2016 Allerton/ Cushman Archaeology

Cushman Cellarhole and the Allerton Palisade Trench

When the excavations were completed in 1972 at the C-21 Allerton/ Cushman site, it was assumed that the site would be protected. The property owner even went so far as to move his house site further north to avoid the site. In 2015, A descendant of Isaac Allerton made a routine visit to the site and discovered that a new home was being built in the approximate location of the original homesite that had yielded the first identified evidence of earthfast architecture in New England. He contacted me,and we conducted some limited testing prior to the yard being landscaped. We were able to identify the original extent of the excavation and to locate where the site actually was situated on the property. We even identified and excavated a couple of segments of the original palisade trench.

2016 field work allerton site

Allerton 2016 final catalog