OFFICIAL SITE OF THE STATE OF NEW JERSEYArchaeology
Introduction
There are no written records for the first 10,000 years (or more) of Native American history in New Jersey. Human behavior leaves physical traces, and archaeological investigation helps reconstruct that lost history. Even written history from Colonial and later periods did not record everyone equally. The experience and history of many Native Americans, Afro-Americans and Euro-Americans went unwritten. Some of this history is recoverable through archaeology. Investigating the past can help us consider social justice in the present. Important sites on public lands belong to everyone. Their gradual loss from public lands robs us of knowledge about our collective past.
Identifying and protecting archaeological resources
Archaeological survey
Learn when HPO recommends when and how to write an archaeological survey. If you discovered a site, find out how to register it with the New Jersey State Museum’s statewide inventory.
Legal protections
State and federal regulations protect sites on public land from looting and destruction. Learn how this applies to New Jersey archaeological sites.
Tribal consultation
Learn how to conduct Tribal Consultation for Native American groups in New Jersey.
Section 106 Archaeology Guidance (ACHP)
Read the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation’s guide to archaeology in Section 106 regulatory review.
An overview of important terms
- Archaeology
- The scientific study of past people and their lifeways, culture and relationship with the environment.
- Archaeological site
- A place with material evidence of past occupation. This may include artifacts, features, structures, organic and/or environmental remains.
Archaeologists look for evidence of past human occupation in the form of
- Artifacts
- Objects made or altered by humans, such as projectile points (“arrowheads”), pottery, stone tools, food waste, ceramics and glass, building materials, coins, jewelry, ammunitions, etc.
- Features
- Archaeological remains made or altered by people, which cannot be removed from an archaeological site. Features may include structural foundations or ruins, pits and post-holes, hearths, privies, bottle dumps, etc.
- Ecofacts
- Natural objects once used by humans that can provide information on the past environment, such as animal bones and shells, seeds, nuts, and other plant material.
Archaeology is a careful and methodical process. Once a survey locates an archaeological site, archaeologists take a step-by-step approach to excavation and documentation.
As they excavate a site, archaeologists keep detailed notes of
- Everything that is found.
- Where it is found.
- The relationship between all artifacts, features and site boundaries.
This can include
- Hand-written notes and measurements
- Photographs
- Scale drawings
- GIS mapping
These form the context, which is the key to understanding and learning from archaeological sites.
After they excavate a site, archaeologists prepare detailed papers, presentations and reports on their findings in order to preserve the archaeological record.
Context
- Strata
- Soil layers.
- Stratigraphy
- The study of soil strata, especially the distribution, deposition and age.
- Law of Superposition
- In undisturbed conditions, more recent soil layers lie closer to the surface, while older soil layers lay beneath. In other words, the deeper you dig, the older the soil layers, the older the artifacts.
Archaeological sites can be found across the entire state of New Jersey, from the beaches of Cape May County to the mountains of Sussex County, and everywhere in between. These sites range from small artifact scatters to large sprawling complexes. Archaeological sites are found in all settings, from rural agricultural fields to suburban neighborhoods to urban industrial centers.
Precontact Native American sites
“Precontact” refers to the time period before European expansion into North America in the seventeenth century. Many Native American sites in New Jersey fall into the precontact period. Precontact sites may include major cultural centers, residential settlements, campsites, trails, stone quarries, resource procurement sites, monuments, mortuary sites, and cultural landscapes. There is no written record from the precontact period, but precontact archaeology is often supplemented by Native American ethnographic studies and oral history.
Historic archaeological sites
Historic archaeological sites are those in which archaeologists can use the written record to aid their research (i.e. following the initial contact between indigenous peoples and European-American colonizers.) Historic archaeological sites may include former dwellings and farmsteads, businesses, infrastructure, mills and factories, battlefields, and cemeteries. Historic archaeology is not limited to the history of European-Americans, but includes the vast history of Native Americans and African Americans in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries, as well.
Underwater archaeological sites
Underwater archaeological sites are those found in rivers, bays, and off the Atlantic coast, and can date to the precontact or historic period. New Jersey possesses an estimated 3,000 shipwrecks along its shorelines. This is attributed to the location of the state between two major shipping ports in the Raritan Bay and the Delaware Bay. New Jersey was also the site of many maritime conflicts during the Revolutionary War, and was frequented by military vessels during World Wars I and II. Other types of underwater archaeological sites include the remains of shoreline structures such as piers, as well as sites affected by sea level rise.
Non-archaeologists often confuse the following with archaeology. They study past objects, too, but their scope is beyond and before human civilization.
- Geology
- The study of earth science and astronomical objects. Geologists focus on rocks, minerals and changes to the Earth over time.
- Paleontology
- The study of dinosaurs and other extinct species. Paleontologists focus on fossils and other evidence of non-human life.
What qualifications does an archaeologist need?
You must have both education and experience to qualify as a professional archaeologist. The United States Secretary of Interior (SOI) has set forth standards for professional qualification in archaeology (i.e., being “SOI-qualified”). The qualification standards require:
- Graduate degree in archaeology, anthropology or closely related field.
- At least one year of full-time professional experience or equivalent specialized training in archaeological research, administration or management.
- At least four months of supervised field and analytic experience in general North American archaeology.
- Demonstrated ability to carry research to completion.
How can I learn more about local archaeology?
Members of the public who are not qualified archaeologists can still engage in the field. Several state and regional organizations host archaeological conferences that welcome the public. Some of these include: