Dear Colleagues:
        Please note that we are organizing a session for the next annual SHA
conference (to be held in Rhode Island). The session abstract follows. If
you are interested in participating, please contact me directly.  Deadline
for submission will be May 1st.
Kindest regards,
Deborah L. Rotman, Ph.D., RPA
Principal Investigator
Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc.
143 Walton Avenue
Lexington KY  40508
(859) 252-4737
http://www.crai-ky.com


CALL FOR PAPERS -- SHA 2003

Revisiting Rural Contexts:  Dispelling Agrarian Myths in Historical
Archaeology

Deborah L. Rotman
Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc.

LouAnn Wurst
SUNY-Brockport

Session Abstract
        Rural America has often been defined in opposition to urban contexts.
“Rural” is understood to be simple, homogenous, agricultural, passive, and
past, while “urban” is complex, stratified, industrial, active, and future.
At a 1995 SHA session titled “Rethinking Rural Contexts,” we challenged
these simplistic assessments of “rural.” We focused on the real lived
experiences of rural Americans to examine the complex nature of social
relations in various rural contexts as well as confront stereotypes
historians and archaeologists have used to explore the countryside.  The
papers in this session present a series of case studies to revisit the myths
of agrarian society, highlight the complex social relations operating in
rural contexts, and illustrate some of the advances in our understanding
these dynamic historical archaeological contexts.