How can I learn more about the history of my property?
Many resources exist for owners of older houses. Archival research will provide a better understanding of your house and lands. For instance, your local library, town hall, and historical society can often provide important information about the land use history of the property. A title search, old maps and atlases, tax records, government census records, and town histories may offer insights about former owners, their families and their occupations, as well as information on other structures that may have once existed on the property. Municipal historians are also highly knowledgeable and are eager to assist with research about their communities.

Can I collect arrowheads or allow metal detecting on my property?
Rural property owners are apt to occasionally discover stone arrowheads, broken colonial dishes or bottles, hand wrought nails, old window glass and the like in their gardens and around their homes.

Legally, it's permissible for an owner to collect these sorts of artifacts from their own property. However, significant information about our past becomes distorted when artifacts are removed from archaeological sites. In particular, metal detecting can seriously alter the integrity of archaeological sites. Any excavation activity is destructive and important knowledge about Connecticut's heritage can be irrevocably lost. Resist the temptation to dig or to allow others access to your property for this purpose.

What can I do to protect archaeological resources located on my property?
Good stewardship begins with responsible actions. Native American sites can be very old, very fragile, and offer significant insights about the distant past. If you discover Native American artifacts, contact the Office of State Archaeology for appropriate guidance.

If you occasionally find broken bits of early ceramics or other colonial artifacts while gardening or landscaping, develop a system for recording or cataloging where these discoveries occurred. Draw a map of your property and describe where and how each find was discovered. This information will help future property owners, historians and archaeologists better understand the property's changing history and use through time. However, if you discover a buried foundation or a dense concentration of historic artifacts on your property, seek the professional assistance of the Office of State Archaeology.

Where can I donate my collection of artifacts?
The Museum of Natural History/Connecticut Archaeology Center is the official state repository for archaeological artifacts from Connecticut, and we are always interested in pre-historic and historic materials that will increase understanding of the past. If you have materials you think might benefit this effort, and are looking for a safe, pemanent home for them, please contact our Collection Manager, Cheri Collins, and we will be pleased to consider them.