Research Symposium

BIO

Amaya Morene is an undergraduate student at FSU majoring in Anthropology and International Affairs. Some of her research interests are looking at how different cultures interact with each other, telling stories through digital media, African diaspora war, and ethnography. On FSU's campus, she is involved in Presidential Scholars, Anthropology Society, NAACP, Alliance for Black Women, and the Sunrise Movement. After completing her degree, she would like to pursue a career in Documentary Film/Photography on cultures worldwide or in Artifact Repatriation.

Beneath the Oaks: The Story of Evergreen Plantation

Abstract

The Evergreen Plantation Archaeological Survey is an ongoing project,
excavating the Evergreen Plantation, in Edgard, Louisiana. Headed by Dr.
Jayur Mehta, the mission of the archaeological survey is to gain a deeper
understanding of the lives of people living and working on the plantation
pre-, post-, and during slavery. Painting clearer pictures of the past can
further inform us of our shared history as a country, giving us time to reflect
on what we have done and where we are going.

My research methods consisted of using previously gathered footage from
Evergreen’s field schools to construct a documentary. My secondary role was
shadowing a graduate student, Isaac Jordan, cataloging artifacts found on the
plantation. I was tasked with categorizing and taking note of their
characteristics for later analysis.

The result is a 3-minute documentary that details the history of the
plantation, the importance of excavations done today, and the artifacts found
throughout the survey. With this video, we want to expose our audience to
the history that lives within the plantation as well as encourage them to
explore their own communities to discover the past that surrounds them.

Our results suggest that the people who lived in these cabins didn’t have
access to some basic necessities, but they found ways to endure. Fragments
of cups, buttons sewn onto shirts, and medicine bottles add humanity to
history and are evidence of the community built through the hardships of
that era. Overall, this project will provide insight into our shared past.

Keywords: Archaeology, Plantation, Documentary