Term of Award
Spring 2015
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Social Sciences (M.A.)
Document Type and Release Option
Thesis (open access)
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Department
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
Committee Chair
Lance Greene
Committee Member 1
Sue Moore
Committee Member 2
Steve Smith
Abstract
ABSTRACT
A Civil War prison camp operated by the Confederacy known as Camp Lawton was once considered the largest prison in the world. This label was attributed to the fact that Lawton’s stockade enclosed 42 acres. The historical record does not have a clear picture of who built it. Newspaper interviews claim the construction was carried out by 500 impressed slave laborers and 300 Union POWs, but these lack the credibility of official orders. Unfortunately, many Confederate documents were lost when Sherman’s army came through Millen, GA. This study archaeologically examines construction techniques utilized for building stockades in an effort to locate labor patterns and provide identity for the builders of Lawton’s stockade.
Recommended Citation
Gibson, Hubert J., "Constructing the World's Largest Prison: Understanding Identity by Examining Labor" (2015). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1246.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/1246
Included in
African American Studies Commons, Archaeological Anthropology Commons, Labor History Commons, Military History Commons, United States History Commons
