Tides of Time: Student archaeologists unearth new clues to North Carolina’s colonial past at Brunswick Town
WINNABOW, NC (WWAY) — Students from across the country are spending part of their summer digging into North Carolina’s colonial history at Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site, where every layer of soil has the potential to reveal a new piece of the past.
Working alongside archaeologists and University of North Carolina Wilmington faculty, the students are excavating an area believed to be connected to Brunswick Town’s historic public house. The painstaking process involves carefully removing soil in four-inch layers from five-foot-by-five-foot excavation units and screening every shovel full for artifacts.
“It’s crazy digging up stuff—realizing that someone hasn’t touched it in 300 years and you’re the first person to see it,” said student archaeologist Luke Huffman.
Unlike the action-packed portrayals of archaeology in movies, the work requires patience and detailed documentation. UNCW archaeology professor Dr. Nora Reber said mapping excavation units and recording every discovery are just as important as uncovering artifacts.
This year’s excavation has already produced pottery fragments, tobacco pipe stems, bird shot, animal bones, a marked brick and a set of engraved cuff links. Students have also uncovered Native American pottery, providing an even deeper connection to the region’s history.
Founded in 1726—three years before Wilmington—Brunswick Town was once one of colonial North Carolina’s most important commercial ports. Site Manager Jim McKee said the town became a global shipping hub, exporting naval stores such as pine tar that helped supply the British Royal Navy and merchant fleets. The thriving port also played a role in earning North Carolina its “Tar Heel State” nickname.
Despite its importance, Brunswick Town was abandoned during the Revolutionary War in 1776 and never recovered. Today, archaeologists are using a combination of excavation, historical records and a remarkably accurate 1769 town survey to reconstruct the community’s story.
For students participating in the dig, the experience goes beyond finding artifacts. They say holding objects that have remained buried for centuries offers a tangible connection to the people who lived there and could even reshape historians’ understanding of the past.
As the United States commemorates its 250th anniversary, researchers say excavations at Brunswick Town continue to uncover the stories of a community that existed decades before the nation itself.
Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site welcomes more than 50,000 visitors each year. Archaeologists estimate that a typical excavation can produce roughly 10,000 artifacts, all of which are cataloged and preserved to help tell the history of the Lower Cape Fear region.
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