Breaking Ground Again: The 2026 Turpin’s Island Excavation Season Starts May 26th, 2026

Countdown to the start of Memorial University's 2026 Field School on Turpin’s Island in Little St. Lawrence!

Returning this year with much anticipation, a new group of archaeology students from Memorial University will be continuing previous excavations on the Turpin’s Island site!! From May 25th to June 19th, 2026, new and old faces are excited to immerse themselves in the community on the Boot! Working in collaboration with the local families and residents of Little and Great St. Lawrence, the students participating this year are extremely grateful for this opportunity.

As always, the site is open to everyone, so please feel free to come and visit us!

2026’s group of undergraduate and graduate students continue to build upon the work of Memorial’s previous field work. The ten archaeologists-in-training are eager to excavate the Burin Peninsula’s rich history of fishing, marine industry, and daily life. With a fresh perspective, this crop of students hopes to uncover more of the province’s vast archaeological record. The students have just finished their prior semester studying Little St. Lawrence’s history and preparing to hone the skills of excavation, interpretation, and laboratory methods at Turpin’s Island this summer! 

Map of Turpin's Island after 2025 field work

The opportunity to excavate at Turpin’s Island allows students to apply what they have learned in class to their fieldwork. It also allows them to learn the necessary skills required to be a field archaeologist, which they will use for the rest of their careers. This year we will look at investigating and excavating unknown areas to broaden the knowledge of the past on Turpin's Island. Many areas of the island have not been excavated yet which could lead to new discoveries. We will complete excavation of unit 3A which is understood to be connected to the Newman and Co fishing premise occupied between 1784 and 1810. 

French, Basque, British, and Newfoundland fisherfolk have occupied Turpin’s Island for approximately five hundred years, a history with which these students are eager to engage!!!

To find out more about last year excavations read Turpin’s Island, Little St. Lawrence, CfAu-05 Scaling up data collection Memorial University Field School 2025

To get more details about the field work and the site consult our brochure!

Meet the team!

Liam is a fourth year undergraduate student of archaeology and linguistics at Memorial. I am particularly interested in the province’s historic colonial-Indigenous interactions, social life, and economy, especially as I prepare to begin work on my Master’s in Archaeology this fall. Outside schoolwork, I have recently enjoyed reading Trainspotting and practicing my cooking skills.

William is an undergraduate student majoring in archaeology at MUN. Having lived in Newfoundland all my life, I’m very excited to see more of the island and I’m eager to learn how to work on an archaeological site. I love to learn about the world around me and really love animals and art.

Jennifer is an undergraduate archaeology student at Memorial University. I love painting, rollerskating, coffee, and spending time with my cats. I grew up on the West Coast of Newfoundland, and this will be my first time on the Burin Peninsula. I’m incredibly excited to experience the world of archaeology and to begin field school on Turpin’s Island!

Jason is a student at Memorial University about to start my third year in archaeology in the upcoming fall semester. Originally from Portugal Cove, NL. I’m extremely excited to spend the summer away on the Burin peninsula getting to learn new field methods and skills to help me advance in my career and become a successful archaeologist. 

Hi! My name is Kristin, and I am a lifelong world traveller and an Aesthetician-turned-Archaeologist with a fascination with ancient history. I have a particular interest in Cultural Resource Management (CRM), Colonial-Indigenous interactions, specifically in North America. I am a recent archaeology undergraduate of Memorial University, and this will be my first excavation in the field! I hope our group will continue to find more exciting data for the archaeological record about early fisher folk and their daily life interactions in Little St. Lawrence. Maybe we will find something entirely new and unexpected! Who knows!!

Hi, I’m Taylor! I am an undergraduate archaeology student at Memorial University of Newfoundland in my final semester. My minor is in Medieval and Early Modern Studies, and I am particularly interested in medieval archaeology and applications of feminist theory in archaeological studies. In my free time, I enjoy photography, writing poetry, and reading. I am incredibly excited about this opportunity and grateful to the community for their continued support of this project.

Cole is a first year student at Memorial University excited to start their archaeological journey.  This is my first time working on an excavation site so I’m excited to learn all there is to know.  Being born and raised in Newfoundland, I’m thrilled to be able to experience a true archaeological journey and discover more about what lies beneath my home province.  

Wil is an undergrad student in the archaeology department currently completing his third year of studies. Archaeology and history is something that I've always been fascinated in and am really excited for the opportunity to join the field school on Turpins Island. The experience should provide valuable skills that I can apply to my career going forward. I’m looking forward to getting my hands dirty and getting the first real taste of archaeological work in the field. 

Emma was born in St. John’s to baymen parents and is in her final year of undergrad. I am particularly interested in the overseas connection to Newfoundland, having been to the UK and Ireland to learn and establish my own family connections as far back as the 17th century. I’m a huge ambivert—when I am not playing video games and enjoying some me-time, I can be found socializing with friends and enjoying the outdoors. I’m so excited for this field season! 

Matthew is an undergraduate student studying Archaeology and History at Memorial University. I have a deep fascination with Newfoundland’s history and strongly believe there is always more I get to learn. Based originally out of Mount Pearl, I am extremely interested in getting to know the background of this community and exploring the area. I have a personal connection to the archaeology of Ferryland, as I come from a family of archaeology enthusiasts from the region. This will be my first time involved with fieldwork, and I cannot wait to hone my skills over the course of this program. My interests include building model kits, hiking casually, and music!

The grad students and the boss!

Calum is a PhD student in the Department of Archaeology at Memorial University and will be one of the TAs for the field school. I’m looking forward to my first year at Turpin’s Island – in my off time, I’ll be trying to check out the hiking trails and the beach around St. Lawrence (and of course, the Trophy Lounge too)!

Kayla is a PhD student at the Department of Archaeology at Memorial University and one of the TAs for the Turpin's Island archaeology field school. I am delighted to return to Little St. Lawrence for the second year of excavations; in my spare time, I will be hiking, using my telescope and having lunch at The Lunch Tin Café!

Catherine is an Associate Professor at the Department of Archaeology at Memorial University and the leader of Turpin’s island archaeology team since 2023. Not only does she love the archaeology and history of both Little and Great St. Lawrence, and Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, but she also hits the waves with enthusiasm (but no real talent!) at local beaches (my board is waxed and ready to go!). I’m thrilled to be back and can’t wait to see you all this summer!