Down in the Dumps: An Introduction to Feature 7 at the Pierce Hichborn House

Summary

This is a paper/report submission presented at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The Pierce Hichborn House (PHH), a historical home in the North End of Boston, has experienced transformations throughout its long history of occupation. Initially, the property was a single family home, before transitioning to a tenement building in the 19th century. Feature 7 of the PHH site, with a presumed date range of late 17th to early 20th century, manifests a blend of different households. Feature 7 is thought to be a possible privy feature, due to the dimensions, relative orientation to the main house, vestigial plumbing structures, and types of artifacts recovered from the feature. Using artifacts from Feature 7, chiefly ceramics, we endeavoured to answer questions pertaining to the feature’s chronology, the function of artifacts, and the identity of the residents of PHH. A notable variation in the quality of materials used by these residents demonstrates how the North End neighborhood changed throughout Boston’s history.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• 2020 SHA General Sessions   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 362