The Mother of the Father of Our Country: Mary Ball Washington\u27s Genteel Domestic Habits

The year 1743 brought hardship to the Washingtons as their family patriarch, Augustine, passed away unexpectedly. At that time, a young George Washington inherited the family’s home plantation in Fredericksburg, known today as Ferry Farm. Augustine’s will stipulated that George’s mother, Mary Ball Washington, manage the plantations of their four young boys until they came of age. Between 1743 and 1772, Mary enjoyed the personal agency that widowhood allowed her; she was responsible for the management decisions of the Washington household and the surrounding farm. Mary’s choices reflect an ambitious woman determined to participate in the genteel society her family had enjoyed before Augustine’s death. Focusing upon small finds - unique, personal artifacts- recovered from Ferry Farm, this article considers Mary’s investments in fashionable gentry-class domestic activities such as the display of household ornaments, the tea ceremony, and creation of fancy needlework

Book Review: The Jeffersons at Shadwell by Susan Kern

The Jeffersons at Shadwell, by Susan Kern, 2010, Yale University Press, New Haven, 384 pages, 56 black-and-white illustrations, $30.00 (cloth)

Archaeological Testing at 10 Francis Street, Annapolis, Maryland, 18AP55

Part of the State Circle Site: http://hdl.handle.net/1903/11004In August 1990, archaeological investigations were permitted at 10 Francis Street (18AP55). The house on this property dates to the early eighteenth century and the property has had little disturbance since that time. Excavation here has provided an excellent opportunity to learn more about this period of Annapolis' history. Two units were excavated and are described fully within this report. One unit, placed next to the house foundation, revealed an eighteenth-century brick sidewalk beneath the current mid-nineteenth-century brick sidewalk, but it did not contain any builder's trench for the structure. A second unit, randomly place in the back yard, revealed intact stratigraphy dating back to the early eighteenth century. These findings demonstrate the integrity of this site and its potential for future investigation. Any alterations to this property should proceed only after further controlled excavations have taken place

Paca Garden Archaeological Testing, 18AP01, 186 Prince George Street, Annapolis, Maryland

During the summer of 1990, the brick canal which provides spring water for the Paca Garden pond was undergoing repair, providing the opportunity for archaeological excavation. The Paca property (18AP01) has been the subject of several archaeological investigations since the mid-1960s, but the lack of proper documentation made further investigations necessary. Three units were excavated and are described fully within this report. These units revealed that on the lower terrace of the Garden, no eighteenth or nineteenth-century layers exist to the south and east of the canal. Within the boundaries of the canal, nineteenth- and twentieth-century layers of fill were recovered. In addition, a few eighteenth century artifacts were recovered, providing some evidence for an eighteenth-century layer. Such information provides a clue to the construction techniques used to reconstruct the current garden. A summary of previous investigations and current findings are presented

Excavations at St. Anne's Churchyard, 18AP43, Church Circle, Annapolis, Maryland

Archaeological investigations at St. Anne's Churchyard, I8AP43, Annapolis, Maryland were conducted at three different times. First, in 1985, were the archaeological excavations of a trench in the churchyard which was to be disturbed by Baltimore, Gas and Electric. This area was previously disturbed as several disarticulated human bones were found. Second, in 1987, there was an excavation in the east yard to explore the brick feature which was being impacted by the digging of a planting hole. Archaeological explorations revealed a burial vault. In that same year, there were excavations in an area that was to be impacted by the construction of a ramp for handicap access. These explorations revealed several haphazardly placed burials all facing in an east-west direction. There was a significant amount of alterations in the churchyard during the past two years, especially with the planting of trees and the trenching for an underground sprinkler system. There has been some previous disturbance in the churchyard, when gas and water lines were laid as early as the late 19th century, but on the whole, there are many undisturbed colonial burials still intact. St. Anne's is an important cultural resource, and any other alterations to the yard should be preceded only by controlled excavations