Where was the first archaeological dig in the Puget Sound?

What was the first archaeological excavation in the Puget Sound?

Archaeologists at the Burke Museum respond in our fourth installment of Ask the Burke (got a question for next time?

Between 1897 and 1899, an archaeologist named Harlan Smith joined the Jessup North Pacific Expedition to conduct the first archaeological field work in Washington state. His research and interpretations were published and were widely referenced by archaeologists throughout the 20th century.

However, while archaeological field work was being conducted around the Puget Sound for many years following the Jessup North Pacific Expedition, the first modern, systematic archaeology excavation of a registered archaeological site in the Puget Sound region occurred in 1950 at a site known as "Old Man House."

Old Man House is situated at the northern entrance to Agate Pass, just south of the town of Suquamish, and is the site of a large longhouse that was once the home of Chief Sealth (for whom the City of Seattle was named). The longhouse was built in the late 18th-century, but the site was occupied for more than 1,700 years. The 1950 archaeology excavation revealed artifacts such as stone tools, harpoon barbs, grinding stones, antler wedges, and bone pendants, as well as an effigy pipe, and burials.

The ancient village site existed under the ownership of the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission for many years, but was returned to the Suquamish Tribe in 2004.

Source from Great site : http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/archives/191853.asp