Overview
As a founding member of the Back-to-Africa Heritage and Archaeology Project, I have conducted fieldwork in Liberia since 2018, investigating the historical and cultural dynamics of nineteenth-century settlement by Black American and Afro-Barbadian migrants.
This work combines archaeological research with digital documentation and museum collaboration. In partnership with the National Museum of Liberia, the project contributed to the development of the institution’s first archaeological collection and digital cataloging system, supporting both preservation and public engagement.
Providence Island’s deeper chronology
A 2026 collaborative study of luminescence dating adds a scientific chronology to BAHA’s Providence Island research. Sediment samples collected in 2022 yielded dates centered on 1442, 1592, and 1662 CE, supporting activity before the 1822 settlement. A ceramic sherd dated to 852 ± 140 CE raises further questions about earlier material reworked into later deposits. Together, these findings strengthen the foundations for interpreting and stewarding the island’s Indigenous and Atlantic-era heritage.
