Summer Research Internship in Historical Archaeology at Thomas
Jefferson’s Poplar Forest
The Department of Archaeology
and Landscapes at Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest is offering one
funded research position for June 5 through
July 8 with the potential for an
additional five weeks of funding. This
internship is intended for early-phase graduate students and advanced
undergraduates who have previous field training and are looking for more
experience conducting fieldwork and supervising field school students in a
research-oriented setting.
Poplar Forest is the former retreat home and working plantation of
Thomas Jefferson, and is located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains
near Lynchburg, Virginia.
Over the past twenty-five years, archaeologists have uncovered evidence
of Jefferson’s time on the property and the
lives of the enslaved laborers who lived and worked on the plantation during
the eighteenth- and nineteenth-centuries.
This year’s fieldwork will
focus on the southeast curtilage and core, two fascinating portions of Poplar Forest that have connections to both the
plantation’s enslaved community and Jefferson’s ornamental landscape. The successful applicant will work alongside
the Poplar
Forest
staff to assist in all phases of field excavation, including working with and
teaching field school students during the five week field school starting June 5. This will involve strenuous, outdoor labor in
the hot Virginia
sun, so good physical health is a must.
In addition, the intern will need to be comfortable interacting with the
public and explaining the archaeological process to museum visitors. While in residence, the successful applicant
will also be granted access to the collections and research facilities of Poplar
Forest. This includes a collection of several hundred
thousand artifacts; a database system containing both archaeological artifact
and context records; and a complete inventory containing over 1,000 historical
documents relating to Poplar Forest. By partnering with the Poplar Forest staff, these
collections may then be drawn upon in the future to support the student’s own
research, the products of which could include professional conference papers,
journal articles, Masters theses, and PhD dissertations.
A stipend of $1,000 will be
provided for the initial five week internship, which will be held in
conjunction with the field school. There
is the potential for an additional five-week period beginning after the field
school, which would include an additional $1,000 stipend. This second five-week period is contingent on Poplar Forest
receiving outside funding. Notification
of this outside funding will come in May, and the successful applicant will be
notified immediately.
The intern will be responsible
for making their own housing arrangements as well as providing for their own
meals and transportation. Information
regarding housing options will be made available through the Poplar Forest
archaeology staff. Successful applicants
should have at least one field school, and more field experience is a definite
plus. Knowledge of historical material
culture is required.
By April 22, 2011, send the following information to Jack Gary, Director of Archaeology and Landscapes, Poplar
Forest,
P.O. Box 419, Forest, VA 24551.
1) Personal information: Include your full name, home
address, home and work/school telephone numbers, occupation, and e-mail address.
2) A resume or curriculum vitae.
3) A two-page statement of personal and professional reasons
for participating.
4) Two letters of recommendation from others addressing your
academic and professional ability and performance, and your personality and
ability to work well with others.
Selections will be made by
the Poplar Forest Archaeology
Department by April 26, 2011.
For more information on Poplar Forest’s ongoing
archaeological research visit: www.poplarforest.org. Any questions can be directed to Jack Gary at [log in to unmask] or 434-534-8105.
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