Reanalyzing the Foodways of Fort Delaware

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "In Times of War and Conflict: An Exploration of New Sites, Methodologies, and Interpretations at Sites of Conflict in the New England Region.", at the 2025 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

As the saying goes, food brings people together. Yet can this possibly apply in such a socially complex place as Fort Delaware? During the Civil War, Confederate prisoners, Union soldiers and officers, and civilians including recent immigrants and children mixed together on the small Pea Patch Island. Excavations recovered several thousand artifacts currently held in the Veterans Curation Program Alexandria lab. Several previous studies on these objects shine light on the daily activities of the fort occupants. Foodways offer a new lens to view these complicated interactions. Through analyzing historic accounts and spatial distribution of artifacts such as utensils, ceramics, and faunal remains this paper will address the following: Who was doing the cooking and what was being made? What impact did the differing rations and food access have on health? And how did regulated schedules and divisions of space impact dining experiences?

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2025   •
• In Times of War and Conflict: An Exploration of New Sites, Methodologies, and Interpretations at Sites of Conflict in the New England Region.

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Nicole Haddow