To study the past, archeologists focus on the material remains of our ancestors. Those who study prehistory can only use artifacts to develop theories about past societies. Those involved in historical or post-medieval archeology not only have material remains, but also often have an historical record to help them find answers. This seminal handbook brings together a global group of historical archeologists, each discussing his or her research. Along with case studies, themes in historical archeology such as theories of capitalism, gender, and race are discussed. This reference work belongs on the bookshelf of every historical archeologist. It is also ideal for graduate-level historical archeology courses.

Section 1 Themes Issues and Approaches.- A North American Perspective on Race and Class in Historical Archaeology.- Ethical Issues in Historical Archaeology.- Colonies, Colonialism, and Cultural Entanglement: The Archaeology of Postcolumbian Intercultural Relations.- Landscape Approaches in Historical Archaeology: The Archaeology of Places.- Historical Archaeology and the Environment: A North American Perspective.- An Update on Zooarchaeology and Historical Archaeology: Progress and Prospects.- Going, Going, Gone: Underwater Cultural Resources in Decline.- Preparing for an Afterlife on Earth: The Transformation of Mortuary Behavior in Nineteenth-Century North America.- Making Historical Archaeology Postcolonial.- The Current State and Future Prospects of Theory in European Post-Medieval Archaeology.- Beyond Consumption: Toward an Archaeology of Consumerism.- Artifacts and Personal Identity.- Darwinism and Historical Archaeology.- World-Systems Theory, Networks, and Modern-World Archaeology.- Wholes, Halves, and Vacant Quarters: Ethnohistory and the Historical Method.- Industrial Archaeology.- Studying the Archaeology of War: A Model Based on the Investigation of Frontier Military Sites in the American Trans-Mississippi West.- Men-Women and Children: Gender and the Structuring of Historical Archaeology.- Interpretive Historical Archaeologies.- Asian American Studies in Historical Archaeology.- Section 2 Historical Archaeology on a Global Scale.- Family Resemblances: A Brief Overview of History, Anthropology, and Historical Archaeology in the United States.- The Archaeology of La Florida.- Historical Archaeology in South America.- Historical Archaeology in Central and Northern Mesoamerica: Development and Current Status.- Historical Archaeology in Yucatan and CentralAmerica.- Archaeologies of the African Diaspora: Brazil, Cuba, and the United States.- On the Fringes of New Spain: The Northern Borderlands and the Pacific.- Exploration, Exploitation, Expansion, and Settlement: Historical Archaeology in Canada.- An Embarrassment of Riches? Post-Medieval Archaeology in Northern and Central Europe.- The Development of Post-Medieval Archaeology in Britain: A Historical Perspective.- The Practice and Substance of Historical Archaeology in Sub-Saharan Africa.- A Sea of Diversity: Historical Archaeology in the Caribbean.- French Colonial Archaeology.- Natives and Newcomers in the Antipodes: Historical Archaeology in Australia and New Zealand.- Above and Beyond Ancient Mounds: The Archaeology of the Modern Periods in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean.