A Multi-Racial Urban Region of Refuge in Boise, Idaho

The Archaeology of the River Street Neighborhood: A Multi-racial Urban Region of Refuge in Boise, Idaho Item Type text; Electronic Dissertation Authors White, William Anderson Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 04/10/2021 13:41:07 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/624546 THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE RIVER STREET NEIGHBORHOOD: A MULTI-RACIAL URBAN REGION OF REFUGE IN BOISE, IDAHO by William Anderson White, III __________________________________________ Copyright © William Anderson White, III A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the SCHOOL OF ANTHROPOLOGY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2017 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Dissertation Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by William A. White, III, titled “The Archaeology of the River Street Neighborhood: A Multi- Racial, Urban Region of Refuge in Boise, Idaho” and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. _________________________________________________________ Date: (April 10, 2017) Maria Nieves Zedeño _________________________________________________________ Date: (April 10, 2017) Thomas J. Ferguson _________________________________________________________ Date: (April 10, 2017) Eric Plemons Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate’s submission of the final copies of the dissertation to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. ________________________________________________ Date: (April 10, 2017) Dissertation Director: Maria Nieves Zedeño 2 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that an accurate acknowledgement of the source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his or her judgment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholarship. In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained from the author. SIGNED: William Anderson White, III 3 Acknowledgements This dissertation was created from the diligent, committed efforts of such a large group of individuals that it would be nearly impossible to thank everyone who helped make this possible. Here is my best attempt. I want to thank my dissertation committee who guided me through this process with efficiency and wisdom. I have been strongly influenced by all of you but, my committee chair Maria Nieves Zedeño and T.J Ferguson have especially shaped the way I conduct myself as a scholar and what I believe archaeology can contribute to this world. Knowing you has made me better. I also owe a deep debt of gratitude to Mark Warner at the University of Idaho who has constantly helped my career move forward. Since 2001, Mark has been my teacher, mentor, and friend. I cannot thank you enough. My dissertation focuses on a living place in Boise, Idaho that has played a formative role in the lives of so many. To all the residents of the River Street Neighborhood–past, present, and future–your lives have been my inspiration. I am especially indebted to the descendants who provided oral history interviews for this project: Warner Terrell, III, Dick Madry, John Bertram, Lee Rice, II, LaVaun Kennedy, Sharon Hill, Ken Thomas, Gigi Stevens and, Jack and Lois Wheeler. I only hope this dissertation judiciously commemorates your memories. I could never have accomplished this project without all of my collaborators in the City of Boise: Jill Gill and Todd Shallat at Boise State University, Nikki Gorrell at the College of Western Idaho, Marc Munch of the Idaho Department of Transportation, Shannon Vihlene and Mary Anne Davis at the Idaho State Historic Preservation Office, Terri Schorzman and Amy Fackler at the Boise City Department of Arts and History, and John Bertram of Planmakers. The archaeology component would not have been a success without the support of Shellan Rodriguez at the Capital City Development Corporation and Maria Minicucci with Boise City Department of Parks and Recreation. I owe sincere thanks to all the volunteers and students who worked on the archaeological excavations but I am particularly indebted to the project staff, Renae Campbell, Lindsay Kiel, and Michelle Sing, who helped make this complicated archaeology project run seamlessly. You will never know how much your efforts mean to me. Finally, this work is dedicated to my family who had to put up with this project and many others and selflessly continued to support me over the years. My mother, Lisa Jossis Williams, has encouraged me to pursue this dream since I was in kindergarten. My father, William Anderson White, Jr., believed in me for decades and constantly pushed me to succeed in school. It saddens me to I think about the fact that he did not live to see this achievement. My kids, Cyrus and Lydia White, are my inspiration. Continually striving to be an example for them is the reason why I do what I do. Finally, my wife Clarity White is the person to whom I owe the most gratitude. You were the one person who never doubted that this was the right thing to do. You have been my inspiration, foundation, and motivation since we first met. Thanks for never letting me quit. 4 Contents Figures .......................................................................................................................................................... 7 Tables ............................................................................................................................................................ 8 Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 9 Introduction: Ethnic Minorities in American West History, River Street, and Boise, Idaho ...................... 10 The River Street Neighborhood: A Case Study of Structural Racism in an American West City ......... 12 A Framework for Dismantling Structural Racism in Western History ................................................... 14 Documents, Historical Narratives, and Oral Histories ............................................................................ 16 How Digital Humanities and Public Heritage Can Combat Structural Racism ...................................... 19 Chapter 1: Contextualizing the African American Western Experience—A View from Boise, Idaho ...... 21 Rural Versus Urban West in African American and Racial Minority History ....................................... 21 A Brief Prehistory and Protohistory of Boise, Idaho .............................................................................. 24 Boise Becomes a Town ........................................................................................................................... 27 A Neighborhood South of the Tracks ..................................................................................................... 31 River Street as a Multi-Racial Neighborhood ......................................................................................... 37 Basque Immigrants in River Street ..................................................................................................... 38 River Street, African Americans, and Boise, Idaho ............................................................................ 40 Chapter 2: Racialization and Regions of Refuge in Historical Archaeology .............................................. 46 How Race has been Created in the United States ................................................................................... 46 The Creation of Whiteness and Racial Privilege in Boise ...................................................................... 51 Racialization, Whiteness, and Poor White Trash .................................................................................... 57 Regions of Refuge: Race and Urban Minorities ..................................................................................... 66 Chapter 3: River Street as an Archaeological Landscape ........................................................................... 80 The Creation of Archaeological Landscapes .......................................................................................... 80 Landscapes as Space ........................................................................................................................... 81 Landscapes as Place ............................................................................................................................ 83 Landscapes as Texts ...........................................................................................................................

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