A team from the Public Archaeology Laboratory presented survey findings to the Fall River Historic Commission on Nov. 18, describing dozens of recorded cultural resources across the Watuppa Reservation and adjacent preserved lands.

Mike LaBoss, the city’s forester for the Watuppa Reservation, introduced the project and said the survey was intended to document resources while keeping sensitive archaeological locations protected. "Archaeological site locations in Massachusetts ... are not public information," a PAL presenter told the commission, saying the confidentiality protects sites from disturbance.

PAL described its methods as background research, map and archive review, and reconnaissance field survey conducted between September and December using iPads and a GIS database to capture location data, photographs and condition notes. The team said it completed Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) inventory forms for 28 archaeological sites, 8 building forms, 6 landscape forms and 11 burial-ground forms and submitted the report and forms to the MHC for review and filing.

Holly Herscher, a senior archaeologist with PAL, described site types documented during the project, including cellar holes, small mill remains, stone walls, quarry scars, CCC-era water holes and the Interceptor Canal. "We documented a number of small historic mills ... and the Arctic Ice ruins," she said.

Laura Klein, senior archaeological/architectural historian at PAL, told the commission that the team recommended two surveyed areas — the Reservation Headquarters/Blossom Farm area and the Adirondack Farm area — as potentially eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places pending preparation of National Register statements for review by MHC. "We recommended the two areas that we surveyed are eligible for National Register listing," Klein said.

PAL emphasized that its work was reconnaissance-level: no excavation or artifact collection was performed and archaeological testing would require state permits and further review. The presenters recommended focused follow-up work at sites that may be threatened by erosion or other impacts, and they noted that investigation of potential Native American resources would require separate collaboration with tribal representatives.

Commissioners and residents asked about public access to presentation materials and whether private-property parcels were included in the scope. PAL said the project used the city-defined study boundary and primarily surveyed public lands within Fall River; the team also pulled in archaeological data from trustees and state inventories where properties overlapped. The PowerPoint and a web-based mapping product will be posted on the City of Fall River website and the water department’s files, the commission said.

Chairman Richard Mancini said the documentation will help preserve and interpret the city’s cultural landscapes. The commission did not take action on National Register nominations at the meeting; PAL’s report and the MHC filing were described as preparatory steps toward potential future nominations and targeted archaeological studies.