‘A national treasure’: Colonial Williamsburg to unveil 40,000-square-foot archaeology center

WILLIAMSBURG – Colonial Williamsburg’s groundbreaking new archaeology center is set to open to the public this week.   

Comprising 40,000 square feet of collection, research and education space centered on Williamsburg’s rich history, the Colin G. and Nancy N. Campbell Archaeology Center will be unveiled on Saturday, April 25.

A ribbon-cutting event at 9 a.m. will set the stage for a weekend of festivities, public engagement and programs highlighting the study of the community’s past.

After the ceremony, guests will have the opportunity to explore the new building, meet with members of the archaeology team and learn how archaeological discoveries have helped define our understanding of 18th-century America.

“We believe Colonial Williamsburg will be able to offer a one-of-a-kind experience,” said Jack Gary, associate vice president of Historic Resources and Kahler family director of Archaeology at The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. “So much of what we do as archaeologists goes unseen by the public.”

Visits to the Campbell Archaeology Center will be free and open to the public. In addition to exhibits showcasing ongoing archaeological projects, the facility will display a selection of the Foundation’s extensive artifact collection. 

Guests will discover archaeological findings that have never before been shown to the public.  

Among the center’s highlights are an early colonial brick foundation viewed through a glass floor, a Wall of Wonder featuring relics that illuminate life in 18th-century Williamsburg and a “Follow ‘The Squabbit'” exhibit that reveals the process involved in unearthing, washing, identifying and analyzing artifacts.

The opening of the center aligns with the 100th anniversary of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and the 250th anniversary of America.

“Archaeology has played a pivotal role in Colonial Williamsburg’s first 100 years, from the discovery of many of the buildings that were recreated to recent revelations that enable us to learn about our nation’s history,” said Ron Hurst, Colonial Williamsburg’s chief mission officer. 

The field of historical archaeology was born at Colonial Williamsburg. Decades of archaeological efforts in the Historic Area have led to one of the world’s largest collections of 17th-through-19th-century archaeology from colonial America. 

According to Gary, while Colonial Williamsburg has been collecting artifacts since it was first founded, nearly 70% of the Historic Area has not yet been excavated in a modern way. As a result, there is still a great deal of history to uncover.

The archaeology center will make it possible for those excavations to continue by providing a site to safely house the materials that are discovered. Nearly 60 million artifacts are included in the Foundation’s collection to date.

“What we have here – and will continue to unearth – is a national treasure, and now, we can provide the community with an emotional connection to our shared history,” Gary said.

According to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the Campbell Archaeology Center is one of the museum’s signature projects commemorating America’s 250th anniversary. The center will join several other new sites on Nassau Street to create a major visitor corridor to the Historic area.

The nearby Custis Square excavation site allows guests to partake in a self-guided tour to explore the history and abundant gardens surrounding plantation owner John Custis IV. 

The site of the Williamsburg Bray School, one of the first institutions dedicated to educating Black children in North America, opened to the public last year. The African American Baptist Meeting House, one of the earliest Black church congregations in America, will be dedicated in October 2026.

Funding for the new archaeology center was made possible in part by a lead gift from the late Forrest E. Mars. Jr., former Colonial Williamsburg trustee and longtime donor, who chose the name in honor of the Campbells’ service to the institution.

Colin Campbell, a chairman emeritus of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation who passed away in 2024, served as the organization’s president and CEO from 2000 to 2014. Nancy Campbell is chair emerita of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The couple received The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s prestigious Churchill Bell Award in 2014.

“The Campbell Archaeology Center brings our archaeology right to our visitors, allowing us to showcase our community-engaged approach and educate in a way we’ve never been able to do before,” Hurst said.

To learn more about the new center and download a schedule of the April 25 grand opening events, click here.