Childhood in Colonial Otago, New Zealand: Integrating Isotopic and Dental Evidence for Growth Disturbance and Oral Health

ABSTRACT

Experiences of childhood in colonial New Zealand are difficult to reconstruct from the historical record alone. Many of those who came to the colony were illiterate, and the Victorian tendency to avoid discussion of pregnancy and breastfeeding practices restricts our understanding of this important period. Bioarchaeological investigation, however, has the potential to illuminate the life stories of these first-generation Pākehā (European) settlers. Here we use isotopic evidence combined with dental pathology from children interred in a historic cemetery from Otago, New Zealand, to examine colonial childhood. We show how weaning practices in the colony differ from those experienced by their emigrant parents, highlight periods of illness likely associated with the weaning process, and bring to light the potential problems caused by maternal Vitamin D deficiency in the colony.

KEYWORDS:

• Colonial New Zealand
• carbon isotopes
• nitrogen isotopes
• linear enamel hypoplasia
• Vitamin D deficiency

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the descendant community in Milton, particularly for the collaboration with the Tokomairiro 60 Project team (led by Robert Findlay), who instigated the work at St John’s burial ground. The excavation was undertaken by staff and student volunteers from the University of Otago, with assistance from Kath Croy (our Camp mum). Grant Love (whose farmland abuts the cemetery) kindly allowed the use of his haybarn, water supply, and access to his land, and Wayne Stevenson donated both his time and use of his digger. The Anglican church, particularly Rev. Vivienne Galletly and Bishop Kelvin Wright, supported the project wholeheartedly and provided permission for the excavation to be undertaken. Megan Callaghan, the Health Protection Officer at Public Health South guided us through the disinterment license process. Rachel Wesley provided Māori cultural guidance, and participated in the excavation. Richard Walter and Phil Latham of the Department of Archaeology & Anthropology provided much of the excavation and field equipment. Steve Robertson and Beth Upex were invaluable with their help in the laboratories at Durham University.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

Isotopic work was funded by a Marsden Fund Fast-Start grant [grant number: 17-UOO-149], and excavation was funded by a Grant-in-Aid from the Department of Anatomy, University of Otago.

Notes on contributors

Charlotte L. King

Charlotte L. King is a Research Fellow in the Department of Anatomy, University of Otago. Her research focuses on using isotopic techniques to reconstruct past mobility, diet and health and she has a particular interest in breastfeeding and weaning practices in the past. She is part of the Southern Cemeteries Archaeology Project (https://southernsettlerarchaeology.com/), investigating life in colonial New Zealand.

Rebecca L. Kinaston

Rebecca L. Kinaston is a Research Fellow in the Department of Anatomy, University of Otago. She specialises in oral health and isotopic analyses, with a particular interest in the Pacific. She has current research projects in New Zealand, California, Uzbekhistan, Indonesia and the wider Pacific, all examining human health, migration and diet in diverse contexts.

Anne Marie E. Snoddy

Anne Marie E. Snoddy is a postdoctoral research fellow in the biological anthropology research group at the University of Otago. Her research focuses on the skeletal markers of infectious and metabolic disease and she has a particular interest in the palaeopathology of children. Her current project is exploring microscopic markers of vitamin D deficiency and developmental stress in the teeth of the first Pakeha colonists and origin-proxy populations from the United Kingdom.

Hallie R. Buckley

Hallie R. Buckley is a Professor in the Department of Anatomy, University of Otago. Her research is focused on human health and adaptation to new environments, with a current focus on colonial New Zealand. Her work is supported by a Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fund and James Cook Fellowship, and uses multi-disciplinary bioarchaeological techniques to reconstruct the individual life histories of early Pākehā New Zealanders.

Peter Petchey

Peter Petchey is the director of Southern Archaeology Ltd., and an Honorary Research Fellow with the Archaeology programme, Otago University. He is an expert in New Zealand historical archaeology, with a research focus on the goldrush and its associated archaeology. His work is supported by a Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fund grant, part of which entails co-directing the excavations associated with the Southern Cemeteries Archaeology Project.

Andrew R. Millard

Andrew R. Millard is an Associate Professor of Archaeology at the University of Durham, UK. His expertise is in isotopic analysis, dating, and quantitative methods in archaeology. He has a particular interest in isotopic methods for investigating the weaning process in humans. He has worked on sites and materials from around the globe, including Chile, China, Jordan, Italy, and Ukraine as well as the UK.

Darren R. Gröcke

Darren R. Gröcke is the Director of the Stable Isotope Biogeochemistry Laboratory at Durham University. His research focuses on the use of stable isotopes to address both geological and archaeological problems. In his archaeological research, he has a particular interest in paleodietary and palaeoecological reconstruction, from plants to mammoths.