the sites
excavations at
the Knapp siteBinghamton University’s 2011 archaeological field school will return to investigate two early historic cabin sites (Knapp and Bungalow) within the boundaries of the Revolutionary War Newtown Battlefield in Chemung County, New York. At the close of the War, land grants to soldiers and other settlers encouraged a series of homesteads within the former battlefield. One prominent family, the Lowmans, built log cabins as temporary shelters until their main houses were finished. As the families moved into their new dwellings, the cabins became available for others. One of the tenants was Charlie Smith, a free African-American servant of the Lowmans.
Previous investigations of the two sites by the Public Archaeology Facility produced a diverse assemblage of domestic material, as well as some battlefield-related artifacts, that will contribute to ongoing research projects in the Chemung Valley. A separate, but overlapping, research project is funded by the American Battlefield Protection Program and some intersections between the field school and that research are expected.
The 2011 field school will have the unique opportunity to investigate the pioneer era of settlement in the Chemung corridor, specifically the dynamic economic and social relationships between prosperous landowners and the people who worked for them. Descendants of the Lowman family retain ownership of the properties today and are active in local historic preservation and enthusiastic about the archaeological field school. The field school will be an exciting opportunity to exchange information with a descendant family.
