19th Century Entertainments From A Small Plantation In Alexandria, Virginia: Archaeology At Shuter’s Hill (44AX175)

Summary

The archaeology of childhood is underrepresented in the archaeological literature. Identifying children’s toys can be complex since many recreational objects, such as Frozen Charlottes, dominos, marbles, harmonicas and mouth harps, were used by both children and adults. Other toys found at this archaeological site are solely associated with children, primarily metal military figures and dolls.

Shuter’s Hill, located in Alexandria, Virginia, was a small plantation located near Washington, D.C. This plantation site is associated with three different families and enslaved communities over a 105 year period. The largest number of toys found at this site were marbles. Two types of toys, the Frozen Charlotte and iron cavalry figures, were mass produced and are found at other 19th century archaeological sites in the U.S. These recreational objects show evidence of commerce and mass production of goods as well as gender differences in the toys of childhood of the 19th century.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions) 2018   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 418