The purpose of archaeological research at Fort Ross is to explore the impact of Russian settlement in California on Native Americans and to make that information available to the public. The research has two objectives. The first is to evaluate the extent to which the Native Californians who interacted with Fort Ross' Russian colonists became integrated into a mercantile economic system. The second objective is to determine whether the intermingling of Russian, Native Alaskan and Native Californian populations resulted in significant cultural change or innovation.

Archaeological research began at Fort Ross in 1988 after the California Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) determined that a series of severe winter storms were destroying part of the site. The DPR's first step in creating a preservation plan was to contact the UC Berkeley Archaeological Research Facility, which sponsored and assisted a research team under the direction of archaeology professor Kent Lightfoot. Working in close collaboration with DPR archaeologists Glenn Farris and E. Breck Parkman, the team undertook an archaeological survey to determine the significance of several threatened sites within Fort Ross State Historic Park.

Of greatest urgency was a large midden deposit on the beach in Fort Ross Cove which was rapidly being washed out to sea. Middens, which are man-made mounds of debris (typically refuse) are rich sources of information about the day-to-day activities of an archaeological site's previous inhabitants. In this case, the survey indicated a clear connection between the Fort Ross Beach Site and a Native Alaskan Village Site (NAVS) upsloap. Although the existance of NAVS was known, the midden deposits yielded tantalizing bits of information about the integration of Native Alaskan and local Kashaya Pomo Native American societies, prompting the DPR to grant permission for investigation of NAVS itself. Over time, excavation has expanded to include several other sites within the park and surrounding areas. This research has demonstrated that the settlement area was comprised of several distinct ethnic communities.