The Fort Ross Archaeological Project has been under way since 1988, when the first U.C Berkeley field school was initiated. During the 1988 and 1989 season the Department of Parks and recreation and the U.C Berkeley archaeological project team undertook a survey of Fort Ross State Historic Park. This investigation identified the previous existance of four distinct ethnic neighborhoods which they referred to as the "Stockade Compound," the Russian Village, the Native California Neighborhood and the Native Alaskan Neighborhood. The results of the reaserch were published in the first of two volumes in a series entitled Archaeology and Ethnohistory of Fort Ross, California.

The following 1991 and 1992 summer field work was undertaken by a collaborative team of archaeologists from the California Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) and U.C Berkeley. The team concentrated their reaserch on the Native Alaskan Neighborhood which is comprised of two sites. The first one is the Native Alaskan Village Site (NAVS), trinomial number CA-SON-1897/H. At the time of occupation, the location was essencially a residential area for the Native Alaskan laborers and their families. Most of these households were formed by inter-ethnic couples, mainly Native Alaskan men and local Native California women. However, single Native Alaskan men and some Native Alaskan women and families were known to reside in the neighborhood as well.

The second site, the Fort Ross Beach Site (FRBS) trinomial number CA-SON-1898/H, is a midden deposit which contains material remains associated with the residential area and the mercantile activity of the Ross Colony. Details of the investigation and results are part of the second volume of Archaeology and Ethnohistory of Fort Ross, California.

Studies of the Stockade Compound have made possible its complete restoration, though more research remains to be done in the remaining ethnic neighborhoods. In addition, several nearby Kashaya Pomo village sites are being investigated. In one, referred to as "Tomato Patch" research is being conducted by UC Berkeley graduate student Antoinette Martinez.