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Recent research on early nineteenth-century slave households at James Madison’s Montpelier in Virginia has focused on comparative household assemblage analysis on a number of levels, including the local (between households in a single community), the regional (households within a market region), and the Atlantic (comparison of households between Jamaica and the Chesapeake). An important element in this comparative household analysis is scalar analysis. Scalar analysis is an analytical tool that allows archaeologists to find the most effective scale to explain patterns of material culture—whether it be at the local or Atlantic level. By addressing similarities and differences between household assemblages, scalar analysis allows researchers to contextualize patterns observed between individual household contexts. This chapter will examine how household comparisons made at a multiscalar level can facilitate interpretation of past human behavior, especially with regard to household market choices within a larger community framework.

Little is known of James Madison's early life. He was born on 16 March 1751 to James Madison Sr. and Nelly Conway Madison. The Madisons had their own plantation, owned dozens of slaves, and owned a mansion at Montpelier. This chapter presents a brief biographical sketch of James Madison's childhood, education, including his academic interest in religion. It also discusses his legislative service and his important role in the drafting of a new constitution and a bill of rights for Virginia—the Virginia Declaration of Rights.

Military camps represent staging areas for troops, the places where they rested from previous campaigns and lay in readiness for the next campaign to begin. This study offers a view into one of the largest intact set of Civil War camp complexes in Virginia. Over the past six years, the Montpelier Foundation Archaeology Department has conducted pedestrian and metal detector surveys of wooded areas on the 2,700 acres of the Montpelier property. During these surveys, archaeologists have identified and mapped close to 25 sites related to the Confederate Army's occupation of the property during the winter of 1863–1864. Identified sites include seven regimental camps; five company camps; cavalry camps that occupy former slave quarters; specialized activity areas related to the encampments; and non-military sites that likely featured prominently during the military occupation. This paper will discuss the methodology used in identifying these sites, the rationale for their remarkable preservation, and the analysis of site function and patterned military use of terrain.