New East digs yield centuries-old relics
A team of Carolina archaeologists unearthed artifacts from the late 18th century at the former site of Steward’s Hall.
On a sunny morning in late April, a group of Carolina faculty and students hunched down on the ground outside New East and sifted through the dirt for artifacts. A small white sign outside the building read: “Archaeological dig in progress.”
Led by research archaeologist and adjunct assistant professor Mary Beth Fitts, the dig was the second of the spring semester outside New East. The first, in February, was prompted by grounds workers digging for the installation of a new bench and finding glittering objects in the soil. After further investigation by Fitts and a team of students, the site yielded artifacts dating back to the late 18th century.
Heather Lapham, associate director of the UNC Research Laboratories of Archaeology, uses a shovel to dig up dirt in front of New East. (Johnny Andrews/UNC-Chapel Hill)
“We found everything from window glass to animal bones — from cows and things of that nature — to container glass and pottery dishes that people were eating off of,” Fitts said. “Then, in the ground, we found evidence of post holes. We actually are still processing that material, so we don’t know if those posts were part of a building where we’re standing now, or there just happened to be a sign here 50 years ago.”
The area outside New East is significant to UNC-Chapel Hill’s history as the home to one of campus’ first buildings, called Steward’s Hall. Constructed in 1794, Steward’s Hall was a small, wood-frame house that served as a dining hall and university commons until 1816, then as a private boarding house until the building’s dismantlement in 1847.
Angela Bailey, a first-year anthropology graduate student, uses a chart to determine the color density of the excavated material. (Johnny Andrews/UNC-Chapel Hill)
According to campus maps, Steward’s Hall was located just south of the site that became New East, which was constructed in 1858.
“Steward’s Hall was really where that sense of community was built,” Fitts said. “In the early University days, that’s where students would have gathered all together, besides their classes. It was more of an informal setting, where students developed relationships and friendships.”
Fitts sifts through some of the excavated material. (Johnny Andrews/UNC-Chapel Hill)
Because of the dining hall’s prominence to the early days of the University, numerous archaeological digs in the area have helped shed light on what life was like at Carolina two centuries ago.
Cayla Colclasure, a historical archaeologist and a doctoral student in the UNC College of Arts and Sciences’ anthropology department, was among the group sifting through the soil during the April dig.
This time, the team found a glass pipette, the fragments of an aqua-colored tableware bowl and a pre-colonial Native American projectile point that likely dates back 3,000 years. The digging also uncovered more glass, coal and building materials like nails.
Junior Emily O’Loughlin cleans and sorts some of the excavated artifacts at a processing lab in Alumni Hall. (Johnny Andrews/UNC-Chapel Hill)
“They put out a call for graduate students to come and help out, and I thought it would be a good opportunity,” Colclasure said. “I’m always interested in campus archeology, and I’m really excited about the idea of there being more campus archeology here at UNC.”
Fitts said it’s important for students like Colclasure to gain hands-on experience outside the classroom to develop their skills, and Colclasure jumped at the chance.
“Archeologists love to dig,” Colclasure said. “We don’t always get to do as much of it during the regular semester as we would want to, so I was excited for the opportunity.”
Fitts (left) talks with O’Loughlin about the composition of some of the excavated artifacts. (Johnny Andrews/UNC-Chapel Hill)
