Anthropology Commons^™

Geophysical Exploration In The U.S. National Parks, Bruce Bevan

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Results from several dozen geophysical surveys at national parks in the United States are summarized here. Illustrations from both succesfful and unsuccessful surveys show the advantages and limitations of geophysical exploration. Ground-penetrating radar and magnetometer surveys have been particularly suitable at sites on the coastal plain of the eastern U.S. While filled cellars can be quite easy to locate, a thinner scatter of rubble from a structure can be difficult to isolate. Cities provide almost impossible conditions for the success of a survey. Accumulations of debris in pits can be located, but privies and wells appear to be more difficult …

18th- And Early 19th-Century Brickmaking At The John Jay Homestead: The Process, Products, And Craftsmen, Lois M. Feister, Joseph S. Sopko

Northeast Historical Archaeology

On-site brick kilns were established routinely for construction projects at non-urban sites in the 18th and early 19th centuries. Archaeological excavations at the brick lot at the John Jay Homestead State Historic Site revealed features relating to the manufacture of a brick. Documentary and scientific research revealed information about the brickmakers and established a baseline for the identification of brick sources from three different areas of New York State. Comparisons between brickmakers at the Jay and Schuyler houses and between brickmakers and other craftsmen are discussed here.

"A Ray Of Sunshine In The Sickroom": Archaeological Insights Into Late 19th- And Early 20th-Century Medicine And Anesthesia, Richard Veit

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Archaeological excavation of a stone-lined feature dating to the late 19th- or early 20th-century in New Brunswick, New Jersey, retrieved a substantial quantity of discarded medical equipment. Artifacts recovered from the feature included syringes, thermometers, test tubes, and scalpels. These remains, associated with the tenure of two prominent physicians, provide an avenue for inquiry into late 19th-century medical practices.

Historic Cemeteries As Contested Grounds, Paul A. Robinson

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The author comments on the articles "This Church is for the Livinig": An Assessment of Archaeological Standards for the Removal of Cemeteries in Rhode Island and Massachusetts by James Garman and "Where Angels Fear to Tread": Cemetery Preservation Efforts by the Massachusetts Historical Commission by Edward Bell.

"Where Angels Fear To Tread": Cemetery Preservation Efforts By The Massachusetts Historical Commission, Edward L. Bell

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Professional archaeologists assist in the preservation of historical cemeteries that may be impacted by private or public projects. While historical cememtery preservation efforts in Massachusetts are strong, current laws are not effective in compelling archaeological intervention in all cases. Despite the problematic legal situation, the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) has successfully advocated for preservation standards. In the case of the Harwich United Methodist Church (HUMC) Expansion Project, however, the proponents were unable and unwilling to comply fully with MHC's recommendations to mitigate unavoidable impacts to graves through systematic archaeological data recovery. Archaeological survey identified both marked and unmarked graves in …

"This Church Is For The Living": An Assessment Of Archaeological Standards For The Removal Of Cemeteries In Rhode Island And Massachusetts, James Garman

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Legislation in both Rhode Island and Massachusetts sets standards for the removal of European-American cemeteries and the reinterment of human remains. In both states, some degree of archaeological investigation short of excavation is usually required. This paper compares the two bodies of legislation, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of both systems. The focus then turns to two recent cemetery case studies, one at the site of a new school in Westerly, Rhode Island, and one at a church in Harwich, Massachusetts. The final section of the paper raises questions concerning the gaps between the intent of legislation and archaeological practice. …

Editor's Introduction, Mary C. Beaudry

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Editor's introduction to the volume.

Jackson County, Kentucky - Cultural Resource Survey (Fa 618), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 618. This collection includes oral histories from Jackson County, Kentucky that were used in preparing a cultural resource report for the county.

Ritualized Conversion Among Maya Pentecostals Of Ixtahuacan, Guatemala, Michael Jones, Dr. John Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Among two Ki’che’ Pentecostal congregations, I examine conversion as a process for reconstructing one’s disrupted symbolic system or world view. This reconstruction is effected through rituals revealed in ritualized recitation of one’s conversion narrative and in the examination of group interaction. I explore three aspects of the conversion process—motive, mode, and choice of congregational affiliation after acceptance of “el evangelio”—and place conversions in historically and socially relevant contexts. I find that through conversion narratives individuals learn the proper form of conversion and socialization. The narratives reveal the proper way to reform and reconstruct a disrupted symbolic system.

Contemporary Bark Cloth Of Tonga: A Manifestation Of Tongan Women And Society, Kirstin M. Johnson, Dr. Julie Hartley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Thousands of years ago the ancestors of the Tongan people brought with them a tree that would harvest bark prime for making cloth. Since then, Tongan women have exploited the resources of the paper mulberry tree (Broussonetia papyrifera) to produce a bark cloth they term ngatu. Today, fewer and fewer women make ngatu, yet, all women are perpetually in need of it since the cloth itself socially, ceremonially, and sometimes economically supports their lives. Women work endlessly to produce and give this honored fabric due to ingrained feelings of duty to fulfill cultural norms that retard change and leave no …

Ghanaian Healing And Traditional Medicine: An Ethnobotanical Study Of The Use Of Medicinal Plants Among Traditional Ashanti Healers Of West Africa, Patricia Fifita, Dr. William Olsen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

For the importance of this paper, ethnobotany is defined as the study of interactions between plants and people, particularly the influence of plants on human culture. The study of medicinal plant knowledge is an issue of increasing importance and definite urgency, especially as various indigenous peoples around the globe are suffering a great loss of traditional knowledge and practices. Examining traditional plant knowledge holds value in the interest of cultural preservation, as well as providing an important contribution in the area of drug discovery. In this project, I focused on the traditional healing practices and systems of the Ghanaian peoples …

Confronting Cultural Difference In The Establishment Of A Global Zen Community, Joshua A. Irizarry

2013 New England Association for Asian Studies Conference

As a commercial phenomenon, Zen is recognizable throughout the world as a lucrative brand name that communicates harmony, simplicity, and cosmopolitan elegance. In contrast, the Japanese Zen institution’s attempts to develop Zen into a successful global religion have proven more problematic. Despite initial successes by Japanese clergy in establishing centers of Zen practice throughout Europe and the Americas, the past fifty years have seen the dream of a global Zen community descend into a legacy of controversy, scandals, and schisms over conflicting claims of authority.

Looking specifically at the internationalization efforts of the Japanese Sōtō Zen sect, this paper will …

The Cult Of Ho Chi Minh: Commemoration And Contestation, Dat Manh Nguyen

2013 New England Association for Asian Studies Conference

Ho Chi Minh, the “father of modern Viet Nam,” remains a powerful figure in contemporary Vietnamese politics and culture. Since his death in 1969, the Vietnamese Communist Party has constructed a state cult surrounding his image. The construction of the Ho Chi Minh memorial complex in Hanoi, the propagation of Ho Chi Minh’s teachings, and the state commemorative rituals for Uncle Ho contribute to his continuous presence. The state cult posits Ho Chi Minh not only as the “father figure” to whom Vietnamese people pay respect and tribute, but also as the moral compass by which the people orient themselves …

The Role Of Culture In Making Psychiatric Diagnosis: Hwabyung (火病) And Neurasthenia (神經衰弱), Jonghyun Lee

2013 New England Association for Asian Studies Conference

The Role of Culture in Making Psychiatric Diagnosis: Hwabyung (火病) and Neurasthenia (神經衰弱)

My paper looks at two psychiatric illnesses and discusses their social and cultural dimensions. The two illnesses to be compared are the Korean affliction called hwabyung, and the once-popular Western malady labeled neurasthenia, a common ailment in 19th century America.

Neurasthenia was defined as “a disorder characterized by feelings of fatigue and lassitude,” which is caused by the nervous system. That definition could fit most people at some time or another. Hwabyung, on the other hand, means “fire illness.” Koreans believe that chronic distress can …

Dainty Festival - Louisville, Kentucky (Fa 616), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 616. This collection includes information about the annual Dainty Festival of Louisville, Kentucky hosted by the Schnitzelburg German-American community.

Book Review: Looking For Leads: Shipwrecks Of The Past Revealed By Contemporary Documents And The Archaeological Record By Christian Ahlstrom, Stefan H. Claesson

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Book Review: Looking for Leads: Shipwrecks of the Past Revealed by Contemporary Documents and the Archaeological Record by Christian Ahlstrom, 1997, The Finnish Academy of Science and Letters, Helsinki. 238 pages, 57 figures, 16 tables, 1 appendix, no price given.

Book Review: The Archaeology Of Wealth: Consumer Behavior In English America By James G. Gibb, Elizabeth Pena

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Book Review: The Archaeology of Wealth: Consumer Behavior in English America by James G. Gibb, 1996, Plenum Press, New York. Foreword by Halcott P. Green and Stanley South, 283 pages, $49.50 (cloth).

Considering Colonoware From The Barnes Plantation: A Proposed Colonoware Typology For Northern Virginia Colonial Sites, Andrew S. Veech

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Colonoware vessels and vessel fragments have been recovered from numerous colonial and antebellum sites in Virginia, and the number of newly reported sites increases with each excavation season. What this growing corpus of Virginia colonoware presently requires, however, is an adequate, standardized typology for pottery classification, at both site-specific and regional scales. Here, the colonoware typology designed during analysis of collections from the Barnes Plantation (44FX1326), a mid-18th century tobacco plantation in Fairfax County, Virginia, is explained and offered for use elsewhere. Colonware sherds from contemporaneous northern Virginia plantation sites exhibit many of the same charcteristics as those found at …

Cellulose Nitrate Plastic (Celluloid) In Archaeological Assemblages: Identification And Care, Megan E. Springate

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Invented in the mid-19th century, cellulose nitrate is commonly regarded as the earliest synthetic polymer or plastic. As increasing numbers of historical sites dating from the mid-1800s are excavated, cellulose nitrate objects are more frequently found in archaeological assemblages. The inherent instability of cellulose nitrate makes proper handling, storage, and display conditions vital to the longevity of recovered objects. In this paper, the composition, manufacture, and means of identifying cellulose nitrate are summarized. The processes of degradation and means of slowing those processes are elaborated, as well.

A Preliminary Report On The Excavation Of A 19th-Century Derelict Vessel In Cape Neddick, Maine: The Southern New Jersey Coasting Schooner Annabella, Stefan H. Claesson

Northeast Historical Archaeology

In 1995, the Insistute of Maritime History conducted the archaeological investigation of a 19th-century coasting schooner, Annabella, in Cape Neddick, Maine. This type of craft, though ubiquitous on the eastern seaboard in the 19th century, has not been documented in an archaeological setting to date in New England. Maine played a pivotal role in America's economy, supplying the southern states and Caribbean Islands with a seemingly inexhaustible supply of raw materials such as timber, stone, ice, lime, and agricultural goods. This vessel was primarily involved in the transportation of cordwood along the east coast of the United States. Its heavily-built, …

"Promiscuous Smoking": Interpreting Gender And Tobacco Use In The Archaeological Record, Lauren J. Cook

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Viewed as a social act, tobacco use is a rich area for archaeological inquiry. The act of tobacco consumption has historically conveyed meaning, communicating self-perceptions of class, ethnicity, and gender roles. Tobacco consumption has also resulted in the use and discard of material culture, often in large quantities, making it of particular interest to archaeologists. The examination of tobacco use as a field for the negotiation of gender roles in the late 19th and early 20th centuries provides an excellent basis for a critical examination of an "archaeology of gender." The constellation of meanings surrounding actions and motivations that emerges …

Anatomy Of An Almshouse Complex, Sherene Baugher, Edward J. Lenik

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The focus of this paper is to determine the age and function of a partial building foundation uncovered during archaeological testing in City Hall Park, New York City. The authors use evidence from historical maps, prints, and documents, as well as archaeological evidence, to determine the function of the building. The evidence suggests that the foundation is an outbuilding that was part of an 18th-century colonial almshouse complex. The foundation appears to be the remains of the almshouse kitchen.

Editor's Introduction, Mary C. Beaudry

Northeast Historical Archaeology

The introduction to the volume by the editor.

Virgin Anasazi Research And Exhibition, Samantha Annette Bonser, Dr. Marti L. Allen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Rise Up from Fragments features the largest collection of Virgin Anasazi artifacts from one site. Until recently, this prehistoric group had remained in the shadow of more visible branches of the Anasazi such as Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon. Now, it is fast becoming the focus for archaeologist researching in the southwest. Located at a natural crossroads near Kanab, Utah, the artifacts from the Talbot site offer new insights to the Virgin branch of the Anasazi and their interactions with the groups around them.

Franklin County, Kentucky - Cultural Resource Survey (Fa 617), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 617. This collection was created as part of a cultural planning grant from the Kentucky Folklife Program to finish Franklin County, Kentucky’s cultural planning and implementation process.

Carroll, Julianne (Fa 615), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 615. This collection includes interviews and information about six Bosnians who immigrated to Bowling Green, Kentucky. Only four interviews were actually recorded.

Jorgenson, Tim (Fa 614), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 614. This collection includes details on the process of how Monroe County, Kentucky barbecue is prepared, cooked, consumed, and the establishments in which it is served.

Book Review: The Great Warpath: British Military Sites From Albany To Crown Point By David Starbuck, Charles L. Fisher

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Book Review: The Great Warpath: British Military Sites from Albany to Crown Point by David Starbuck, 1999, University Press of New England, Hanover, NH, 224 pages, 100 illus., 50 figs., $19.95 (paper).

Book Review: Maritime Archaeology: A Reader Of Substantive And Theoretical Contributions Edited By Lawrence E. Babits And Hans Van Tilburg, David J. Stewart

Northeast Historical Archaeology

Book Review: Maritime Archaeology: A Reader of Substantive and Theoretical Contributions edited by Lawrence E. Babits and Hans Van Tilburg 1998, The Plenum Series in Underwater Archaeology, Plenum Press, New York and London, 590 pages, 87 illus., $49.50 (paper).

A Recreation To Great Persons: Bowling In Colonial Boston, Ann-Eliza Lewis

Northeast Historical Archaeology

In 1994 archaeologists working in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, recovered what turned out to be the oldest lawn bowling ball in the New World. This research note is the result of the unexpected public interest in this artifact. The lawn ball belonged to the household of Katherine Nanny Naylor, a wealthy resident of 17th-century Boston. The lawn ball became a starting point for a small research project on the history of bowling in the New World and Puritan attitudes towards recreation in general and bowling in particular. This note opens a discusion of the tension between the need to relax and …