Starting March 13 open Thursday – Monday – Ticket information

Excavate: Archaeology Expedition

What is an Excavation Expedition?

Here at Montpelier Archaeology, we have a passion for working with the public to discover and preserve Madison’s historic landscape. We welcome you to step inside our active excavation sites and dig beside our professional archaeology staff. Along the way, you will learn how to identify 18th and 19th century artifacts and discover what happens to this material culture after it is excavated. Our programs also include several specialty lectures and tours that are not available to a typical Montpelier visitor that will immerse you in the 18th, 19th, and 20th century history of the property. You will not just dig with us, you will learn with us.

Program Format

Week-Long, ideal for ages 12+
Anyone under 15 must be accompanied by an adult

Week-Long Programs

The week-long program begins at 6pm on Sunday and ends at 4pm on Friday. With this program, you will spend four whole days excavating our active archaeology site and an entire day with our archaeology field laboratory. You will also receive a special orientation lecture, three exclusive property tours, and access to parts of the property not open to visitors. The program fee includes a catered Welcome Dinner Sunday evening and a Farewell Reception and Graduation Ceremony Friday afternoon. In addition, participants will receive a Montpelier Welcome Bag, Montpelier Membership, a commemorative certificate, and a group photo. Participants are responsible for their own housing.

Learn With Us

Upcoming Programs

2025 Programs

Note: We will soon be listing all of the 2025 programs, we have an exicitng lineup! We are going to be conducting excavations up at Walnut Hollow (the set of homes for enslaved families near the Temple). We will focus on the home sites and the 18th century blacksmith shop. For the season, we have several new programs including an arboristry, home cooking with Jerome Bias, an oral history program with the MDC at the old Montpelier Store (CALM), a masonry program (stabilizing the chimney at Arlington and the duPont Blacksmith Shop), and a Blacksmithing expedition. We will be updating the dig page in the next week! Click on any of the available programs below to learn more and register:

Where will we be working?

Archaeology at Walnut hollow

In 2025, expeditioners will be excavating units in the area adjacent to the Temple–exploring homes of enslaved families located through metal detector survey as well as the 18th-century blacksmith shop. The goals of the season will be to determine the range of features and deposits in these areas and help place these sites on the visitor map for interpretation. This should lead to an exciting season for expeditioners as there have been no units placed in these areas which  metal detector surveys revealed dense deposits related to these sites. 

Need more time to save up?

Hold your place on one of our programs with a deposit! The deposit guarantees you a spot on the program and is non-refundable.

GIVE TO MONTPELIER

As the lifelong home of James Madison, Father of the Constitution and Architect of the Bill of Rights, Montpelier's mission is to communicate Madison's role in creating our modern, democratic government.