Students Unearth History In Houston's Freedmen's Town

CYPRESS, TX -- There’s still a bit of buried history in Houston, and a few local students were literally digging some of it up recently.

The Lone Star College-Cy Fair Professor Dr. David Bruner and his students traveled the area known as Freedmen’s Town in Houston’s historic Fourth Ward.

That’s where the archeology students met up with a group of students from Gregory-Lincoln Education Center and spent the day excavated artifacts.

Freedmen’s Town was founded in 1865, at the end of the American Civil War by former slaves that included Rev. Jack Yates.

Freedmen’s Town became the epicenter of African-American culture, which flourished along the Anglo community on Buffalo Bayou.

The dig took place in the backyard of the Simms House on the Rutherford B. H. Yates Museum property.

“It was amazing getting to teach the kids about archeology and how to dig and sift for artifacts, said Jasmine Lee, one of Bruner’s students. “Even though they had fun, they really took it seriously and were curious and careful with every find regardless of its importance.”

Some notable finds were pieces of broken pottery and dinnerware, a cologne bottle from a company in Massachusetts and various animal bones.

One student found a piece of faux porcelain and was able to date it to the pre-1890s, Lee said.

But one of the neatest discoveries was a Hot Wheels car from the mid-1970s.

“Seeing their eyes light up with each discovery was truly special,” said Lee. “I hope that this experience opens up avenues of study that they may not have thought of pursuing before.”

The students also helped renovate interior space in the museum’s Simms House to create a temporary archeology lab.

“Our work at the museum is key to preserving and sharing the deep cultural significance of Freedmen's Town and the people who persevered through the unimaginable,” said Lee, who plans to graduate in May and looks forward to a career in activist anthropology. “It is important to tell the stories of the communities that have contributed to our rich and vibrant culture.”

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Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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