This book is the second in a series of three that report investigations at Fort Ross, California, by archaeologists from the University of California, Berkeley.

This volume inaugurates a series on the archaeology and ethnohistory of the Ross Colony, an early nineteenth century Russian trade outpost established in northern California. Founded by the Russian-American Company in 1812, and operated as a commercial enterprise until 1841, the Ross Colony comprised an early multi-ethnic community composed of Europeans, Creoles (people of Russian/ Native American ancestry), native Alaskans, and local Kashaya Pomo, Southern Pomo, and Coast Miwok peoples. Located 110 km north of San Francisco on the scenic Sonoma County coastline, the Ross Colony is now a state historic park administered by the California Department of Parks and Recreation. The volume includes 258 pages of text, 32 figures, 31 tables, and 13 appendices. 1st edition- 1991; 2nd edition- 2019.