Bunker Hill’s Past Re-surfaces in Summer Archaeology Project

Timed to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill, the digs have uncovered hundreds of artifacts and revealed complex soil stratigraphy across both sites that speak to the neighborhood’s long and complex history. 

In tandem with these excavations, the City’s archaeology team is  also supporting a Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey of Breed’s Hill conducted by Chartrand Geoarchaeological Solutions, LLC. This non-invasive investigation seeks to locate the exact site of the 1775 redoubt associated with the Battle of Bunker Hill. The team had planned to excavate on Breed’s Hill to expose the redoubt for June 17th, the 250th anniversary of the battle.  However, GPR results showed the best place to excavate was also the same location the National Park Service had chosen for the Battle of Bunker Hill 250th commemoration events. As a result, the excavation of the redoubt has been postponed to June 2026 as part of the Boston 250 celebrations. 

The team is now back in the lab to write up their findings, process the archaeological collections, and plan more archaeological investigations for this fall and for next spring/summer. The public is also welcome to stop by their downtown pop-up archaeology lab and exhibition on the Siege of Boston every Wednesday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. through the end of July at the Old Corner Bookstore, 7 School Street, in downtown Boston.

For more information on the Charlestown 250 Project and to explore our extensive research on the neighborhood in 1775, visit our website. Find in-the-field content and photos on the City of Boston Archaeology Program at Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and Threads.