Camp Caroline with Micah Chang

The Extreme History Project: The Dirt on the Past

Join us as we speak with Micah Chang about his time working on the first joint archaeological field school between the University of Montana and Montana State University. This field school, initiated by the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, was held to immerse students in federal archeology. Students conducted field surveys and carried out archival research on an African American mining and homesteading community east of Butte, MT currently called the Camp Caroline Mining District. Professional and practicing archeologists and historians worked alongside students to survey, uncover, and interpret this community that left behind scant evidence of their presence and history. The story of Montana’s African American community and their lived experiences has seldom been examined archaeologically. The intention of this field school was twofold: to teach students federal archeology and to elevate African American history in Montana. Micah Chang is a PhD candidate in the Department of History and Philosophy at Montana State University. He is defending his dissertation in April. His research focuses on race, agriculture, and environment on the Northern Great Plains and the American West.