An Archaeological Strategy for Chinese Workers’ Camps in the West: Method and Case Study

Abstract

Railroad work camps associated with Chinese laborers were often occupied for very short periods of time, leaving temporally discrete but shallow deposits of material and ephemeral features for archaeologists to explore. One methodological approach that has proved effective focuses on exposing and investigating the horizontal deposits across the sites, as opposed to more traditional vertical excavations. The use of broad areal exposure and documentation can lead to detailed spatial and functional analyses of material and features. Using a work camp associated with the Virginia & Truckee Railroad as a case study, the authors argue the validity of this approach for subsequent work on railroad-related work camps occupied by Chinese laborers in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Chouxiàng

与中国劳工相关的铁路劳工营通常只被使用了很短一段时 间。它们为考古学家的探索留下了在时间上的不连贯的表 浅的物质堆积和短暂遗迹。因此, 有效的方法学致力于挖 掘并调查不同考古现场之间水平堆积层, 与传统的垂直式 发掘不同。对广大地域考掘与文献的使用, 有助于对物质 与遗迹进行详细的空间与功能分析。本文作者以弗吉尼亚 和特拉基铁路附近的一个劳工营为个案研究, 力图证实上 述方法在日后有关十九世纪至二十世纪初年中国铁路劳工 营的研究中的有效性。