Kooskia Internment Camp Archaeological Project

Welcome to the Kooskia Internment Camp Archaeological Project!

On this site, you will find information about the research Dr. Stacey Lynn Camp, Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Idaho, is conducting at Northern Idaho's Kooskia Internment Camp, a World War II Japanese Internment Camp. 

The project began in the summer of 2010, when Dr. Camp and her team of faculty, post-doctoral, graduate, and undergraduate researchers performed preliminary archaeological research at Kooskia, including geophysical survey, soil resistivity studies, shovel testing, phosphate analysis, and collected macrobotanical soil samples to determine the location, extent, integrity, and contents of historic gardens and personal effects from the camp's internees and employees. The research design of the summer of 2010's research can be found under the "Publications" tab above. The report of this research will be completed in 2012 and available on this website.

We intend to return back to the site in the summer of 2012 to conduct additional archaeological research. If you are interested in volunteering on the project or attending our field school, please contact Dr. Camp at scamp@uidaho.edu.

For additional information on the history of Kooskia Internment Camp, please click the "About the Project" tab above. On the "Project Updates" tab, you will find our project's blog that details last summer's research as well as ongoing laboratory research.

• Check out the August 2011 edition of Idaho Magazine, which features a story on the Kooskia Internment Camp Archaeological Project and several of our project's students discussing their experiences on the project. Read the article by clicking here. 
• The National Park Service's Japanese American Confinement Sites Grant program awarded the Kooskia Internment Camp Archaeological Project $6176 to fund laboratory research and supplies for the 2011 and 2012 years.
• In July of 2011, Dr. Camp welcomed her second child and budding archaeologist, Ty, into the world! She is on maternity leave until September, when she plans to return to her research and labwork related to Kooskia.
• The May/June 2011 edition of the national best-selling magazine, Archaeology, covered archaeological research on World War II and included information on the Kooskia Internment Camp Archaeological Project. Segments of the article can be found by clicking here.
• In June of 2011, Dr. Camp hosted an archaeological workshop for the 4-H Annual Teen Conference hosted at the University of Idaho. There, high school students learned about and were taught how to identify artifacts excavated from the Kooskia Internment Camp.
• In the Spring of 2011, Jamie Capawana and Josh Allen traveled to the Society for American Archaeology's annual conference in Sacramento, California, to present on their research related to the Kooskia Internment Camp.