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Pioneers in Historical Archaeology: Breaking New Ground PDF

237 Pages·1994·29.18 MB·English
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Pioneers in Historical Archaeology Breaking New Ground Pioneers in Historical Archaeology Breaking New Ground Edited by STANLEY SOUTH South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology College of Humanities and Social Sciences University of South Carolina Columbia, South Carolina Springer Science+Business Media, LLC Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Pioneers In historical archaeology : breaking new ground / edited by Stanley South, p. cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and Index. 1. Archaeology and history—United States. 2. Historic sltes- -Unlted States—Conservation and restoration. 3. United States- -Antlqultles—Collection and preservation. I. South, Stanley A. CC77.H5P56 1994 930.1 '07'073—dc20 94-36179 CIP Front cover: The archaeological camp on Dallas Island, Tennessee, after the houseboat went down. In the photo are Jane Jennings, Stu Neitzel, Bill Bunce, and Wendell Walker, 1936. (Photo by Wendell Walker, courtesy of Mrs. R. S. Neitzel.) (See Chapter 10.) ISBN 978-1-4899-0957-2 ISBN 978-1-4899-0955-8 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4899-0955-8 © Springer Science+Business Media New York 1994 Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1994 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1994 All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher Preface 1994 This book was written in 1977 by twelve pioneers in the field of historical archaeology who began their careers between the 1920s and the 19408, and whose names were well known by those, such as myself, who began their careers in historical archaeology in the 19508. These men had distinguished themselves in various ways, for example, some through their expertise with artifact identification and typologies of artifacts such as gun parts or beads. Other of these pioneers were known for their excavation and publication of work on particular sites with names such as Jamestown, Awatovi, Fort Frederica, Fatherland, and Like-a-Fishhook Village. Some were known for having conducted archaeology on historic sites when there was virtually no precedent for such activity. All were leaders, experts, doers, and publishers of results for sharing with others, energetic, strong, and communicative. Their work was carried out over a wide area, from the eastern part of the United States, to the South, the West, and Canada. Many had learned by doing. Just as their backgrounds varied from physical anthropology, architecture, history, anthropology, and ethnology, their writing styles vary also, but "by their fruits ye shall know them," as you read their chapters presented herein. I am the junior member of the group of contributors, having entered historical archaeology at the ruins of Brunswick Town, North Carolina, in 1958. In 1959, I wrote an open letter to colleagues suggesting that those of us digging historic sites were "a breed apart," but I was soon challenged by a colleague who said that changing data bases did not make us a different type of researcher. I had to agree. I felt the need to communicate with pioneering colleagues in the field who were also excavating historic sites, in order to learn from their experience. I sought out, corresponded with, and learned from most of the early pioneers. As communication increased, I learned that those pioneers who had cleared the way for us had faced frustrating attitudes that were like stumps, brush, and rocks in a field. I was familiar with such attitudes from my own experience. In the first chapter of this book, the dean of historical v vi PREFACE archaeology in America, J. C. "Pinky" Harrington, points out that historical archaeology, in its early days, was seen as "a new approach," "a new application of archaeological methods," and as "a new discipline." In this first chapter, he discusses some of the stumps and brush that were often seen in the early days. He recalls the view expressed by historians, for instance, that "artifacts, in contrast to the literary remain, give no answers to the historian's queries, ... [and] contribute not one whit to the study of histOl:Y." I mention here some of the attitudes that these men encountered while breaking new ground. 1) There was a bias from anthropologically trained colleagues against "tin-can archaeology," implying that historical archaeology was not "real archaeology." 2) There was a bias among anthropological colleagues against archaeology involving European cultures as an improper subject for anthropological concern. 3) There was a bias among anthropologists against architects and historians conducting archaeology. 4) There was the feeling among some non anthropologically trained colleagues that there were two kinds of people destroying sites in North America: pot-hunters and anthropologists. 5) There was a crisis of identity over whether historical archaeology was history or anthropology. 6) There was the view that historical archaeology had no theoretical base and was therefore invalid. 7) There was the view that archaeology conducted through historic site development for the education and enjoyment of visitors to parks was tainted by its sponsors. 8) There was a bias against the direct historical approach in favor of the anthropological evolution of culture approach to interpretation. 9) There was a lack of familiarity with the artifact data base of historical archaeology. General terms such as "crockery" and "china" slowly gave way as pioneers developed experience which enabled them to recognize and distinguish among majolica, faience, and delft. vii PREFACE 10) There was a traditional emphasis on description at the expense of synthesis. 11) There was a tradition emphasizing the study of past lifeways at the expense of questions addressed to culture process. 12) Quantitative analysis of artifact fragments was seen by some as "anthropological idiocy." In 1960, I founded the Conference on Historic Site Archaeology to provide an annual meeting for historical archaeologists to share their knowledge and problems. I published the papers from that conference for many years in order to further increase communication among those of us conducting research on historic sites. Seven years later, in 1967, a group of us got together in Dallas, Texas, and founded the Society for Historical Archaeology. The following year (1968), Binford and Binford published their book that launched new archaeology, emphasizing the hypothetico-deductive processual approach. Ten years after the founding of the Society for Historical Archaeology, which also followed four decades of work by pioneers, the field of historical archaeology still lacked a strong theoretical direction. This lack was felt by many students and young historical archaeologists, such as myself, but by 1977, a direction had begun to be revealed in anthropological method, theory, and research strategies (South 1977a, 1977b). The wind of change was blowing strongly on the field, depositing enriching ingredients, and causing it to begin to flourish as a discipline. In this flourishing I felt, as Charles Fairbanks' chapter subtitle states, that "what is past is prelude; study the past." As a result, I contacted those pioneer historical archaeologists in this book and asked that they contribute a chapter on their early experiences in historical archaeology. I felt that the past experiences of these men were a prelude to the new direction that the field seemed to be taking and that a book about those ground-breaking early years would be infonnative. I asked them to present not a standard, footnoted, scholarly product, but simply a subjective reminiscing story on each of their careers as a document of the ground-breaking period of the productive new field in which they had toiled. Little did I realize then, that my involvement with a new field for me, Spanish colonial research, would become so intense that 17 years would pass before this book would be published. In the intervening years, beginning in 1983, the Society for Historical Archaeology began awarding the J. C. Harrington Medal for outstanding scholarly achievement in historical archaeology. Eight of the ten medals awarded have been given to the pioneers who contributed chapters to this book. viii PREFACE Since 1977, when the book was assembled, a number of the pioneer archaeologists whose chapters appear here have died. These are J. O. Brew, Kenneth E. Kidd, John W. Griffin, Hale G. Smith, Carlyle S. Smith, Robert S. Neitzel, and Charles H. Fairbanks. The others are still waiting patiently to see their contributions published. Arthur Woodward, the pioneer of historical archaeology in the West, promised to send a chapter, but never got around to doing so before he died. He was also the 1987 recipient of a posthumously presented 1. C. Harrington Medal in historical archaeology. One chapter, by H. Chand lee Forman, who excavated at Williamsburg, was withdrawn and subsequently published in September of 1986 by the Archaeological Society of Maryland, Inc. in Maryland Archaeology 22(2):1-19. Dr. Forman has also died since that chapter was written. Much of the information presented in Chapter Two by John L. Cotter, was later revised and reorganized for publication as "Historical Archaeology Before 1967" by the Society for Historical Archaeology in Historical Archaeology 27(1):4-9. I originally planned to include a biographical sketch of each of the contributors, but decided against this because they are well known and their careers are summarized in their chapters. Acknowledgments The publication of this book has been made possible through a grant from the Archaeological Research Trust (ART) with the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina and from funds supplied by the Conference on Historic Site Archaeology. I want to thank the pioneers who have contributed to this volume, both living and dead, all of whom have been extremely patient with me through the years of waiting for this work to be published. I also thank Lynn Weekes, who has typed the camera-ready copy you are reading, and Patrice Anderson, who assisted with many details in completion of the book. I am grateful for editing suggestions from Chester DePratter, John Idol, and my wife, Janet Reddy. Thanks, too, to the editor and staff of Plenum Press for agreeing to publish this long-delayed contribution to the field of historical archaeology. I also want to thank those family members of the seven deceased authors whose chapters appear herein for permission to publish those chapters. These are: Mrs. J. O. Brew, Mr. Charles H. Fairbanks, Jr., Dr. Patricia C. Griffin, Mrs. Martha Ann Kidd, Mrs. Robert S. Neitzel, Mrs. Judy Smith, and Kevin Smith. Thanks, too, to those publishers who gave permission for publication here of quotes from previously published works. These are: the PREFACE ix University Press of Florida; the Royal Society of Canada; the Society for American Archaeology; California Design Publications, Books Nippon; the National Park Service; the New Brunswick Museum; and Penguin, USA for permission to quote from The Manila Galleon by William Lytle Schurz. Copyright 1939 by E. P. Dutton and Company, Inc. Renewed copyright 1967 by Robert Leyden Schurz. Used by permission of Dutton Signet, a division of Penguin Books USA, Inc. 1977 Documentary and archaeological research about America's past is proliferating at a phenomenal rate. National awareness of the impact of building, highway, dam, and power line construction on the environment has resulted in a reevaluation of criteria for the identification, classification, and assessment of the significance of archaeological sites. Federal, state, and local governmental agencies are involved in evaluating archaeological resources, as are representatives of private industry, prompted by governmental laws and regulations. New strategies are being carried out under research designs of a totally different nature than was the case only a few years ago. The archaeological community is expanding daily with increases in specializations of myriad kinds. Several new archaeological societies and conferences devoted to specific areas and interests have been created. With greater interaction between the archaeological community and the public sector and governmental agencies there has arisen a need for standards of archaeological practice. As a result, the Society of Professional Archaeologists was recently established to evaluate and accredit archaeologists who have voluntarily placed their credentials against the standards of that society. This phenomenon of explosive expansion within the archaeological commuq.ity involves data from both the prehistoric past as well as from the historic period. Archaeology on Indian sites has long been of interest, whereas interest in uncovering the remains of early occupation by Europeans is a relatively recent phenomenon which dates to the early decades of this century. Many of the pioneers of this early phase of exploration of historic sites are still actively involved in the excavation and interpretation of America's past. These archaeologists faced problems and challenges unknown to their colleagues excavating sites once occupied by Indians, and archaeology on sites such as Jamestown, Awatovi, Sainte Marie I, and Fort Raleigh was indeed a "venture into the unknown." This book was written by archaeologists who began excavating historic sites in the 19308 through the x PREFACE 1950s. Their chapters are not intended to be formal archaeological statements. The contributors were asked to speak of those human elements of interaction between the archaeologists and their crews, and to relate events not often seen in more formal archaeological treatises. The result is a memoir of their work, their ideas, and their goals in the field of historical archaeology . In these chapters, then, the reader will find through the personal perspective of the authors, not only an account of their research on historic sites, but something of their motivations, goals, and disappointments as well. Those personal interactions with crew and events involved in archaeological digs, some humorous, all memorable but seldom mentioned in archaeological reports, are told here. Through this process, without actually having presented a formal developmental sequence, this book is a memoir of the emergence of historical archaeology by the pioneers involved. In the 1930s, the major concern in the field of historical archaeology was the preservation and interpretation of surviving architectural ruins. This theme appears in several of the following chapters. Later, attention began to tum to artifacts found in association with the structures being excavated. Specialists in ceramics, beads, and gun parts began to emerge. In these chapters several of these specialists reveal how they were led into those channels that resulted in their becoming recognized experts in their fields. A concern with the foundation stones of architecture and artifacts is diagnostic of the era, and it broke the new ground for what was to follow. A phenomenon frequently mentioned in these chapters is the value of uSing historical documents for interpreting archaeological remains. As these pioneering archaeologists combined historical, documentary, and archaeological data to authenticate and explore their sites, archaeology often took a second place to history. The use of the direct historical approach was a method employed not only by those dealing with documented historic sites, it was also used by those interpreting data from sites having only tenuous links to the historic period. Ethnoarchaeology and ethnohistory were, and remain, major concerns of some researchers concerned with America's formative years. The tracing of trade routes, and the excavating of Spanish and Jesuit mission sites toward the goal of "breathing life into the old mission" was, and continues to be, of considerable interest. This book is a memoir of those emerging years of historical archaeology during the 1930s and the two decades to follow during which a new process was developed for. uncovering clues to America's past. In the 1960s and 1970s rapid growth and change began to occur, and in the decades to come, historical archaeology will never be the same as it was in those formative years. Ip. his chapter Robert "Stu" Neitzel conjures up a parade of ectoplasmic archaeological forms from the old house of archaeology in contrast to those found in archaeology's new house, now only a decade old.

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In this unique volume, twelve pioneers of historical archaeology offer reminiscences of the early part of their respective careers, circa 1920 to 1940. Each scholar had to overcome numerous biases held by historians and archaeologists-thus each chapter documents a step in the field's march from a ma
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