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Thesis
"Back home to econfina": Maintenance of African American memory and landscape at the Gainer Historical Cemetery
ProQuest
Master of Arts (MA), University of West Florida
2013
Appears in FPAN Theses
Abstract
The Gainer Historical/Mt. Pleasant Cemetery is located along the border of Washington and Bay Counties. An African American community has potentially utilized this out of the way
space for ceremonial purposes since the arrival of settlers between 1824 and 1828. The cemetery remains an integral component in the cultural identity of the original population’s modern descendants. Even in its current incarnation, the cemetery contains evidence of the persistent use of old African-style customs, such as the utilization of traditional funerary material culture. Ground penetrating radar, interviews, and historical records indicate that the cemetery dates to a strong, family-focused post-bellum freedman community. The use of ceremonial graveside offerings from the cemetery’s past until today maintains a sense of community cohesion, history, and identity. The changing use and modern reincorporation of a ceremonial landscape by an African American community over time designates a strongly enforced habitus designed to reinforce an idea of community. The modern descendant community continues to replicate the community habitus and use the information gathered for this project to promote their family’s story and sacred landscape to the broader Florida panhandle community.
Details
- Title
- "Back home to econfina"
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Contributors
- Della A Scott-Ireton (Committee Member) - University of West Florida, College of Arts, Social Sciences, and HumanitiesAmy M Cook (Committee Member) - University of West Florida, History and PhilosophyRobert Philen (Committee Member) - University of West FloridaWilliam B Lees (Chair) - University of West Florida, Anthropology
- Publisher
- ProQuest
- Format
- pdf
- Number of pages
- 200
- Copyright
- © 2013 Melissa Anne Timo.
- Identifiers
- 99380189497006600
- Academic Unit
- Anthropology
- Language
- English
- Awarding Institution
- Anthropology; University of West Florida; Master of Arts (MA)
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Arts (MA), University of West Florida