The Archaeology of Multigenerational Social Reproduction: Economic Strategies and Material Life at the Gibbs Farm

Abstract The Gibbs farm in East Tennessee near Knoxville was operated between the 1790s and the early twentieth century. Historical details related to the farm appear to illustrate a typical middle-class Southern Appalachian farm. Upon closer scrutiny, the economic practices and material life at the farm illustrate how the Gibbs family effectively sustained four generations for over a century. As an example of social reproduction, aggressive commercial farming and related inheritance practices allowed family members to gift farmland and dowries to adult children. Material culture at the farm, such as a log dwelling, a pork diet, and use of inexpensive redware, likewise illustrates a success vs. excess material standard. Family members lived comfortably, drew upon familiar vernacular material traditions, and were active commercial consumers, yet overall chose to live conservatively and invest resources back into the means of production. Accepted uncritically, economically conservative practices and use of folk material items could be construed as reinforcing typical negative cultural tropes projected upon the region.