically where refuse was disposed of in the 19th centuries. Previous archaeological work done by CAP has investigated the sites of the other Faculty Row buildings, located where Landon and Campbell Hall are now located, but there were no intact archaeological deposits.

Such a find would give a glimpse into the the early years of the college. Historical evidence has indicated that the earliest years of the Agricultural College, those before received the influx in Land Grant money, were difficult. Students and Faculty built the campus buildings, firing their own brick on campus. It was 3 miles to Lansing, and the basic amenities were scarce. A trash unit from that time period would provide a glimpse into what type of food the professors were eating and what materials they used in everyday life. Were they able to get food from Lansing? Were they relying heavily on the agricultural products and animals that were already at the College? How did their diet compare with the refuse excavated from Saints’ Rest?

None of these questions will be answered on Thursday. We will be performing an archaeological survey in order to identify any sites. This is done by digging shovel width holes, called Shovel Test Pits (STP), every five meters. If we have a cluster of STPs that include archaeological material, we would consider that a site, and revisit it at a later date to perform more extensive excavations. This way, we can gather information about a large area in a short period of time, and make sure that our larger excavations are more specific.

Unfortunately, there is no public access to the site, so drop in visits won’t be possible. However, we will be posting pictures from our excavation on Twitter and Facebook, so please make sure you are following us!

Campus Archaeology has a new ID

Part of developing a program is to make sure that you have a visual identity. Through the visual expertise of Jane Wankmiller, a graduate student in the Department of Anthropology, the Campus Archaeology Program now has a face.

We would like to present our “Identifier”.

We would like to thank Jane for her hard work and amazing talents. Also, look for us around campus: Along with our new logo, Jane also helped us develop a new sign that will be out wherever we are excavating. We are waiting for it to be completed, but it will certainly help us attract a little more attention!

Please let us know what you think of our new ID!!

“you aren’t expecting to find anything, are you?”

One of the most stressful parts of being Campus Archaeologist is the task of monitoring construction projects. Monitoring is necessary under a couple of circumstances. Occassionally, such as at the Brody Complex where I was earlier this week, the archaeological deposits are located much deeper then we are able to reach through traditional means.

Since our business is time constrained by the project timeline, it is more practacle to excavate these materials while the construction is being conducted.

Another scenario is one where our archaeological survey did not find anything, although the historical documentation indicates that something should be visible. Site monitoring allows us to be on hand in case something is discovered. A third scenario is when a project has been started without our knowledge, meaning that no archaeological survey was conducted.

What makes monitoring stressful is that construction work is always under a deadline. Just the presence of the archaeologist puts contractors in a defensive position: I represent the potential for the project to be haulted, which makes the deadline more difficult to meet, which costs more money. Mentioning my title at planning meetings is typically met with a look of fear and the question: “you aren’t expecting to find anything, are you?” Decisions about what needs to be recorded and what can be destroyed need to be made in the moment, and often, the methods used place getting the data recorded quickly ahead of getting it the best possible way. The latter often takes longer.

I am not suggesting that contractors and construction workers are not accommodating, they often are. They typically assume that I want to find artifacts, which means that I want to hold up the project. Often, that is not the case. Sometimes, I am only looking for certain types of data: a wall profile, or the boundary of a large feature. I am doing my best to accommodate their work as much as they do mine.

One of the best strategies has been through education. I spend a lot of time talking with the construction workers about why I am there, how archaeology works, and what I can learn from the dirt and artifacts. They are often very interested in what I am learning, and, since most of them have more experience digging on campus than I do, typically provide me with information about other possible sites around campus. This has been extremely helpful, and has provided a way for the Campus Archaeology Program to interact and educate a population of people that are typically ignored by the University community.

On the flip side, I am learning a large amount about aspects of construction management that I would have otherwise ignored. It has provided a new found respect for the hard work and service that these individuals provide our community. This effects my work, since it provides an even greater appreciation for the workers who built and constructed the historical landscape that I excavate and study everyday, and a realization that buildings at institutions of higher education are not only for those who reside inside them, but also for those people who built them in the first place.