A Family’s Legacy: The Archaeology of W.E.B. Du Bois’s Home

Image of the W.E.B. Du Bois Homesite (Source: W.E.B. Du Bois Homesite website)

 

Yesterday was the birthday of world renowned and influential sociologist, W.E.B. Du Bois.  If you have taken any sociology (or Black studies) courses you may have heard of W.E.B. Du Bois.  He is most notably remembered for his work confronting a variety of vitally important issues, such as racism, poverty, women’s rights, warfare, environmental degradation, and nuclear weapons.  He also advocated for education for all and civil rights for African Americans.  He is also known as a founder of various organizations and movements, including the Niagara Movement, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and the Pan-African Congresses. 

 

His professional accomplishments often overshadow his personal life, as well as the life of his family.  He was the descendant of several generations of African Americans who lived in rural New England.  In fact, his childhood home, the Black Burghardt family homestead, was gifted to him by members of the NAACP as a 60^th birthday present.  He intended on renovating the home, where he lived between the ages of 2 and 6, but ultimately, he never completed this project.  He ultimately sold the property before moving to Africa, and the home was subsequently torn down.  Several decades later two individuals purchased the property for the express purpose of memorializing W.E.B. Du Bois’s life and accomplishments.  Today, the W.E.B. Du Bois Homesite is a National Historic Landmark, and various interpretative options are available to visitors to learn more about this accomplished man.  There have also been a series of archaeological investigations completed at the site, which have and continue to provide information about the livelihoods of the Black Burghardt family, maternal relatives of Du Bois, and glimpses into what life may have been like for rural African Americans of New England.  This blog post will discuss what is currently available about those livelihoods.

 

The archaeological investigations at the W.E.B. Du Bois Homesite were conducted during the 1980s and early 2000s.  They were led by faculty and staff at the University of Massachusetts Amherst through field schools that enabled students to learn and practice archaeological excavation techniques.  Early excavations (conducted in the 1980s) relied heavily on non-invasive survey techniques, whereas later excavations (completed in the early 2000s) utilized cultural informants by way of community members who were involved in or witnessed the original preservation efforts of the home either by Du Bois or the two individuals responsible for promoting the conservancy of the site.  These individuals were also useful in pinpointing historical records and documents that the (faculty, staff, and student) researchers either were unaware of or had not previously considered.  Taken together, these methods have provided a rich background on the home and property, thereby providing directions for each archaeological investigation.

 

The initial investigations of the 1980s provided information concerning locations of specific structures that had previously existed on the site.  Currently, as was the case 40 years ago, there only structure remaining on the property is a collapsed cellar, so being able to recognize and locate other structures was important since there was no physical evidence of their existence.  More recent investigations have either supported or rejected those initial conclusions, as well as located additional aspects of the home and family’s life.  One new discovery was the presence of small agricultural plots adjacent to the family home.  It is unclear if these were gardens, which is the prevailing assumption, and what their specific purposes were (e.g., grow medicinal herbs or food).  Investigations into the use and purpose of these plots are ongoing.

 

The excavations also turned up a variety of artifacts, largely what would be expected at a site that was occupied for over 130 years.  There were a variety of utilitarian, architectural, personal, and nutritionally supportive items, which included glassware, ceramics, agricultural tools, and more.  There various types of ceramics, ranging from ornate to plainware.  The glassware artifacts showed an emphasis on medicinal products, such as various historically available medicinal products.  Personal hygiene products were also evident among the glass artifacts (e.g., Vaseline, Listerine, and hair products).  Glass was also used for food storage as a number of fruit storage jars and some alcoholic beverage containers were also discovered, although many of the latter items may have been dumped on the site by neighbors after the family left the area.  There were also several pieces of jewelry and other personal adornment items found throughout the investigations.

 

One of the more interesting artifacts was an assemblage known as a minkisi bundle, which is a container filled with spiritually important objects.  The assemblage was found in the house foundation and included a metal button with a six pointed star on it, a juvenile bear’s tooth, polished stone.  It is unknown who put the minkisi bundle in the cellar or why, but its presence provides greater insights into the family’s beliefs, as well as the greater beliefs and traditions of New Englanders.

 

Additionally, the historical investigations and artifacts provided a greater understanding of the daily life of the Black Burghardt family.  It was clear that the family had individual autonomy and choice regarding professions.  The family also hosted boarders who would rent rooms in the home.  Because Du Bois recorded his recollections of his childhood, coupled with the artifacts (based on type and location), the archaeological team was able to determine that not only did the Black Burghardt family reside on the property but also did two other families: the Freemans and Woosters.  In fact, a doll and several of those alcoholic beverage bottled were linked back to these families.

 

While the excavations may be completed the analysis of the artifacts and what they can tell us about the Black Burghardt family are not.  The information provided in this post is just a sample of what is currently known about the family, as well as the Freeman and Wooster families.  This information may also allow for greater interpretation of what life was like for African Americans in New England.  All of this and more is yet to be seen, however, but thus far the information that is known provides more information into the early years of W.E.B. Du Bois and his family’s rich history.

 

References

Paynter, R., Lynch, K., Norris, E., & Lewis, Q. (2008). Archaeology at the W.E.B. Du Bois Boyhood Homesite. Amherst: University of Massachusetts .

The Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area. (2024). W.E.B. Du Bois Homesite. Retrieved from W.E.B. Du Bois National Historic Site: https://www.duboisnhs.org/w-e-b-du-bois-homesite/