Digital Humanities of the American Revolution fortification at Butts Hill (Portsmouth, Rhode Island)

FAIN: ZZ-309418-25

University of Kentucky Research Foundation (Lexington, KY 40506-0004)
Hugo Reyes-Centeno (Project Director: May 2025 to present)

Archaeological fieldwork at the Revolutionary-era Butts Hill fortification and the creation of on-site exhibit signage and a virtual exhibition in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.

This project will conduct non-destructive archaeological imaging analyses of the American Revolution fortification at Butts Hill in Portsmouth, Rhode in order to determine whether subterranean wartime structural features such as military barracks can be identified. Results will then be aggregated with previous archaeological and historical information to realize: (1) on-site storyboard exhibit signage that recounts the history of Butts Hill Fort during wartime, as well as (2) a virtual exhibition highlighting archaeological imaging results, historical maps, and satellite/aerial imagery overlaid with historical text in an interactive on-line interface. The proposed dual approach combining traditional on-site public dissemination content with a wide-reaching digital humanities approach will serve to engage local communities and a national virtual audience in celebrating the success of American Independence leading up to the nation’s semiquincentennial.

Media Coverage

Ultra-modern technology allows UK researchers to probe site of Revolutionary War fort (Media Coverage)
Author(s): LeComte, Richard
Publication: University of Kentucky News
Date: 10/24/2025
Abstract: Reporting on associated project publication. Excerpt: "The archaeologist team worked with members of the Battle of Rhode Island Association in Portsmouth, including study co-author Paul R. Murphy, a U.S. Air Force veteran and chair of the Butts Hill Fort Restoration Committee, as well as military historian and study co-author John K. Robertson, emeritus professor of geography and computer science at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. ... Part of the funding for the exploration came from the National Endowment for the Humanities’ Celebrate America program. The next steps involve additional humanities work analyzing historical records, as well as scientific work analyzing newly collected ground-penetrating radar imaging."
URL: https://anthropology.as.uky.edu/ultra-modern-technology-allows-uk-researchers-probe-site-revolutionary-war-fort%C2%A0

Associated Products

Remote Sensing of American Revolutionary War Fortification at Butts Hill (Portsmouth, Rhode Island) (Article)
Title: Remote Sensing of American Revolutionary War Fortification at Butts Hill (Portsmouth, Rhode Island)
Author: MDPI (Basel, Switzerland)
Author: James G. Keppeler
Author: Marcus Rodriguez
Author: Alexander Wise
Author: Samuel Koontz
Author: Philip Mink
Author: George Crothers
Author: Paul R. Murphy
Author: John K. Robertson
Author: Alexandra Uhl
Author: Hugo Reyes-Centeno
Abstract: The Battle of Rhode Island in 1778 was an important event in the revolutionary war leading to the international recognition of U.S. American independence following the 1776 declaration. It culminated in a month-long campaign against British forces occupying Aquidneck Island, serving as the first combined operation of the newly formed Franco-American alliance. The military fortification at Butts Hill in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, served as a strategic point during the conflict and remains well-conserved today. While LiDAR has assisted in the geospatial surface reconstruction of the site’s earthwork fortifications, it is unknown whether other historically documented buildings within the fort remain preserved underground. We therefore conducted a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) survey to ascertain the presence or absence of architectural features, hypothesizing that GPR imaging could reveal structural remnants from the military barracks constructed in 1777. To test this hypothesis, we used public satellite and LiDAR imagery alongside historical maps to target the location of the historical barracks, creating a grid to survey the area with a GPR module in 0.5 m transects. Our results, superimposing remote sensing imagery with historical maps, indicate that the remains of a barracks building are likely present between circa 5–50 cm beneath today’s surface, warranting future investigations.
Year: 2025
Primary URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/10/430
Primary URL Description: Journal publisher's direct link.
Secondary URL: https://doi.org/10.3390/heritage8100430
Secondary URL Description: DOI link.
Access Model: open access
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Heritage
Publisher: Heritage

Virtual Exhibition of the American Revolution Fortification at Butts Hill (Web Resource)
Title: Virtual Exhibition of the American Revolution Fortification at Butts Hill
Author: Reyes-Centeno, Hugo
Author: Wise, Alexander
Abstract: In celebration of the nation's semiquincentennial, this virtual exhibit presents a curated 2D and 3D collection of digitized materials associated with the historical site of Butts Hill Fort, recognized for its importance as a military fortification during the American Revolution. Historical maps during this time show a dynamic re-configuration of the fort, associated with alternating American or British occupation throughout the duration of the Rhode Island Campaign and the Battle of Rhode Island, which refer, respectively, to the French intervention attempting to free Rhode Island from British occupation and the conflict that ensued in 1778. This exhibit brings together historical maps from that time, as well as 20th and 21st century aerial images of Butts Hill and the surrounding area, including recent LiDAR, magnetometry, and ground penetrating radar (GPR) images from non-destructive archaeological work conducted by the University of Kentucky's EduceLab. You can view a range of historical images superimposed against modern maps and satellite imagery in 2D. In addition, a 3D collection features images superimposed on a 3D LiDAR model, as well as artifacts and reenactors brought together by the Battle of Rhode Island Association and the Artillery Company of Newport.
Year: 2026
Primary URL: http://projects.educelab.uky.edu/bhf/
Primary URL Description: Landing page of the collection of digitized materials associated with the historical site of Butts Hill Fort (Portsmouth, Rhode Island).

Integrating magnetometry and ground penetrating radar at the American Revolutionary War fortification in Butts Hill Fort (Portsmouth, Rhode Island, USA) (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: Integrating magnetometry and ground penetrating radar at the American Revolutionary War fortification in Butts Hill Fort (Portsmouth, Rhode Island, USA)
Author: Reyes-Centeno, Hugo
Author: Bailey, Sean
Author: Uhl, Alexandra
Author: Robertson, John
Author: Murphy, Paul
Author: Crothers, George
Author: Mink, Philip
Author: Rodriguez, Marcus
Author: Keppeler, James
Author: Nolin, Ryan
Author: Wise, Alexander
Author: Koontz, Samuel
Abstract: The Battle of Rhode Island in 1778 stands as a critical yet understudied episode in the American Revolutionary War. The conflict between the newly allied American and French military against the British-Hessian forces culminated at Butts Hill Fort in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, United States. Historic accounts show that the fort once contained barracks, battery, and magazine structures within rising earthwork fortifications, with only the earthworks visible today. A previous remote sensing survey found evidence that buried components of the barracks structure remain underground today (Keppeler, 2025); however, additional multi-modal research was recommended to verify the presence of the barracks and the other buried structures. Therefore, this research combines additional remote sensing techniques to investigate the presence or absence of subterranean architectural features within the fort. In this study, publicly available satellite and LiDAR data was used in conjunction with original ground penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetometry data to create digital maps and 3D interpolations of the subterrain. Our GPR data results revealed a cluster of rectilinear anomalies at a depth of roughly 18–55 cm where the barracks building once stood. Magnetometry data revealed additional localized anomalies in the same area, with partial overlap with the GPR features, indicating a geophysical correspondence between the two datasets (Figure 1). Several isolated magnetic anomalies are also distributed across the broader survey area, unrelated to the primary architectural pattern. The results of these surveys suggest that components of the barracks building are still present underground and align with the locations of architectural features indicated on historical maps, confirming previous results; however, little evidence for remains of the battery and magazine structures was detected and the provenance of the other anomalies is currently unclear.
Date: 04/02/2026
Primary URL: https://2026.caaconference.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2026/03/Paper_complete-abstract-booklet.pdf
Primary URL Description: complete abstract booklet
Secondary URL: https://2026.caaconference.org/
Secondary URL Description: conference website home page
Conference Name: Annual Conference of the Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA) International Organization

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