Arizona Historical Society

This study presents a more complete description of North American dress, specifically that of women married to officers of the Indian-fighting U.S. Army in the second half of the nineteenth century, resulting from changes as a response to unusual frontier conditions. Diaries, letters, and memoirs of 18 army wives were primary source materials. The women's writings contained seven themes related to changes in clothing. Two of these are associated with clothing consumption, the acquisition and maintenance of clothing. Living on the frontier forced women to obtain clothes in unaccustomed ways and provided unforeseen opportunities to lose and damage garments. To cope, women obtained clothing from various sources and relied on sewing skills. U.S. Army wives were both domestic producers and consumers of clothing.

Problems with the interpretation of regional lithic assemblage variability are briefly discussed. Several methods are introduced for controlling the sources of variation that influence the composition of lithic assemblages. The utility of these methods is illustrated with a statistical analysis of lithic artifact collections from thirteen sites near the Homolovi Ruins Group north of Winslow, Arizona. Results indicate strong technological differences between four site classes that cannot be attributed to site type, location, or time exclusively. Some arguments based on considerations of regional settlement and organization are proposed to account for the technological patterning that pertains to each site class. The Homolovi study shows that a comprehensive understanding of interassemblage variability necessitates that multiple lines of evidence be developed to ensure all potential sources of variability have been thoroughly examined.