At Home in the Illinois Country begins with an overview of the French settlement of Illinois, an examination of the villages where sites have been investigated, and also new research into the origins of the French community of Peoria. The second part of the volume includes an in-depth examination of traditional French ceramics and an illustrated overview of the material culture affiliated with the sites of French households. Part Three presents detailed excavation reports and artifact analyses from recently investigated sites at the villages of Cahokia, Peoria, and Prairie du Rocher. Finally, Part Four revisits older excavations and collections for reference and comparative discussion. The result is an exhaustive resource for those interested in the archaeology of colonial North America. --------- Mazrim's original research elevates this volume from a simple overview of sites to a scholarly synthesis of the material world in French colonial homes. His scrutiny of patterns in the rich material record reveals a correlation with varied ethnic, economic, and political conditions of the region. Further, Mazrim's use of primary documents to locate and interpret archaeological remains lends this book broader significance as an example of quality historical archaeology. The value of so many large color illustrations cannot be understated, such that a copy of this book will be well placed in laboratories as a comparative reference for interpreting contemporaneous artifacts and features. A copy on the office shelf will be an oft-used comprehensive guide to understanding the history and nature of domestic life in eighteenth-century Illinois Country. -Ashley A. Dumas, Black Belt Museum, University of West Alabama, Livingston, 2013

At Home in the Illinois Country: French Colonial Domestic Site Archaeology in the Midwest 1730-1800 (Studies in Illinois Archaeology, Volume 9)

Politics & Social Sciences

Robert F. Mazrim

Archaeology

Illinois State Archaeological Survey

<p>The Zimmerman site (11LS13), or the Grand Village of the Illinois, is the largest protohistoric site in Illinois and was home to the Kaskaskia band of the Illinois Confederacy during much of the seventeenth century. Excavations began there in 1947, and the researchers eventually defined the suite of pottery types known as the "Danner Series" that is affiliated with the Illinois. In 2010, the largest archaeological sample from the Zimmerman site, excavated between 1970 and 1972 (and believed lost by the 1990s), was relocated and reexamined. This has resulted in a clearer picture of the mid-seventeenth-century occupation of the site, the nature of traditional technologies at the close of prehistory in the region, and the character of the Illinois's initial response to imported European goods. REVIEW: Protohistory at the Grand Village of the Kaskaskia: The Illinois Country on the Eve of Colony is a beautifully produced scholarly and highly readable volume and an invaluable addition to the literature on the Late Prehistoric, Protohistoric, and Early Historic periods of the region.... The amount of information packed into this relatively small volume (only 175 pages, counting front material, the ten chapters, and bibliography) is stunning. The use of color photographs of artifacts throughout is highly commendable considering how many of the illustrated artifacts are European trade goods and/or Native remanufactured items. They provide an invaluable comparative reference for others working in the Protohistoric and Early Historic periods throughout Great Lakes and Midwestern regions. -Jeffrey Behm, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh</p>

Protohistory at the Grand Village of the Kaskaskia: The Illinois Country on the Eve of Colony

History

Americas

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