Applied Anthropology: Homelessness & Archaeology

Jessica Welch takes photos of the material cultural evidence left behind at a homeless site.  Source: Archaeology Magazine

The field of archaeology is undergoing a series of reformations at present, and one of those changes includes a push for archaeology and archaeologists to be more mindful in assisting local communities.  This is where Larry Zimmerman and Jessica Welch come in as they are pioneering and leading the way forward with the archaeology of homelessness.  Their archaeological work is providing new and greater insights into homeless communities, and it is their hope that this research can and will be used to better assist local homeless populations and resident communities.  This blog post will discuss their research and what specifically the archaeology of homelessness is.

The archaeology of homelessness is an area of inquiry involving the use of archaeological methods to identify and interpret the material culture evidence of homeless populations.  This is a field of study that Zimmerman happened upon by accident when he was working on a historic period site in St. Paul, Minnesota.  The site had been taken over by homeless groups for many years, and through systematic and required excavations to get to the historic site Zimmerman discovered years of evidence of the homeless occupation of the area.  Rather than discard the material as trash he noticed specific trends in the homeless populations' artifacts that very closely resembled other sites he had previously excavated. This piqued his interests into the possible research avenues of such an inquiry.

When Zimmerman moved onto a job in Indianapolis, Indiana, he began a more substantive research project into the archaeology of homelessness.  He included Jessica Welch in the project partially because she had been homeless for a period of time and her knowledge and experience could be useful in the project.  She later became a permanent member of the team, providing greater understanding to the creation the project and interpretation of its results. 

Zimmerman and Welch’s partnership resulted in the creation of a typology/classification system of various homeless sites throughout Indianapolis.  These sites are classified by use and chronology, demonstrating either temporary or permanent use as well as individual or larger group utilization.  Zimmerman and Welch also observed the material culture evidence left behind at these sites and made some startling realizations that shatter many stereotypical views about homeless individuals.  First, there was an abundance of a variety of food and alcoholic containers but very little evidence of drug use.  The food containers present at the site are most often fast food containers, which demonstrates that these are easy to obtain resources and also illustrates the ease of access homeless individuals have to these resources compared to food available in grocery stores.  When canned goods were present they were often unopened or crudely opened.  The reason was not due to a lack of interest or desire to consume them but the practicality of not being able to.  Many homeless people do not have a can opener or other means of opening the cans of food provided to them.  Zimmerman and Welch have advocated for the distribution of can openers if groups feel compelled to distribute canned goods, although they also point out the issues related to cooking such foods in certain places based on their site analyses. 

Another interesting discovery is the number of travel sized personal hygiene products found at the sites.  This demonstrates a desire among homeless individuals to maintain personal hygiene, but the majority of these items were unopened.  Again, the reason for this was a lack of resources to use them.  Without regularly available running water (let along clean running water) these items are appreciated but not able to be used by the homeless.  This demonstrates another need among the homeless and a better means of assisting them with cleanliness.

Zimmerman and Welch also identified a series of cached items, which are items stored while individuals make short term trips away from their base camps.  This is a system regularly utilized by foraging groups, of which homeless populations most resemble culturally.  These caches contain items of personal value to the homeless, such as photos and private possessions, as well as utilitarian items, such as personal medications and extra clothing.  These caches most often resemble piles of trash and are often collected and discarded by well meaning citizens or government agents meant to clean up public spaces.  Zimmerman and Welch oppose such disposal practices as they often cause further harm to the person and dignity of homeless individuals who lose their access to necessary medications or links to their pasts and present identities.

Ultimately, the information gained through Zimmerman and Welch’s work is opening up new information about homeless populations and more effective means of assisting them, which can be used by a variety of organizations and individuals that assist homeless individuals.  Zimmerman and Welch advocate for further research in urban and rural areas frequented by homeless populations as a means of better assisting those populations, particularly as these populations are diverse and there is no universal solution to aiding all of them. 

References

Zimmerman, L. J., & Welch, J. (2011). Displaced and Barely Visible: Archaeology and the Material Culture of Homelessness . Historical Archaeology, 67-85.

Zimmerman, L. J., Singleton, C., & Welch, J. (2010). Activism and creating a translational archaeology of homelessness. World Archaeology, 443-454.

Zimmerman, L., & Welch, J. (2006). Toward an Archaeology of Homelessness. Anthropology News, 54.