Harpers Ferry was one of America's earliest and most significant industrial communities - serving as an excellent example of the changing patterns of human relations that led to dramatic progress in work life and in domestic relations in modern times. In this well-illustrated book, Paul A. Shackel investigates the historical archaeology of Harpers Ferry, revealing the culture change and influence of new technology on workers and their families. He focuses on the contributions of laborers, craftsmen, and other subordinate groups to industrial progress, and examines ethnic and interracial development in an economy that was transformed from craft-based to industrial.

Industry and Interpreting the Past.- 1. "At the Mercy of the Capitalist".- 2. "The Most Eligible Spot on the Whole River": Harpers Ferry-The Early Years.- 3. "Under a Malign Influence": Factory Discipline, Political Factionalism, Corruption, and the New Technology.- 4. "Their Little Gardens": Landscapes in an Armory Town.- 5. "Customs and Habits Interwoven with the Very Fibers of Things": Consumerism among Armory Households.- 6. "Oh! Let Oppression's Hand Be Stay'd": The Transformation from Craft to Wage Labor.- 7. "Home...! Refuge from Sadness".- Appendix: Interviews with Armory Workers, 1842.- References.