...And the dig goes on...

Hello again! There seems to be no end to the amount of interesting objects that Mitzi, Kelli, Helen, and Sam are uncovering. This morning, while the MT Standard photographer/writer was onsite, an alarm clock was uncovered! Although rusty and not entirely intact, the clock was a great find. Just a little later, more clock parts, including many tiny gears, were found buried in a hat. Cool! Several bottles were also uncovered, including a three-sided bottle of sewing machine oil. Mitzi found very large shards of a very large hand-painted bowl, and we saw a few pieces of what appears to be bamboo. Although we didn't have very many visitors today, we had many discoveries.
The lack of visitors may be due to our lack of publicity, but that's all about to change. We've been on the news, and yesterday Hope Stockwell of MT Public Radio came by (we'll have a link to the MTPR broadcast soon!) and the Mai Wah Dig will be featured in the "Big Sky Living" section of the MT Standard this Sunday.
Don't let the wind, heat, rain, etc. keep you away; come visit us! Joining the team are Meghan (artifact washer) and Nicole (artifact documenter.) Come down and say hi!

Tap 'er Light,
Sabrina

During the early part of the last century, Butte, MT, had over 100,000 residents, and 2000 were of Asian descent. Now, all that remains of Butte's Chinatown is a noodle parlor, a museum, and a handful of buildings. But under a vacant lot on W. Mercury St., evidence of Chinatown abounds, and is ready to be discovered.

Through teamwork between Silver Bow County, the Urban Revitalization Agency, and the Mai Wah Society, an archaeological dig has begun across the street from the Mai Wah Museum, and plenty has been found in these past few days.

So far, Mitzi Rosillon and her team (Kelli, Helen, & Sam) have uncovered numerous shards of hand-painted pottery, sections of opium pipes, fan tan gambling pieces, tiny medicine bottles, and an intact light bulb of hand-blown glass, originating from the 1910s. They've also uncovered a section of the foundation wall of the Chinese Baptist Mission, and evidence of several brick structures.

The dig site was home to log tenements, a small tin shop, and a corral by 1888, and by 1907, there were over 24 buildings on the half-block, including a restaurant, lodgings, various groceries, and the Baptist Mission. Unfortunately, every building on the lot was gone by the 1930s, due to fire or wrecking ball. A map from 1951 shows a bare lot- the only structure was a small office for the used car lot that inhabited the site. Chunks of concrete, believed to be the slab on which the office sat, were uncovered early in the archaeological dig process.

Today's best find was a working door handle and mounting plate (patented 1869) made out of either brass or copper. It was found attached to the remains of a wooden door near the primary feature of the dig.

We urge you to come see the dig site and check out what we've uncovered so far. Tours are currently available between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm Monday through Friday. And if you haven't explored the Mai Wah Museum, stop in across the street at 17 W. Mercury. The museum is open between 11:00 am and 5:00 pm Tuesday through Saturday. See you soon!

Sabrina- Public Information Officer

Breaking Ground

We are very excited. While today is the first official day of the dig we have already made some wonderful finds. Check back here for the news from the dig.