Forging a New Frontier for the Old: The Great Lakes’ Fox Wars of New France

Summary

History of the Great Lakes Fox Wars (AD 1680-1730) is embedded within broader historical narratives that are based upon early modern period primary source material. Archaeologists use the narratives to assign material culture meaning by matching archaeological assemblages to what is known about the historic past. Some decades-old unanswered (or seemingly unanswerable) questions posed by this highly complex temporal period, however, appear to be rooted in a selective use of historical information.  Current studies in global history and colonialism, along with unprecedented availability of digital data, provide a wealth of opportunity to develop more in-depth historical contexts.  This paper outlines ongoing research on the social/culture history of the period on micro (regional) and macro (global) scales, and the impact this historical frame of reference might have upon interpretation material culture recovered from the Bell Site (47Wn9), a battle site known as the Grand Village des Renards during the Fox Wars.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions) 2017   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2017

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 615