Engendering Labor, African Enslavement, and Human-Horse Relations in Chickasaw Territory

ABSTRACT The archaeological study of the Levi Colbert Prairie site is exploring the convergence of gender, labor, racialization, agriculture, slavery, and human-animal interactions in ways that illuminate identity making, cultural categorization and community building in nineteenth-century Chickasaw territory. A variety of experiences, tasks, and social practices transformed the landscapes and relations of African diasporans, Native Americans, and horses, in what became the State of Mississippi. Artifacts and animals encountered on the frontiers of settler societies need to be rethought with a broader notion of materiality and alternative agencies in mind to better understand captivity, the cultural contexts of work, and the reach of oppression.