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Archaeology, Intangible Heritage, and the Negotiation of Urban Identity in Lancaster, Pennsylvania

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Abstract

Lancaster, Pennsylvania, has recently experienced a heritage crisis and renewal precipitated by the closing of the Bon Ton, the last downtown department store, and the shuttering of the landmark Watt and Shand Building. Having been the anchor of Penn Square, the city’s physical and social center, the Watt and Shand was perceived by many as a central component of local identity formation, reflecting not only its importance as a manifestation of tangible heritage, but its importance as an arena for the negotiation of the intangible heritage of ritualized consumerism. This article examines the processes of heritage creation and urban renewal by exploring the closing of the Watt and Shand Building, how and why alternative uses of the building were negotiated, and how an alternative heritage narrative emerged through an archaeological investigation of the homes of a radical congressman, Thaddeus Stevens, and his African American associate, Lydia Hamilton Smith.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown, PA, 19530-0730, USA

    James A. Delle

  2. Department of Anthropology, Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, 17604-3003, USA

    Mary Ann Levine

Authors
  1. James A. Delle
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  2. Mary Ann Levine
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Delle, J.A., Levine, M.A. Archaeology, Intangible Heritage, and the Negotiation of Urban Identity in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Hist Arch 45, 51–66 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03376820

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