EXAMINING THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF THE WINDSOR RUINS SITE (22CB602) VIA GROUND-PENETRATING RADAR FOR THE METHODS OF COMFORT IN A BURNED ANTEBELLUM PLANTATION MANOR IN MISSISSIPPI

Abstract

The Windsor Ruins site (22Cb602) located in Claiborne County Mississippi, was built between 1859 to 1861 by the enslaved population of Smith Coffee Daniell II, supplemented by imported craftsmen. It was built a little over 10 miles from the closest town at the time, Port Gibson, Mississippi. The 17,000 ft2 manor burned down on February 17, 1890, leaving 23 Corinthian columns standing. The fire destroyed most of the records, photographs, and architectural plans of the structure, with the only surviving image being a drawing from a United States soldier discovered in 1990. This thesis examines if ground-penetrating radar (GPR) data collected at the Windsor Ruins site (22Cb602) will establish new understandings of the house by revealing infrastructure that offered methods of modern comfort of the time. From excavations conducted on the site in 1976, it is known that the house contained an elaborate plumbing and cistern system. Eye-witness accounts also indicate that it had full plumbing and a dumbwaiter. A geophysical survey of the site using a 350MHz GSSI UtilityScan ground-penetrating radar unit was conducted in October 2024 using 0.5 m (1.64 ft) spaced unilateral transects. Through the use of the oral historical accounts, combined with past archaeological excavations, the geophysical survey data collected does reveal new aspects of the house and gives prospects of new areas to investigate to broaden our understanding of the manor. This research is expanding and examining the interpretation of the burned manor and hopefully will serve as a launching point into further research of the site, most notably of the enslaved people there, while being repeatable at numerous other burned plantation manor sites in the state.