The Question of Anomalies in Slave Archaeology
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THE QUESTION OF ANOMALIES IN SLAVE ARCHAEOLOGY: EVIDENCE FROM AN ANTEBELLUM INDUSTRIAL SITE by Jennifer Lee McNiven B.A., Oswego State University, 2003 A thesis submitted to the Department of Anthropology College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities The University of West Florida In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts 2014 © 2014 Jennifer Lee McNiven The thesis of Jennifer Lee McNiven is approved: ____________________________________________ _________________ Ramie A. Gougeon, Ph.D., Committee Member Date ____________________________________________ _________________ Robert C. Philen, Ph.D., Committee Member Date ____________________________________________ _________________ John E. Worth, Ph.D., Committee Chair Date Accepted for the Department/Division: ____________________________________________ _________________ John R. Bratten, Ph.D., Chair Date Accepted for the University: ____________________________________________ _________________ Richard S. Podemski, Ph.D., Dean, Graduate School Date ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to give my heartfelt gratitude to my committee members- Dr. John Worth, Dr. Robert Philen, and Dr. Ramie Gougeon. Your guidance has not only led me to the conclusion of my graduate research, but prepared me over the last several years for a life in the field that I love. Each of you has contributed to raising the level of discourse at UWF and creating an environment which facilitated my education both academically and professionally. To Dr. Gougeon I owe a special thanks, for stepping in at the last minute and taking on the rather Herculean task of reading my complete thesis without complaint. Of course, my work at Arcadia would not have been possible if it wasn't for the dedication of John C. Phillips to the scholarship and preservation of the site. You were always my cheerleader, and I feel that without your confidence I may not have believed myself capable of contributing a meaningful narrative to the Arcadia story, thank you. My research also benefited greatly from the expertise and cooperation of Jan Lloyd, Norine Carroll, Karen Mims, Cindi Jackson, and Adrianne Sams, all of whom provided me with time and answers when I needed them. I will be forever grateful to those who came before me and dedicated themselves to discovering Arcadia's history. Without the work of people like Brian Rucker, Bill Lees, and Brian Mabeltini my research would have been an uphill battle. My time under the Florida sun did not have to be the joyful, enlightening, and affirming experience that it turned out to be, and for that I thank my 2011 and 2012 field school teams- especially Lindsay Cochran for being the kind of leader we all strive to become. Personally, I would like to thank my family and my husband, Lee Damon, for their never-ending support and love. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. iv LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ vii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... viii ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................x CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................1 CHAPTER II. HISTORY..........................................................................................6 A. Southern Industrialization ..........................................................6 B. Slavery in the Industrial South .................................................17 C. Arcadia Mill Industrial Complex .............................................21 1. Arcadia Mills .....................................................................22 2. The Forsyth and Simpson Saga..........................................32 D. The Arcadia Slaves ..................................................................50 1. Demographics ....................................................................50 2. Conditions at Arcadia .........................................................53 3. Relationships and the Fate of a Community ......................55 E. Arcadia's Impact on West Florida ............................................58 CHAPTER III. THEORY ........................................................................................64 A. Early Perspectives on African-American Archaeology ...........64 B. Themes in African-American Archaeology .............................65 1. World Systems Theory .......................................................66 2. Marxism and Political Economy ........................................69 3. Practice Theory and Symbolic Interactionism ...................74 C. Synthesis of Theoretical Interpretation at Arcadia ...................79 CHAPTER IV. METHODS ....................................................................................85 A. Introduction ..............................................................................85 B. Methodological Framework .....................................................86 C. Site Selection and Early Investigations ....................................89 D. Data Collection at Area A ........................................................91 1. 09V and 10V Archaeological and Laboratory Methods ......91 2. 11B Archaeological Methodology .......................................93 3. 11B Laboratory Methodology ............................................ 111 E. Research Design ..................................................................... 112 1. Archaeological Analysis ..................................................... 113 2. Historical Methodology ..................................................... 115 v F. Summary ................................................................................. 117 CHAPTER V. RESULTS ..................................................................................... 118 A. Material and Data Analysis ....................................................122 1. 11B Block 2 ......................................................................123 2. 11B Block 3 ......................................................................125 3. 11B Block 4 ......................................................................128 4. 11B Trench 2 ....................................................................130 5. 11B Trench 3 ....................................................................132 6. 11B Trench 4 ....................................................................141 7. 11B Trench 5 ....................................................................143 8. 11B Trench 6 ....................................................................148 9. 11B Single Units ...............................................................149 B. The Simpson Lot ....................................................................151 C. Summary ................................................................................159 CHAPTER VI. INTERPRETATION AND CONCLUSIONS ..............................161 A. Material Correlations and Disparities ....................................161 B. Identities and Life in the Arcadia Community .......................192 1. Area A ..............................................................................192 2. The Simpson Lot Activity Area 4 .....................................196 C. The Question of Anomalies in Slave Archaeology ................202 D. Summary ................................................................................205 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................207 APPENDIXES .................................................................................................................219 A. 11B Area A All Artifacts ........................................................220 B. 12B Activity Area 4 All Artifacts ...........................................231 C. 11B Block 2 All Artifacts .......................................................239 D. 11B Block 3 All Artifacts .......................................................243 E. 11B Block 4 All Artifacts .......................................................249 F. 11B Trench 2 All Artifacts .....................................................255 G. 11B Trench 3 All Artifacts .....................................................260 H. 11B Trench 4 All Artifacts .....................................................269 I. 11B Trench 5 All Artifacts .....................................................274 J. 11B Trench 6 All Artifacts .....................................................278 K. 11B Single Units All Artifacts ................................................281 L. 11B - 12B Nail Breakdown ....................................................285 M. 11B Mean Ceramic Date ........................................................287 N. 12B Mean Ceramic Date ........................................................289 vi LIST OF TABLES 1. 11B and 12B Activity Area 4 Total Artifact Group Comparison by Count ..............165 2. 11B and 12B Activity Area 4 Total Artifact Group Comparison by Weight(g) ........165 3. 11B and 12B Activity Area 4 Kitchen Ceramic Assemblage by Type......................167 vii LIST OF FIGURES 1. Santa Rosa County Census Occupations, 1850 and 1860 ..........................................20