Beer Bottles, Beer Cans, and Plastic: Digging into the Modern Archaeology of St. Croix

Summary

This is a poster submission presented at the 2022 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The St. Croix Leper Hospital was in operation from 1888 to 1954. In 1954 the place facility was closed and many buildings were removed. In the 1960s, some of the remaining buildings were renovated and new homes were built to become the LBJ Gardens housing complex, which was occupied through 2014. During archaeological investigations searching for buildings and artifacts associated with the leper hospital we found an abundance of modern artifacts associated with the LBJ Gardens. Those include beer bottles and cans, soda cans, toys, a dog collar, coins, and more. These artifacts provide insight into the material culture of modern Crucians and reflect their day-to-day activities as they lived in the homes of the LBJ Gardens housing complex. The artifacts also show the mass consumerism of ready-made products typical of mainstream US consumer culture that is permeating the Caribbean islands.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• 2022 SHA Poster Submissions   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2022

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology