America's 

Hidden Battlefields 

Protecting the Archeological Story 

U.S. Department ot the Interior 

National Park Service Cultural Resources 

American Battlefield Protection Program 

& The Society for Historical Archaeology 
X 

Archeology 

Fort Ticonderoga, New York, was abandoned shortly after the 

Revolutionary War. The ruins, above right, are shown as they appeared 

in 1905. Following extensive archeological investigations, the fort was 

reconstructed and opened to the public in 1909. 

Fort Carillon (Ticonderoga) 

French and Indian War 

Lake Champlain formed the most important part ot the great waterway connecting 

New York and Canada. In 1755. the French selected a rocky ridge above Lake 

Champlain tor a tort near present-day Ticonderoga. New York. Through 1756 and 

1757 as many as 6.000 men cut timber, quarried stone, and built the outer works 

and barracks. On July 8.1758.16.000 British troops under Gen. James Abercromby 

attacked Fort Carillon but were repelled by Ma|. Gen. the Marquis de Montcalm's 

3.200 French troops. In 1759. Gen Jeffrey Amherst's British force of 9.000 

overpowered a French force of 2.800 to capture the fort after a four-day siege. The 

victorious British changed its name to Fort Ticonderoga. Following the American 

Revolution, the fort was ceded to the Americans. 

MERICA'S 

battlefields 

teach us about 

some of the most important 

events in our history. We 

also value them because they 

commemorate the selfless sacrifices made by our ancestors 

who fought there. They inspire us to contemplate the 

meaning of the battle, its causes, its cost, and consequences. 

They connect us to our past with such timeless virtues as 

duty, loyalty, honor, and courage, as well as cowardice, 

brutality, fear, and despair. 

No battlefield stands today exactly as it did at the time 

of war. Many changes have taken place since that time. 

A cover of grass has grown. Fields have been planted. 

Fortifications have eroded, wood lots have been planted 

or cut down, and new buildings have been erected. Today's 

battlefield is a record not only of the conflict but also of 

change, some of which may be important in its own right. 

The battlefield we see today is a sum of many parts, all 

of which teach us about our past. 

Look out over the land where warriors and soldiers 

bravely fought and died, the old farmhouse where the 

BELOW British army encampment near Fort Carillon, after the battle of 1759. 

3 
Archeology 

By the 1930s, modern-day San Antonio was "closing 

in" on the Alamo and its grounds. Archeological 

evidence documenting past events needs to be 

carefully protected for future generations. 

wounded were treated by nurses and volunteers, the church 

on the hilltop where commanders planned their strategy, 

or the remnants of a fortification once so strong it held safe 

the future of a nation. You can almost see the bayonets flash, 

hear the guns and war cries, feel the cannon roar, and sense 

the bravery, pain, and suffering. Battlefields are special 

places because they evoke vivid images and awaken our 

shared emotions. Here is the sacred ground where we honor 

those who fought and feel a connection to our past. By 

visiting these sites, we gain a greater understanding of and 

appreciation for what took place. 

There is more to a battlefield than immediately meets the 

eye. An important piece of this irreplaceable landscape is the 

reality of that long-ago battle that lies hidden underground. 

The Alamo 

Texas War of Independence 

When Texas declared its independence from Mexico in 1836. 

Mexico's leader. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, led his army ot 

5.000 into San Antonio to put down the "uprising." About 190 

volunteers barricaded themselves in this 1744 mission chapel to 

defend Texas. On March 6. 1836. after 13 days of fighting, the 

Alamo tell into Mexican hands - all combatants were killed. But a 

month later. Sam Houston defeated Santa Anna at San Jacinto. 

This is the archeological evidence of the momentous and 

mundane events that took place here decades, hundreds, 

or even thousands of years ago. Through the protection, 

study, and interpretation of this evidence, we can enhance 

our own understanding of those events, and we can ensure 

that the battle, itself, is more than just a memory in an 

ever-changing world. 

Preserving our historic battlefields is the only way to 

ensure that future generations of Americans will continue 

to value and learn from them. Unfortunately, many of these 

battlefields have already been destroyed 

and many more are at great risk of 

disappearing forever. 

BELOW Storming ot the Alamo. 1836 

5 
What we can learn from archeology 

Archeology is the study of physical evidence found 

on the ground, underground, and underwater that past 

generations left behind. When archeologists examine a site, 

they map the location of what they find: human-made items 

and biological remains. Then, like good detectives, the 

archeologists must study all of these clues in the light of 

relevant information from other sources and turn these bits 

of evidence into a story that will help us come to a better 

understanding of the past. The archeologists job is not 

complete until that story has been told. Sometimes, when this 

new light is shed on old events, we can see more clearly what 

really happened, not just what others say happened. When 

archeological evidence is combined with historical records, 

documents, maps, pictures, and oral traditions, we gain a 

more complete understanding of the past than if any of 

these research tools were used alone. 

Battle site topography 

Lead-canister fragments 

2-oi. grapeshot 

Howitzer shrapnel 

Monmouth Battlefield 

State Park 

Revolutionar y Wa r 

Gen. George Washington battled the British 

at Monmouth. New Jersey, in June of 1778 

in the first American action after the terrible 

winter at Valley Forge. It was here that Molly 

Hays won tame as "Molly Pitcher." helping 

to operate Capt. Francis Proctor's 4-pounder 

field piece - the gun that is believed to have 

fired the canister and grapeshot illustrated in 

the map to the bottom left. 

Archeology 

Historical records and newly discovered archeological evidence are being used 

to produce an hour-by-hour account of the battle. Through computer-aided 

archeology, battle lines are accurately defined and artillery ordnance shown. On 

this computer-generated map of 153 acres at Monmouth Battlefield, the battle 

site topography is orange: blue is where archeologists have discovered leadcanister fragments: yellow represents the location of 2-oz. grapeshot: and red 

indicates howitzer shrapnel. Noting the distribution of military archeological 

evidence, researchers are able to track the previously undocumented British retreat 

and pinpoint the exact location of troop movement. 

6 
Archeology 

At Manassas National Battlefield Park, archeologists investigating the 

fighting at Brawner Farm used high-tech remote sensing to clarify the 

location of 100 feet of firing line of the 19th Indiana Regiment. 

Archeologists believe this line represents the first firing line of the 

Regiment and that the second firing line is 80 or more feet to the rear of 

the first - much farther than some records indicated. 

Archeology is especially important and useful in 

helping us to understand people and events about which 

little or nothing has been written. For example, many past 

civilizations left no written records, so archeology takes on 

paramount importance in our efforts to learn about those 

ancient peoples. In studying America's more recent past, 

archeology helps us to understand life as it was lived by 

everyday people, not just the powerful, the famous, and the 

rich about whom so much has been written. For instance, 

archeological study has contributed much to our growing 

understanding of the formative roles of women and 

minorities in our history; it has provided us with a valuable 

window on everyday life as we grew from a colonial frontier 

to an agricultural society to a world industrial power. 

LEFT Federal Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell 

RIGHT Confederate Gen Pierre Beauregard 

Manassas National Battlefield Park 

Civil War 

In 1861 and 1862. the Confederate army won two important victories at 

Manassas. Virginia. In the First Battle of Manassas. General McDowell's 

unseasoned Union troops tied trom General Beauregard's equally 

inexperienced Confederates: in the Second Battle ol Manassas. General 

Lee's victory over General Pope opened the way for the Souths first invasion 

ol the North. 

BELOW Confederate 

fortifications at 

Manassas. 1862 

9 
Archeology 

During the 1997 restoration work on the 

V-shaped masonry ravelin wall at Fort 

McHenry, the original brick counter 

forts (support pillars) were uncovered, 

revealing archeological evidence of the 

1813 construction techniques. 

These British mortar fragments from the 

1814 attack recovered by archeologists 

teach us more about the battle and the 

people who fought it. 

Archeology on the battlefield 

When archeologists study a battlefield, our understanding 

of that battle often becomes clearer. An archeological study 

may reveal unmarked graves, bullets or cartridge cases, 

fragments of clothing, traces of lost roadways, old campsites, 

vanished buildings, lines of earthen fortifications, and even 

ships sunk in naval battles. Such evidence has been used to 

verify troop movements, map out battle actions in time and 

space, reveal previously unrecorded facets of the battles, and 

Cannon aimed at Baltimore Harbor remind us 

of the American's view of the attacking British. 

even disprove long-believed myths or "official" accounts. 

Archeology offers us tangible, real evidence of soldiers 

waiting and fighting, advancing or retreating, constructing 

and defending fortifications, treating the wounded in 

hospitals, and burying the dead. 

BELOW Looking into the fort toward the barracks. The 

cannon placed here are for interpretive purposes. 

Fort McHenry National Monument 

War of 1812 

American soldiers in the famed star-shaped fort defended 

the City of Baltimore. Maryland, against the British fleet 

during the bombardment of September 13-14. 1814. The 

attack on Fort McHenry inspired Francis Scott Key to write 

"The Star Spangled Banner." 

10 
Archeology 

In 1988, archeologists excavated the battlefield gravesites of four soldiers 

killed during the Battle of Antietam. Only partial skeletal remains were 

present, indicating that postwar removal for reburial by the Department 

of War was incomplete. After analyzing the physical evidence and 

historical records, archeologists concluded that these soldiers 

belonged to the Union Army's famed Irish Brigade. More specifically, 

because of their position on the battlefield, the four were identified as 

members of the 63rd New York Infantry. New York State cuff buttons, 

unfired "buck-and-ball" rounds used in the New Yorker's .69 caliber 

muskets, and Catholic religious artifacts confirmed the identification. In 

1989, their remains were reburied in Antietam National Cemetery with 

full military honors. 

Archeological evidence is fragile 

Archeological evidence on battlefields is fragile and 

is easily damaged or destroyed. Bulldozers grading fields, 

relic-hunters digging for treasure, and even well-meaning 

battlefield visitors walking in restricted areas can cause 

damage to the hidden battlefield and thus lessen our 

ability to learn more about the battle. 

Without meaning to do harm, many visitors feel the need 

to collect artifacts from the historic battlefields they visit. 

They pick up objects from the ground in order to own a little 

bit of history. They may not realize that our ability to learn 

more about the battle from these artifacts also depends 

upon knowing precisely where on the battlefield the 

artifacts were discovered. So, taking souvenirs for one's 

own may be tempting, but it is wrong and is, in many 

cases, against the law. 

RIGHT Antietam 

Bridge, September 

1862. Soldiers and 

wagons crossing 

the bridge. 

INSET Confederate 

dead at Antietam. 

Antietam National Battlefield 

Civil War 

The Battle ot Antietam in Sharpsburg. Maiyland. 

maiked the end of Gen. Robert E. Lee's first 

invasion ol the North in September 1862. The 

battle claimed more than 23.000 men killed, 

wounded, and missing in one single day. 

September 17.1862. and led to President Lincoln's 

issuance ot the Emancipation Proclamation. 

Even a planned archeological excavation unavoidably 

removes this crucial physical evidence from the scene. As a 

result, archeologists write detailed notes, draw accurate 

maps, take numerous photographs, and create extensive 

catalogs of recovered artifacts as they conduct their 

excavations - all to preserve the evidence and allow us 

to discover its full meaning. Today, archeologists rely 

increasingly on noninvasive, remote-sensing technologies 

to locate archeological resources in the field. Groundpenetrating radar, proton magnetometers, soil-resistivity 

meters, and other similar instruments measure variations in 

subsurface deposits to indicate man-made features and 

objects. This modern technology allows archeologists to 

make much more careful, efficient, and strategic decisions 

about when and where excavation is necessary. 

13 
Protecting Archeological Evidence 

On lands owned by the federal, state, tribal, or local 

government, archeological resources of all kinds are 

generally protected by a variety of laws. For example, the 

Archaeological Resources Protection Act adopted by 

Congress prohibits any unauthorized excavation or 

removal of archeological remains from federal or tribal 

lands. Similarly, most states have enacted laws that require 

a state-issued permit for any archeological excavation on 

state-owned land. Some local governments have also 

enacted ordinances that match their state laws. Battlefields 

on federal, tribal, or state lands fall under the protection of 

all these laws. 

On privately owned lands, excavation of archeological 

remains is subject to the property owner's consent, as well 

In the mid-1980s, the National Park 

Service and the U.S. Navy conducted 

an underwater archeological evaluation of the ship's condition. Divers 

were surprised to discover that the 

three 14-inch guns from turret 

Number One were still in place even 

though records of the 1942 salvage 

operations suggested otherwise. All 

live ordnance was removed. Other evidence documented by the 

divers dispelled the myth that the U.S.S. Arizona was destroyed 

by a Japanese bomb that went down her smoke stack. Instead, 

archeologists found damage from an armor-piercing bomb that 

had entered just forward of turret Number Two on the starboard 

side. The bomb detonated the entire forward magazine, causing 

the explosion that ultimately sank the U.S.S. Arizona. 

as to any applicable state and local laws. Some local 

governments have adopted land-use ordinances that require 

or encourage the careful recovery of archeological 

information before private land is developed. 

Archeology 

U.S.S. Arizona Memorial 

World War II 

On December 7.1941. Americans were stunned to learn 

that Japanese war planes had bombed Pearl Harbor. 

Oahu. Hawaii, nearly destroying the Pacific Fleet. Today, 

this famous World War II battleship rests in forty feet 

of water as a memorial tor the nearly 1.200 men who 

died on the ship. 

14 
Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument 

Indian Wars of 1870s 

Near Hardin. Montana, on June 25-26. 1876. Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer 

and about 260 troops of the 7th U.S. Cavalry faced as many as 2.000 Lakota and 

Cheyenne warriors. Custer and all of the men of five companies under his immediate 

command were killed. 

Archeology 

Some Lakota and Cheyenne positions on the battlefield were in dispute 

with official Army records, mostly because historians in the past 

discounted Indian eyewitness accounts. When modern archeologists 

and historians reassessed the written accounts - which highlighted 

previously little known battle action - and verified them with 

archeological evidence, they were able to reinterpret disputed facts 

and confirm many of the Indian accounts. 

TOP LEFT Archeologists surveying 

the rolling Montana battlefield site 

in the valley of the Little Big Horn 

River, known to the Indians as 

Greasy Grass. 

MiooLE LEFT Battle of Little Big 

Horn (detail) as seen by Sioux 

Chief Red Horse in a series of 

drawings completed five years 

after the battle. 

It is important to say a 

special word about human 

burials. On federal and tribal 

lands, the Archaeological 

Resources Protection Act is 

complemented by the Native 

American Graves Protection 

and Repatriation Act to 

provide enhanced protection for Native American burials. 

Even on privately owned lands, graves are generally afforded 

some level of protection by state and local laws. While such 

laws routinely govern the operations of active cemeteries, it is 

also true that in many states historic, abandoned, and even 

unmarked cemeteries and individual graves are protected. 

Violating any of these laws is a crime. Individuals 

convicted of breaking these laws can face serious penalties, 

including significant fines and jail sentences. 

Tatanka-lyptanka (Sitting Bull) 

Hunkpapa medicine man. military 

tactician, and a leader of the Sioux 

17 
"But hi a larger sense we can not dedicate -- we can not 

consecrate -- we can not hallow, this ground - the brave men, 

living and dead, who struggled here, have hallowed it, far 

above our poor power to add or detract.' 

Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address 

What you can do 

You can help safeguard Americans historic battlefields 

by working in partnership with professional archeologists, 

park managers, local historical and preservation groups, and 

state historic preservation officers. When visiting a historic 

battlefield, you can contribute significantly to its preservation 

if you remember to: 

• Follow marked paths and avoid walking on marked 

archeological sites or on earthworks or other aboveground features such as walls and ruins. 

• Leave in place any object you see on the ground and 

do not dig on the battlefield. 

• Report archeological materials you see on the ground, 

evidence of site vandalism, and any suspicious 

activity to the park manager or your state historic 

preservation office. 

You also help protect and preserve America's historic 

battlefields when you: 

• Join a battlefield friends group or a local 

archeological society. 

• Contribute financial support to battlefield parks 

and preservation organizations. 

• Educate your local and state-elected officials about 

the need to protect and study battlefields. 

• Volunteer to help an archeologist conduct surveys, 

record sites, and keep watch on sites. 

• Do not support treasure hunters and collectors 

by purchasing illegally taken artifacts. 

These battlefields are real. They, and only they, can provide 

the answers to many of the questions about America's 

military past. It is important for us to take care in our own 

actions and encourage others to join us in safeguarding the 

physical evidence of battle, both above ground and below 

ground. We must respect these sites for all they can teach 

and for all they represent. -Mfc*-

19 18 

ILLUSTRATION CREDITS 

pp. 2-3: British army encampment. Plate trom Fort Ticonderoga: A Short History. 

by S.H.P. Pell. 1935. National Historic Landmarks Program. NPS. 

pp. 4-5: Storming ot the Alamo. Denver Public Library Western Collection. 

National Historic Landmarks Program. NPS. 

p. 7: Molly Pitcher at Monmouth. National Archives and Records Administration, 

pp. 14-15: The sunken U.S.S. Arizona. Submerged Cultural Resource Unit. NPS. 

p. 16: Battle ot Little Big Horn. National Archives and Records Administration. 

PHOTO CREDITS (listed counter-clockwise as they appear on each 2-page spread) 

Cover: Brandy Station. Photo: Eric Long. American Battlefield Protection Program. NPS. 

pp. 2-3: Fort Ticonderoga reconstructed. Photo: Charles W. Snell. National Historic 

Landmarks Program. NPS: Section ot Fort Ticonderoga ruins. Plate trom 

The Bulletin ot The Fort Ticonderoga Museum. Vol. VIII, Ho. 6.1950. 

pp. 4-5: Alamo in the 1930s. Photo: Arthur W. Stewart. April 1936. Historic American 

Buildings Survey. NPS. 

pp. 6-7: Topographic readout map. Photo: Daniel M. Sivilich. Monmouth Battlefield 

State Park 

pp. 8-9: Archeologist at Manassas National Battlefield Park. NPS: Civil War Generals. 

National Archives and Records Administration: Contederate fortifications with 

soldiers. National Archives and Records Administration. 

pp. 10-11: British mortar tragments. Fort McHenry National Monument. NPS: Fori McHenry 

cannons. American Battlefield Protection Program, NPS: Fort McHenry. Photo: 

WE. Dutton. Parks & History Association: Archeologists at Fort McHenry. Fort 

McHenry National Monument. NPS. 

pp. 12-13: Archeologists at Antietam National Battlefield. NPS: Antietam Bridge. 

National Archives and Records Administration: Confederate dead at Antietam. 

Library of Congress, 

p. 15: Underwater archeologists: eating utensils. Southeast Archeological Center. NPS. 

pp. 16-17: Archeologists at Little Big Horn Battlefield National Monument. NPS. 

Tatanka-lyotanka (Sitting Bull). National Archives and Records Administration, 

p. 18: Shaw Memorial by Augustus Saint-Gaudens; detail of Negro soldiers in the 

Fifty-Fourth Regiment ot Massachsetts Volunteer Infantry. Saint-Gaudens 

National Historic Site. NPS. 
Who We Are 

The National Park Service's American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) 

leads a federal grants program aimed at helping communities identify, assess, 

and protect our nation's historic battlefields. Since 1990 the ABPP and Its 

grantees have helped protect and enhance more than 60 battlefields by 

cosponsoring more than 130 projects across the United States. Visit the ABPP 

web site at http://www2.cr.nps.gov/abpp/. 

The Society for Historical Archaeology (SHA) promotes scholarly research and 

the dissemination of knowledge concerning historical archaeology on land and 

underwater. Formed in 1967, SHA is the largest scholarly group concerned with 

the archaeology of the modern world (AD. 1400-present). Visit the SHA web 

site at http://www.sha.org/. 

Learn More About Archeology 

Archeology. History, and Custer's Last Battle: The Little Big Horn Reexamined by 

Richard Allen Fox. (1993) University of Oklahoma Press. 

Battlefield: Farming a Civil War Battleground by Peter Svenson. (1994) 

Faber & Faber. 

Look to the Earth: Historical Archeology and the American Civil War 

by Clarence R. Geier and Susan E. Winter (editors). (1996) University 

of Tennessee Press. 

On the Prairie of Palo Alto: Historical Archeology ot the U.S. - Mexican 

War Battlefield by Charles M. Haecker and Jeffrey G. Mauck (1997) Texas ASM 

University Press. 

Whom We Would Never More See: History and Archeology Recover the Lives 

and Deaths of African American Civil War Soldiers on Folly Island. South 

Carolina by Steven D. Smith. (1993) Topics in African American History No. 3, 

South Carolina Department of Archives and History. 

For More Information 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

National Park Service 

Heritage Preservation Services 

The American Battlefield 

Protection Program 

1849 C Street, NW, NC 330 

Washington. DC 20240 

Association for the Preservation 

of Civil War Sites 

11 Public Square, Suite 200 

Hagerstown, MD 21740 

Civil War Trust 

2101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1120 

Arlington, VA 22201 

The Conservation Fund 

Civil War Battlefield Campaign 

1800 North Kent Street 

Arlington, VA 22209 

Council on America's Military Past 

P.O. Box 1151 

Ft. Myer.VA 22211-0151 

Society for Historical Archaeology 

P.O. Box 30446 

Tucson, AZ 85751 

State Historic Preservation Officers 

c/o The National Conference of State 

Historic Preservation Officers 

Hall of States, Suite 342 

444 North Capitol Street, NW 

Washington, DC 20001-1512 

This booklet was developed under a United States Department of the Interior cooperativ

agreement among the National Park Service, Heritage Preservation Services. American 

Battlefield Protection Program (NPS): The Society tor Historical Archaeology (SHA): an

National Conference ot State Historic Preservation Officers (NCSHPO). NPS is responsi

the final content, policy, and all illustrative materials: SHA provided advice on the cont

coordinated design and production: and NCSHPO coordinated the overall work under th

cooperative agreement. 

Booklet design by Synergy Design Group. Tallahassee. Florida.