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Demystifying the Hidden Hand: Capital and the State at Blair Mountain

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Abstract

The Battle of Blair Mountain is an important episode in American and world history that illuminates central tenets of the current American socioeconomic system. The artifacts from the battle as well as documentary evidence and oral history show that the events of the battle are part of a larger system of exploitation that continues today. Initial analysis of the artifacts from the battle allows insight into fundamental workings of the emergence and maintenance of capitalism. Archaeological work has been central in addressing issues and injustices within this system, as shown in preservation work at Blair Mountain.

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  1. Archaeological Research Facility, University of California, Berkeley, PO Box 21, Blair, WV, 25022, USA

    Brandon Nida

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Nida, B. Demystifying the Hidden Hand: Capital and the State at Blair Mountain. Hist Arch 47, 52–68 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03376908

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03376908