Seminoles and settlers on the Florida frontier: using glass bottle analysis to reconstruct daily life at Stranahan’s trading post, Fort Lauderdale

The early economic and social development of Fort Lauderdale began in the late nineteenth century. Today’s well-known Stranahan House in downtown Fort Lauderdale was originally the Stranahan Trading Post and General Store, which was in operation from 1894 to 1906. Adjacent to this building was a campground, which was used by early Florida white settlers and Seminole Indians. This thesis presents a study of 204 whole glass bottles recovered from the Stranahan campground archaeological site (8BD259). The analysis confirms that a greater proportion of the bottles were used when the property was a campsite. Moreover, soda/mineral water, not alcohol, was the more common type of beverage consumed at the site during this time.