The Dartmouth Heritage Preservation Trust is recruiting volunteers for the second summer of the Akin House Archaeology Project.

Join Dr. Christina Hodge, students from UMass Dartmouth, and other volunteers on the project that continues through Aug. 6 at the 1762 Elihu Akin House located at 762 Dartmouth St.

They will be digging for the past in Dartmouth and expanding their knowledge of the families who lived in the house and used the land. It’s the perfect opportunity to work outside while learning local history and finding artifacts.

Last summer, 5,926 fragments of ceramic, glass, bone, brick, and other finds from the 18th through 21st centuries were uncovered, cleaned and catalogued.

Volunteer training is scheduled for Friday at the Akin House, in two hour-long sessions, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Opportunities range from excavating test sites to sifting dirt to uncovering artifacts.

Volunteers might be present during the discovery of treasures that will speak volumes about the site, revealing the generations who lived there, the culture of the times, and the socio-economic conditions through the ages.

Volunteers are needed for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons and all day Thursdays. To find out more about the project and to see slide shows on last summer’s field session, please visit http://akinhouse.blogspot.com.

The summer project at the Akin House is supported by the Dartmouth Heritage Preservation Trust, UMass Dartmouth, and a UMD Chancellor’s Research Fund and Public Service Fund grant.

For information on the volunteer open house and the Akin House Archaeology Project, call Diane M. Gilbert, president of the Dartmouth Heritage Preservation Trust, (508) 993-1216, d.m.gilbert@ComCast.net or Peggi Medeiros, clerk, (508) 992-9624, pmedeiros@ComCast.net.