Archaeology Internship at James Madison’s Montpelier
Orange, Virginia
Summer and Fall 2001
The Montpelier Archaeology Department is announcing a paid internship for the Summer and Fall of 2001. The ideal candidate is a graduate student looking for a plantation-related or public archaeology/interpretation-related project for their Masters. The end product for the internship is to produce a booklet on archaeology- this could take the form of a web site and/or an actual booklet The goals of the internship can be met by either producing a booklet or distilling the final masters thesis into a booklet.
The spectrum of projects is very open here from plantation-specific research topics to presenting archaeological information to the public. The potential for archaeological research here at Montpelier is incredible as over 10 years of active archaeological research and excavations have been carried out on the property since 1987. The sites excavated include an 18th-century blacksmith shop/forge, quarters for enslaved domestics, an 18th century kitchen, and the original Madison family plantation complex of Mount Pleasant with features dating to the early 18th century. The artifacts from most of these sites have already been catalogued and entered into a database and are awaiting analysis.
The director of archaeology at Montpelier, Matthew Reeves, has a large amount of experience in data analysis and computer applications in archaeology and would be able to help the student in the analysis of data sets and training them in graphics applications. In addition to the director of archaeology, Montpelier has another archaeologist on staff, Lynne Lewis, who serves as the archaeologist for the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Ms. Lewis has been working at Montpelier since 1987 and is an excellent source of information on previous projects conducted on the property.
The archaeology facilities at Montpelier include an office and a laboratory. The archaeology office consists of a library, map room, drafting room, file room, the director's office, and an intern office. We are wired to the web and e-mail here and can provide a Pentium computer for the intern. In the office, we have a slide scanner and digitizer so we have full graphics capabilities. The archaeology lab (a separate building) consists of a wash room, two large analysis rooms, and an additional office for a lab director. We also have free housing for interns here at Montpelier. Montpelier consists of a 2700 acre property set in rural central Virginia.
To apply for the internship, please send a letter of intent, a C.V., and the names of three references. In the letter, please state your research interests, detail your experience in the analysis of archaeological data sets, and the type of project you would be interested in conducting here at Montpelier. Send the information to (deadline March 15—extended to April 20):
Dr. Matthew Reeves
Director of Archaeology
Montpelier Foundation
11407 Constitution Highway
PO BOX 67
Montpelier Station, VA 22957
540-672-0008
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