Cultural Resources Intern

Company: Greening Youth Foundation
Location: Yorktown
Posted on: January 23, 2023

Job Description:

NPS UNIT: Colonial National Historic Park
LOCATION: Yorktown, Virginia

This position will work with Park Cultural Resource Staff and Northeast Archeological Resources Program Staff to develop and support historical and archeological research related to current and upcoming archeological projects on Jamestown Island. The intern will research, collate and consolidate existing historical and archeological information related to the Yeardley Plantation on Jamestown Island into an annotated bibliography, Excel Spreadsheet and then to develop a cohesive narrative document about what is known about the African American experience at that site. The intern will participate in two weeks of archeological field and lab work, processing artifacts from the Travis Estate Site, which will help provide context for their project and the associated outreach. The intern will help conduct photo documentation of archeological fieldwork and field conditions, as well as historical research for use in social media, handouts, and posters. The intern will prepare and draft four-six social media posts for future use. They will develop a poster for use in early consultations with Descendant Community members related to the Yeardley Archeological Site. The Park has developed a program of engagement with the local and regional African American Descendant Community and the intern will participate in documenting the meetings and presenting the results of their research during at least one community outreach and engagement event.

One current and one future archeological project are focused on working together with the African American Descendant Community to engage in research that will help the park communicate a broader and more inclusive story. The sites were selected based on two factors, one is that they are threatened by the impacts of Climate Change, and two they provide an opportunity for the park to engage and share the important stories of the people that were enslaved on Jamestown Island. These projects are in line with the park's goal to engage, produce, and share the African and African American experiences on Jamestown Island from the 17th -20th Centuries. The intern will review secondary and primary sources to identify materials related to the property associated with Governor Yeardley. Yeardley was a governor of the Jamestown between 1618 and 1621, he traded food for Africans at Point Comfort then brought at least six of them to Jamestown Island. His land likely holds archeological information that can help us understand and communicate what we know of the earliest periods of African and English interactions in Jamestown. A second archeological project is currently taking place on Jamestown Island at the Travis Cemetery Site. This project is surveying the landscape to attempt to find spaces where enslaved Africans lived and worked and bring those stories to light. The Intern will work in the field learning about archeology and the methods and processes from which archeological information is gleaned. The intern will be responsible for photographing field work and developing social media content for future use. They will also take that field experience and apply it and the historical research on the Yeardley property to develop an informational poster that can be shared with the African American Descendant Community to help us begin the conversation about the upcoming work at the Yeardley Site. This preparatory research will be conveyed by the intern to the Descendant Community during at least one of the outreach meetings. The work will be shared with park and regional Cultural Resource programs, park leadership and with the African American Descendant Community.

Learning Goals:
The intern will learn about Cultural Resources, History, Archeology, Outreach and Engagement. They will learn about these areas through guided participation in historical research, archeological field and lab work, writing historical context statements, conducting outreach and engagement with park and regional staff while working with several local and regional African American Descendant Community groups. They will learn and develop skills in historical research, photography, developing outreach related media, networking, outreach and engagement styles and methods. These experiences will be both hands on and will include instruction and mentoring by Cultural Resource and Interpretive staff. We also plan to organize instruction in resume writing for Government positions and allow interns to cross train with Natural Resources and Interpretive staff.

Keywords: Greening Youth Foundation, Newport News , Cultural Resources Intern, Other , Yorktown, Virginia