A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF A POTENTIAL TAVERN SITE IN JACKSON, NORTH CAROLINA

Abstract

Residents of Jackson, North Carolina have found what they believe to be an 18th century tavern site. This thesis assesses this claim by comparing those artifacts to the artifacts at Wetherburn’s Tavern in Colonial Williamsburg and the Palmer-Marsh cellar in Bath, North Carolina in addition to tavern criteria created by Kathleen Bragdon. The artifacts are dated using Mean Ceramic Date, Terminus Post Quem, and pipestems. These methods show that the site in question is indeed a tavern, dated to the early part of the 18th century. Historical research indicates that this tavern belonged to Jeptha Atherton, an important figure in Jackson history.