Joanna Gilmore

(She/Her)

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With over 20 years of experience in museums, archaeology, and cultural heritage, I am passionate about preserving and amplifying the Gullah Geechee culture and history in the Lowcountry and beyond. As the Director of Research and Interpretation with the Anson Street African Burial Ground project, I lead exhibition planning and design, historical research and report writing, interpretation and project planning in relation to African descendant burial grounds and other Gullah Geechee cultural sites, traditions and memories in Charleston and the Lowcountry. I teach Introduction to Museum Studies and Bioarchaeology at the College of Charleston, where I share my expertise and knowledge with students and faculty in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. My museum studies course focuses on increasing accessibility for various audiences, engaging in difficult histories, social justice and promoting greater well-being. I am a National Geographic Explorer, having received a grant to conduct a community-based memorialization and DNA research for the Anson Street African Burial Ground project.

Experience

  • –present
    Adjunct Professor in Museum Studies and Bioarchaeology, College of Charleston
  • 2021–present
    Director of Research and Interpretation, Anson Street African Burial Ground project
  • 2022–present
    Consultant, Cultural Heritage Management International
  • 2016–2021
    Director of Research and Interpretation, Gullah Society, Inc.

Education

  • 2014 
    University of Leicester, MA Museum Studies
  • 2004 
    Institute of Archaeology, University College London, MSc Palaecology of Human Societies
  • 2002 
    Institute of Archaeology, University College London, BA Archaeology

Publications

  • 2025
    ringing Science to the Public: Using Videography for Community Engagement in Ancient DNA Research for the Anson Street African Burial Ground Project., American Journal of Biological Anthropology,
  • 2024
    The Dead Have Been Awakened in the Service of the Living”: Activist Community-Engaged Archaeology in Charleston, South Carolina., American Antiquity
  • 2024
    Oral microbial diversity in 18th-century African individuals from South Carolina., Communications Biology
  • 2023
    Community Engaged Ancient DNA Project Reveals Diverse Origins of 18th Century African and African descendants in Charleston, South Carolina., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
  • 2021
    Ancestry, health, and lived experiences of enslaved Africans in 18th century Charleston: An osteobiographical analysis., American Journal of Biological Anthropology
  • 2008
    Leprosy at the Lazaretto on St. Eustatius, Netherlands Antilles. , International Journal of Osteoarchaeology

Professional Memberships

  • Register of Professional Archaeologists
  • Society for Africanist Archaeologists

Honours

Humanitarian Award, Emanuel Nine Commemoration Committee, Community Service Award, Charleston Alumnae Chapter Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

Contact Joanna for

  • General
  • Media request
  • Speaking request
  • Consulting / Advising
  • Research collaboration
  • Research supervision