Program Activities
While the CHP program is grounded in liberal arts study, there are many opportunities for students to gain practical experience. Elective courses, including the Archaeological Field School, may be taken for CHP course credit. The CHP faculty also offer special topics courses that examine local preservation projects in detail. Classroom assignments frequently involve measured drawing (CHP 202), architectural model building (CHP 241) and archaeological pit surveys (CHP 222). All students as part of their senior theses projects will gain practical experience with primary and archival research.
Archaeological Field School
In conjunction with the Newport Historical Society, the CHP program offers an annual field school in historical archaeology. Under the direction of CHP program coordinator Dr. James C. Garman, the field school takes place at the Society's Wanton-Lyman-Hazard House, one of Newport's most significant historic properties. Previous investigations at the site have revealed a wide range of intriguing archaeological features dating from the early 18th through the mid-19th centuries. Instruction in the field school includes archaeological fieldwork and analysis, recording of features, and guest lectures by experts in related fields.
The field school runs every day for five weeks during Summer Session I and may be taken for 3 or 6 credits. Those taking the course for six credits must, in addition to daily fieldwork, complete an individual project designed in concert with course faculty. For further information, please call Dr. James Garman at (401) 341-3127 or email him at garmanj@salve.edu.
Technical Workshops
The CHP program offers a range of 1-credit, immersion workshops that are designed to educate students in the production of material items like furniture, gravestones, fabrics and bricks. Recent workshops, such as CHP 060: Furniture Restoration, have examined the effects of aging, weather and other adverse conditions on impermanent objects. Students in these workshops examine the issues that surround the revival of these crafts for the historic preservation community, while simultaneously learning parts of the craft. Technical workshops also give students interested in restoration, museum curation or gallery management a solid understanding of the practices relevant to those careers.
Special Topics: Architectural History in Newport
As a partner with the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, the state's preservation agency, the CHP program has undertaken a multi-year project to document Newport's historic resources. This project will employ current technology to update incomplete or obsolete information on the city's historic resources. Through this partnership, students will have a unique opportunity to participate in professional-level work.
The first project from this partnership was an architectural survey and historic district nomination for the Southern Thames Neighborhood, an area that borders the university's campus. This area of over 900 buildings arose early in the 19th century as a center for the city's burgeoning Irish population. As the neighborhood matured, it developed a complex combination of commercial, industrial and maritime economies. Until recently, this important area in Newport's history has been overlooked, giving CHP students a precious opportunity to write history for the very first time.
Future projects from the CHP/RIHPHC partnership will focus on the Ochre Point-Cliffs neighborhood, the West Broadway area and the Kay/Catherine district. As this partnership develops, students will gain experience with a range of historic resources, from Newport's colossal mansions to its lower-class roots.
Hands-On in the Classroom
Where possible, CHP courses include a practical component to enhance the liberal-arts approach of the program. In the past, hands-on activities have ranged from examining garbage to building a Narragansett hut. Field trips to significant archaeological and architectural sites constitute one important aspect of the CHP program, as does study abroad or at other institutions. In recent courses, model building has enhanced students' understanding of material culture while illuminating the processes involved in constructing the built environment. While hands-on exercises are always educational, most students find these projects fun as well.
Senior Theses
Students in the CHP program are required to complete a senior thesis. This thesis is the culmination of a two-semester sequence of courses that are designed to guide students through the research and writing processes. Often, students choose to work on one aspect of Newport's history, although they are naturally free to select their own subject. Examples of previous theses follow below:
- Kelly Andrade, For Community Pride: Restoring the Past for Future Generations
- Amanda Boiteau, Sooner or Later, the Things You Own End Up Owning You: Identity Fashioned from Material Possessions
- Jenna E. Higgins, And With My Needle I Wrought the Same: Needlework Samplers from Newport, Rhode Island
- Kelly Odell, Arbeit Macht Frei: Preserving and Interpreting Sites with Negative Associations
- Ty Pennypacker, A Long and Useful Life: Daniel Lyman and Newport's Recovery from the British Occupation
- Paul A. Rogers, Slavery and Rap Music: Comparisons for a Racist Culture