BOSTON - Wednesday, October 25, 2023 - Today, Mayor Wu cut the ribbon on the City of Boston’s new Archaeology Lab, located on the first floor of the the City of Boston Archival Center at 201 Rivermoor Street in West Roxbury, to celebrate Archaeology Month in Massachusetts. The new, 4,000 square foot facility includes two processing laboratories, an artifact digitizing lab with state-of-the-art 3D scanners, printers, and photography equipment, an artifact repository of over 1,000,000 artifacts from dozens of ancient and historical sites in Boston, an extensive historical ceramic and lithic raw material comparative type collection, a specialized wet laboratory, a research library featuring over 2,000 reference books and archaeological reports, museum exhibit spaces, and a new exhibit on the archaeology of the 1630s James Garrett house site in Charlestown. The lab will be open to the public during normal business hours year-round where hundreds of artifacts can be viewed that span thousands of years and come from across Boston.
“Boston is proud of our legacy as one of the most historic cities in the country, and the City’s new Archeology Lab will play a critical role in our mission to preserve and add to the historical record reflecting all our communities,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “I’m thrilled to welcome residents and visitors alike to the Lab and look forward to sharing records of our rich history with the community.”
The lab is named after Dr. Mary C. Beaudry, who was a celebrated local archaeologist with a four-decade career that celebrated and uplifted the lives of underrepresented peoples. Dr. Beaudry conducted some of the earliest archaeological surveys and analysis in Boston, including Boston Common and the Blackstone Block. Dr. Beaudry was a generous patron of the City Archaeology program, including the donation of her archaeological library of over 2,000 volumes to the City of Boston’s Archaeology Program.
This summer, Mayor Wu cut the ribbon on the City of Boston’s new exhibit, “Slavery in Boston.” This exhibit – located in Faneuil Hall – provides an opportunity to discuss Boston’s role in enslavement and shares the stories of the enslaved and freed people in Boston through research and archaeological artifacts found under Faneuil Hall. As part of the Slavery in Boston exhibit in Faneuil Hall that opened in June, the City Archaeology Program released a publicly available list of known enslaved people in Boston. Earlier this month, the Archaeology team and the Eleven Names Project added nearly 1,000 additional names, growing the list to 2,552 individual records on people of color in Boston before 1783.
"Dr. Mary Beaudry recognized that archeology can be a tool that elevates, acknowledges and honors the multilayered history of our communities," said Reverend Mariama White-Hammond, Chief of Environment, Energy and Open Space. "I am thrilled to attend the opening of the Community Archaeology Center which is a key component of elevating under-appreciated histories and making our City’s history accessible to all."
The Office of Historic Preservation works to ensure that Boston’s history is inclusive, honest, and elevates every community to have the tools and resources to research, preserve, acknowledge, and celebrate their history. The office includes the the City Archaeology Program, Boston Landmarks Commission and the Commemoration Commission. Last year, Mayor Wu and the Boston City Council designated eight new historic designations and Highland Park as an Architectural Conservation District, the largest number in one year since 1983. Any 10 registered Boston voters can petition the Boston Landmarks Commission to designate a historic neighborhood, building, landscape, or object as a protected Boston Landmark or District. Local historic districts carry the ability to regulate change in historic neighborhoods, unlike National Register districts, which advocate for their protection. You can learn more about designating a landmark in Boston by emailing BLC@boston.gov.
“The Archaeology Program turns 40 this year, and I’m truly amazed at how far we have come, both in the space we now inhabit and in the scope and impact of our work,” said City Archaeologist Joe Bagley.
Additionally, Mayor Wu created the new Office of Historic Preservation, which falls under the Environment, Energy and Open Space Cabinet, on July 1, 2022. The Office of Historic Preservation works to ensure that Boston’s history is inclusive, honest, and elevates every community to have the tools and resources to research, preserve, acknowledge, and celebrate their history. The new office includes the Boston Landmarks Commission, the City Archaeology Program, and the Commemoration Commission. There are over 8,000 properties designated as individual Landmarks or located within Boston’s local historic districts. Preserving historic structures supports the City’s carbon neutrality and zero waste goals by preserving the upfront embodied carbon, which is the energy it took to harvest, manufacture, and ship building materials that make up these properties.
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