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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

The Origins Of Trade Silver Among The Lenape: Pewter Objects From Southeastern Pennsylvania As Possible Precursors, Marshall Joseph Becker Dec 2013

The Origins Of Trade Silver Among The Lenape: Pewter Objects From Southeastern Pennsylvania As Possible Precursors, Marshall Joseph Becker

Northeast Historical Archaeology

A reawakening of interest in material culture has stimulated the examination of some small pewter castings in use among northeastern Native American peoples during the 17th and early 18th centuries. Reports by 17thcentury explorers and colonists, ·who found Eastern Woodland natives to be disinterested in gold and silver artifacts, are now better understood. The period from 1720 to 1750 was critical to the Lenape and other peoples who had just become major players in the fur trade to the Allegheny and Ohio River areas. During this period various silver-colored white metal castings may have been the precursors of sterling-quality silver …


Who Edits The Editors? Snake Hill And Archaeological Reports, Al B. Wesolowsky Dec 2013

Who Edits The Editors? Snake Hill And Archaeological Reports, Al B. Wesolowsky

Northeast Historical Archaeology

A review of Snake Hill: An Investigation of a Military Cemetery from the War of 1812, edited by Susan Pfeiffer and Ronald F. Williamson, provides a coign of vantage regarding two aspects of particular concern to historical archaeologists. One is the increasing number of historical cemeteries that, because of recent legislation and a broadening of research domains, are being investiagted by archaeologists. The other, closely related, aspect is the need for strong editorial oversight in preparing for the press reports that comprise the contributions of diverse specialists. Snake Hill was a good project that resulted in a report that, while …


The General Hospital At Mount Independence: 18th-Century Health Care At A Revolutionary War Cantonment, David R. Starbuck Dec 2013

The General Hospital At Mount Independence: 18th-Century Health Care At A Revolutionary War Cantonment, David R. Starbuck

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The General Hospital at Mount Independence in Orwell, Vermont, has been examined in order to learn more about the configuration of an 18-century military hospital. Historical research combined with on-site excavation in 1990 exposed the foundation of a 250-foot-long building containing principally archicetural and kitchen debris. While physical remains did not reveal the layout of individual rooms, archaeological and historical evidence have nevertheless provided insights into the appearance and function of this important structure.


Building A Framework For Research: Delaware's Management Plan For Historical Archaeological Resources, Lu Ann De Cunzo, Wade P. Catts Dec 2013

Building A Framework For Research: Delaware's Management Plan For Historical Archaeological Resources, Lu Ann De Cunzo, Wade P. Catts

Northeast Historical Archaeology

In 1990 the authors completed a Management Plan for Delaware's Historical Archaeological Resources. This article outlines the Management Plan's objectives and components, and presents the core of the research program for historical archaeology developed in the Plan. The Delaware Plan may suggest ideas to histroical archaeologists developing plans for other states, provinces, counties, and even cities or other municipalities. At the same time, Delaware historical archaeology can benefit from the responses to this Plan offered by our colleagues across the Northeast and beyond.


Historical Archaeology At Saybrook Point, Connecticut: Excavation And Interpretation At An Archaeological And Historical Park, Harold D. Juli Dec 2013

Historical Archaeology At Saybrook Point, Connecticut: Excavation And Interpretation At An Archaeological And Historical Park, Harold D. Juli

Northeast Historical Archaeology

This paper discusses the discoveries resulting from a study of 350 years of occupation at Saybrook Point, in the town of Old Saybrook, Connecticut's earliest English coastal settlement (1635). Three seasons of archaeological research (1980-1982), along with documentary sources provided information for the construction of a detailed site history. Specifically, the paper focuses on the role of archaeology in understanding growth and change within the earliest area of settlement in a small Connecticut town, as well as the interpretation of these findings in the form of an archaeological and historical park, constructed within the excavation zone.


Bones And Burial Registers: Infant Mortality In A 19th-Century Cemetery From Upper Canada, Ann Herring, Shelley Saunders, Gerry Boyce Dec 2013

Bones And Burial Registers: Infant Mortality In A 19th-Century Cemetery From Upper Canada, Ann Herring, Shelley Saunders, Gerry Boyce

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The fortunate conjunction of a large skeletal sample (n=576) and reliable burial records (n=1,564) for St. Thomas' Anglican Church cemetery (1821-1874) makes it possible to make inferences about patterns of infant death in 19th-century Belleville, Ontario. Analysis of both sets of data indicates that males and females were equally likely to die during infancy and that environmental factors played an important role in Belleville's mortality profile. The parish records reveal elevated risks of infant death in the summer, probably from the weanling diarrhea complex, owing to unsanitary conditions and the presence of acute infectious diseases in the town. The importance …


Death At Snake Hill: A Review Of The Popular Report, Edward L. Bell Dec 2013

Death At Snake Hill: A Review Of The Popular Report, Edward L. Bell

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The popular account of an archaeological investigation of a War of 1812 cemetery in Ontario offers a fine example of the need to relay research results to our interested constituents. Popular reports should emphasize not only the scientific and historical value of archaeological resources, but also encourage public support for adequate preservation planning. Like politics, popular archaeological accounts are highly effective when they appeal to local constituents' interests.


Thunder And Powder: May They Never Meet! Lightning Conductors At The Esplanade Powder Magazine, Quebec City, Pierre Drouin Dec 2013

Thunder And Powder: May They Never Meet! Lightning Conductors At The Esplanade Powder Magazine, Quebec City, Pierre Drouin

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Archaeological excavations carried out at the Esplanade powder magazine in Quebec City have revealed the remains of three successive lighting conductor systems. These 19th-century remains are closely examined in the light of contemporary literature and compared with the military instructions concerning the subject. Their presence highlights the efforts made by military engineers of the time to safeguard contents, buildings, and people from the hazards inherent to the storage of explosive materials in powder magazines.


The Orphanage At Schuyler Mansion, Lois Feister Dec 2013

The Orphanage At Schuyler Mansion, Lois Feister

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Doll parts, toy tea set fragments, and other toys were excavated from the late 19th-century through early 20th-century occupation layers at the Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site in Albany, New York. Their occurrence raised questions about the orphans hosed their during that time period. Archival research and archaeological analysis resulted in increased understanding of the care received by homeless children during that period.


A Retrospective On Archaeology At Fort William Henry, 1952-1993: Retelling The Tale Of The Last Of The Mohicans, David R. Starbuck Dec 2013

A Retrospective On Archaeology At Fort William Henry, 1952-1993: Retelling The Tale Of The Last Of The Mohicans, David R. Starbuck

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Fort William Henry was a British frontier fort constructed on the orders of Sir William Johnson in September of 1755 at the southern end of Lake George in upstate New York. After its destruction by a French army under the leadership of the Marquis de Montcalm in August of 1757, at which time many of its defenders were "massacred", the outline of the fort lay exposed until 1952 when archaeological excavations began to expose the charred ruins of the fort. Regrettably, while this was one of the largest excavations ever conducted on a site of the French and Indian War, …


Is Archaeology Destructive Or Are Archaeologists Self-Destructive, Pierre Beaudet, Monique Elie Dec 2013

Is Archaeology Destructive Or Are Archaeologists Self-Destructive, Pierre Beaudet, Monique Elie

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The conducting of archaeological excavations for the purpose of research without the justification of eminent destruction is often referred to, in cultural resource management literature and elsewhere, as a destructive practice- one to be avoided whenever possible. The following pages discuss the validity of a such deferral approach to archaeological research both in reference to resource conservation and to understanding the past.


Book Review: The Jeffersons At Shadwell By Susan Kern, Laura J. Galke Dec 2013

Book Review: The Jeffersons At Shadwell By Susan Kern, Laura J. Galke

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The Jeffersons at Shadwell, by Susan Kern, 2010, Yale University Press, New Haven, 384 pages, 56 black-and-white illustrations, $30.00 (cloth).


Book Review: Excavating The Sutler's House: Artifacts Of The British Armies In Fort Edward And Lake George By David R. Starbuck, Richard Veit Dec 2013

Book Review: Excavating The Sutler's House: Artifacts Of The British Armies In Fort Edward And Lake George By David R. Starbuck, Richard Veit

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Excavating the Sutler's House: Artifacts of the British Armies in Fort Edward and Lake George, by David R. Starbuck, 2010, University Press of New England, Lebanon, New Hampshire, 132 pages, 161 illustrations, 4 half-tones, 157 color, $24.95 (paper).


Book Review: Beneath The Ivory Tower: The Archaeology Of Academia Edited By Russell K. Skowronek And Kenneth E. Lewis, David R. Starbuck Dec 2013

Book Review: Beneath The Ivory Tower: The Archaeology Of Academia Edited By Russell K. Skowronek And Kenneth E. Lewis, David R. Starbuck

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Beneath the Ivory Tower: The Archaeology of Academia, edited by Russell K. Skowronek and Kenneth E. Lewis, 2010, University Press of Flordia, Gainesville, 352 pages, 115 illustrations, $59.95 (cloth).


Book Review: The Archaeology Of American Labor And Working-Class Life By Paul A. Shackel, James A. Delle Dec 2013

Book Review: The Archaeology Of American Labor And Working-Class Life By Paul A. Shackel, James A. Delle

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The Archaeology of American Labor and Working-Class Life, by Paul A. Shackel, 2009, The American Experience in Archaeological Perspective Series, University Press of Florida, Gainesville, 160 pages, 20 illustrations, $69.95 (cloth), $19.95 (paper).


Book Review: Death In The New World: Cross-Cultural Encounters, 1492-1800, By Erik R. Seeman, Richard Veit Dec 2013

Book Review: Death In The New World: Cross-Cultural Encounters, 1492-1800, By Erik R. Seeman, Richard Veit

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Death in the New World: Cross-Cultural Encounters, 1492-1800, by Erik R. Seeman, 2010, Early American Studies Series, University of Pennsylvanie Press, Philadelphia, 384 pages, 28 illustrations, $45.00 (cloth), $24.95 (paper).


Book Review: Ethnographies And Archaeologies: Iterations Of The Past, Edited By Lena Mortensen And Julie Hollowell, Christina J. Hodge Dec 2013

Book Review: Ethnographies And Archaeologies: Iterations Of The Past, Edited By Lena Mortensen And Julie Hollowell, Christina J. Hodge

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Ethnographies and Archaeologies: Iterations of the Past, edited by Lena Mortensen and Julie Hollowell, 2009, Cultural Heritage Studies Series, University Press of Florida, Gainesville, 288 pages, 9 illustrations, $69.95 (cloth).


Book Review: Ceramic Makers' Marks By Erica S. Gibson, Patricia Samford Dec 2013

Book Review: Ceramic Makers' Marks By Erica S. Gibson, Patricia Samford

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Ceramic Makers' Marks, by Erica S. Gibson, 2010, Guides to Historical Artifacts, Left Coast Press, 147 pages, 253 black-and-white illustrations, indexes, $89.00 (cloth), $24.95 (paper).


Assumptions About Consumption In The Archaeology Of Late Nineteenth-Century Farmsteads, Niels R. Rinehart Dec 2013

Assumptions About Consumption In The Archaeology Of Late Nineteenth-Century Farmsteads, Niels R. Rinehart

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Farming is typically associated with rural environments. The Dubois Site in Albany, New York, however, presented an opportunity to look at a farmstead close to a growing urban center during the second half of the 19th century. The excavations of the Dubois Site are discussed and the results are compared to the more rural Porter Site, a contemporary 19th-century farmstead. The comparison examines how the different contexts might have impacted consumption and production at the two farms, as well as the treatment of the farmstead landscapes. The two New York sites are then contrasted with four contemporary farm sites in …


Archaeology At The 1777 Ebenezer Story Site: The Household Economy Of A Family Of Fishermen-Farmers On The Thames River, Preston, Connecticut, Ross K. Harper, Bruce Clouette Dec 2013

Archaeology At The 1777 Ebenezer Story Site: The Household Economy Of A Family Of Fishermen-Farmers On The Thames River, Preston, Connecticut, Ross K. Harper, Bruce Clouette

Northeast Historical Archaeology

This paper uses data from a colonial-period maritime household site to expand understanding of the economic and subsistence practices of fisherman-farmer families. The site is the 1777 homestead of Ebenezer Story on the eastern bank of the Thames River in Preston, Connecticut, about 12 miles from Long Island Sound. Like many New England Yankees, Story had a diverse household economy: he practiced subsistence farming, fished and shellfished, and owned a saltworks, boats, and cider mill in common with his family. During the Revolutionary War, Story leased part of his land for the construction of the Continental frigate Confederacy, and he …


Growing Things "Rare, Foreign, And Tender": The Early Nineteenth-Century Greenhouse At Gore Place, Waltham Massachusetts, Christa M. Beranek, J. N. Leith Smith, John M. Steinberg, Michelle G. S. Garman Dec 2013

Growing Things "Rare, Foreign, And Tender": The Early Nineteenth-Century Greenhouse At Gore Place, Waltham Massachusetts, Christa M. Beranek, J. N. Leith Smith, John M. Steinberg, Michelle G. S. Garman

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Excavations and ground penetrating radar at Gore Place in Waltham, Massachusetts, uncovered part of an early 19th-century greenhouse (ca. 1806 to the early 1840s) constructed by Christopher and Rebecca Gore. Documentary, archaeological, and geophysical data suggest that the greenhouse was a formal space intended to display exotic plants and that it was built in the relatively new lean-to style, with a tall back wall and a short front wall. The artifact assemblage included tools and small finds related to the greenhouse operation, as well as the remains of at least 149 planting pots. The greenhouse was constructed during a period …


Patriots, Tories, Inebriates, And Hussies: The Historical Archaeology Of The Abraham Staats House, As A Case Study In Microhistory, Richard Veit, Michael J. Gall Dec 2013

Patriots, Tories, Inebriates, And Hussies: The Historical Archaeology Of The Abraham Staats House, As A Case Study In Microhistory, Richard Veit, Michael J. Gall

Northeast Historical Archaeology

To modern suburbanites, life on a farm may seem hopelessly boring or, alternatively, charming and idyllic. Excavations at the Abraham Staats House in New Jersey’s Raritan Valley, just upriver from New Brunswick, provide a revealing glimpse of the dynamic and contentious lives of 18th- and 19th-century farmers. The Staats family, part of the early 18th-century Dutch migration to the Raritan Valley, saw their lives transformed by the Revolutionary War, the arrival of turnpike roads, the construction of the Delaware and Raritan Canal, the emancipation of slaves, the growth of the temperance movement, and family squabbles of Shakespearean proportions. Excavations at …


The Mother Of The Father Of Our Country: Mary Ball Washington's Genteel Domestic Habits, Laura J. Galke Dec 2013

The Mother Of The Father Of Our Country: Mary Ball Washington's Genteel Domestic Habits, Laura J. Galke

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The year 1743 brought hardship to the Washingtons as their family patriarch, Augustine, passed away unexpectedly. At that time, a young George Washington inherited the family’s home plantation in Fredericksburg, known today as Ferry Farm. Augustine’s will stipulated that George’s mother, Mary Ball Washington, manage the plantations of their four young boys until they came of age. Between 1743 and 1772, Mary enjoyed the personal agency that widowhood allowed her; she was responsible for the management decisions of the Washington household and the surrounding farm. Mary’s choices reflect an ambitious woman determined to participate in the genteel society her family …


Assessing Variability Among Quartering Sites In Virginia, Barbara J. Heath, Eleanor E. Breen Dec 2013

Assessing Variability Among Quartering Sites In Virginia, Barbara J. Heath, Eleanor E. Breen

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The definition of what constitutes a Virginia slave quarter based on archaeological evidence is evolving. In the 1970s and 1980s, archaeologists developed an informal set of criteria that equated subfloor pits and the presence of "Africanisms" with structures occupied by enslaved people, and these criteria are still widely used. The accumulation of an archaeological and architectural data set of more than 170 Virginian quartering sites over the past 40 years has demonstrated that these sites vary across time and space, has underscored the problematic nature of site definition based on a checklist approach to ethnic or racial criteria, and has …


Bert Salwen- A Recollection, John L. Cotter Nov 2013

Bert Salwen- A Recollection, John L. Cotter

Northeast Historical Archaeology

A recollection of the life and work of Bert Salwen.


"Something Rich And Strange": Reburial In New York City, Anne-Marie Cantwell Nov 2013

"Something Rich And Strange": Reburial In New York City, Anne-Marie Cantwell

Northeast Historical Archaeology

This article describes and discusses three recent cases in New York City in which anthropologists were involved in the identification, sanctification, and reburial of human remains. These examples show how living peoples may reach back into the past and join with the dead to form a desired "imagined community." Also discussed are the roles of anthropologists in these transformations of the dead into symbols of a desired body politic. Anthropologists who once focused on interpreting past social constructions are increasingly finding themselves playing crucial roles in the creation of modern ones.


Representations Of The Local Past: Gilded Age And Bureaucratic Accounts Of The Minisink, 1889 To The Present, Wendy Harris Nov 2013

Representations Of The Local Past: Gilded Age And Bureaucratic Accounts Of The Minisink, 1889 To The Present, Wendy Harris

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The process whereby local pasts are made meaningful varies through time and among different communities. While historians, philosophers, and anthropologists have long been intrigued by the problem of historical practice, their discussions remain speculative. This paper examines the specific social conditions of production of a single local past. During the late 19th-century, the members of the Minisink Valley Historical Society in Port Jervis, New York, engaged in the imaginative construction of a place they named "the Minisink"- an early frontier region encompassing portions of the Upper Delaware River Valley. The Society's account is examined and compared to accounts produced a …


Alternatives To Archaeological Data Recovery, Joel I. Klein Nov 2013

Alternatives To Archaeological Data Recovery, Joel I. Klein

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Archaeological data recovery ("salvage" excavation" is currently the principal method of mitigating project-related impacts to archaeological sites. The expense, uncertainties, and complicated logistics associated with archaeological data recovery are causing more and more cultural resource managers to seek alternative approaches to mitigation. This paper examines some of these alternatives in terms of their applicability to particular kinds of utility projects, the degree to which they satisfy the spirit as well as the letter of historic preservation laws and regulations, and the nature of objections that have been raised regarding their implementation. Among the alternative approaches considered will be avoidance as …


An Archaeological Analysis Of Spatial Patterning In College Dormitory Rooms, Rose Garvin-Jackson Nov 2013

An Archaeological Analysis Of Spatial Patterning In College Dormitory Rooms, Rose Garvin-Jackson

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Bert Salwen's (1973) pilot study of dormitory residents' behavior is used to demonstrate that patterning in a modern, above-ground site can be investigated with archaeological techniques. The spatial patterning in 89 dormitory rooms is analyzed to identify the various types of territories maintained by the residents. Several sociocultural variables are then selected to see if specific spatial behavior can be linked with given attributes.


The Archaeology Of 19th-Century Health And Hygiene At The Sullivan Street Site, New York City, Jean E. Howson Nov 2013

The Archaeology Of 19th-Century Health And Hygiene At The Sullivan Street Site, New York City, Jean E. Howson

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The households represented by archaeological remains at the Sullivan Street site in Greenwich Village are used to explore issues related to health care in 19th-century New York City. Backyard features and domestic artifact assemblages are discussed in the context of institutional development and specific changes in medical practice. Consumer choices are seen as responses to differential access to sanitation, medical care, and information. Social class had a significant effect on both the infrastructure and material culture of health and hygiene for these households.