Emily Warner, right, with the USA Center for Archaeological Studies, and Thomas Grace, with Wiregrass Archaeological Consulting, bisect a feature in the soil at a site that is along the route for a proposed Mobile Bay bridge.

Center for Archaeological Studies

The Center for Archaeological Studies conducts archaeological research, teaching, and public service in the north-central Gulf Coast region. The Center promotes the archaeological study and appreciation of the region's prehistoric and historic past; disseminates to the public information about the region's archaeology; and preserves archaeological evidence of the region's past for future study, use, and enjoyment. The Center involves students in research projects, providing hands-on experience in archaeology.

Our staff has carried out over 1,000 survey and excavation projects during the last thirty years. Ground-breaking research at sites like Old Mobile and Port Dauphin revealed much about Alabama's earliest colonial history. The rapid pace of modern development has also led us to study sites like Bottle Creek, the Exploreum, and Dog River Bridge, where Indigenous People, French, British, Spanish, and Early American settlers left their marks on the landscape.


 

  Latest News and Research
Union Hall History
Union Hall History
Monday - November 24, 2025
There were 34 historical structures in the project area, but only one was eligible for listing to the National Register of Historic Places: the Union Hall building at 300 South Royal Street. Though the structure is no longer standing, it played an important role in the development of Mobile's shipyard industry.
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Shipbuilders Local 18 Labor Union
Shipbuilders Local 18 Labor Union
Monday - November 24, 2025
IUMSWA Local 18 Union Hall in Mobile in 1988. Mobile Historical Development Commission, The Doy Leale McCall Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of South Alabama.
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Archaeology Open House Showcases the Dig
Archaeology Open House Showcases the Dig
Tuesday - August 6, 2024
An archaeologist's goal is to refine and improve understanding of the past through research, excavation, finding and exhibiting artifacts. Recently, the University of South Alabama Center for Archaeological Studies in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work held a summer open house to allow students, faculty and staff to visit the archaeology labs to see what happens after the artifacts have been collected.
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