Scraping Our Way To The Past:A Methodological Approach for Chinese Rural Work Camps

Summary

Recovering meaningful information from ephemeral, short-term work camps in the west is challenging, given the brief occupation time, absence of shelters other than tents or portable structures, and informal layout and design. One methodological approach that has proved effective for research at camps with shallow or no subsurface deposits focuses on exposing and investigating the horizontal deposits across the sites. Archaeological studies of Chinese occupied camps related to mining, railroad construction, fishing, and other activities have identified discrete functional areas within a site, subtle features and spatial layout by using broad surface exposures and detailed mapping. This presentation summarizes past archaeological work at these types of sites and outlines an effective methodological approach for Chinese work camps.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• New and Innovative Approaches to Overseas Chinese Archaeology

Keywords

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology