Archaeology at the River’s Edge, Alexandria, VA

The Alexandria Historical Society and the Office of Historic Alexandria present a lecture on recent archaeological discoveries on the waterfront by Dr. Eleanor Breen, City Archaeologist. Dr. Breen serves as director of the renowned public archaeology program and museum that preserves and interprets the buried history of the City of Alexandria, Virginia. Beginning in 2015, new development along Alexandria’s historic shoreline triggered archaeological work in advance of construction. Project by project, the remains of wharves, warehouses, dwellings and houselots, industries, privies, and four ship hull remnants emerged from the waterlogged depths at the Potomac River’s edge. The level of preservation under these modern City blocks was astounding – 20th century slab-built structures nearly perfectly encapsulated entire remains of historic waterfront neighborhoods. This talk will provide an update on the research and preservation of the ships’ timbers and other archaeological finds. Even as individual features and artifact assemblages, these finds are highly significant, but when taken together along with a wealth of historical documentary data, a historic maritime landscape is taking form.

The lecture is free, but capacity is limited to 100. Memberships in the Alexandria Historical Society, a non-profit organization established exclusively for educational purposes, can be purchased at the door.
Doors open at 6:30 pm and the program begins at 7:00 pm.
To obtain more information or to request a reasonable disability accommodation, email franwbromberg@gmail.com.