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NOTE TO USERS This reproduction is the best copy available. ® UMI Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with with permission permission of the of copyright the copyright owner. owner.Further reproductionFurther reproduction prohibited without prohibited permission. without permission. REPRESENTATIONS OF SLAVERY IN WASHINGTON, D.C.: A CASE STUDY ON PRESENTING SLAVERY AT DUMBARTON HOUSE By Christopher Charles Celauro Submitted to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts In Public Anthropology Chair: Richard J. Dint Karen L. Daly Dean of the College Date 2006 American University Washington, D.C. 20016 AMERICAN UNIVERSITYLIBRARY Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 1432677 INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. ® UMI UMI Microform 1432677 Copyright 2006 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. © COPYRIGHT by Christopher Charles Celauro 2005 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. REPRESENTATIONS OF SLAVERY IN WASHINGTON, D.C.: A CASE STUDY ON PRESENTING SLAVERY AT DUMBARTON HOUSE BY Christopher Charles Celauro ABSTRACT Most early urban historic house museums and plantation museums originated around a need to “strengthen and fortify the conservative element of the nation’s life” through restoring the homes of white, elite, male political figures (West 1999:2). Even today, this continues. However, some historical institutions are now attempting to interpret the other history of these house and plantation museums-the story of those enslaved. Contemporary theory states that museums and historic sites fit into one of four representational categories in their interpretations of slavery which are: symbolic annihilation and erasure, trivialization and deflection, segregation and marginalization, and relative incorporation (Eichstedt and Small: 2002). I will apply this typology to these five D.C. historic house museums: Decatur House, Arlington House, Tudor Place, the Frederick Douglass House, and Dumbarton House. I will also provide a case study which will show Dumbarton House fits into the category of trivialization and deflection. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my thesis committee Richard J. Dent and Karen L. Daly for supporting me and guiding me through this important research. I would also like to thank all the staff and volunteers at Dumbarton House. Thank you for being so knowledgeable, kind, and welcoming. m Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT.......................................................................................................................ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...............................................................................................iii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.............................................................................................vi Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................. 1 2. OVERVIEW OF URBAN SLAVERY IN WASHINGTON, D.C. AND GEORGETOWN................................................................................................3 Overview of Urban Slavery Enslaved African and African American Culture in the Chesapeake Region Urban Slavery in Washington and Georgetown 3. THEORIZING REPRESENTATIONS OF SLAVERY IN MUSEUMS..........14 4. ANALYSIS OF WASHINGTON, D.C HISTORIC HOUSE MUSEUMS ......16 Decatur House Arlington House Tudor Place Fredrick Douglass House 5. DUMBARTON HOUSE: A CASE STUDY ON PRESENTING SLAVERY........................................................................................................26 A History of the National Society of the Colonial Dames iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. A History of Dumbarton House Nourse Family History Enslaved Africans and African Americans owned or employed by the Nourse family Dumbarton House Analysis 6. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SLAVERY INTERPRETATION AT DUMBARTON HOUSE 49 7. CONCLUSION 60 Lower Passage Library Dining Room Music Room and Blue Parlor Room Landing and Upper Passage Dining Room Chamber Library Chamber and Blue Parlor Chamber Recommendations REFERENCES 62 IV Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Dumbarton House, Front View, 2005.......................................................................... 28 2. Dumbarton House, Front Passage Comice, 2005.........................................................30 3. Dumbarton House, Backyard Garden, 2005.................................................................31 4. Dumbarton House Visitor Survey Results Chart, May 2005........................................40 5. Dumbarton House Public Tour and School Program Evaluation Results Chart, 2005................................................................................................................... 43 6. Dumbarton House, Lower Passage, 2005.....................................................................50 7. Front Archway Comice, 2005...................................................................................... 50 8. Back Archway Comice, 2005.......................................................................................50 9. James and Sarah Nourse............................................................................................... 51 10. The Washington Family. 1803-1850.......................................................................... 51 11. Dumbarton House, Dining Room, 2005.....................................................................52 12. Charles Wilson Peale, The Beniamin Stoddert Children. ................................1789 53 13. Dumbarton House, Music Room, 2005...................................................................... 54 14. Dumbarton House, Landing, 2005..............................................................................55 15. Landing View, 2005................................................................................................... 55 16. Dumbarton House, Upper Passage, 2005....................................................................55 17. Federal Inlaid Mahogany Cylinder-Front Desk, Baltimore, c.1795........................... 56 18. Mahogany Comer Basin Stand, Massachusetts,................................................ 1800 57 vi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 19. Federal Inlaid Mahogany Chamber Table 20. Dressing Table......................................... vii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Most early urban historic house museums and plantation museums originated around a need to “strengthen and fortify the conservative element of the nation’s life” through restoring the homes of white, elite, male political figures (West 1999:2). Even today, this is still the dominant trend. Currently, however, the Cultural Resource Management and museum fields are beginning to diversify and interpret the other history of these house and plantation museums-the story of those enslaved. These fields are beginning to recognize they must be as diverse as the public they serve, to be relevant in the future (King 1998:245-247). Dumbarton House is one of the museums in Washington, D.C. that is in the process of interpreting slavery into their tours and school programs. As a Dumbarton House Graduate Interpretive Intern, I first examined four historic house museums to see how other D.C. area historic house museums are approaching this issue. The urban historic houses researched that center around white male political figures are Decatur House, Arlington House, and Tudor Place. The historic house I researched which centers around an African American male political figure is the Frederick Douglass House. Second, I evaluated Dumbarton House’s current interpretation of slavery to see how it compares and fits into the context of these other D.C. historic house museums. This research was conducted between March and October of 2005. There are some 1 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 additional museum tours I observed