Archaeologists are racing sea level rise to preserve Jamestown’s yet-uncovered history.
Their efforts to study the first permanent English settlement on the continent are being bolstered by an $8 million grant from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.
The money comes as a respite for the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation, which lost $300,000 in federal funding cuts to support for environmental initiatives and flood resilience efforts.
It brings the sum collected by the Save Jamestown campaign, which has been raising funds to protect the Colonial site from climate change, to $16 million.
“We are making discoveries every day about our nation’s beginnings,” said Michael Lavin, campaign project manager. “All of that is at risk.”
Lavin, also Jamestown Rediscovery’s director of collections, has been with the organization since 1995. He’s watched the land, and the water, change under his feet. Flooding, once an annual or biannual occurrence, now happens up to 10 times a year at the site. Rainfall is getting heavier and more frequent, keeping the ground inundated and has “directly impacted the archaeology almost every day.”
The repeated inundation is making archaeology harder, washing some history away for good. While the hardier artifacts remain, organic artifacts including human remains fare worse. The water is also changing the soil, making it more difficult to date artifacts.
“We’re very good at what we do, but we’re losing the potential to be as good as we possibly could be,” Lavin said. “But you don’t know what else you’re losing if it gets too far gone.”
Climate experts project water levels could go up another three feet by 2100. Jamestown officials expect the majority of the 400-year-old historic site will be inundated in the next 50 years if nothing is done.
The challenges landed Jamestown on the 2022 National Trust for Historic Preservation list of the most endangered historic places. They’re also why the Jamestown Recovery Foundation and its parent organization, Preservation Virginia, launched their effort to hold back the tide and allow research to continue.
The campaign is more than a third of the way to its $42 million goal, which will pay for projects such as reinforcing a seawall around the property, elevating buildings and roadways. But first on the list is installing a flood berm on the east end of the property and a pump station to fight the frequent ground inundation.
Lavin said that’s key in being able to continue research and excavation in low-lying parts.
