Description:

From Hinterland to Homeland: The Archaeology of Refuge and Recourse in Colonial California

This talk presents my ongoing archaeological, historical, and collections-based research examining Indigenous hinterlands as critical sites of refuge and recourse for California Native communities confronting periods of missionary, mercantile, and settler colonialism. After discussing places of refuge around the San Francisco Bay Area where Native peoples returned to distance themselves from colonial missions, the talk will then explore the rebuilding efforts of a Native community connected to a mid-1800s era trading post in western Marin County. The two projects are explored relative to other archaeological studies of colonialism within and outside of California, and to my continuing efforts to practice a more relevant and community-engaged archaeology of doing and belonging in Indigenous homelands.