A Cutt of the Catt’s Ears: The State of Physic in Early 18th Century Williamsburg.
Author(s): Meredith M. Poole
Year: 2020
Summary
This is a paper/report submission presented at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.
During the first half of the 18th century, Williamsburg resident John Custis, Governor’s councilmember and scientific gardener, filled 69 pages of a Commonplace Book with remedies for afflictions ranging from worms and epilepsy to “after pains in the childbed”. Were these receipts—more than 180 of them--- products of Custis’s personal experience and anxiety? A reflection of his scientific curiosity? Or was an interest in cures and remedies common among Custis’s social peers? As Colonial Williamsburg’s archaeologists embark on a multi-year exploration of the 4-acre “Custis Square,” this paper examines the local and historical context in which John Custis assembled his medical treatments. Archaeological evidence from sites occupied by Custis’s Williamsburg contemporaries, and 18th century documentary sources are combined to develop a framework for understanding this compilation of “cures”.
Cite this Record
A Cutt of the Catt’s Ears: The State of Physic in Early 18th Century Williamsburg.. Meredith M. Poole. 2020 ( tDAR id: 457407)
This Resource is Part of the Following Collections
Keywords
General
Disease
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Documentary Sources
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Medicine
Geographic Keywords
United States of America
Temporal Keywords
18th Century
Spatial Coverage
min long: -129.199; min lat: 24.495 ; max long: -66.973; max lat: 49.359 ;
Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology
Record Identifiers
PaperId(s): 693