Michilimackinac Archaeology 2021 Mid-Season Update Posted July 16, 2021 We have reached the halfway point of the 2021 archaeological field season at Michilimackinac and there is progress to report.Door latch The southeast cellar seems to be showing signs of bottoming out. The soil in the southern portion is becoming very sandy with pebbles, like the glacial beach which lies under all of the fort. Some of the wood wall fragments have disappeared. Part of a door latch was found in this area. The northern part of the cellar is becoming somewhat sandier, but the wood planks continue, and it recently yielded a small, plain pewter button and a musket ball.Pocketknife The east wall of the central cellar has become better defined with the burned tops of eight wood posts now exposed. The most interesting artifact of the summer (so far) came from the north edge of this cellar, an intact pocketknife. We hope that future research will help us date it or at least identify it as French or British in order to better understand the construction sequence of the cellars. Excavation of 1781 demolition continues further north. We expect to find remnants of the north wall of the house in this area. We have opened the first quad in what we expect to be the final row of squares for this project.New Quad Opened Up The 2021 field season is sponsored by the Mackinac Associates, and we are grateful for their support. Follow MSHP’s social channels and this blog for updates on the rest of the season, or, better yet, come visit the site. We will be excavating every day, weather permitting, through August 21.
Archaeology Season in Review Posted September 7, 2018 Fragment of feather-edged creamware found in the cellar. The 2018 archaeology field season at Colonial Michilimackinac concluded August 25. The second half of the season was as exciting as the first (see July 19 blog post). (more…)
Mid-Season Archaeology Review Posted July 19, 2018 Knife found in the root cellar. We are just past the midpoint of the archaeological field season at Colonial Michilimackinac. It has been exciting so far! (more…)
