The Darrow School has announced it has engaged the services of the UK archeological firm, DigVentures, to excavate several sites on the New Lebanon campus. The school was founded on the site of the first Shaker community in the United States. “What we discover might turn the popular image of Shaker culture on its head,” said Lisa Westcott Wilkins, the co-founder and managing director of DigVentures. The Digging Darrow excavation will take place from May 30 to June 11. It will map out the entire Shaker settlement, locate long-lost workspaces, and unearth evidence of Shaker life and culture. Darrow students and faculty will participate in the excavation project, and their findings will be shared with scholars and organizations interested in Shaker history. The Shakers established the community at Mount Lebanon, N.Y., in 1787, and it existed at that location well into the 20th century. The New Lebanon School for Boys was established in the original Shaker buildings in 1932, and was renamed Darrow School in 1939. Read the full story at Darrow School [dot] org.