Area of Interest:

Mid-nineteenth century Cherokee, Cherokee Removal in 1838, archaeological and archival research, material culture, everyday life, adaptation and maintenance of traditional cultural practices

Research & Activities:

Entered the program in 2003.

Education: MA Anthropology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Research Interests: My research focuses on the mid-nineteenth century Cherokee enclaves that were established after the Cherokee Removal in 1838. My research incorporates archaeological and archival data and investigates the role material culture played in the daily negotiations undertaken by the Cherokees. I hope to show the ways that some groups have adapted to economic and social conditions imposed through modern state control and industrialization and at the same time maintained traditional cultural practices.

Selected Publications:

2007    "Native American Identity in the Market Economy, 1775-1850." Symposium chair, and co-organizer (with Mark Plane). Society for American Archaeology Conference, Austin, Texas.

2007    "Negotiation in a Cherokee Post-Removal Household, 1838-1850." Society for American Archeology Conference , Austin, Texas.

2005    "Race, Class, And Material Culture in Antebellum North Carolina". Southeastern Archaeological Conference, Columbia, South Carolina.

1996    "The Archaeology and History of the Cherokee Out Towns," Master's thesis, Department of Anthropology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville