The dig site in the 900 block of Conti Street in the French Quarter
The Department of Anthropology at the University of New Orleans, in partnership with the Irish Cultural Museum of New Orleans, is conducting an archaeological excavation at the museum’s future location at 933 Conti Street. Organizers anticipate that the excavation will provide clues about the people who lived at the French Quarter site over the last 230 years.
The excavation is being led by Andrea White, an archaeologist from the University of New Orleans Greater New Orleans Archaeology Program. Using historic site maps and drawings, researchers will look for architectural features and trash pits on the site.
“We’ll examine layers of yard deposit, which is a living and working surface,” White said. “We can date layers of trash to a 20 to 30-year time period.”
White and a crew of volunteers began shovel testing at the site on January 4 to determine placement of excavation units. Just a few inches down, the first test pits yielded fragments of tableware, including a shard from a rimmed bowl and a bit of teacup handle.
“We look at household artifacts to consider affluence, like whether the people had a set of matched tableware and serving pieces,” White said. “The ceramic designs are dating tools and the pieces help us extrapolate behavior in terms of what they ate and their ethnic preferences.”
White hopes that the excavation can help fill in gaps about the property, which could contain remains of the first home built at the site during the Spanish Colonial period circa 1780.
“This was outside the footprint of two fires in 1788 and 1794 that burned large portions of the town,” White said. “There was also a large influx in the city’s population after the Louisiana Purchase, so there was a tremendous need for housing, and this area of the city is quickly being developed.”
Work will conclude on January 15 and construction on the museum will begin this month.
The Irish Cultural Museum will explore the history of New Orleans’ Irish through displays of art and artifacts, interactive multimedia kiosks and documentary presentations. The museum is expected to open later this spring.