In September 1990, construction crews were digging in an area of Tutu, St. Thomas to build a shopping mall. They disturbed remains of an Amerindian village. The construction activity was stopped for 10 months. This allowed archeologists a brief period to examine the site. When archaeologists dig, they are looking for clues about the past. One of the things they look for in villages is called a midden. In the past, trash was not taken away to a dump like it is today. Trash was often buried in pits near houses and settlements. These pits are called middens. Some of the things found in middens include bones and shells from things people ate, and fragments of pottery and tools.
In this activity, students will use questions to understand and explore a report about the Tutu archeological site. Students will focus only on the paragraph of the report that describes the contents of middens. They will discuss the theme of production, distribution, and consumption.
Activity Type
Historical Period:
Keywords
About
Primary Sources in this Activity
Suggested Teaching Instructions
Before beginning this exercise, the teacher can introduce the document by sharing the information in the About section. The teacher can load the report onto an interactive smart board and have students make observations together.
The teacher will have the class focus on page 3, paragraph 3 only, the paragraph about middens.
Paragraph 3 on Page 3 of the Report: “Located about 0.36 kilometers from the mouth of Turpentine Run and about 2.50 kilometers from the Tutu Archaeological Village site is a fresh water swamp; a unique ecological feature in St. Thomas. Examination of the faunal remains in the middens at the archaeological site should reveal the extent to which the inhabitants harvested this resource for food and other materials. Additionally, although the Tutu Archaeological Village is located 1.75 kilometers inland from the nearest seacoast, middens of the site contain remains of such coastal fauna as land crabs (Gecarcinidae and Cardisoma guanhumi), West Indian topshell {Cittarium pica), bivalves {Codakia orbicularis), fish, turtles and sea mammals, including manatee. Although present, conch (Strombus gigas) shells are not numerous.”
