Smokehouses and root cellars: Vernacular architecture in Appalachia

In this thesis I examine vernacular architecture in the valley surrounding Brown Mountain Creek in Amherst, County Virginia. Seven historic farmsteads dating from the late 18th century to 1920 have been identified. Through an extensive review of primary documents, census records, oral histories, maps and the Phase I archaeological survey conducted in 2005, I examine the importance of smokehouses and root cellars in the lives of the valley settlers. Using this valley settlement as a case study, the construction and use of small outbuildings, such as smokehouses and root cellars will allow for an understanding of the foodways of Appalachia. I discuss how the excavation and analysis of these outbuildings and associated foodways demonstrates how certain types of socioeconomic and socio-cultural groups changed over 170 years at Brown Mountain Creek. To conclude I offer suggestions for future research and anticipated material culture that will be recovered from these outbuildings sites.