Wesley Brock 28′

On October 17, the Department of Anthropology hosted its latest of many community archaeology events. Since the beginning of the Kenyon Archaeological Project in 2023, as is true of increasingly many excavations in the past forty years (Stubbs et al.), community engagement has been a central focus. As both the Anthropology Department office intern and a student in the Campus Archaeology course, I faced an interesting question approaching this semester’s community engagement event: what appeals to people about archaeology?

1. You get to dig in the dirt

Archaeology is a uniquely sensory, immersive practice. On Mondays when my Campus Archaeology class is out at the site all afternoon, I hear constant references to the physicality of our work: “My back hurts,” “My feet are wet,” “The sun is killing me.” The importance of the body to archaeology is one of its most appealing aspects for me. In addition to academic strategies, you go into archaeology with physical strategies — kids at the community archaeology day were reminded to be physically gentle with the ground. Archaeology is tactile — you get to feel the things you’re studying and the earth those things are held within.

2. You get your hands on history

“Get your hands on Kenyon history” was my pseudo-motto for this weekend’s community archaeology day. Just as you get to feel the ground, you feel the processes of time. The past might be out of sight, buried under a lawn you might pass every day, but it’s really only a few inches (or centimeters!) beneath the surface.

The village of Gambier and Kenyon College are remarkable for having a united and well-documented origin story. Stakeholders in Kenyon history are not limited to Kenyon students and faculty; everyone living in Gambier has a deep investment in this origin story. While not everyone knows exactly what is going on with that orange fence outside the church, the fence signals that there is work taking place, and community events signal that the work is a shared work. I have found while working on this project that it takes quite a lot to make people aware of it: students express disbelief that there is anything worth looking at under Kenyon’s well-maintained turf. 

Gambier and Kenyon also have the notable aspect of being small. In addition to investment in the past, we have an investment in each other that the physical work of excavation brings to the surface like any artifact.

In contrast with the idea that students are a central stakeholder group in campus archaeology projects (Kroot & Panich), not many students uninvolved with the Campus Archaeology course attended the event. However, there was steady attendance from other community members. Kids got quite invested and enjoyed using picks to look for ceramic pieces, rusty spoons, skinny nails, and interesting rocks. I asked why they thought there were so many nails. “Because there was a house here,” said 7-year-old Ava. A decisive start to her academic career.

Kroot, Matthew, and Lee M. Panich. 2020. “Students Are Stakeholders in On-Campus Archaeology.” Advances in Archaeological Practice: A Journal of the Society of American Archaeology 8 (2): 134–50.

Stubbs, John D., Patricia Capone, Christina J. Hodge, and Diana D. Loren. 2010. “Campus Archaeology/Public Archaeology at Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts.” In Beneath the Ivory Tower: The Archaeology of Academia, edited by Russell K. Skowronek and Kenneth E. Lewis, 99-120. Gainesville: University Press of Florida.