Threatened Sites Program

Archeological Society of Virginia volunteers work a threatened site at Great Neck. — Archeological Society of Virginia volunteers at an excavation in Tidewater region.

Since 1985, the Department of Historic Resources (DHR) has administered a program for threatened archaeological sites in Virginia. Sites considered for funding must be at least of statewide significance and under threat of destruction.

Eligible sites also are ones for which no other sources of funding are available for their rescue. Anyone may bring these sites to the attention of the department.

Potential sites are evaluated by department teams and a Threatened Sites Committee composed of members of the archaeological community. Funds are committed for assessment, excavation, laboratory processing and analysis, and reporting.

Volunteers and the public are involved at every possible opportunity.

If a site cannot be saved, the funds are used to gather the information it contains before it is lost forever. For copies of reports from these projects, see the DHR Archaeological Report Series.

For more information on the Threatened Sites Program, please contact Elizabeth Moore, State Archaeologist. Phone: (804) 482-6084.

Threatened Sites Proposal Form (Word doc)

Updated September 3, 2019