Cambridge University Press The Archaeology of Class in Urban America (Cambridge Studies in Archaeology)

No examination of contemporary urban communities would be complete without the discussion of class identity. But how did class identity inform the urban communities of yesteryear? Taking Newport, Rhode Island in the eighteenth century and Lowell, Massachusetts in the nineteenth century, at the peak of their economic powers when they represented some of the purist forms of capitalist production in North America, as case studies, this book explores the material and biological manifestations of class identity. Stephen Mrozowski uses a combination of documentary research, material cultural studies, and environmental archaeology to probe the lives of artisans, merchants, and mill workers in these urban communities. Taking an interdisciplinary approach to fully examine burgeoning notions of class, he offers significant insights into the factors shaping those notions. This engaging study, supported throughout by tables, illustrations and graphs, is required reading for all students of urban history and historical archaeology. Review Review of the hardback: 'The processes of class formation and distinction are ongoing in American cities. For those interested in those processes, The Archaeology of Class in Urban America is a 'must read'.' Cambridge Archaeological Journal Book Description An engaging study which looks at archaeological, documentary and environmental evidence to explore the factors determining class identity. About the Author Stephen A. Mrozowksi is Director of the Fiske Memorial Center for Archeological Research and Professor of Archeology at the University of Massachusetts, Boston. He is the author of numerous articles, and co-editor (with James A. Delle and Robert Paynter) of The Lines that Divide: Historical Archaeologies of Race, Class and Gender (2003). He also serves on the editorial board of The International Journal of Historical Archaeology.