Does anyone out there know if any trace element analyses (or other
diagnostic tests) have been conducted on urban faunal assemblages --
notably bovine food remains -- from late 19th and early 20th century urban
sites?  What I'm looking for are any studies that have attempted to
discriminate whether or not cattle bones recovered from archaeological
contexts can yield (or have yielded) nutritional data similar to that of
human skeletal samples.
 
After 1856, the ways in which Americans got their meat changed dramatically
with the completion of direct railroad lines between Chicago (and the
Midwest) and Eastern urban centers.  Corn-fed cattle (and hogs) were
shipped on the hoof via rail to urban abattoirs (Philadelphia, New York and
Boston, as well as smaller urban centers), supplanting locally (and
regionally) raised range (grass-fed) cattle.  There are some intriguing
implications for socioeconomic analyses if it can be determined from food
bones recovered archaeologically whether the meat being bought and eaten
came from local cattle or from Midwestern cattle.
 
So, to the meat of my query (sorry, I couldn't resist):
 
1. Have nutritional studies been done on 19th and 20th century urban faunal
assemblages? I cannot locate any examples in the literature I have on hand.
 
and
 
2. If these have not been done, are they viable -- e.g., can
dietary/nutritional distinctions be made from bovine skeletal material
illustrating whether the cattle were corn-fed or were range cattle?
 
Thanks.
 
David Rotenstein
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
David S. Rotenstein, Ph.D.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
WWW: http://www.city-net.com/~davidsr/crm.htm
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