Archaeology in Connecticut has a long history that goes back at least to Yale’s early years.
The scientific study of the prehistory and history of the Native peoples of Connecticut developed in the 20th century through the efforts of Yale anthropologists George Grant MacCurdy, Cornelius Osgood, Froelich Rainey, and Irving Rouse. Under their guidance the Archaeological Society of Connecticut was founded in 1934 to move away from hobbyist collecting and introduce scientific methods to archaeological research in the state. The ASC encouraged collaboration and the exchange of information with local collectors, members of Indigenous communities, and amateur archaeologists. In the 1970s the Yale Department of Anthropology offered graduate training in field method courses through the Yale Archaeological Field School. Through the efforts of Yale scholars and others, in 1987 the Connecticut Office of State Archaeology and the position of state archaeologist at the Connecticut State Museum of Natural History at the University of Connecticut were created.
The Division houses archaeological materials from Connecticut. In addition, digital access to four centuries of New England Native American primary source materials is available to students, educators, researchers, Native communities, and the general public for teaching and research through the collaborative research initiative New England Indian Papers Series, by the editors of the Yale Indian Papers Project.
For a full account of the history of Connecticut archaeology in, see “Introduction: Archaeology in Connecticut,” by Lucianne Lavin and Paul Grant-Costa in Connecticut’s Indigenous Peoples: What Archaeology, History, and Oral Traditions Teach Us About Their Communities and Cultures, by Lucianne Lavin. Available from Yale University Press.