Seeds, pits and other plant remains tell us what fruits and vegetables were commonly eaten. B ecause we often recover deposits from different households or from different time periods, it is also possible to study how the lives of different groups of people varied and how these distinctive life-ways changed through time. The careful study of historical documents alongside archeological evidence and artifacts can help us answer questions such as these. B ut these examples, focusing on food and diet, only scratch the surface. Archeologists also study how the lives of women changed after the American Revolution, or they may consider what the state of health and sanitation was like for an early nineteenth century city dweller, or, perhaps, they will examine what childhood was like for a colonial girl or boy.
Archeology offers a unique opportunity to study aspects of our nation's past.
The physical remains left by our forebearers, which make up the archeological record, can help us understand who we are, where we came from, and how our way of life came to take the form that it does today. The study of animal bone recovered from archeological sites can tell us what kinds of meats were commonly eaten. In some cases we can even learn how these meats were prepared. Nineteenth century ceramics excavated from Franklin Court, ca. A single archeological deposit can produce large quantities of artifacts.