Social Distancing In The Woods: Archaeological Expressions Of Isolated Winter Habitations Of Newfoundland’s Early European Fisherfolk

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Landscapes Above and Below in Northern Contexts (General Sessions)" , at the 2021 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Physical separation from friends and family, access to finite provisions and fears of food security in the time of COVID-19 has led many to rethink their priorities, adjust their activities, develop means of coping with isolation, and embrace a DIY attitude. What do historically-similar, non-pandemic related, conditions of isolation/scarcity and its ensuing reactions/adaptations look like archaeologically? In exploring this question our paper focuses on hearth assemblages and midden deposits found on isolated winter habitations occupied by European fisherfolk in Canada’s easternmost province of Newfoundland and Labrador. At the end of an intensive seasonal cod fishery, residents of many coastal communities dispersed to secluded interior locations to hunt, trap, and harvest wood during fall and winter. Separated for upwards of six months, people engaged in strategies to ward off the monotony of winter isolation by keeping busy with vital home projects, playing games, and making their lives a little more familiar.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Landscapes Above and Below in Northern Contexts (General Sessions)   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2021

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology