Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections
Part of: Society for Historical Archaeology 2020
This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections," at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.
New discoveries can be made in the lab as easily as they are in the field. Old collections have persistent utility and endless stories to tell. After several years of improving access and visibility of archeological collections in the National Park Service, the Northeast Museum Services Center has conducted research on overlooked or forgotten artifacts that still have compelling lessons to teach us about the past and the present.
Other Keywords
Collections •
African-American •
Commerce •
Photography •
Civil War •
Glass •
Outreach •
Social Media •
Patriarchy
Temporal Keywords
19th Century
Geographic Keywords
Coahuila (State / Territory) •
New Mexico (State / Territory) •
Oklahoma (State / Territory) •
Arizona (State / Territory) •
Texas (State / Territory) •
Sonora (State / Territory) •
United States of America (Country) •
Chihuahua (State / Territory) •
Nuevo Leon (State / Territory) •
Delaware (State / Territory)
Resources Inside This Collection (Viewing 1-5 of 5)
- Documents (5)
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Caught on Camera: Recognizing Archeological Artifacts in Historic Photographs (2020)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
This is an abstract from the session entitled "Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. The National Park Service preserves collections of archeological artifacts recovered at Civil War battlefield sites. The advent of photography just before the Civil War revolutionized the way soldiers’ experiences were documented and shared. These historic photographs also provide modern day scholars and researchers...
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Gathering Glass: Community Ideals and Identity in Black Boston (2020)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
This is an abstract from the session entitled "Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. The Abiel Smith School, an all-black primary school was constructed between 1834 and 1835 on Beacon Hill in Boston, MA. The Smith School is central to Beacon Hill’s Black history because it helped Black Bostonians advance in society and negotiate racism through education. However, like most schoolhouses in the...
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Porcellian Porcelain and White Male Fragility: The Journey of a Privileged Plate (2020)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
This is an abstract from the session entitled "Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. Archeologists at Boston’s African Meeting House were surprised to discover an intact porcelain plate on the site’s surface. More shocking was the mark identifying the plate as coming from the exclusive Porcellian Club, one of the storied finals clubs of Harvard University. The club was founded in 1791 and boasts...
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Rebel Without a Provenience: When Bad Archaeology Makes for Great Public Outreach (2020)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
This is an abstract from the session entitled "Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. The year was 1968. Hawaii Five-O premiers, Richard Nixon wins the presidency, and excavations at the Casey House at Minute Man National Historical Park conclude. In the 52 years since the excavation, the collection has been largely ignored and completely unstudied despite containing outstanding examples of material...
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"With Great Care": High End Porcelain on Black Beacon Hill (2020)
DOCUMENT Citation Only
This is an abstract from the session entitled "Meanwhile, In the NPS Lab: Discoveries from the Collections" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. During excavations of the African Meeting House on the north slope of Boston’s famed Beacon Hill, archaeologists collected an intact, gilt decorated porcelain plate from the site’s surface. This plate, with an obscure Latin phrase and boars head emblem, seemed out of place. The maker’s mark on its base puts it...