Lee Mansion dig unveils past lives

BY WILLIAM J. DOWD

The archaeological dig underway at the Jeremiah Lee Mansion aims to uncover artifacts that provide deeper insights into the people who have lived on the historic property over time.

“The Marblehead Museum has owned the Lee Mansion since 1909,” said the museum’s executive director, Lauren McCormack. “But we’ve never had an archaeological dig or excavation conducted here, so we’re thrilled.”

The mansion, a premier example of Georgian architecture, has drawn researchers’ attention due to its rich history and well-preserved condition.

Col. Jeremiah Lee, the original owner of the mansion, had been a loyalist but then took up the colonial cause. He played a significant role in preparing Massachusetts for the Revolutionary War.

The five-week dig is a collaboration with the Fiske Center for Archaeological Research at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. It comes after what McCormack said was a successful two-week preliminary dig in 2022.

“It’s a learning opportunity for the students, and it’s a wonderful opportunity for us because we’re trying to figure out how the site changed over time,” McCormack said.

On a recent Thursday morning, undergraduates, graduate students and teaching assistants worked on site with shovels, trowels, ice cream scoops and chopsticks. Others sifted through dirt, while some scraped the layers of deep trenches.

Artifacts found included a large piece of red-glazed earthenware, bottle glass, pipe stems and various animal bones.

“We have many remains of things that people ate, and that’s one of the things we’re studying here in particular,” said research scientist Christa Beranek, who is leading the dig on the 17th-century property.

“Last year, we found a couple of deposits with really good animal bone preservation. So, we’ve got ducks, geese, pigeons, sheep, cows and pigs.”

These finds allow the team to reconstruct the diets of past inhabitants.

Among the significant finds was a large piece of red-glazed earthenware believed to be part of a storage jar, according to Beranek. The team’s discoveries have ranged widely in time, with items from as recently as the 1970s back to the 1720s.

The project uses advanced technology, such as groundpenetrating radar and conductivity to create a picture of what lies beneath the surface before excavation begins. This geophysical survey allows the team to identify anomalies below ground and strategically place excavation units for further exploration.

The technology allows them to locate old outbuildings, such as barns and small sheds known as privies, as well as kitchen trash pits. Once such features are identified, the team digs their trenches to discover artifacts.

The team is searching for artifacts from the entire history of the site, but especially from the tenure of Lee and his family. They are also interested in the enslaved individuals who lived and worked on the site.

The public is welcome to observe the work from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., weather permitting. However, the museum kindly asks that people leave plenty of room around the archaeologists and keep away from any open pits and uneven ground.

The public can follow the work on social media by following the Marblehead Museum and Fiske Center for Archaeological Research on Facebook or Instagram.

The project is sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, National Grand Bank, the Lynch Foundation and individual donors.