The 1983 Archaeological Investigations at the Ray House, Wilson's Creek National Battlefield, Missouri

The historic Ray House was an integral part of the Civil War Battle of Wilson's Creek in southwestern Missouri and served as the Confederate field hospital during the conflict. In order to facilitate the restoration of the structure for service as an interpretative facility for the battle, archeological excavations were undertaken during December, 1983.
Deposition of refuse, principally under the piered portions of the House, appears to have been random. Furthermore, archeological investigation revealed that vertical displacement of cultural materials, due in part to annual freeze-thaw weather cycles, had blurred temporal relationships within the strata. Despite these problems, the collection does offer a brief look at some of the facets of life at the Ray House, obtainable through no other medium.