A field school of the Wayne State University Department of Anthropology conducted a non-invasive archeological dig to survey the land surrounding the Workers Row House in order to learn more about daily life in a 19th and early 20th century residence as Detroit was transformed from a regional commercial center into a major industrial city.

Field school students followed up the resistivity study with excavations in the structure’s back yard, which would have been impacted by construction related to the new museum. Students had an opportunity to learn archaeological mapping and excavation techniques, site documentation, and artifact processing and analysis.

According to W.S.U.’s ANT 5280 syllabus, students also participated in the creation and management of the archaeological record of the Worker’s Row House by learning how to carry out archival and data base management tasks in Wayne State’s Anthropology Museum. The success of the class in the Fall of 2006 made them return this Fall as they continue to dig for more artifacts. The students were the catalysts for this ongoing effort. Though their professor took leave to participate in an archeological dig out of the country, the students kept the momentum going in his absence.