Using Archaeology And Digital Tools To Understand A Crucial Montreal Site In Canadian Political History

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Digital Technologies and Public Archaeology" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

An ambitious archaeological research program was carried out by Pointe-à-Callière Museum in Montreal on the St. Ann’s Market and Parliament of the United Province of Canada (1832–1849) site, to highlight this site of national significance. Although the Parliament sat here for only a short time, from 1844 to 1849, its abrupt end in a devastating fire left behind an abundance of material remains casting a fascinating light on the political and social context of the time. Thanks to innovative tools, including a sophisticated geolocation system for artifacts using their horizontal and stratigraphic positions, as well as a 3D reconstruction of the site, our analysis of the archaeological data suggests new ways of thinking about the changes occurring in Canadian politics in those days. We will conclude with some reflections on the future of this archaeological site, such an evocative symbol in our Complex and in today’s society.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Digital Technologies and Public Archaeology   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 592