Many Remedies to Choose From: Social Relationships and Healing in an Enslaved Community

Summary

When enslaved individuals fell ill, a plethora of cures were available from various sources.  For instance, a planter could have a local doctor treat an enslaved woman, or she could treat herself through the use of medicines she purchased or plants she gathered.  Whatever choice she made, however, did not occur in a vacuum.  Rather, the social connections and relationships that structured her daily life shaped the way in which she sought to heal herself.  So far, unfortunately, the interaction between the social worlds of enslaved individuals and the remedies they sought to cure themselves has remained poorly understood.  By looking at the recovered medicine bottles and floral remains from the homes of Montpelier’s early 19th century enslaved community, along with the plantation’s 1816-1819 medical accounts, this paper will explore the connection between social relationships and healing in the Antebellum South.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Space and Place in the African Diaspora: Assessing Household Context within a Virginia Plantation   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 347