Anthropology
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Item Open Access An Eighteenth-Century Archaeology of Socioeconomics at Historic Bath, NC(East Carolina University, 2023-04-28) Scattergood, Chloe Suzanne; AnthropologyStudying the consumer choices of colonial North Carolinians can indicate much about their lives and status. Archaeological excavations of two eighteenth-century warehouses in Historic Bath can tell us about merchants and their clientele. The material from these warehouses suggests notable wealth disparity, not unlike today, in North Carolina’s first established town.Item Open Access The Content and Structure of Reputation Domains Across 2 Human Societies: A View from the Evolutionary Social Sciences(2021) Schacht, Ryan; Garfield, Zachary H.; Post, Emily R.; Ingram, Dominique; Uehling, Andrea; Macfarlan, Shane J.Item Open Access Efects of Family Planning on Fertility Behaviour Across the Demographic Transition(2021) Schacht, Ryan; Kramer, Karen L.; Hackman, Joe; Davis, Helen E.Item Open Access THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE SOCIAL SAFETY NET AT THE PITT COUNTY HOME(2020-08-12) Grubb, Muriel; Ewen, Charles R., 1956-; AnthropologyThe Pitt County Poor Farm, also known as the Pitt County Home, was established in the early nineteenth century to feed and house the local poor population of Pitt County, North Carolina, prior to the establishment of the federal welfare system. The farm was continuously occupied and reorganized several times before it was closed in 1965. Four seasons of archaeological and cartographic work on the site have narrowed down the location of the poor farm buildings and expanded the interpretation of what life in rural eastern North Carolina was like for this underprivileged, disenfranchised population. The findings from Pitt County are comparable to other contemporary poor farm and farmstead sites throughout the country during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.Item Open Access THE PATTERNING OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN US CITIES AND COUNTIES(East Carolina University, 2020-06-22) Pabst, Jennifer; Schacht, RyanSexual violence against women is a global public health concern; yet determining its patterning is still largely understudied. Previous research has been useful in identifying key contributors of sexual violence, including the adult sex ratio, which is the ratio of adult men to adult women in a population, as well as elements of gender inequality. However, a more comprehensive and place-based understanding of sexual violence is still needed. Data from the U.S. Census and the National Incident Based Reporting System were used to explore the patterning of sexual violence against women in cities and counties in the United States. Through the use of generalized linear mixed models, the data were analyzed to assess the individual and joint impact that sex ratio and gender inequality have on sexual violence. The results indicated a positive association between both imbalanced sex ratios and gender inequality on sexual violence. Furthermore, models considering the two variables jointly were found to best fit the data, highlighting the benefits of including both for a more comprehensive understanding of sexual violence against women. The hope is that this research can assist in efforts to both better quantify and diminish rates of sexual violence against women.Item Open Access SEEKING HEALTHCARE? PERCEPTIONS AND BELIEFS AMONG AFRICAN AMERICANS(East Carolina University, 2020-06-22) High, Jazmin; Bailey, EricMultiple studies have documented health and healthcare disparities between African Americans and whites in the United States. Many studies have traced these disparities to socioeconomic barriers such as age, income, and level of education. However, it has been found that when variables such as income, access, and insurance are controlled for, health and healthcare disparities remain. A growing body of literature suggests African Americans possess certain health beliefs and perceptions regarding concepts of health, illness, and the healthcare system that influence health and health seeking behaviors. Using empirical generalizations and theory from medical anthropology, this study expands on this growing body of literature by investigating health seeking behavior among African American adults in rural eastern North Carolina, as well as exploring African Americans' perceptions and health beliefs to see how they relate to health seeking behavior. Interviews were conducted with 20 African Americans in two rural eastern counties in North Carolina (Halifax County and Northampton County). Through data analysis, I identified a pattern of health seeking behavior. In addition, thematic analysis revealed that African Americans possess certain health beliefs (e.g. The Body Will Heal Itself) and negative perceptions of the healthcare system (e.g. African Americans do not receive equal treatment), which also influences health seeking behavior. These perceptions and beliefs influenced the timing and decision to seek care. Ultimately, this research sheds light on several factors influential in African Americans' health behaviors that may exacerbate racial disparities in health and healthcare. Consequently, health professionals and policy makers should develop and apply individually appropriate and culturally sensitive policies and interventions.Item Open Access HOW WOMEN IN THE ANDEAN HIGHLANDS OF PERU USE RELIGION TO MAKE HEALTHCARE DECISIONS(East Carolina University, 2019-08-23) Cullen, Chelsea E; Griffith, David, 1951-; AnthropologyReligious syncretism is common in Andean highlands. Andean highland women and key informants were interviewed to study the influence Christianity has exerted on women's choice of medical care, i.e. modern medicine vs. traditional medicine. The data were collected during a summer study abroad program in the Callejon de Huaylas of Peru. The overall goal of the project has been to understand the influence that Spanish colonization and Christianity has had on how local women make healthcare decisions. Andean women are marginalized in Andean society and must manage the combined stresses of the household and intensive agricultural practices.Item Restricted Measuring and Assessing Food Insecurity Among East Carolina University Undergraduate Students(East Carolina University, 2019-07-02) Midgette, Willa G.; Mathews, Holly F.; AnthropologyFood insecurity has long been an issue nationwide, however, there has been little emphasis placed on food insecurity among college students. This thesis employed a cross-sectional survey of 1,170 randomly selected undergraduate students, utilizing a variation of the USDA Adult Food Security Survey Module to assess to determine the prevalence of food insecurity among undergraduate students at East Carolina University, and utilized bivariate analysis to assess the relationship between several demographic, academic and lifestyle variables and food insecurity status, as well as the relationship between food insecurity and academic success. The thesis found that food insecurity status is significantly affected by race, first-generation student status, Pell grant eligibility, financial aid use and use of a meal plan, and found that academic performance is negatively impacted by food insecurity. Additionally, this thesis utilized 10 interviews of undergraduate students to assess how current eating and grocery shopping habits and pre-college food security influenced current food security status and assessed how students cope with food insecurity. The study found that students who were food insecure early in life are more likely to be food insecure in college. Finally, this thesis assessed the feelings about and barriers to using the on-campus food pantry at East Carolina University.Item Open Access Metabolic Disease in Subadult Skeletal Remains from Late Ottoman-Era Tell Hisban, Jordan(East Carolina University, 2019-07-25) Edwards, Emily Arlene; Perry, Megan A; AnthropologyThe site of Tell Hisban in Jordan was seasonally occupied by nomadic agropastoral tribes for over a thousand years. In the latter half of the 1800s, the Ottoman Empire instituted the Tanzimat, a series of reforms intended to solidify control over the region, including a new system of private land ownership. This new land law conflicted with traditional tribal-based land rights and resulted in intensification of agricultural production and diminished pastoralism in the regional economy. During this period of economic change, at least 62 individuals were interred in ruins on Tell Hisban, of which 55% were non-adults. Many long bones and cranial elements of non-adults within these commingled remains display evidence of vitamin C (scurvy) and D (rickets) deficiencies at a greater frequency than pre-Tanzimat or earlier regional cemeteries. Increased agricultural production may have impacted the availability of traditional foods high in ascorbic acid that prevented scurvy in past groups, and increased reliance on cereals, which lack key macronutrients. The resulting shift in diet would have disproportionately affected individuals more susceptible to nutritional stressors, such as pregnant women, infants, and weaning children. In the case of rickets, these nutritional stressors may have been exacerbated by cultural barriers which limited an individual's exposure to sunlight and may have resulted in the surprising presence of rickets in this high-ambient UV radiation environment. Together with genetic predispositions to scurvy or rickets, these biocultural changes likely contributed to increased frailty in the form of metabolic disease for infants and young children within this population compared to earlier groups at Tell Hisban and contemporary populations in other areas of Jordan and Israel.Item Open Access Bioarchaeological Analysis of a Historic North Carolina Family Cemetery(East Carolina University, 2019-07-02) Long, Madison; Perry, Megan A; AnthropologyThe Gause Cemetery at Seaside, located in Sunset Beach, North Carolina, purportedly contains members of a wealthy and influential planter family, the Gause's, who died during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 2017, a Gause descendant requested excavation of the cemetery by East Carolina University as part of an extensive genealogical project that will culminate in the reburial of the human skeletal remains. During the first season of excavation, three adult individuals were recovered from the cemetery, and excavation in 2018 uncovered five additional graves containing seven individuals. Six out of the seven individuals recovered in 2018 are subadults, one 6-8 years of age, one 7-8 years of age, another 1.5 years old, and three term infants. All individuals at the site display skeletal evidence of childhood non-specific stress indicators, such as linear enamel hypoplasias in the adults and children, and/or periostitis or porotic hyperostosis in the children. This evidence, along with the simultaneous burial of two of the newborns and the 6-8 year old child in the same grave possibly due to a disease epidemic based on historical evidence, suggests that even "elite" 18th and 19th century landowning families experienced childhood frailty in North Carolina.Item Open Access Archaeological Investigations of an Early American Farmstead: The Wiley Smith Site (31MG2098)(East Carolina University, 2019-07-02) Schmitz, Kelsey A; Ewen, Charles R., 1956-; AnthropologyWhile farmsteads are relatively abundant in the historic and archaeological record, there are many issues with the current practices used to identify, evaluate, record, and study them. However, farmsteads represent a way of life that was once customary to much of the American population, and therefore deserve adequate archaeological attention. This thesis studied a late colonial/early federal period farmstead located in the Uwharrie National Forest in Montgomery County, North Carolina, that was once owned by the sheriff of Montgomery County, Wiley Smith. This project utilized artifact analyses, historical documentation, and comparative analyses to test whether or not this farmstead operated as a truly subsistence-based unit, or whether the Smith household was instead a part of the ever-growing consumerist population of the early nineteenth century. High frequencies of decorated, mass-produced historic ceramics serve as indication that the Smith household had moved well-beyond a colloquial, subsistence lifestyle and was actively participating in the emerging consumerist and commercialist American that had begun to dominate American society. Finally, a comparative analysis of multiple historical homesteads/farmsteads within the Uwharrie National Forest identify five patterned traits. These traits relate to the landscape, geography and topography, and artifacts from farmsteads in this region, and provide the groundwork for additional, broader comparative research to establish a North Carolina Piedmont farmstead pattern.Item Open Access QR Codes and the Public: Tools for Education at Historic Brunswick Town(East Carolina University, 2019-07-02) Byrnes, Kimberly; Ewen, Charles R., 1956-; Grace-McCaskey, Cynthia; AnthropologyPublic interpretation is an integral aspect of the archaeological process, and modern technology has made it easier than ever to communicate information with the general public. Technological advancements have been an aid to museums, but not all facilities may be able to afford the newest technological advancements. Quick response (QR) codes offer a cost-effective way for every museum to implement new technology into their displays. This paper identifies the visitor use of and response to QR codes aimed at explaining the archaeological process at the Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson Historic Site. It is determined that QR codes are an effective new technology which museums with smaller budgets can invest securely in.Item Open Access As The Sun Sets, We Remain: A Bioarchaeological Analysis of the Gause Cemetery at Seaside(East Carolina University, 2019-07-02) Quintana, Jorge R; Ewen, Charles R., 1956-; Perry, Megan A; AnthropologyIn 2014, USA Today reported that the search for family roots was the second most popular hobby in the U.S.. The concomitant recognition by the general public of the forensic and bioarchaeological value of human skeletal remains has, in a few cases, proffered osteological analysis as another form of genealogical research. This study focuses on the excavation of a small cemetery of a politically and economically prominent family in Sunset Beach, NC at the request of a descendant. The osteobiographical approach utilized here provides a detailed, contextualized study of the physical remains to complement other historical data on the family. Three brick burial vaults were excavated in 2017, recovering the skeletal remains of three potential adult ancestors of the descendant. The adult female (25-34 years old) and two adult males (25-25 years old and 30-39 years old) have paleopathology profiles expected of free landowners in the antebellum Southeastern U.S. based on comparative samples, with almost no lesions indicative of infectious diseases and malnutrition but with poor dental health. In addition, material remains and burial contexts suggest internment the late 18th to early 19th centuries. Survey also indicated the original cemetery bounds stretch beyond its modern limits, intruded upon by modernization. The detailed osteobiographies presented in this study reflect the benefits and limitations of these data for genealogical research and addresses the ethical issues tied to descendant-initiated excavation of cemeteries.Item Restricted Development of a Method for the Determination of Bisphenol A in Vervet Monkey Hair using LC-MS/MS and LC-UV/Vis(East Carolina University, 2019-05-03) Lindsay, Samuel Joseph; Loudon, James; AnthropologyNo methods for estimating levels of anthropogenic disturbance on non-human primate (NHP) populations were identified within the literature. Such a method would allow for the assessment of human impact on NHP populations. Levels of bisphenol A (BPA) in hair samples was the proposed metric for such a method. Human hair samples were used to validate a procedure found in the literature.1 A methanolic extraction was performed on human hair and the resulting samples were analyzed using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The two extracted samples contained 110.1 and 37.1 pg BPA mg-1 hair. Extracted, spiked samples yielded 913.9 and 885.7 pg BPA mg-1 hair. Control samples of standard yielded 200 times lower than the expected concentration. A control alkaline extraction was attempted but not found to be suitable. Standards over the expected concertation range of prepared extractions were run on a liquid chromatography – ultraviolet visible spectrophotometry (LC-UV/Vis) system were used to generate a standard curve with an R2 value of 0.9993.Item Open Access Rubble Along the Road: Determining the Function and Date of Occupation for a Structure on Orton Plantation(East Carolina University, 2019-05-02) Nimmo, Wesley; Ewen, Charles R., 1956-; AnthropologyThere is little known about the daily lives of the enslaved and tenant farming African Americans who lived in the Lower Cape Fear region of North Carolina during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Even on the larger plantations in the region, the locations of their communities are often unknown. A combination of historical research and archaeological investigation was used to gain more insight into the use and dates of occupation of a structure on Orton Plantation, focusing on an area previously identified as a 19th century African American community. The structure excavated during the 2018 University of North Carolina Wilmington archaeological field school was occupied between the late antebellum period and the early 20th century, and was a cabin occupied by enslaved/tenant farming African Americans. Following the structure's identification, an effort was made to reconnect the names of African American individuals who once lived on or near Orton Plantation with three historic communities in the area. These communities were historically known as Dark Branch, Marsh Branch, and Orton. Now that physical evidence of the community at Orton, which was suggested to exist in the historical record, has been found archaeologically, further research questions can be explored surrounding aspects of the African American experience in this region during and directly after the end of slavery.Item Open Access Colors of Primate Pelage: The Independent Evolution of Sexual Dichromatism in the Primate Order(East Carolina University, 2019-05-02) Wilson, Thomas C.; Perry, Megan; Mathews, Holly F.; Paciulli, Lisa; AnthropologyThere is a large body of research describing the evolutionary importance of plumage coloration among avian species. However, similar datasets are lacking for mammalian pelage. Furthermore, very little research has examined the variations of nonhuman primate (NHP) pelage coloration and patterning. Primatologists have noted conspicuous differences in coloration and patterning among NHPs, including neo-natal coats and sexual dichromatism. Sexual dichromatism refers to the differences in pelage coloration between the sexes of a single species. Sexual dichromatism is rare, but found among some species of lemurs, New World monkeys, and lesser apes. To illuminate the genetic mechanism of NHP sexual dichromatism, I examined published amino acid sequences for the MC1R and OCA2 genes of nine NHP species across multiple genera. This dataset incorporated sexually dichromatic NHPs including white-cheeked gibbons (Nomascus leucogenys), lar gibbons (Hylobates lar), and black howler monkeys (Alouatta caraya). I also examined closely allied monochromatic NHPs including brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus), long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis), black snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti), Mueller’s gibbon (Hylobates muelleri), mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata), and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Comparisons across these species suggest the MC1R gene does not play an important role in pelage coloration. In contrast, the OCA2 sequence of N. leucogenys differed, on average, ~16% from the three monochromatic species. Furthermore, the OCA2 sequences exhibit a low phylogenetic signal, suggesting that this gene may regulate dichromatic pelage. To expand these genetic datasets, I analyzed socioecological variables among these species and found that smaller home-range sizes and dispersal of both sexes may have played a role in the evolution of dichromatic pelage in NHPs.Item Open Access The Curious Case of Construction: A Uniquely Built Wharf at Brunswick/Fort Anderson(East Carolina University, 2018-08-06) Byrd, Stephanie M.; Ewen, Charles R., 1956-; AnthropologyThe waterfront area of Brunswick Town, a small but important transatlantic port on the Cape Fear River, was a major shipping and commercial center for southeastern North Carolina. The major export of tar, pitch, and turpentine to British controlled areas helped established this town for naval stores. In his original investigations of Brunswick Town, Stanley South noted ballast stone piles in the river that might be evidence of up to five colonial wharves. At one of these locations, river front erosion from increased modern commercial traffic recently revealed a colonial era wooden dock that connected to a property historically owned by William Dry II. This thesis will focus upon the archaeological investigations conducted in 2015 by the East Carolina University Archaeological Field School, specifically on the construction of this wooden wharf at the point of land connection, and the recovery of artifacts associated with Brunswick Town's shipping and commercial enterprise.Item Open Access Exploring Social Inequality at Petra through Dental Pathology(East Carolina University, 2018-07-24) Lieurance, Alysha; Perry, Megan A; AnthropologyDental pathologies such as linear enamel hypoplasias (LEHs), periapical lesions (abscesses), dental calculus and caries, and antemortem tooth loss (AMTL) can indicate physiological stress during childhood development as well as reflect biocultural markers of nutrition and oral infection. Combined, they provide a powerful indicator of differential access to resources and dietary variation. This research explores the relationship between the frequencies of these pathologies and social stratification in three samples from the ancient Nabataean capital city of Petra and the surrounding hinterlands. The mortuary repertoire of Petra includes ornate monumental fac̨ade tombs surrounding the city center in addition to less elaborate shaft chamber tombs. Previous archaeological research explains these tomb variants as reflecting family groups of higher and lower social status, respectively (Perry, 2016; Schmid, Bienkowski, Fiema, & Kolb, 2012; Wadeson, 2012a, 2012b). Statistical analysis of dental pathology frequencies in 696 teeth from the non-elite tombs, 234 teeth from the elite fac̨ade tombs, and 132 teeth from a contemporary non-urban site identified statistically higher frequencies of dental calculus between the fac̨ade and shaft chamber tomb samples (χ² = 30.79, p [less than]; 0.001) and the fac̨ade and hinterland tomb samples (χ² =5.98, p=0.014). The frequency of LEHs of the selected Polar teeth were also significantly different between the fac̨ade and shaft chamber tomb samples (χ² = 18.13, p [less than]; 0.001). Additionally, the data show significantly higher frequencies of AMTL in the non-urban hinterland tomb sample when compared to both the fac̨ade (χ² = 9.61, p = 0.002) and shaft chamber tomb samples (χ² = 17.90, p [less than]; 0.001). No differences in the frequency of dental caries or abscesses were found. The higher frequency of LEHs suggests that the elite individuals experienced stress during childhood development more often than the non-elite individuals. However, more observations of LEHs point to a higher frequency of childhood stress survival. Unfortunately, the limited subadult remains from both contexts hinders understanding the relationship between LEH frequencies and childhood morbidity and mortality. The difference in dental calculus frequencies indicates either different patterns of protein, dairy, or water consumption between tomb lineages, or differences in taphonomic preservation between tomb types. The higher frequency of AMTL in the hinterland tomb indicates that the non-urban individuals had more dental pathologies that led to AMTL, such as dental caries or calculus, than the urban samples.Item Open Access “WHEN THIS HAPPENS AGAIN”: ANALYZING COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES OF FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO REPEATED DISASTER VULNERABILITY AND THEIR IMPACT ON RECOVERY(East Carolina University, 2018-07-31) Alexander, William; Mathews, Holly F.; Grace-McCaskey, Cynthia; Griffith, David Craig; Viren, Paige; AnthropologyStorm-related flooding is one of the greatest disaster risks facing communities in eastern North Carolina. After flood events, communities of limited means may be incapable of pushing for reconstruction agendas that increase their disaster resilience. Recovery efforts driven by the agendas of outside agencies can perpetuate the pre-disaster status quo and result in a state of continued disaster vulnerability, highlighting the need for recoveries focused on the needs and viewpoints of the afflicted communities. Recently, the town of Windsor, NC has dealt with four floods reaching the 500-year flood stage. Data from participant observation and in-depth interviews with 16 stakeholders in Windsor are used to explore issues inhibiting long-term recovery. Specifically, I argue that part of the failure is due to a political power structure that favors assistance to regions with greater economic growth at the expense of economically vulnerable populations. Second, I show how repeated disaster trauma and disruptions to the recovery cycle have led many residents to distrust external agencies, misidentify the factors and risks for repeated flooding, and doubt the ability of the community to recover. I hypothesize that this attitudinal cluster is another key factor that mitigates against long-term recovery by inhibiting community building mechanisms. The goal of the research is to propose a more inclusive and holistic recovery model that addresses community viewpoints, actively seeks to create mutually beneficial relationships between residents and external agencies during recovery efforts, and views disaster recovery as a single step in a system that promotes community health and reduces vulnerability.Item Open Access Entheseal Changes as a Reflection of Activity Patterns at 1st Century BC/AD Petra, Jordan(East Carolina University, 2018-07-24) Wagner, Tara; Perry, Megan A; AnthropologyOver the past thirty years, biological anthropologists have attempted to reconstruct human behavioral patterns by analyzing entheseal attachments, the areas where tendons and ligaments attach to the bone. Many researchers hypothesize that biomechanical stress on ligaments and tendons due to repetitive activities will be reflected in bony changes that occur within the attachment site. Therefore, the distribution and characterization of these entheseal changes have been used to illuminate ancient human activity patterns. This research focuses on the pattern of entheseal changes observed in individuals from urban first century BC/AD Petra in order to generate a profile of activity patterns for the non-elite Nabataeans buried along the North Ridge. Assessment of the entheseal attachments was accomplished using the newly formed Coimbra method. This method is considered as an improvement over previous scoring techniques as it is based on the results of clinical research and incorporates refined terminology and descriptions of entheseal changes. While the multifactorial etiology of entheses hinders identifying specific occupation types, generalized patterns of activity can still be inferred from the collection of these data. The sample of Petra's non-elite experienced only slight entheseal changes compared to other communities assessed here, with little evidence of sexual division of labor. Additionally, the sample did not display bilateral asymmetry as anticipated, however there were higher scores for the lower limb than the upper limb. During the first century BC and first century AD, Petra was a major urban center and capital of the Nabataean Kingdom. Its economy was based largely on trade and some light manufacturing using local resources. The findings presented here confirm that people who were buried along the North Ridge had been working in the city, possibly involved with civic, administrative, and/or religious duties that would have been present during the height of the city.