Metal Detector Investigations on the Fall 1863 Bivouacs of the 2nd Corps, 3rd Division, 2nd Brigade, Culpepper County, Virginia

Summary

After the Federal Army aborted the Mine Run Campaign, the 2nd Corps, 3rd Division, 2nd Brigade was ordered to return to their campgrounds near Brandy Station, Virginia. These camps were front-line short-term bivouacs of troops on active campaign. The material culture these soldiers possessed differs from troops in permanent camps, rear-echelon camps, and winter quarters. The artifact assemblage found in a front-line camp reflects one activity: warfare. In such situations, ammunition, weapons, sustenance, and a means of carrying these items are essential for increasing one’s chances of survival. Left behind were many of the items that made camp life tolerable, and most of the trappings of the social spheres in which the soldiers interacted in the civilian world. The field methodologies developed and employed to investigate these bivouac sites demonstrate that shovel testing will not find these types of sites and only metal detection will provide quantitative and meaningful information.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Potomac Pasts: Papers Honoring the Career of NPS Archeologist Dr. Stephen R. Potter   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 269