Discourse, Dumpsites, and New Directions in the ‘Land of Trump’: Archaeology and Representations at Appalachian Company Coal Mining Towns

Summary

Appalachia has been represented problematically for the past 150 years: Appalachians are the homogenous, white ‘Other’ in a backward land of isolated hillbillies living in opposition to the American mainstream.  Such characterizations have been revitalized since the 2016 election to explain Appalachia’s ‘cycle of self-inflicted ills,’ to justify exploitation, and to obfuscate underlying structural factors.  Archaeologists in Appalachia have unique input about its materiality, identity, and economies, inexplicably linked with industrialism in complicated relationships of identity, despair, hope, and pride and impacted by the legacy of coal extraction.  We must add our voice to global discussions of Appalachia’s past and future.  This paper: 1.) discusses archaeology’s potential to challenge persistent narratives with contemporary consequences through artifacts and oral histories, and 2.) suggests economic strategies adapted from historic ones to aid Appalachia’s just transition post-coal using examples from investigations of company coal-mining towns across Appalachian Kentucky.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Post-industrial Landscapes, Communities, and Heritage   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 206