During the summers of 1991 and 1992, archaeologists from the Institute for Minnesota Archaeology excavated the remains of an 800 year old house on the Mero village site near Red Wing, Minnesota. To most people, this house just looked like a dark stain in the soil. However, careful excavation and analysis has revealed that it was the remains of a 6 meter by 8 meter semi-subterranean, wattle and daub post structure that was re-built at least once. The house floor was dug into the ground about a meter. The main support posts were sunk into this basin, and smaller posts were placed around the outside of the pit. The walls were covered with branches, bark, and clay. After the house was finally abandoned, the pit was gradually filled in with layers of village debris, including artifacts and plant and animal remains. The collection and data was transferred to the Science Museum of curation and analysis in 2001 as part of the Museum’s efforts to bring Red Wing archaeological collections together.

As stewards of our collections, Science Museum curators are responsible for caring for objects AND data. The process of excavating an archaeological site actually destroys that part of the site, so careful records and data collection is of the utmost importance. While we are not able to actually bring this excavated house to the museum intact, meticulous excavation techniques and record keeping in the field has allowed us to mentally reconstruct it in the lab. The excavation and study of houses is important because it allows us to study the basic building blocks of society – the family or household – and enables cross community comparisons. This is the subject of my research.
– Ed Fleming, Curator of Archaeology