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Unearthing Gotham: The Archaeology of New York City

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Abstract

Under the teeming metropolis that is present-day New York City lie the buried remains of long-lost worlds. The remnants of nineteenth-century New York reveal much about its inhabitants and neighborhoods, from fashionable Washington Square to the notorious Five Points. Underneath there are traces of the Dutch and English colonists who arrived in the area in the seventeenth century, as well as of the Africans they enslaved. And beneath all these layers is the land that Native Americans occupied for hundreds of generations from their first arrival eleven thousand years ago. Now two distinguished archaeologists draw on the results of more than a century of excavations to relate the interconnected stories of these different peoples who shared and shaped the land that makes up the modern city. In treating New York's five boroughs as one enormous archaeological site, Anne-Marie Cantwell and Diana diZerega Wall weave Native American, colonial, and post-colonial history into an absorbing, panoramic narrative. They also describe the work of the archaeologists who uncovered this evidence-nineteenth-century pioneers, concerned citizens, and today's professionals. In the process, Cantwell and Wall raise provocative questions about the nature of cities, urbanization, the colonial experience, Indian life, the family, and the use of space. Engagingly written and abundantly illustrated, Unearthing Gotham offers a fresh perspective on the richness of the American legacy.
Society for American Archaeology
Review
Author(s): Gregory D. Lattanzi
Review by: Gregory D. Lattanzi
Source:
American Antiquity
, Vol. 68, No. 3 (Jul., 2003), pp. 596-597
Published by: Society for American Archaeology
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American Antiquity
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AMERICAN ANTIQUITY AMERICAN ANTIQUITY AMERICAN ANTIQUITY
can be very useful indeed, even if only as a means to
question our nomenclature and test our assumptions.
Landscapes from Antiquity. SIMON STODDART, edi-
tor. 2000. Antiquity Publications Ltd., Cambridge. 380
pp. $29.95 (paper), ISBN 0-9539762-0-3.
Reviewed by Julie M. Endicott Taomia, American Samoa
Historic Preservation Office.
This book brings together articles that have been pub-
lished in the journal Antiquity since the late 1920s with
the common theme of analyzing landscape as a source
of information about past human activity. Simon Stod-
dart, editor, has made an effort to select articles repre-
sentative of themes in the study of landscape over the
full 75 years. The articles have been grouped by the type
of study, and each of the eight sections is given a brief
introduction that provides historical and topical context.
The subject time periods range from the Paleolithic
through the modem era. All but one article discuss Euro-
pean landscapes, and the British Isles are the best repre-
sented area.
Stoddart summarizes the history of landscape
archaeology in the introduction, highlighting the influ-
ence of the editors of Antiquity as well as some scholars.
He also summarizes recent trends in landscape studies.
The first section, "Early studies of landscapes" presents
four articles from the first 16 years of the journal. Three
of these involve classic archaeological survey combined
with subsurface information. The fourth is an ethnogra-
phy of the New Hebrides. "The impact of aerial
photography" stresses the importance of aerial photog-
raphy in the treatment of landscapes with four articles
spanning five decades. Two articles were chosen for
"Survey method and analysis"; one considering how
representative surface pottery may be considered and
the other applying geographic information system tech-
nology to the analysis of landscape. The fourth section,
"Integrated landscape archaeology," presents two arti-
cles each on three regions where surface and subsurface
investigations have been integrated for a compelling
analysis of the landscape. Stoddart makes the important
observation that "[n]o surface study of the landscape,
however sophisticated the methodology, can substitute
for the interlinkage of surface and subsurface remains"
and notes the importance of combining these sources of
information with environmental reconstruction (p. 135).
Section five emphasizes the interactions between
humans and their environment. One of the two articles
discusses the time scales of environmental processes and
human comprehension of these using the long time scale
of the Paleolithic, while the other examines the shorter
time span of the Holocene. The articles of the sixth sec-
can be very useful indeed, even if only as a means to
question our nomenclature and test our assumptions.
Landscapes from Antiquity. SIMON STODDART, edi-
tor. 2000. Antiquity Publications Ltd., Cambridge. 380
pp. $29.95 (paper), ISBN 0-9539762-0-3.
Reviewed by Julie M. Endicott Taomia, American Samoa
Historic Preservation Office.
This book brings together articles that have been pub-
lished in the journal Antiquity since the late 1920s with
the common theme of analyzing landscape as a source
of information about past human activity. Simon Stod-
dart, editor, has made an effort to select articles repre-
sentative of themes in the study of landscape over the
full 75 years. The articles have been grouped by the type
of study, and each of the eight sections is given a brief
introduction that provides historical and topical context.
The subject time periods range from the Paleolithic
through the modem era. All but one article discuss Euro-
pean landscapes, and the British Isles are the best repre-
sented area.
Stoddart summarizes the history of landscape
archaeology in the introduction, highlighting the influ-
ence of the editors of Antiquity as well as some scholars.
He also summarizes recent trends in landscape studies.
The first section, "Early studies of landscapes" presents
four articles from the first 16 years of the journal. Three
of these involve classic archaeological survey combined
with subsurface information. The fourth is an ethnogra-
phy of the New Hebrides. "The impact of aerial
photography" stresses the importance of aerial photog-
raphy in the treatment of landscapes with four articles
spanning five decades. Two articles were chosen for
"Survey method and analysis"; one considering how
representative surface pottery may be considered and
the other applying geographic information system tech-
nology to the analysis of landscape. The fourth section,
"Integrated landscape archaeology," presents two arti-
cles each on three regions where surface and subsurface
investigations have been integrated for a compelling
analysis of the landscape. Stoddart makes the important
observation that "[n]o surface study of the landscape,
however sophisticated the methodology, can substitute
for the interlinkage of surface and subsurface remains"
and notes the importance of combining these sources of
information with environmental reconstruction (p. 135).
Section five emphasizes the interactions between
humans and their environment. One of the two articles
discusses the time scales of environmental processes and
human comprehension of these using the long time scale
of the Paleolithic, while the other examines the shorter
time span of the Holocene. The articles of the sixth sec-
can be very useful indeed, even if only as a means to
question our nomenclature and test our assumptions.
Landscapes from Antiquity. SIMON STODDART, edi-
tor. 2000. Antiquity Publications Ltd., Cambridge. 380
pp. $29.95 (paper), ISBN 0-9539762-0-3.
Reviewed by Julie M. Endicott Taomia, American Samoa
Historic Preservation Office.
This book brings together articles that have been pub-
lished in the journal Antiquity since the late 1920s with
the common theme of analyzing landscape as a source
of information about past human activity. Simon Stod-
dart, editor, has made an effort to select articles repre-
sentative of themes in the study of landscape over the
full 75 years. The articles have been grouped by the type
of study, and each of the eight sections is given a brief
introduction that provides historical and topical context.
The subject time periods range from the Paleolithic
through the modem era. All but one article discuss Euro-
pean landscapes, and the British Isles are the best repre-
sented area.
Stoddart summarizes the history of landscape
archaeology in the introduction, highlighting the influ-
ence of the editors of Antiquity as well as some scholars.
He also summarizes recent trends in landscape studies.
The first section, "Early studies of landscapes" presents
four articles from the first 16 years of the journal. Three
of these involve classic archaeological survey combined
with subsurface information. The fourth is an ethnogra-
phy of the New Hebrides. "The impact of aerial
photography" stresses the importance of aerial photog-
raphy in the treatment of landscapes with four articles
spanning five decades. Two articles were chosen for
"Survey method and analysis"; one considering how
representative surface pottery may be considered and
the other applying geographic information system tech-
nology to the analysis of landscape. The fourth section,
"Integrated landscape archaeology," presents two arti-
cles each on three regions where surface and subsurface
investigations have been integrated for a compelling
analysis of the landscape. Stoddart makes the important
observation that "[n]o surface study of the landscape,
however sophisticated the methodology, can substitute
for the interlinkage of surface and subsurface remains"
and notes the importance of combining these sources of
information with environmental reconstruction (p. 135).
Section five emphasizes the interactions between
humans and their environment. One of the two articles
discusses the time scales of environmental processes and
human comprehension of these using the long time scale
of the Paleolithic, while the other examines the shorter
time span of the Holocene. The articles of the sixth sec-
tion, "Industrial landscapes," demonstrate the usefulness
of landscape analysis as an approach to more recent time
periods, and some of the innovative information that can
result. "Contested landscapes" is the seventh section,
and presents two modem case studies of contested land-
scape, the Berlin Wall and Macedonia. Stoddart notes
that this type of approach is only fruitful under certain
circumstances, and that careful study is required to iden-
tify "deliberate slighting" in prehistoric landscapes. Care
must also be taken not to superimpose our modem per-
ceptions of social relationships back onto prehistoric
contexts in which they may be inappropriate. While con-
tested landscapes may make good copy, as it were, the
form of past contestation may have been very different
from what we expect based upon our modem experi-
ence. Stoddart brings out this point in the introduction to
the final section of the book, "Experienced landscapes,"
noting that archaeologists remain individuals from a
capitalist age trying to experience prehistoric land-
scapes. The first of the two papers utilizes architecture to
achieve experience; the second draws heavily on ethnog-
raphy.
The volume is a valuable resource for teaching that
provides examples of the wide range of methodological
and theoretical approaches to the study of human use of
landscapes sampled from a single journal. Stoddart
acknowledges in the text on the copyright page that
more or different topics in landscape archaeology could
have been presented. With the exception of the first two
sections, each section contains only two papers (or each
subsection, as in section 4). It is truly a sampling of the
literature. Stoddart does cite numerous sources for land-
scape archaeology, both published in Antiquity and
elsewhere, which provides sources for the interested stu-
dent to pursue further reading. It would be easy but
pointless to criticize the choice of topics and articles in
this wide-ranging book. The book is basically well done
and provides a good introduction to European landscape
studies.
Unearthing Gotham: TheArchaeology of New York City.
ANNE-MARIE CANTWELL and DIANE DI ZERGA
WALL. 2001. Yale University Press, New Haven. x + 374
pp. $39.95 (hardcover), ISBN 0-300-08415-3.
Reviewed by Gregory D. Lattanzi, New Jersey State
Museum.
Presenting the archaeological history of an entire city is
a daunting task; when the city is New York, it's even more
of a challenge. Unearthing Gotham: The Archaeology
of New York City, by Anne-Marie Cantwell and Diana di
Zerga Wall, presents the archaeological history of one of
the greatest urban environments. By presenting New
tion, "Industrial landscapes," demonstrate the usefulness
of landscape analysis as an approach to more recent time
periods, and some of the innovative information that can
result. "Contested landscapes" is the seventh section,
and presents two modem case studies of contested land-
scape, the Berlin Wall and Macedonia. Stoddart notes
that this type of approach is only fruitful under certain
circumstances, and that careful study is required to iden-
tify "deliberate slighting" in prehistoric landscapes. Care
must also be taken not to superimpose our modem per-
ceptions of social relationships back onto prehistoric
contexts in which they may be inappropriate. While con-
tested landscapes may make good copy, as it were, the
form of past contestation may have been very different
from what we expect based upon our modem experi-
ence. Stoddart brings out this point in the introduction to
the final section of the book, "Experienced landscapes,"
noting that archaeologists remain individuals from a
capitalist age trying to experience prehistoric land-
scapes. The first of the two papers utilizes architecture to
achieve experience; the second draws heavily on ethnog-
raphy.
The volume is a valuable resource for teaching that
provides examples of the wide range of methodological
and theoretical approaches to the study of human use of
landscapes sampled from a single journal. Stoddart
acknowledges in the text on the copyright page that
more or different topics in landscape archaeology could
have been presented. With the exception of the first two
sections, each section contains only two papers (or each
subsection, as in section 4). It is truly a sampling of the
literature. Stoddart does cite numerous sources for land-
scape archaeology, both published in Antiquity and
elsewhere, which provides sources for the interested stu-
dent to pursue further reading. It would be easy but
pointless to criticize the choice of topics and articles in
this wide-ranging book. The book is basically well done
and provides a good introduction to European landscape
studies.
Unearthing Gotham: TheArchaeology of New York City.
ANNE-MARIE CANTWELL and DIANE DI ZERGA
WALL. 2001. Yale University Press, New Haven. x + 374
pp. $39.95 (hardcover), ISBN 0-300-08415-3.
Reviewed by Gregory D. Lattanzi, New Jersey State
Museum.
Presenting the archaeological history of an entire city is
a daunting task; when the city is New York, it's even more
of a challenge. Unearthing Gotham: The Archaeology
of New York City, by Anne-Marie Cantwell and Diana di
Zerga Wall, presents the archaeological history of one of
the greatest urban environments. By presenting New
tion, "Industrial landscapes," demonstrate the usefulness
of landscape analysis as an approach to more recent time
periods, and some of the innovative information that can
result. "Contested landscapes" is the seventh section,
and presents two modem case studies of contested land-
scape, the Berlin Wall and Macedonia. Stoddart notes
that this type of approach is only fruitful under certain
circumstances, and that careful study is required to iden-
tify "deliberate slighting" in prehistoric landscapes. Care
must also be taken not to superimpose our modem per-
ceptions of social relationships back onto prehistoric
contexts in which they may be inappropriate. While con-
tested landscapes may make good copy, as it were, the
form of past contestation may have been very different
from what we expect based upon our modem experi-
ence. Stoddart brings out this point in the introduction to
the final section of the book, "Experienced landscapes,"
noting that archaeologists remain individuals from a
capitalist age trying to experience prehistoric land-
scapes. The first of the two papers utilizes architecture to
achieve experience; the second draws heavily on ethnog-
raphy.
The volume is a valuable resource for teaching that
provides examples of the wide range of methodological
and theoretical approaches to the study of human use of
landscapes sampled from a single journal. Stoddart
acknowledges in the text on the copyright page that
more or different topics in landscape archaeology could
have been presented. With the exception of the first two
sections, each section contains only two papers (or each
subsection, as in section 4). It is truly a sampling of the
literature. Stoddart does cite numerous sources for land-
scape archaeology, both published in Antiquity and
elsewhere, which provides sources for the interested stu-
dent to pursue further reading. It would be easy but
pointless to criticize the choice of topics and articles in
this wide-ranging book. The book is basically well done
and provides a good introduction to European landscape
studies.
Unearthing Gotham: TheArchaeology of New York City.
ANNE-MARIE CANTWELL and DIANE DI ZERGA
WALL. 2001. Yale University Press, New Haven. x + 374
pp. $39.95 (hardcover), ISBN 0-300-08415-3.
Reviewed by Gregory D. Lattanzi, New Jersey State
Museum.
Presenting the archaeological history of an entire city is
a daunting task; when the city is New York, it's even more
of a challenge. Unearthing Gotham: The Archaeology
of New York City, by Anne-Marie Cantwell and Diana di
Zerga Wall, presents the archaeological history of one of
the greatest urban environments. By presenting New
596 596 596 [Vol. 68, No. 3, 2003] [Vol. 68, No. 3, 2003] [Vol. 68, No. 3, 2003]
This content downloaded from 173.49.157.103 on Tue, 23 Aug 2016 01:29:15 UTC
All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms
REVIEWS REVIEWS
York City as one large archaeological site, the authors
look at the five boroughs in an innovative way, to "tell
one continuing story of the events that took place on this
single piece of land" (p. 12). In reconstructing the lives
of all the inhabitants, the authors also bring to light those
forgotten individuals (e.g., native peoples, slaves,
women, and children) who contributed to the city's social,
economic, and religious development.
The book consists of 17 chapters divided into four
parts. In part 1 (chapters 1 and 2), the authors introduce
the difficult beginnings and continual struggle of the
study of archaeology in New York City-emphasizing
the period from the mid-to-late 1960s, a time of "cultural
anxiety and discontinuity" that helped give rise to new
interest in the historic preservation of New York. Archae-
ologists are still drawn to this urban landscape.
Part 2 (chapters 3-7) presents the city's prehistoric
record, each chapter corresponding to a cultural period
from the Paleolithic to Late Woodland times. Cantwell
and Wall emphasize the work of early museum-spon-
sored excavations and avocational archaeologists.
Despite limited remains and nonprofessional excava-
tions from this early time period, the authors present a
comprehensively organized and scientifically exciting
picture of the city's prehistoric past.
The European influx, adaptation and eventual dom-
ination of the city is the crux of part 3. Initial Native
American and European interaction (chapter 8) is
described as one of great strife, hardship, war and death,
but one of mutual survival. Chapter 9 discusses the
important shift between colonial dependence on native
peoples to their dependence on the European market and
the eventual displacement of the native inhabitants by
the end of the sixteenth century. Chapter 10 uses historic
documentation and artifacts from household backyards
to reconstruct early Dutch foodways, and show how
Dutch men and women adapted to the many social,
political, and economic changes within the colony. The
authors use archaeological evidence in chapters 11 and
12 to illustrate the beginnings of an immigrant popula-
tion and residential class separation within the city
following the Revolutionary War. Chapter 13 branches
out to discuss the practices and methods of the lesser-
known urban topic of landfilling, while chapter 14
utilizes excavations carried out in backyards to examine
other aspects of daily life. In chapter 15, the authors
show the change through time of the utilization of the
city's periphery, from almshouses serving the poor to
the beginnings of urban sprawl. Excavations of this time
period provide a glimpse into a way of life that was soon
to change. That leads us to chapter 16, which concen-
trates on how the identification and excavation of the
African Burial Ground brought to light the important
contribution and role enslaved and freed Africans played
in the construction of the New York identity. The last
York City as one large archaeological site, the authors
look at the five boroughs in an innovative way, to "tell
one continuing story of the events that took place on this
single piece of land" (p. 12). In reconstructing the lives
of all the inhabitants, the authors also bring to light those
forgotten individuals (e.g., native peoples, slaves,
women, and children) who contributed to the city's social,
economic, and religious development.
The book consists of 17 chapters divided into four
parts. In part 1 (chapters 1 and 2), the authors introduce
the difficult beginnings and continual struggle of the
study of archaeology in New York City-emphasizing
the period from the mid-to-late 1960s, a time of "cultural
anxiety and discontinuity" that helped give rise to new
interest in the historic preservation of New York. Archae-
ologists are still drawn to this urban landscape.
Part 2 (chapters 3-7) presents the city's prehistoric
record, each chapter corresponding to a cultural period
from the Paleolithic to Late Woodland times. Cantwell
and Wall emphasize the work of early museum-spon-
sored excavations and avocational archaeologists.
Despite limited remains and nonprofessional excava-
tions from this early time period, the authors present a
comprehensively organized and scientifically exciting
picture of the city's prehistoric past.
The European influx, adaptation and eventual dom-
ination of the city is the crux of part 3. Initial Native
American and European interaction (chapter 8) is
described as one of great strife, hardship, war and death,
but one of mutual survival. Chapter 9 discusses the
important shift between colonial dependence on native
peoples to their dependence on the European market and
the eventual displacement of the native inhabitants by
the end of the sixteenth century. Chapter 10 uses historic
documentation and artifacts from household backyards
to reconstruct early Dutch foodways, and show how
Dutch men and women adapted to the many social,
political, and economic changes within the colony. The
authors use archaeological evidence in chapters 11 and
12 to illustrate the beginnings of an immigrant popula-
tion and residential class separation within the city
following the Revolutionary War. Chapter 13 branches
out to discuss the practices and methods of the lesser-
known urban topic of landfilling, while chapter 14
utilizes excavations carried out in backyards to examine
other aspects of daily life. In chapter 15, the authors
show the change through time of the utilization of the
city's periphery, from almshouses serving the poor to
the beginnings of urban sprawl. Excavations of this time
period provide a glimpse into a way of life that was soon
to change. That leads us to chapter 16, which concen-
trates on how the identification and excavation of the
African Burial Ground brought to light the important
contribution and role enslaved and freed Africans played
in the construction of the New York identity. The last
chapter, aptly named Common Ground, demonstrates
the author's theme that this city consists of a common
past, present, and future.
Unearthing Gotham is a great urban-archaeology
textbook about the human experience, providing us with
a more meaningful history of New York City. The
authors use the recovery and interpretation of artifacts
and historical documentation to show that as we created
the city, the city has also created our identity. Cantwell
and Wall have done an outstanding job to provide this
needed and comprehensive volume on the archaeology
of New York City. The authors present many examples
of professionally and nonprofessionally excavated sites
throughout the five boroughs. Numerous references,
great illustrations, and artifact photographs throughout
this entire book add to its overall presentation. The
authors, each with her own particular expertise, com-
plement each other making this work a fluid,
understandable and intelligible read, giving the reader a
sense of place. This cogently written book has some-
thing for the academic, the avocational archaeologist
and the professional. As the authors state, these archae-
ological finds "tell us of things we never knew, remind
us of those we are proud to remember, and testify to
those we prefer to forget" (p. 299).
Souvenirs of the Fur Trade: Northwest Coast Indian Art
and Artifacts Collected by American Mariners, 1788-
1844. MARY MALLOY. 2000. Peabody Museum Press,
Harvard University, Cambridge. xx + 168 pp. $35.00
(paper), ISBN 0-87365-833-7.
Reviewed by Sarah Peabody Turnbaugh, Museum of
Primitive Art and Culture.
In her latest book, Souvenirs of the Fur Trade, Mary
Malloy examines one of North America's earliest ethno-
graphic collecting areas, the Northwest Coast. She draws
upon both museum records and ethnohistorical docu-
mentation, skillfully describing, interpreting, and syn-
thesizing disparate databases. The collections of 10 of
New England's earliest learned societies as well as ship-
board journals and logbooks of more than a dozenAmer-
ican mariners are thoroughly examined and interpreted
in new ways. The author's extensive experience with
maritime and whaling records and artifacts uniquely
qualifies her for this research. Malloy considers this vol-
ume to be the companion to her own "'Boston Men' on
the Northwest Coast" (Limestone Press, 1998), which
documented American vessels journeying to the North-
west Coast and comprehensively surveyed their ship-
board manuscripts, thus laying the groundwork for the
current focused volume. The present monograph con-
siders the collections that these mariners gathered as arti-
chapter, aptly named Common Ground, demonstrates
the author's theme that this city consists of a common
past, present, and future.
Unearthing Gotham is a great urban-archaeology
textbook about the human experience, providing us with
a more meaningful history of New York City. The
authors use the recovery and interpretation of artifacts
and historical documentation to show that as we created
the city, the city has also created our identity. Cantwell
and Wall have done an outstanding job to provide this
needed and comprehensive volume on the archaeology
of New York City. The authors present many examples
of professionally and nonprofessionally excavated sites
throughout the five boroughs. Numerous references,
great illustrations, and artifact photographs throughout
this entire book add to its overall presentation. The
authors, each with her own particular expertise, com-
plement each other making this work a fluid,
understandable and intelligible read, giving the reader a
sense of place. This cogently written book has some-
thing for the academic, the avocational archaeologist
and the professional. As the authors state, these archae-
ological finds "tell us of things we never knew, remind
us of those we are proud to remember, and testify to
those we prefer to forget" (p. 299).
Souvenirs of the Fur Trade: Northwest Coast Indian Art
and Artifacts Collected by American Mariners, 1788-
1844. MARY MALLOY. 2000. Peabody Museum Press,
Harvard University, Cambridge. xx + 168 pp. $35.00
(paper), ISBN 0-87365-833-7.
Reviewed by Sarah Peabody Turnbaugh, Museum of
Primitive Art and Culture.
In her latest book, Souvenirs of the Fur Trade, Mary
Malloy examines one of North America's earliest ethno-
graphic collecting areas, the Northwest Coast. She draws
upon both museum records and ethnohistorical docu-
mentation, skillfully describing, interpreting, and syn-
thesizing disparate databases. The collections of 10 of
New England's earliest learned societies as well as ship-
board journals and logbooks of more than a dozenAmer-
ican mariners are thoroughly examined and interpreted
in new ways. The author's extensive experience with
maritime and whaling records and artifacts uniquely
qualifies her for this research. Malloy considers this vol-
ume to be the companion to her own "'Boston Men' on
the Northwest Coast" (Limestone Press, 1998), which
documented American vessels journeying to the North-
west Coast and comprehensively surveyed their ship-
board manuscripts, thus laying the groundwork for the
current focused volume. The present monograph con-
siders the collections that these mariners gathered as arti-
597 597
This content downloaded from 173.49.157.103 on Tue, 23 Aug 2016 01:29:15 UTC
All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms
... Studies on New York City's expansion in the early nineteenth century have examined class and the separation of home from workplace and have employed a transdisciplinary methodology to spatialize class identity in the rapidly expanding metropolis (Cantwell and diZerega Wall 2001). In their forward to Tales of Gotham, Janowitz and Dallal (2013: vii) talk about the purposeful combination of multiple datasets to tell stories about New York. ...
Article
Full-text available
This paper maps and spatializes the Almshouse Ledger records for the children of unmarried parents in New York City in the 1820 and 1830s. Mapping the distribution of poverty and the provision of forms of welfare in the city, this paper illustrates specific areas of the city which were attracting the very poor as early as the second decade of the nineteenth century. This paper argues that migrants from countries with similar welfare systems to those established in New York may be overrepresented in the record due to familiarity with the system. This interdisciplinary paper combines archaeological approaches to GIS with archival research to illustrate the distribution of welfare provision.
... The aim of this research is to make substantial contributions to the study of Quakers in the British Colony of New Jersey, to the study of the influence of beliefs and values in colonial situations and past cultural traditions in general, and to the study of the rise and spread of eighteenth-century consumerism associated with the Industrial Revolution. New Jersey, the Delaware Valley, and the Middle Atlantic in general have received less academic focus compared to the more thoroughly researched Chesapeake and New England regions, though several pivotal works in recent years have been helping to fill this void (Cantwell and Wall 2001;De Cunzo 2004;Veit 2002;Veit and Orr 2014;Yamin 2008). This research will fill gaps in this still relatively poorly documented and studied region, will add new perspectives to the study of beliefs and values, and develop a new framework for the study of beliefs, values, and religious tenets from archaeological data sets. ...
Thesis
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THE STYLE OF QUAKER CONSUMPTION IN BRITISH COLONIAL NEW JERSEY: The Link between Religious Beliefs and Values and the Archaeological Record of The Society of Friends Michael L. Young This research focuses on the role of beliefs and values at domestic Quaker sites in British Colonial North America and their transformations through time. Evidence is drawn from building techniques, ceramic and glass tablewares, foodways as manifest through storage/preparation vessels and faunal remains, alcohol and tobacco-related objects, and materials related to dress and personal adornment. The aim of this research is to make substantial contributions to the study of Quakers, to the study of the influence of beliefs and values in colonial situations and past cultural traditions in general, and to the study of the rise and spread of eighteenth-century consumerism associated with the Industrial Revolution. Beliefs and values possess material manifestations. To link the material archaeological evidence to cultural ideals, this proposed research focuses on behavior which may be documented in the archaeological record. The full potential of the archaeological contribution to issues surrounding the varying degree of adherence to Quaker beliefs and values may be realized through consideration of all available types of material culture. An analytical focus on the style of consumption and technology is considered essential for the study of tenets, beliefs, and values in the archaeological record. The revival of archaeological theories of style is advocated as the primary means archaeologists have available to study the manifestation of beliefs, values, and the underlying ethos through variation in material culture. The revival of an archaeological focus on style enables a more full realization of the goals of social archaeology and the consideration of the significance of a research project at the higher scales of relevance: the scale of issues of importance in history and the social sciences in general, and the scale of the contribution research may render towards developing solutions to contemporary social problems. 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
... An HSDI is especially useful for the crafting of microhistories around archaeological sites and their former occupants with the aid of historical big data, and to link those microhistories to broader historical and spatial contexts. Historical archaeologists often find the incorporation of microhistories into broader narratives challenging (Cantwell and diZerega Wall 2001;Mayne and Murray 2001). The HSDI allows the bridging of this gap in scale and, at least with respect to the historical record, and supports the more comprehensive use of data Yamin (2001) mentioned, while still leaving plenty of room for the construction of engaging, evidence-based narratives of daily life. ...
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