In order to understand the archaeological record of Long Island headstones, it is necessary to understand one key feature of the material landscape: lack of stone resources necessary to manufacture headstones. Perhaps the most influential work on this topic was published by Gaynell Stone in 2009. Stone's analysis of 4,300 stones on the island illuminated the way that colonial populations memorialized their dead, and where their headstones were being imported from.
As Stone points out, Long Island sits in a strategic position between two distinct cultural spheres. With the Dutch to the west in New York City, and the English north in New England, Long Island tends to display facets of culture and material from both spheres, including stones imported from Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York City, and New Jersey. Aside from cruder fieldstones, all manufactured and carved headstones are coming from sites outside of the island itself.
As I've acquainted myself with the archaeological record in this area and spent more time in the field, it has become easier to understand the landscape, and see where stones are being imported from. As I continue to learn about the colonial stone carvers of this region, I will continue to update the website page and the maps I am creating to show the distribution of the stones.
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