In partial response to Tom Magnuson, who wrote,  

"We don't have nearly enough information on who was out in the
backcountry when or where, and we really should encourage an
archaeological emphasis to tell that story as it is almost entirely
undocumented.  We know there were many living beyond the reach of law
from earliest times and in increasing numbers as indentures matured.  We
don't know how many or where.  

"Can list members familiar with VA priorities and resources suggest if
there is a chance that this sort of subject will get serious
consideration in the near future?  And if it is a possibility, what
would need to be done to get such a large scale, long term project
started?   I know they ain't pretty but they sure are interesting folk."

I suggest taking a look at Warren Hofstra's The Planting of New
Virginia: Settlement and Landscape in the Shenandoah Valley (Johns
Hopkins University Press, 2004), which employes archaeological and a
wide variety of other evidence to very good effect in describing how
people in the lower Shenandoah Valley developed their distinctive
communities.

Brent Tarter
The Library of Virginia
[log in to unmask]

Visit the Library of Virginia's Web site at http://www.lva.lib.va.us

To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions
at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html