An Overview Of The 2021 Field Season At Fort Mose In St. Augustine, Florida.

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "Fort Mose Above and Below: Terrestrial and Underwater Excavations at the Earliest Free Afro-Diasporic Settlement in the United States" , at the 2022 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

In 1738, the earliest free Afro-Diasporic settlement in the North American colonies was established in defense of St. Augustine. Abandoned by 1763, the historic Gracia Real de Santa Theresa de Mose was lost in the narrative of freedom and rebellion as centuries passed. After archaeological efforts in the 20th century, Mose was recognized as the monumental achievement it represents in United States history, and the history of Black freedom in the Americas. The site also lies at the heart of multiple issues facing archaeology, and underwater archaeology, today. The island location makes Ft. Mose’s unrecovered material culture vulnerable to climate change and weather. These conditions, as well as the modern sociopolitical issues African-descendent communities face, creates an urgent need to reopen Ft. Mose for excavations in 2021 before it becomes inaccessible. In this paper I will discuss the context, methodology, and findings from the 2021 field season at Ft. Mose.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Fort Mose Above and Below: Terrestrial and Underwater Excavations at the Earliest Free Afro-Diasporic Settlement in the United States   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2022

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology