Archaeological Excavations in Monticello's First Kitchen

Summary

In 1808, enslaved African American laborers at Monticello dumped about 1,000 cubic feet of dirt to raise the floor to convert the Kitchen into a Wash House in preparation for Thomas Jefferson's retirement years. For the previous forty years, this Kitchen had been the space in which fine cuisine was prepared for Jefferson, his family, and guests. Archaeologists recently excavated nearly a third of this deposit, reidentifying the stew stoves, the original brick floor, and fireplace. Analysis of the artifacts sought to determine the source of the fill. This paper analyzes and compares ceramics and small domestic artifacts from the original Kitchen with those from the immediately adjacent Kitchen Yard. Based on the artifact assemblage, we suspect enslaved workers used dirt sourced from this conveniently located yard space. The excavations and the results of our analysis allow us to better understand the processes of the restructuring of the plantation landscape.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018   •
• Landscapes of Chesapeake Slavery

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 640