Peeling Back an Onion: Archaeological and Geophysical Analysis of an 18th through 20th Century Landscape in Prince George’s County, Maryland

Summary

Compton Bassett is a multi-component historic and archaeological site located on the Patuxent River in Prince George’s County, Maryland. It embodies the evolution of a plantation landscape that bridges the establishment of large scale slavery in the early eighteenth century to the formalization of architecture and landscapes from the mid-eighteenth century though the late nineteenth century. This paper will look at the development of the architecture and landscape of Compton Bassett via archaeology, geophysical testing, and cultural landscape studies. The results of archaeological investigations of the extant Federal Period house and yard, various outbuildings, a late eighteenth century Catholic Chapel, and terraced landscapes, indicate the creation of a formal plantation landscape over three centuries of expansion and remodeling rather than as a single construction episode.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• "Maryland, My Maryland": Current Archaeology in the State   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 759