Lessons of Engagement – Reflections on a Caribbean Community Archaeology Program, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Cities on the Move: Reflecting on Urban Archaeology in the 21st Century", at the 2025 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

From 2015 until 2022, the National Park Service’s Christiansted National Historic Site and the Southeast Archeological Center, as part of the Slave Wrecks Project, conducted a multi-year community archeology program in downtown Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands that combined underwater and terrestrial archeology with public engagement activities including educational and training programs, museum exhibits, professional internships, and archival research. This paper will summarize the efforts made to provide opportunities to educate and engage local youth about the research, interpretation, and preservation of the important cultural heritage of the Caribbean related to histories and sites pertaining to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. It will also reflect on some lessons learned.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Cities on the Move: Reflecting on Urban Archaeology in the 21st Century   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2025

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow