Historical Archaeology And Black Life During The Early Republic: A View Toward The Hill
No Thumbnail Available
Links to Files
Permanent Link
Collections
Author/Creator
Author/Creator ORCID
Date
2014
Department
History and Geography
Program
Master of Arts
Citation of Original Publication
Rights
This item is made available by Morgan State University for personal, educational, and research purposes in accordance with Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Other uses may require permission from the copyright owner.
Abstract
The Hill is a historically African American neighborhood located on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. It is thought to have been established prior to the 1790s making it, quite possibly, the oldest free black neighborhood in the country. What makes this particular neighborhood unique, besides its early establishment, is its potential to provide a comprehensive account of the African American experience within a purely African American context. While slavery was a dominant force in Maryland's economy, The Hill was a free-black community which was able to not only function but thrive independently within what we can assume to be a complex environment. Other African American sites did exist in Maryland but a free African American population of this type from the Early Republic Period (1789-1823) is truly a phenomenon. Chapter 1 will describe the standards and methods of historical archaeology utilized during the investigations of all sites mentioned. Chapter 2 will establish the arguments of material culture as a valuable primary source and define the concept of "Cultural Empathy". Chapter 3 will analyze and compare three African American historical archaeology sites from the early republic period in Maryland. Chapter 4 will cover the development and value of The Hill.