Amber Bennett
(Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, 1996)

Lafayette Hall, room 313;. Tel.: (804) 225-4036
E-mail: abennett@vcu.edu

Biographical Sketch
Amber Bennett received an undergraduate degree in Anthropology and Psychology (1991) from Sweet Briar College before beginning her graduate work in the American Civilization Program at the University of Pennsylvania, where she received the M.A. and the Ph.D., specializing in Historical Archaeology. Undergraduate and graduate summers spent digging in Virginia led to her dissertation research on the lives of European women in Virginia between 1607 and 1640. Before coming to Virginia Commonwealth University, Dr. Bennett taught at Sweet Briar College and the University of Virginia.

Dr. Bennett has excavated extensively in Virginia, including Williamsburg, Jamestown, Monticello, and Poplar Forest. During her academic career, Dr. Bennett has received a number of research grants, making possible her research at the childhood home of Booker T. Washington, Appomattox National Monument, Gaines Mill Battlefield, and Sweet Briar Plantation. She is presently beginning research on the history and land use of several hundred acres east of Richmond, most notably used for six months as a camp for Union troops under Gen. McClellan in the 1862 Peninsula Campaign. Research trips abroad have taken Dr. Bennett to the British Museum, Kew Gardens, and the Yucatan Peninsula.

Dr. Bennett teaches a rotation of courses at Virginia Commonwealth University that includes Archaeological Theory, Archaeological Research Methods, and Historical Archaeology, as well as introductory courses in Anthropology and Archaeology on a regular basis. She also teaches occasional specialized courses, such as Evidence of Slavery and American Material Culture.