Invisible but not Forgotten: Freed Black Women in Antebellum and Postbellum Madison County, Kentucky

Investigation into the lifeways of freedman George White suggest a successful farmer who purchased and kept approximately 600 acres, emancipated his family and built a safe community for them. Documentary research revealed small fragments about the female members of his family. Taking into consideration the multiple layers of social relationships and social constructions over time, how can archaeologists query the material traces of freed Black women? This paper considers how intersectionality and the resultant matrix of domination push for research that does not “yield to closure,” but asks acute questions concerning freed women and their experiences within developing power structures.