Limbus Infantum: Shrouds, Safety Pins, and the Materiality of Personhood in Juvenile Burials at the Milwaukee County Poor Farm Cemetery

Summary

Of the over 2000 individuals recovered from the Milwaukee County Poor Farm Cemetery (MCPFC), approximately one-third are juveniles under the age of 20. Age categories for the MCIG juveniles were established using a variety of dental, osteometric and nonosteometric methods. The example of juvenile lot 10007, (dental age assessment 5 postnatal months, osteometric age 39 fetal weeks) recovered with diaper fabric, safety pins, and a small angel pin, suggests that a more refined look at juvenile age assessments might be made based on recovered material culture. This paper examines juvenile age assessments in light of the presence or absence of grave goods as well the type of material culture. It is argued that combining biological age assessment with material culture data allows for refinement of age assessments of juveniles from the MCPFC and more importantly provides a link between personhood, age, and material culture.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018   •
• The Red Shoes: Toward a Materialized Relationship Between the Living and the Dead

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 595