A Family Affair: Whaling as Native American Household Strategy on Eastern Long Island, New York

Button, Emily

doi:10.22191/neha/vol43/iss1/6

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…The studies of Black and Native American men's labor in the maritime industry confirm that their employment in the whaling industry often improved their quality of life (Bolster ; Button ; Handsman ). Bolster notes that seafaring did not reach the esteem of barbering in the Black community, but it provided a sure way for Black men to acquire the means to establish households and raise families (1990, 1189).…”

Section: The Social Implications Of Boarding In the New Guinea Communitymentioning

confidence: 97%

“…The implications of this can be seen in the material evidence that archaeologists have uncovered, which supports historical claims that employment in the whaling industry brought Black and Native American households a level of economic security and material plenty. The recovery of moderately priced ceramics as well as goods of personal adornment and leisure has led some archaeologists to conclude that Black and Native American mariners were of middle class status (Bulger ; Button ; Cacchione ; Handsman ; Way ). However, the labeling of these households as middle class has indirectly assumed that women of color shared the same middle class roles, responsibilities, opportunities, and expectations of white women (Wood , 212–13).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Boarding: Black Women in Nantucket Generating Income and Building Community

Lee

2019

Transforming Anthropology

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This article addresses Black women's economic roles in nineteenth-century Nantucket, Massachusetts, during the island's ascendency as the center of a global whaling industry. Much of the existing scholarship highlights men's participation in the whaling industry, while Black women's contributions remain obscured. I use two main lines of evidence to interpret Black women's working lives: census records and ceramic vessels recovered from the Boston-Higginbotham House, a historic residence that was occupied by two Black families for almost 200 years. Changes in vessel forms over time indicate that Black women were increasingly finding ways to supplement the income of their spouses. I argue that Black women played an integral role in their household's economy, and in supporting the whaling industry, especially as boardinghouse operators. This form of entrepreneurship also served to expand Black families' opportunities for building social networks and strengthening the Black community. [Black women, boarding, labor, whaling, Nantucket]

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Section: The Social Implications Of Boarding In the New Guinea Communitymentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%