By George, They Found It!

You could say that Philip Levy, historical archaeologist and associate professor of history at USF, and his students really ";dig" American history - so much so, that year after year, in often stifling summer heat, they painstakingly turned their trowels into the rocky, Virginia soil in pursuit of the elusive link to George Washington's childhood: the remains of Ferry Farm, Washington's boyhood home.

In 2008, during their seventh season of difficult and exacting labor on the 113-acre site located 50 miles south of Washington D.C., they finally hit pay dirt. With a growing pool of physical evidence increasingly coinciding with historical data, the research team could draw a definitive conclusion. The foundation remains and cellars that have excavated were once part of the clapboard-covered wood structure that had been home to George, his parents and siblings.

On July 2, 2008, the USF contingent joined the rest of the research team from the George Washington Foundation, including Director of Archaeology David Muraca, Virginia's governor and the National Geographic Society, which helped fund the project, in making the announcement. The remains of the house in which one of the most honored and admired men in American history had spent his formative years had been found.

Click here to read the complete article in USF Magazine (page 26).