Retire to the Country: Recent Research at the Highland House Site, Antigua and Barbuda

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "In Small Islands Forgotten: Insular Historical Archaeologies of a Globalizing World", at the 2023 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The Caribbean island of Barbuda, under the exclusive control of the Codrington family and their managers for over 200 hundred years, served primarily as a source of provisions for plantations on Antigua. The island is also home to a unique archaeological site: a purpose-built colonial retirement residence, built in the early 18th century by enslaved Barbudans. At its height, it was as a country manor, a hunting lodge with a small game park, a residence for the island’s manager and a hot-house hospital for the enslaved. Barbuda has few sites developed for interpretation to the public, and work since 2015, in collaboration with the local Council, has focussed on documenting and compiling a digital record of Highland House. In collaboration with the local community, we are developing a site narrative based on the themes of resilience and sustainability, allowing Barbudans to share their stories on their terms.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• In Small Islands Forgotten: Insular Historical Archaeologies of a Globalizing World   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2023

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow