ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF THE EASTERN STATE HOSPITAL CEMETERY (1839-1861), FAYETTE COUNTY, KENTUCKY Edited By David Pollack and Heather Worne With contributions by Karen Hudson, Peter Killoran, Kim A. McBride, Greg Maggard, Stuart Nealis, Nancy O’Malley, Emily Rinker, Christopher Romanek, Millie Westmont, and Mindi Weitzal Research Report No. 11 Kentucky Archaeological Survey ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF THE EASTERN STATE HOSPITAL CEMETERY (1839-1861), FAYETTE COUNTY, KENTUCKY Edited By David Pollack and Heather Worne With contributions by Karen Hudson Peter Killoran Kim A. McBride Greg Maggard Stuart Nealis Nancy O’Malley Emily Rinker Christopher Romanek Millie Westmont Mindi Weitzal Kentucky Archaeological Survey Research Report No. 11 Jointly Administered by: The University of Kentucky Department of Anthropology and The Kentucky Heritage Council Lexington, Kentucky 2014 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to thank Ronald L. Harris of the Kentucky Finance Administrative Cabinet for his assistance in bringing this project to completion. He was a pleasure to work with, as was hospital administrator Susan Griffith. We also would like to thank Glen Crabtree of Congleton-Hacker who provided technical assistance in the field and the backhoe operators (Paul Dixon, Mark Mallott, and Teddy Kreckler) from Solid Rock Construction who carefully exposed the grave shafts. We are most appreciative of Greg Maggard who directed the fieldwork, and without whose leadership the excavation of this cemetery would not have been as thorough and well-documented. The paid crew, students, and volunteers did an outstanding job in the field under less than ideal conditions. They included Jason Hodge, Jeff Young, Eric J. Schlarb, Kiristen Bright, Shawn Webb, M. Jay Stottman, Micky Loughlin, Kim McBride, A. Gwynn Henderson, Allison Esterle, Millie Westmont, Mindi Weitzal, Eddie Henry, Chris Gunn, Rick Burdin, W. Stephen McBride, Erin Sears, Maggie Pool, Rebecca Major, Cara Mosier, and Emily Elkins. Many of the same individuals assisted in the washing and cataloguing of the materials recovered. Thanks to Hayward Wilkerson for producing the graphics, and for Michelle Massey for providing editorial assistance. Finally, a special thanks to administrative staff Ed Winkle, Barbara Gortman, Steven Osborne, and Carol Cottrill. Thanks to Chris Pappas for looking at and identify the fabrics recovered from Eastern State Hospital and to Melissa Bishop for processing the staple carbon isotope samples. We are especially appreciative of Svenje Weise, a visiting researcher from the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, who did an independent aging and sexing of the burial sample during her visit to the William S. Webb Museum of Anthropology. ii ABSTRACT The Eastern State Hospital mortuary sample was comprised of a diverse group of individuals. They came from various social and economic backgrounds, and were brought to the hospital from counties throughout Kentucky. In many ways their lives parallel those of the general communities that they resided in, as most undertook a considerable amount of hard labor before and after they entered the hospital. At death, they were treated in a manner similar to those interred in other mid-nineteenth century cemeteries. The deceased were carefully laid to rest in hexagonal wooden coffins with their arms placed in the appropriate position pursuant to family, cultural, or religious traditions. Men were buried wearing shirts, jackets and pants, and women wearing dresses and shifts. The bioarchaeological data indicates those interred in the Eastern State Hospital Cemetery suffered maladies common among pre-antibiotic nineteenth century agricultural societies where malnutrition, poor sanitation, and infectious disease were common. Instances of enamel hypoplasia, porotic hyperostosis, and cribra orbitalia indicate many individuals suffered from nutritional deficiencies during their early years, likely caused by infections and a poor diet. These maladies coupled with poor sanitation often made people susceptible to infectious diseases, such as respiratory infections and sinusitis. The onset of any of these infections could have begun before these individuals entered the hospital, or been contracted once admitted. Some evidence of physical anomalies is evident in the burial population in the form of bruxism and teeth grinding and poor dental health due to medical treatments. Surprisingly, they consumed a more diverse diet than cemetery populations associated with other central Kentucky urban neighborhood and rural cemeteries. The presence of mass graves points to the need to bury people quickly, perhaps due to cholera epidemics. These efforts ultimately resulted in the disturbance and commingling of earlier single interments. A disconnect between the living and those interred within the cemetery coupled with nineteenth century mortuary customs that often involved the reuse of burial plots also may have contributed to the commingling of human remains. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One: Introduction by David Pollack and Greg Maggard ................................................ 1 Overburden Deposits ................................................................................................................... 5 Cholera Epidemics ...................................................................................................................... 6 Changing Landscapes ................................................................................................................. 7 Summary ..................................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter Two: Historic Background by Karen E. Hudson .......................................................... 9 Historic Context ............................................................................................................................ 9 Treatment of the Mentally Ill by Nancy O’Malley ..................................................................... 37 Chapter Three: Cultural Materials Recovered by Kim A. Mcbride and Victoria Westmont ............................................................................................................... 40 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 40 Coffins And Coffin Hardware .................................................................................................... 40 Clothing And Personal Objects .................................................................................................. 44 Miscelleneous Artifacts .............................................................................................................. 55 Discussion ................................................................................................................................... 56 Summary ..................................................................................................................................... 61 Chapter Four: Population Characteristics by Heather Worne, Emily Rinker and Stuart Nealis ......................................................................................................................... 62 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 62 Taphonomy ................................................................................................................................. 62 Demographicprofile ................................................................................................................... 64 Stature ......................................................................................................................................... 66 Pathology .................................................................................................................................... 68 Arthropathies .............................................................................................................................. 75 Specific And Non-Specific Infection .......................................................................................... 76 Pathology By Age And Sex ........................................................................................................ 80 Summary ..................................................................................................................................... 83 Archaeological Site Comparisons ............................................................................................... 85 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................ 88 Chapter Five: Dental Analysis by Mindi Weitzal ...................................................................... 90 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 90 Demographics ............................................................................................................................. 91 Ancestry ...................................................................................................................................... 91 Sex .............................................................................................................................................