Research  Issues

Prior to conducting Phase III excavations at an archaeological site, archaeologists need to develop a series of important research issues that will guide how the excavations and subsequent analyses are conducted.  These research issues are developed before the excavations are conducted to ensure that the field and analytical methods used are suitable for extracting the important information from the site.  The extent to which these research issues can be addressed, of course, is dependent on the actual results of the excavations.

• the examination of dietary habits of the site occupants, based on the recovery of bone and plant remains.
• studying intrasite and intersite settlement patterns.
• the refinement of the historic development of the farmstead, based on the available historic documentation.
• the examination of refuse disposal patterns within the site.
• studying consumer behavior patterns at the site.  What regional trade networks are evident through the examination of the artifacts recovered from the site?  What types of artifacts were available and used during the antebellum (pre-Civil War) and early post bellum on rural Appalachian farmsteads in what is now Eastern West Virginia.
• looking for evidence of ethnicity, as demonstrated by intrasite settlement patterns, refuse disposal patterns, and the artifact assemblage.
• examining evidence of gender within the site (if any), as reflected by the recovered artifacts and artifact patterning.
• ascertaining indications of social status.
• examining building construction techniques.
• deducing modes of destruction of the aboveground remains (e.g., intentional razing, gradual deterioration, intentional or unintentional burning, etc.).