Kingsmill Quarter (44JC39)
Site History
The Kingsmill Quarter site (44JC39) is a circa 1750-1780 quarter for enslaved laborers associated with the Lewis Burwell IV ownership of the property. The site is located southeast of Williamsburg on the James River. It was one of several outlying quarters associated with Kingsmill Plantation and was home to agricultural workers involved in raising tobacco. Archaeological artifacts suggest that occupation at the site ceased around the time Henry Martin purchased the property in the early 1780s.
Archaeological Investigations
The site was excavated in 1974 by the Virginia Research Center for Archaeology, under the direction of William Kelso. The investigations revealed two dwellings for enslaved laborers, as well as a 9 × 9 foot unheated outbuilding like a meathouse or granary. A large, irregularly shaped soil stain located south of the dwellings may indicate the location of a watering hole for animals or a large trash pit.
One enslaved dwelling, underpinned by a continuous brick foundation, measured 40 × 18 feet and contained an interior H-shaped chimney. A 12-foot wide shed addition was added to the north side of the structure. This structure contained twenty subfloor pits scattered across the entire footprint of the building. The second dwelling also contained a continuous brick foundation and measured 28-x-20 feet. This structure had an exterior end chimney and contained six subfloor pits.
References
1984 Kingsmill Plantations, 1619-1800; Archaeology of Country Life in Colonial Virginia. Academic Press, New York.
