Renae Campbell
Terry Abraham and Priscilla Wegars Endowed Assistant Professor of Asian American Historical Archaeology, Director, Asian American Comparative Collection (AACC)
303 Student Health & 016A CLASS Annex (AACC)
208-885-7075
Asian American Comparative Collection
875 Perimeter Dr. MS 1111
University of Idaho
Moscow, ID 83843-1111
Renae Campbell is a historical archaeologist and the Director of the Asian American Comparative Collection (AACC). Her research focuses primarily on Asian American archaeology, archaeologies of social and structural inequality, and the history of the American West.
- Ph.D., University of Idaho, 2023
- M.A., University of Idaho, 2017
- B.A., Pine Manor College, 2007
- Historical Archaeology
- Asian American Archaeology
- Chinese & Japanese Diaspora Archaeology
- Japanese Ceramic Analysis
- History of the American West
- Archaeologies of Inequality
- Rural Communities
- Collections Management
- 2021–Present: Polly Bemis Ranch (PBR) Archaeological Project
- 2018–Present: Boise National Forest Chinese Diaspora Collections Collaborative Agreement
- 2018–Present: Historical Japanese Ceramic Comparative Collection (HJCCC)
- 2016–Present: Idaho Public Archaeology (IPA), co-PI on various community-engaged excavations throughout the state
- Eichner, Katrina C. L., Mark S. Warner, and Renae J. Campbell. 2024 Archaeological Collections and the Public: It Isn’t All About Us. Advances in Archaeological Practice 12(1):43–52. https://doi.org/10.1017/aap.2023.39.
- Eichner, Katrina, Renae Campbell, Mark Warner, and Ray von Wandruszka. 2024 Creating a Tradition of Anthropological Research Learning at the University of Idaho. Journal of Northwest Anthropology 58(1):89–99.
- Campbell, Renae. 2022 Japanese Ceramics and the Complexities of Consumption in “this Knife-Fork Land.” In Charting the Emerging Field of Japanese Diaspora Archaeology, edited by Douglas E. Ross and Koji Lau-Ozawa, pp. 147–168. Springer Nature, Singapore. Reprint of International Journal of Historical Archaeology 25(3), September 2021, https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-981-99-1129-5.
- Campbell, Renae, and Priscilla Wegars. 2021 From Static Repository to Active Advocate: The Asian American Comparative Collection’s First Four Decades. In How Do We Reach More? Sharing Cultural and Archaeological Research with Others, edited by Darby C. Stapp and Julia G. Longnecker, pp. 67–79. Special Publication 4, Journal of Northwest Anthropology, Richland, WA. https://www.northwestanthropology.com/how-do-we-reach-more.
- Campbell, Renae, and Priscilla Wegars. 2021 Pendleton’s Underground and Chinese Tunnel Myth. Oregon Encyclopedia. Published by the Oregon Historical Society, Portland. www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/pendletons-underground-and-chinese-tunnel-myth/#.YU6dxbhKg2w.
Renae comes from an academic background in history and archaeology and a professional background in cultural resource management (CRM). She earned a B.A. in History with a minor in Anthropology from Pine Manor College in Boston, and a M.A. in Anthropology and a Ph.D. in History, with designated emphasis on Historical Archaeology, from the University of Idaho. Renae grew up and has lived in many small and large towns across the American West. Her research explores the diverse, complex, and often overlooked histories of such places using archaeological and historical methods including the reanalysis of legacy archaeological collections, oral histories, collaboration, and community engagement. Renae specializes in Chinese and Japanese diaspora archaeology and the material culture associated with both fields.