Laboring along the Rio Grande: Contextualizing Labor of the Spanish Early Colonial Period of New Mexico.

Summary

Labor was a core component of the early period (1598-1680) of Spanish colonization of New Mexico. After failing to uncover mineral wealth in their new colony, the Spaniards kept their colony afloat by focusing on another exploitable resource: Indigenous labor. Historical archaeologists (e.g Silliman 2001, 2004; Voss 2008) have recently been reconsidering colonialism from a framework grounded in labor relationships. We know that Pueblo Indians and enslaved Plains people were forced to work on Spanish missions, Spanish public works projects, and rural estancias (Liebmann 2012; Rothschild 2003; Trigg 2005). However, our understanding of the lived experience of these labor regimes is limited. By comparing the experiences of labor regimes in early colonial New Mexico to other contexts, such as plantations in the American South or Haciendas in Mexico, this presentation will seek to explore the potential organization and lived experience of labor in New Mexico. 

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018   •
• Conflict, Archaeology, and the Culture of the West

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

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PaperId(s): 1100