Archaeology can either bolster memory and tradition, or contradict the status quo and provide an alternative view of the past. An archaeology of Harpers Ferry's wartime and Victorian eras confronts time-honored historical interpretations of the past (created and perpetuated by such interest groups as historians and the National Park Service) and in so doing allows us to be more inclusive of the town's forgotten histories and provides alternative voices to a past.

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Preface. Introduction: Harpers Ferry: A Place in Time. Section I: Occupied Harpers Ferry During the Civil War. 1. All about Us Was the Wreckage of the Fighting:' Harpers Ferry During the War. 2. A Village of Paupers:' An Archaeology of Occupied Harpers Ferry. Section II: Rebuilding Harpers Ferry After the War. 3. The Place Never Will Be Anything Again:' Lower Town Harpers Ferry and Victorian America. 4. The Handsomest House in Two Towns:' Urban Development of an Elite Household in Harpers Ferry. 5. The Natural Limits of Human Endurance': Brewery Workers, Bottlers, and Labor Unrest. 6. A Miserable Mockery of a Home:' Boardinghouse Life in the Lower Town. 7. Conclusion: The Assassination of Plurality: Material Wealth and Consumption in Victorian Harpers Ferry. References. List of Tables. List of Figures.