Alexandria Archaeology Museum

Visit the Alexandria Archaeology Museum to learn how the City’s archaeologists, volunteers and students work with residents and developers to study and manage archaeological resources important to the community's past.

The main exhibit, Archaeologists at Work: The Lee Street Site, highlights one city block to provide a fascinating glimpse of Alexandria’s history and the way in which archaeologists study the past. Small “table top” exhibits feature other Alexandria sites and finds. Hands-on activities engage visitors of all ages. Learn more about exhibits.

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Current News and Information

Summer Camp is back! If you are age 12-15, you can register for this popular program and work on a real archaeological dig. Session I: July 16-20, 2012; Session II: July 23-27, 2012. To register, fill out the Summer Camp Application and send your payment to the Alexandria Archaeology Museum. For those in need, please fill out the Scholarship Application.
Volunteering at Archaeology: The following orientations are free and open to the public. Each orientation is required for volunteers wishing to work in that particular field. Space is limited and reservations are required. Contact Alexandria Archaeology to reserve your space -- please indicate which orientation you would like to attend, and provide your telephone number.
- Oral History Project, Saturday, February 11, 10 a.m. to noon. Learn more about the oral history project. Volunteers conduct and transcribe interviews.
- Laboratory, Saturday, March 3, 10 a.m. to noon. Learn more about the archaeological process. Volunteers clean, mark and catalogue artifacts.
- Field Excavating, Saturday, June 9, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Learn more about the Shuter's Hill excavation. Volunteers dig alongside professional archaeologists.
Alexandria Archaeology at 50: The year 2011 marked 50 years of archaeology in Alexandria. The City of Alexandria and Alexandria Archaeology receveived the inaugural Daniel G. Roberts Award for Excellence in Public Historical Archaeology on January 6 at the annual Society for Historical Archaeology conference in Baltimore. SHA honored Alexandria Archaeology for its 50 years of public service and excellence. Learn about the award, read conference papers, and view a presentation to the Alexandria City Council.
The first archaeological investigation in Alexandria was conducted in 1961 at Fort Ward. Read a summary of the 1961 excavations as well as full site reports and other studies. Also learn about recent excavations in Fort Ward Park, focusing the 20th century African American community.
Throughout ongoing development of Potomac Yard, the Office of Historic Alexandria has been committed to preserving its history. Learn more about the Potomac Yard planning process, including the North Potomac Yard Public Art and History Interpretive Plan, and read a history of the site by Francine Bromberg, Preservation Archaeologist for Alexandria Archaeology.
The Alexandria Waterfront History Plan was prepared by the Alexandria Archaeological Commission as a general framework and direction for the City's Waterfront Plan.

CIvil War Sesquicentennial Events and Information

Civil War Sundays. Explore the Civil War in Alexandria with Civil War Sundays, a showcase of an original May 26, 1861, edition New-York Tribune detailing Colonel Elmer Ellsworth’s death in Alexandria, a Peeps Diorama illustrating Ellsworth’s death, a TimeTravelers Passport exhibit featuring the Civil War drummer boy, diorama of a heating system constructed in Alexandria to warm Civil War hospital tents during the winter of 1861, a cocked and loaded Wickham musket discarded in a privy during the 1860s, and an exhibit on the Lee Street Site during the Civil War. Free! Weekly, 1-5PM.
Alexandria Civil War Defenses of Washington Bike Trail. 2011 marks the beginning of the Civil War Sesquicentennial. One way in which Alexandria, surrounding jourisdictions and the National Park Service are marking the occasion is by creating the the Civil War Defenses of Washington Bike Trail. A map, cue sheet and information on Civil War sites are provided for self-guided bike rides.
Shuter’s Hill. In 2012, Alexandria Archaeology will conduct its fifteenth season of excavation at the site of the Mills/Lee/Dulaney plantation on Shuter’s Hill, on the grounds of the George Washington Masonic Memorial. Shuter’s Hill is an 18th century plantation and later estate occupied by Union troops. Shuter’s Hill became the site of two Union forts in the Defenses of Washington during the Civil War.
Volunteer. A Field Orientation is required for all new volunteers wishing to excavate with Alexandria Archaeology. The free orientation is offered prior to each digging season. Volunteers MUST be at least 16 years of age.