Material Expressions of Class, Status and Authority Amongst Commissioned Officers at Fort Yamhill and Fort Hoskins, Oregon, 1856-1866.

Summary

This is a paper/report submission presented at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The 19th century United States Army was a military institution characterized by a hierarchical system of authoritative, social and economic inequality between members of its different military grades. Although necessary for insuring military discipline this system of inequality also influenced the non-military social lives of officers and their families coloring much of military life with a non-military and consumerist tint. This paper examines the material expression of military authority, social status and economic position amongst three grades of commissioned officers who served at two mid-19th century United States Army posts in western Oregon, Fort Yamhill and Fort Hoskins. Using historical and archaeological records associated with 47 company grade officers this paper illustrates how military rank and salary were used to express social and economic status through the behaviors of conspicuous consumption and conspicuous leisure demonstrating their membership as socio-cultural elites of 19th century America.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• 2020 SHA General Sessions   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 559