Archeaology

​Archaeology as History 
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The Trent House site encompasses thousands of years of history, both recorded and not. In researching a place like the Trent House, the fields of archaeology and history often overlap; this is the field of Historical Archaeology.

When excavating, archaeologists can use historical records and documents to guide their research. For instance, the 2015 excavations done by Hunter Research unearthed the remains of the 18th century kitchen wing, and they knew it was there based on a historical drawing and published description of the house.

Excavations with the goal of unearthing Colonial or later era items are a little easier to plan, since historical data can be used in conjunction with technology like ground penetrating radar to identify likely excavation sites. Prehistoric excavations are harder to plan for.

Evidence for Native American occupation at the site has been found while archaeologists were searching for colonial artifacts. While there are no official records of where ancient people lived, archaeologists can use clues from the landscape to infer where people might have lived. 

We can fill in the gaps of our knowledge of the people called Lenape through European written sources. The Europeans learned that the Native Americans they encountered called themselves Lenape. The groups that lived before that are only known to us through archaeological evidence or oral traditions passed down through generations of Native American people.

Archaeology in Practice
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Archaeology is a slow paced-profession. Extensive planning and research (when applicable) is required before any digging starts. Excavations are done in careful layers, with every step of the process documented. After excavations are over, archaeologists analyze all of their findings and write a site report. The findings on this page are written through an archaeological view of the past. 
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In 1995, the cultural resource management firm Hunter Research performed archaeological investigations and historical research in connection with repairs to the Trent House tunnel.  Two trenches were excavated across the line of the tunnel.  Native American  artifacts were found including a projectile point dating to between 3000 and 1700 B.C.  From 2000-2003, a public archaeology program was implemented with students and volunteers excavating 235 shovel tests on the property. Additionally, an excavation unit was dug which produced prehistoric and historic artifacts, pre-20th century soils and historic features. Historic artifacts included Dutch bricks and sugar molds from the nearby William Richards pottery of the 1770s and 1780s.

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​Historic features include an 18th century mica schist footing thought to be the southern wall of the covered walkway leading to the 18th century kitchen.  A part of a 19th century foundation was also found, believed to be part of the 19th century eastern wing. In 2002, archaeologists investigated the sides of construction trenches in which 17th, 18th 19th and 20th century features were found.  ​

​​In 2015, Hunter Research performed archaeological excavations on the east side of the house.  This investigation exposed the foundations of the prominent mid-18th century kitchen wing, a free-standing, two-story structure connected to the house by a gangway.  ​

A total of 2539 historic and prehistoric artifacts were recovered as well as several historic features including one interpreted to be the south wall of the 1742 Lewis Morris kitchen wing and remnants of the attached gangway.  The former kitchen wing, shown here in a drawing from 1789, is no longer visible on the property, but these excavations hinted that more information about the use and occupation of this wing are waiting to be discovered beneath the ground surface.  ​

During the summer of 2019, with funding from NJM Insurance Group and the Trent House Association, a team of professional archaeologists from Hunter Research and Monmouth University undertook new investigations. Expanded exploration of and near the 1742 kitchen site revealed additional evidence of its foundation and structure.  Richard Hunter, James Lee, and Richard Veit summarized findings from that excavation in a talk at the Trent House on July 24, 2022. A recording of their talk, "Governor Morris' Kitchen and Other Findings from Archaeology at the Trent House," can be viewed here.

The work also investigated a new area to the south of the House; this site produced extensive artifacts from Native American settlement on the site as well as from European occupation in the 1600s and 1700s, examples of which are shown below. For an analysis of Native American archaeological artifacts found on the Trent House property, see here. ​

Additional investigations have included a ground penetrating radar study in 2016 and deep soil sampling using augering in 2020. For an overview of archaeology at the Trent House see here. ​

Students and adults can learn about the basics of archaeology and how archaeological research on the Trent House site has informed our understanding of Native American life and take a quiz to see how much they now know by clicking here. ​