Decoding the Midden: How DAACS Helped Reveal the Secrets of the Most Complicated Context at Fairfield Plantation, Gloucester County, Virginia

Summary

Fairfield Plantation's midden spans an historically complex period in Virginia's history (mid-18th-to-mid-19th century). This refuse deposit includes materials representating a cross section of the plantation's population, particularly those living in and near the 1694 manor house.  Although plowing in the late 19th and 20th century impacted the interpretive potential of the midden, all was not lost. DAACS cataloging of artifacts recovered from 138 five-foot-square test units within and bordering the midden revealed significant value was added to this assemblage through the standardized, highly detailed recording of descriptive attributes.  In particular, analysis revealed distinct areas of periodic use that coincided with and revealed greater cultural complexities in the larger designed landscape.  Analysis also identified disposal patterns connected with an earlier slave quarter's swept yard, shifting material consumption trends among both white property owners and enslaved Africans, and the eventual abandonment of the work yard as the plantation transitioned into tenancy. 

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2015   •
• A Progress Report on the DAACS Research Consortium

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 382