Uncovering the Siege

Archaeology in Cambridge means working around development. We have maybe two weeks when a foundation is dug before concrete goes in. But in those windows, we find the siege. Musket balls, uniform buttons, fragments of camp life. Near the Common, we found what appears to be a refuse pit from 1775—broken crockery, animal bones, a bent pewter spoon. These objects tell us about daily life in the camps: what soldiers ate, how they lived, the mundane reality behind the heroic narrative. The siege was eight months of cold, boredom, and uncertainty. The artifacts show that.