Consumer Choice. in Historical Archaeology

Transcription

1 Consumer Choice in Historical Archaeology

2 Consumer Choice in Historical Archaeology Edited by SUZANNE M. SPENCER-WOOD University of Massachusetts Boston, Massachusetts Springer Science+ Business Media, LLC

3 Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Consumer choice in historical archaeology. Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. United States - Antiquities. 2. Archaeology and history - United States. 3. Consumers' preferences - United States - History - Sources. 1. Spencer-Wood, Suzanne M. EI59.5.C ISBN 978' '7 ISBN DOI / ISBN (ebook) 1987 Springer Science+Business Media New York Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1987 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1987 AII rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, Illechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher

4 To my father, Willis Avery Wood, and to the memory of my mother, Alice Jane Spencer Wood

5 Contributors D Sherene Baugher 0 New York Landmarks Preservation Commission, 20 Vesey Street, 11th Floor, New York, New York Mark C. Branstner 0 Department of Anthropology, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan Lynn Clark 0 Department of Anthropology, State University of New York, Binghamton, New York Constance A. Crosby 0 Department of Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, California Lu Ann De Cunzo 0 Pennsy I vania CLIO Group, 3961 Baltimore Avenue, Philadelphia, Amy Friedlander 0 Louis Berger & Associates, 1819 H Street N.W., Washington, D.C Patrick H. Garrow [l Garrow & Associates, 4000 DeKalb Technology Parkway, Suite 375, Atlanta, Georgia Paul M. Heberling 0 Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania Scott D. Heberling 0 Pennsylvania Heberling Associates, Route 4, Box 20, Huntingdon, Susan L. Henry 0 Heritage Resources Branch, Fairfax County Office of Comprehensive Planning, 2855 Annandale Road, Falls Church, Virginia Cheryl A. Holt 0 Analytical Services for Archaeologists, 900 Cameron Street, Alexandria, Virginia Terry H. Klein 0 Louis Berger & Associates, 100 Halsted Street, East Orange, New Jersey Charles H. LeeDecker 0 Louis Berger & Associates, 1819 H Street N.W., Washington, D.C vii

6 viii Contributors Mark P. Leone 0 Department of Anthropology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland Anthropology Section, Illinois State Museum, Spring TerranceJ. Martin 0 field, Illinois Kim A. McBride 0 Museum and Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan w. Stephen McBride 0 Museum and Department of Anthropology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan Charles E. Orser, Jr. 0 Department of Geography and Anthropology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana Elizabeth J. Reitz 0 Athens, Georgia Department of Anthropology, University of Georgia, Steven Judd Shephard 0 Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria Archaeology, Box 178, City Hall, David A. Singer Thacher Street, Milton, Massachusetts Suzanne M. Spencer-Wood 0 Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts Robert W. Venables 0 American Indian Community House, 842 Broadway, New York, New York

7 D Foreword Historical archaeology has made great strides during the last two decades. Early archaeological reports were dominated by descriptions of features and artifacts, while research on artifacts was concentrated on studies of topology, technology, and chronology. Site reports from the 1960s and 1970s commonly expressed faith in the potential artifacts had for aiding in the identifying socioeconomic status differences and for understanding the relationships between the social classes in terms of their material culture. An emphasis was placed on the presence or absence of porcelain or teaware as an indication of social status. These were typical features in site reports written just a few years ago. During this same period, advances were being made in the study of food bone as archaeologists moved away from bone counts to minimal animal counts and then on to the costs of various cuts of meat. Within the last five years our ability to address questions of the relationship between material culture and socioeconomic status has greatly expanded. The essays in this volume present efforts toward measuring expenditure and consumption patterns represented by commonly recovered artifacts and food bone. These patterns of consumption are examined in conjunction with evidence from documentary sources that provide information on occupations, wealth levels, and ethnic affiliations of those that did the consuming. One of the refreshing aspects of these papers is that the authors are not afraid of documents, and their use of them is not limited to a role of confirmation. Despite what some have contended, historical archaeology is not in danger of being bastardized by the use of documents. In reality, its full potential will not be realized unless all resources are brought into play and are reflected against each other, as they are in these papers. The models and approaches offered here are efforts toward a fuller understanding of the relationship between people and material culture, and represent strides toward a fuller realization of the interpretive potential of archaeology. They all represent approaches to the data that have been developed in the last five years. Several of these models have great promise and potential as tools for the interpretation of archaeological assemblages. Given the rate at which our knowledge and sophistication is developing, it is clear that, in another five years, some of these approaches will probably seem simplistic and naive. No doubt, in some cases, the models will be expanded and improved by the authors who are presenting them in this volume. This is an exciting time in historical archaeology because the boundaries of our knowledge are rapidly expanding and we are beginning to deal with broad questions of the relationship between people and their material culture. ix

8 x Foreword To some observers, it may seem that the development of historical archaeology is slow because they focus on the distance to be covered rather than the progress that has been made. This reminds me of the plea made by the English potter Richard Champion when petitioning Parliament for the renewal of his patent for making of hard-paste porcelain in His success in bringing porcelain to production during the first patent was limited, and in stating his case for renewal of the patent, he asked for Parliament to recognize his limited success and to have faith in the potential of what he was undertaking. Champion summed up his case as follows: It is therefore presumed that the Legislature will distinguish between over-sanguine Hopes, in Point of Time, of an Invention, which however has, at length Succeeded, and those visionary Projects which deceive for ever. IWedgwood 1775:9)1 Some of the models presented in this volume will succeed in becoming important tools for the interpretation of artifact assemblages, whereas others will be superceded by systems and approaches yet to be developed. GEORGE L. MILLER 1 Wedgwood, Josiah, 1775, Papers Relative to Mr. Champion's Application to Parliament for the Extension of the Term of a Patent, No publisher listed.

9 D Preface The challenge facing historical archaeologists is to contribute insights into the past beyond those available from the historical record. The goal of this volume is to explain household variations in historic consumer behavior through combined analyses of archaeological and documentary data. Comparing the different data available from documentary and archaeological sources provides more information than can be gained from either source alone. The primary hypothesis of this volume is that socioeconomic stratification significantly affects certain consumer behaviors, involving choices to acquire, and later archaeologically deposit, relatively expensive versus inexpensive goods. Such consumer choices are inferred primarily from quantitatively measured patterns in archaeological data. Through comparative site analyses, household variations in these patterns are explained through documented variations in socioeconomic status and/or other factors affecting consumer behavior This volume is not a haphazard collection of available research on a general topic. It developed out of my research interests and the recent growth of similar research in historical archaeology, facilitated by the development of price scaling indices for ceramics and fauna. All chapters are concerned with explaining consumer behavior, and were specifically written with the shared framework of "consumer choice." This framework was developed to combine the analysis of variables affecting the selective acquisition of goods with archaeological models of selective discard. Chapters draw on theory, concepts and research from economics, sociology, anthropology, and history to synthesize cultural frameworks that relate patterns in archaeological data to economic, social, and political factors in consumer behavior. In the aggregate, the chapters in this volume offer a comparative data base for assessing the conditions under which patterns of archaeologically deposited data were affected by socioeconomic consumer behaviors, and/or other behaviors. This volume and my research in it could not have reached successful completion without the conscientious work, support, and enthusiasm of many professional colleagues and individuals. I am grateful to a number of colleagues both for their contributions to this volume and for assisting me in developing my research so that I could contribute to and edit this volume. While it is impossible to acknowledge individually all those who made this volume possible, I would like to express my thanks here to those who made unusual contributions to this effort. The staff at Plenum Press have played a major part in the publication of this volume. From my first contact, Eliot Werner, senior editor at Plenum, encouraged and supported me in organizing and editing this volume. Eliot xi

10 xii Preface Werner's professional advice on innumerable details, and his patience with the inevitable delays, were a great blessing. I am also grateful to production editors Kenneth Wishnia, and especially Daniel Spinella, for their painstakingly detailed work in professionally publishing this volume. Other individuals at Plenum, including Peter Strupp, associate managing editor, gave me assistance on many details. My warmest thanks to all the professionals at Plenum who made this volume possible. Over the course of two years, colleagues freely sent me conference papers, from which I proposed this volume. Authors of every chapter in this volume completed the time-consuming tasks, both of comparative multisite archaeological and documentary research, and of rewriting and revising manuscripts to include the framework of consumer choice. Mark Leone not only contributed an insightful epilogue, but his enthusiastic support encouraged me in editing this volume. For inspiration, thoughtful comments, and support for my own research, I am especially grateful to Mark Leone and George Miller. I have been privileged to see a number of graduate and undergraduate students develop professionally in the process of assisting in my research. Foremost among these is Scott Heberling, who, as a graduate student, contributed professional-quality research and writing to our coauthored chapter. Finally, I am grateful to my father for sharing his love of science, nature, and music with me. I am thankful that my mother and father always actively encouraged and supported my intellectual and personal growth. SUZANNE M. SPENCER-WOOD

11 Contents D Foreword by George L. Miller IX CHAPTER 1 Introduction 1 Suzanne M. Spencer-Wood Scope 1 Theory Overview 4 Some Aspects of Paradigms 9 Methodology 14 Organization of the Volume 18 References 20 PART I Eighteenth- through Early Nineteenth-Century Commercial Agricultural Economy 25 CHAPTER 2 Ceramics as Indicators of Status and Class in Eighteenth-Century New York 31 Sherene Baugher and Robert W. Venables Introduction 31 Archaeological Sources and Methods 38 Conclusion 50 References 51 CHAPTER 3 Consumer Choices in White Ceramics: A Comparison of Eleven Early Nineteenth-Century Sites 55 Suzanne M. Spencer-Wood and Scott D. Heberling Introduction: Theoretical Context, Previous Research, and Hypotheses 55 The Green Family's Socioeconomic Status 62 Data and Methods 64 Conclusions 79 References 82 xiii

12 xiv Contents CHAPTER 4 Threshold of Affordability: Assessing Fish Remains for Socioeconomics 85 David A. Singer Introduction 85 Statement of Research 86 Consumer Theory 86 Documentary Data and Methods 88 Archaeological Methods 90 Archaeological Data Analysis 92 Conclusion 98 References 98 CHAPTER 5 Vertebrate Fauna and Socioeconomic Status 101 Elizabeth J. Reitz Introduction 101 Research Design 101 Variables That Influence the Interpretation of Faunal Deposits 102 Variables That Influence Choice 105 Criteria for Socioeconomic Status 107 Conclusions 116 References 117 CHAPTER 6 Plantation Status and Consumer Choice: A Materialist Framework for Historical Archaeology 121 Charles E. Orser, Jr. Introduction 121 Historical Materialism and Historical Archaeology 121 The Plantation: Racial or Economic Institution? 124 Plantation Status and Consumer Choice 126 Identifying Plantation Status and Consumer Choice 131 Conclusion 132 References 133 PART II Mid-Nineteenth Century Commerce and Industrialization 139 CHAPTER 7 Socioeconomic Variation in a Late Antebellum Southern Town: The View from Archaeological and Documentary Sources 143 W. Stephen McBride and Kim A. McBride Introduction 143 Barton, Small Riverport Town 146

13 Contents xv Consumption at Barton 148 Discussion and Conclusions 156 References 158 CHAPTER 8 Status Variation in Antebellum Alexandria: An Archaeological Study of Ceramic Tableware 163 Steven Judd Shepard Theoretical Framework 163 Analytical Methods 170 Analysis Results 175 Conclusions 192 References 195 CHAPTER 9 Status Indicators: Another Strategy for Interpretation of Settlement Pattern in a Nineteenth-Century Industrial Village 199 Paul M. Heberling The Problem 200 Coping with the Real World 202 Exercise in Improvisation 202 Testing the Hypotheses 205 Archaeological Evidence 207 Conclusion 214 References 215 CHAPTER 10 The Use of Converging Lines of Evidence for Determining Socioeconomic Status 217 Patrick H. Garrow Introduction 217 The Case Studies 219 The Washington Civic Center Project 221 The Wilmington Boulevard Project 223 Conclusions 230 References 231 CHAPTER 11 Nineteenth-Century Households and Consumer Behavior in Wilmington, Delaware 233 Charles H. LeeDecker, Terry H. Klein, Cheryl A. Holt, and Amy Friedlander Introduction 233 Research Context 235

14 xvi Contents Data Collection and Analytical Methods 242 Results 246 Conclusion 257 References 258 CHAPTER 12 Adapting to Factory and City: Illustrations from the Industrialization and Urbanization of Paterson, New Jersey 261 Lu Ann De Cunzo Introduction 261 The Research Program 264 Conclusions 290 References 293 PART III Late Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Urban Sites 297 CHAPTER 13 Working-Class Detroit: Late Victorian Consumer Choices and Status 301 Mark C. Branstner and Terrance J. Martin Introduction 301 Theoretical Orientation 302 Case Study: The Stroh Brewing Company Site 303 Archaeological Data and Methods 307 Archaeological Results 308 Archaeological Results-Summary 314 Concusions 317 References 318 CHAPTER 14 Miller's Indices and Consumer-Choice Profiles: Status-Related Behaviors and White Ceramics 321 Suzanne M. Spencer-Wood Introduction: Theoretical Context and Review of Previous Research 321 Data and Field Methods 326 Analytical Methods 327 Hypotheses 334 Results 335 Summary 352 References 354 Addendum 357

15 Contents xvii CHAPTER 15 Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior in Turn-of-the-Century Phoenix, Arizona 359 Susan L. Henry Introduction 359 Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior 360 Data from Phoenix 363 Results 372 Conclusions 377 References 379 CHAPTER 16 Gravestones: Reflectors of Ethnicity or Class? 383 Lynn Clark Introduction 383 Ethnicity, Class, and Consumer Choice 384 Theories of Ethnicity 385 Research Strategy 386 Results 388 Conclusions 393 References 395 PART IV Epilogue: Middle-Range Theory in Historical Archaeology 397 Mark P. Leone and Constance A. Crosby Index 411