About Northeast Archaeology Laboratory
The Northeast Archaeology Laboratory is part of the University of Maine’s Anthropology Department and supports interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research with students and faculty in the Anthropology Department and Climate Change Institute.
We are the lead archaeological institution in the Northeast researching and stewarding collections with and for Indigenous communities. Our leadership role in regional archaeological and environmental research, collections care and stewardship, education, and community engagement contributes to understandings of past human lifeways with an emphasis on Indigenous pasts in Wabanaki Homeland (Maine and the Canadian Maritimes).
At the Northeast Archaeology Laboratory, we promote and advance archaeology through research, teaching, and service. Our team engages in a wide range of archaeological projects focusing on Indigenous lifeways, pre- and post- European history, and addressing archaeological and environmental questions. Our facility houses collections from nearly 50 years of archaeological research in the region.
The University of Maine serves as the Northeast Hub for the Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledges and Science (CBIKS), established in 2023 with support from the National Science Foundation Science and Technology Center program. Researchers and students associated with the Northeast Hub of CBIKS aim to ensure ethical knowledge co-production among collaborating researchers, students, community partners, and institutions seeking to bring Western and Indigenous science together to address contemporary issues in the areas of climate change, food systems, and heritage places.
Our People
The Northeast Archaeology lab is directed by Dr. Bonnie Newsom, and staffed by graduate research assistants and undergraduate work study students. For more information about the lab and our collections please contact Bonnie at bonnie.newsom@maine.edu
Laboratory Director, Associate Professor of Anthropology
Graduate Student, Climate Change Institute
Land Acknowledgement
The University of Maine recognizes that it is located on Marsh Island in the homeland of the Penobscot Nation, where issues of water and territorial rights, and encroachment upon sacred sites, are ongoing. Penobscot homeland is connected to the other Wabanaki Tribal Nations — the Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, and Mi’kmaq — through kinship, alliances and diplomacy. The university also recognizes that the Penobscot Nation and the other Wabanaki Tribal Nations are distinct, sovereign, legal and political entities with their own powers of self-governance and self-determination.
Memorandum of Understanding Between the Penobscot Nation and the University of Maine System
UMaine Native American Programs
Make an Impact – Support UMaine’s
Northeast Archaeology Program
Your gift to the Northeast Archaeology Lab will impact the preservation and understanding of Northeast archaeology. You can help to advance groundbreaking collaborative research with the Wabanaki Nations, ethical stewardship of cultural heritage, meaningful community engagement and partnerships, and the education of future generations. Your gift will help the Northeast Archaeology lab become a regional leader! Click the link below to donate today. Thank you for your support!