Jug Seneca Village was predominantly a Black middle class neighborhood which was located where the city of New York subsequently built Central Park. Through the excavation of Seneca Village and the sites of houses like that of the Wilson family–where this stoneware jug was found– historians, archeologists, [...]
Eye (from hook and eye) Figure 1 shows a copper alloy hook and eye excavated from the Wilson house in Seneca Village. Background Hooks and eyes were a common way of fastening clothing in the nineteenth century. [...]
Curry comb The significance of horses in 19th century New York City could not be overstated, and range from military purposes to urban transportation. Curry combs were used in order to maintain their muscular health and preserve their coat. While we tend to see plastic or [...]
Pencil In the 1840s, the American slate pencil factory situated in West Castleton, Vermont was the primary producer of slate pencils in the United States. The light-colored, soft material known as soap-stone slate, quarried from the Slate Valley, was considered to be of the finest quality. Beginning [...]
Fishing weight Buried within the ruins of the house of one Seneca Village resident, William Godfrey Wilson, was a lead weight similar in appearance to those used for centuries to fish (Harper 2010, 41). The material and composition of this weight was common, and similar items [...]
Presentation of the Self Presentation of the Self focuses on how individuals present themselves to society. The artifacts which fall under this heading were excavated in the yard between the Websters and Phillipses land. Although these families belonged to the middle and upper classes, not all [...]
Tea Tea, and all the rituals and accoutrements that go with it, has become an important cultural practice across the world since it was first popularized in China. Initially used for medicinal purposes, tea later became more popular as a beverage for leisure, fostering many tea-drinking [...]
Recreation When we have time, many of us like to watch television, read books, and go to museums. However, recreational activities in Seneca Village looked quite different. The history of recreation in America allows us to further develop our understanding of their middle class nineteenth-century lifestyles, [...]
Care of the Body Seneca Village was a predominantly African American multi-ethnic community that lasted from 1825 to 1857. According to the 1855 Census, William Godfrey Wilson, his wife Charlotte, and their children were an African-American family who owned the plot of land where their house [...]
Kitchen and Table The everyday act of dining plays a significant role in nearly every culture. In the kitchen, people cook for their loved ones, work side by side, and share skills and recipes. The dining table is not only a place to eat nourishing food, [...]