Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Historical Accounts Of Forgotten Stone-Heaping Practices On Nineteenth-Century Hill Farms, Timothy Ives

Northeast Historical Archaeology

This article offers a modest contribution to the ongoing debate among archaeologists, Native American cultural authorities, and avocational researchers concerning the historical origins of the stone-heap sites commonly found in New England’s forested hills. The author’s recent review of historical periodicals, mainly newspapers and agricultural journals, yielded many previously unknown references to farmers constructing stone heaps by hand in working fields and pastures. Popular perceptions of this apparently widespread phenomenon varied. While stone heaping provided opportunities for both young and old family members to prove their worth, some ideologically progressive farmers expressed a strong distain for the practice. By the …