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Pig Manure and Swizzle Sticks: Patterns of Urban Trash in Rural Settings

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Abstract

Low-density scatters of historical period artifacts may be interpreted as byproducts of manure spreading. They consist of pieces of trash inadvertently mixed with food refuse that was fed to pigs. While most of these artifacts were not ingested, they became mired in the resulting manure that farmers spread on their fields as fertilizer. Whether or not a scatter of late historical artifacts represents manure spreading or some other kind of urban-trash disposal can be tested archaeologically, and that is the subject of this article. Archival data confirm that archaeological findings at the E. Z. Russell Farm site (18PR917) in Prince George’s County, Maryland, U.S.A., connect World War II–era commercial and institutional kitchens in Washington, D.C., with the feeding of pigs and subsequent use of their manure on nearby fields.

Extracto

Las dispersiones de baja densidad de artefactos del período histórico pueden interpretarse como subproductos de la propagación del estiércol. Consisten en pedazos de basura mezclados inadvertidamente con desperdicios de comida con los que se alimentaba a los cerdos. Si bien la mayoría de estos artefactos no se ingerían, se enredaban en el estiércol resultante que los agricultores esparcían en sus campos como fertilizante. Si una dispersión de artefactos históricos tardíos representa el esparcimiento del estiércol o algún otro tipo de eliminación de basura urbana se puede probar arqueológicamente, y ese es el tema de este artículo. Los datos de archivo confirman que los hallazgos arqueológicos en el sitio de la Granja E. Z. Russell (18PR917) en el Condado de Prince George, Maryland, EE. UU., conectan las cocinas comerciales e institucionales de la era de la Segunda Guerra Mundial en Washington, D.C., con la alimentación de cerdos y el uso posterior de su estiércol en campos cercanos.

Résumé

Les fragments de faible densité d'objets d'une période historique peuvent être interprétés comme des produits dérivés de l'épandage de fumier. Ils consistent en des morceaux de déchets mélangés accidentellement aux restes d'aliments utilisés pour nourrir les porcs. Si ces objets n'ont pas en grande partie été ingérés, ils se sont incrustés dans le fumier généré et utilisé comme engrais par les fermiers pour l'épandage de leurs champs. La question de savoir si des fragments d'objets historiques anciens représentent l'épandage de fumier ou une autre forme d'élimination d'ordures urbaines peut faire l'objet de tests archéologiques. Ceci est le sujet de cet article. Les données des archives confirment que les observations archéologiques sur le site de la Ferme E. Z. Russell (18PR917) dans le Comté du Prince George, dans le Maryland aux États-Unis, connectent les cuisines institutionnelles et commerciales de l'époque de la Deuxième guerre mondiale à Washington, D.C., avec l'alimentation des porcs et l'utilisation consécutive du fumier sur les champs environnants.

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Acknowledgments:

I am grateful for the assistance of the citizen scientists at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Environmental Archaeology Laboratory for processing and researching the ceramic assemblage from 18CH930 that was collected tangential to and outside the terms of the contracted work during which I found that site. I thank the many farmers and archaeological team members who, over the years, feigned interest in my many questions and provided insights into trash their grandparents left behind. Sarah Janesko’s observations confirmed my assessment of the Ruff trash deposit: I thank her for her help and for providing for a photograph some of the artifacts she recovered. Editor Chris Matthews and associate editor Paul Mullins have been very patient with my stumbles through the editorial process. Paul’s input, as well as that of three anonymous reviewers, materially improved this paper; however, all errors of omission and commission, and any unintended misrepresentation of the individuals and communities discussed herein are my responsibility.

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  1. Smithsonian Environmental Archaeology Laboratory, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, 647 Contees Wharf Road, Edgewater, MD, 21037, U.S.A.

    James G. Gibb

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Correspondence to James G. Gibb.

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Gibb, J.G. Pig Manure and Swizzle Sticks: Patterns of Urban Trash in Rural Settings. Hist Arch 54, 240–261 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41636-019-00225-4

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