Historic Northampton


Programs & Events

Digging Northampton's History:
A Community Archaeology Project

Parsons House, 1719
Archaeologist Linda Ziegenbein
Ceramic Shards
A public archaeological excavation at the Parsons House
May 19 - June 6, 2015   Tuesdays - Saturdays
Saturday Public Days
May 23, 2015
May 30, 2015
June 6, 2015
Saturdays are Public Days from 10 am to 2 pm. Special activities
will be held including site tours and activities for children.
Dig Site Open Hours
Tuesdays - Fridays from 1 pm to 3 pm
The site is closed on Sundays and Mondays
Website
Email diggingnorthampton@gmail.com
Facebook www.facebook.com/diggingnorthamptonhistory
Twitter @diggingnoho
Funding provided by Mass Humanities
This program is funded in part by MassHumanities, which receives support from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and is an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

On Tuesdays through Saturdays from May 19 through June 6, 2015, an archaeological excavation will be conducted at the site of the Parsons House (58 Bridge Street). The Parsons House was built in 1719 by Nathaniel Parsons, the grandson of Joseph and Mary Bliss Parsons. The excavation will focus on the northern addition of the house and the rear yard, areas that will be impacted by the upcoming renovations to the house.
The area of archaeological focus is immediately outside the backdoor of the original house where it was common to throw trash. The northern addition was built around 1790 on top of this area where people had been throwing their trash for decades. The floor of the northern addition will be temporarily removed so that the excavation can take place. Objects discarded by the original residents of the house will be uncovered during this project.
For much of the history of the Parsons House, there was more than one family living in the house. During the time period under consideration for this project (c. 1719 - c. 1790), there were ten –and as many as sixteen – people living together. Most of these residents were children and the focus of this year’s project is on understanding the lives of the women and children who lived in the house and in Northampton.
This is truly a community archaeology project. Under the direction of Dr. Linda Ziegenbein and her field crew, local schoolchildren, volunteers from the general public, and professional archaeologists will work on the project. Schools that are involved include Leeds Elementary School and R.K. Finn Ryan Road Elementary School in Northampton, as well as the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School in Hadley. While the final number of visitors is difficult to estimate, almost two hundred third- and fourth-graders are scheduled to help with excavation and artifact processing.
Historic Northampton, the owner of the Parsons House, made Digging Northampton’s History the focus of their Valley Gives campaign where over sixty unique visitors donated over $3,000. Their generous donations and letters of support aided in a successful project grant application to Mass Humanities, which is also funding Digging Northampton’s History.

Header Image Notes:
Parsons House at 58 Bridge Street (left)
Parsons House Archaeologist Dr. Linda Ziegenbein (center)
Ceramic Shards for an excavation at the Damon House, 46 Bridge Street (right)