ABSTRACT
The emancipatory archaeology is dedicated to expanding the conversation about what it means to be human by illuminating variation in the forms and consequences of social relationships that have organized human life across time and space. The Colorado Coal Field War Archaeological Project is dedicated to producing new knowledge of American labour history, disseminating this knowledge to multiple audiences, and engaging working class interests as a way to educate for social change. Archaeologists have always been ambivalent about applying their knowledge in political or emancipatory projects. The Colorado Coal Field War Archaeological Project looks to extend this emerging tradition and set of scholarly and political commitments. Coal Field archaeology is thus producing some promising leads for reconstructing Labour's strategies in Western coal towns and striker tent colonies. The interpretive material culture offers counter-classic narratives to balance the triumphal, mythic narratives that have long informed Western public history.
