Kitchen Excavating

Kitchen Excavating

Kitchen Excavating is located in Oriskany Falls New York and is a company in the Construction & Special Trade Contractors business / industry. Kitchen excavating specializes in Septic System Installation, Septic Tank Pumping and Leach Field Installation, Commercial Parking Lot and Driveway Installation and Excavation services.

What are the three types of excavation?

During the 2011-2015 excavation of Monroe Hill House, archaeologists uncovered the foundation of an antebellum detached kitchen in the rear yard of the main house, one of the oldest extant buildings on University grounds. This discovery aligns with a kitchen noted on early insurance documents for the house, as well as in a historical photograph and maps of the property. The kitchen site is a rare opportunity to understand more about how enslaved people performed their daily tasks, how much agency they had over their own lives and interactions with other enslaved persons, family structures, foodways, and religious beliefs.

The initial excavation at the kitchen revealed a number of artifacts, including buttons (including a pair of working shoes), cooking utensils, worked bones, and doll parts. Additional work at the kitchen may include locating possible subfloor pits and conducting artifact conservation and analysis.

The project will involve several educational components to engage the public with the research. The website and social media will provide regular updates about the site excavation and discoveries, monthly sessions for the public to visit the archaeological process and ask questions, virtual online discussions by archaeologists on the findings of the project, and physical and digital exhibits of the artifacts. This research project will also serve as a platform for educational activities that address the University’s newly adopted mission of “refocusing on understanding slavery” and its legacy on the university campus.