Structuration theory and 19th-century corn milling in Portsmouth

The paper argues that too often industrial archaeology tends to focus upon artefacts, ignoring the wider environment which gave rise to them. With corn milling in 19th-century Portsmouth as a case study, structuration theory is employed to bring together the various influences acting upon millers, so placing industrial archaeological matters within a wider context. The first section is concerned with top-down political, social, economic and physical influences; the second with the reaction by millers with regard to market opportunities, capital available, insurance, the selection of production technology, diversification and family control. The reaction by dockyard men who established their own mill is also considered.

Archaeology · Business · Economic history · Economics · Economy · Mill · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation · Historical and Cultural Archaeology Studies · History · Law