Reversing the Narrative of Hillbilly History: A Case Study Using Archaeology at Van Winkle’s Mill in the Arkansas Ozarks

Abstract

One of the most powerful and pervasive narratives at work in the Arkansas Ozark Mountains is that of the “hillbilly.” This narrative emphasizes ruralness, whiteness, and an antimodern attitude that both frames how the world sees the Ozarks and how Arkansans see themselves. Since 1997, archaeological investigations have been ongoing at Van Winkle’s Mill, the site of a late-19th-century sawmill community in the Arkansas Ozarks. This multidisciplinary research endeavor has provided important information about the African diaspora in the Ozarks and also aided in the understanding of the industrialization and modernization of the region. Most importantly, it provided a platform for public history that may shed light on the processes of remembering and forgetting at work in Ozark history that have led to the proliferation of myths about the Ozark past and the erasure of a rich African American heritage in the region.