Abstract
This thesis is divided into three chapters with each containing a specific aspect of the frontier tavern. The first chapter will examine the perceptions of alcohol in both the barroom and on the national stage. Alcohol offers and insight into perceptions of gender, class and race. Alcohol can be used in relation to understanding individuals in Early America. Consumption of alcohol in Early America in the tavern barroom had a variety of implications. It heavily influenced the personal character of the individual in the realm of politics and social status. Consumption of alcohol also influenced what peers thought of an individual. Whether you engaged in or abstained from the consumption of alcohol in the barroom could affect how your surrounding peers perceived you. This is especially true for women and those who were habitual drinkers. Alcohol in the frontier tavern offers an interesting setting for alcohol has always been so pivotal in the frontier as a meaning of livelihood and regional pride. In spite of these perception of alcohol or perhaps because it, the free use of alcohol was excluded to certain groups. The second chapter will deal with the question of gender identities and sexuality in the frontier tavern. By applying current research on gender in Early America, this thesis will explore how frontier taverns affected the interactions between genders and how the sphere of a tavern changed the perceptions of what it meant to be a man or a woman. It will also examine the qualities were supposed to be exhibited by these genders when they were working or interacting in this space. Travelers on the frontier would often board in the same room. A tavern was sometimes without enough beds for all the travelers and on many occasions males and females would be forced to sleep on the floor in a single room. To sleep in such close proximity to the opposite sex adds an air of sexuality. Taverns were no unaccustomed to imbuing a sense of sex for taverns sometimes doubled as brothels housing prostitutes also known as public women. The addition of alcohol which helped loosened inhibitions caused numerous unwelcomed advances toward female travelers. Though some advances were welcomed by women. The daughter of a tavern-keeper could earn the admiration of bachelors who are traveling in the frontier. Men had to be careful though for they might earn the ire of the father who would throw them out of his tavern or the brothers who might commit a form of violence against them. These family members were a part of the culture surrounding taverns. Their employment in the family business was sometimes required in order to make the tavern economically viable. The third chapter of this thesis will look at the frontier tavern as a space helping to define cleanliness and class in Early America. Dirt and grime were powerful factors in determining the cleanliness of an individual or their home which in tum helped to signify class. Bodies that were clean and well maintained during the early nineteenth century were a signifier of class and humanity. This perception was also applied to the personal homes of individuals. Taverns occupied a peculiar position due to the fact they were domestic homes open to the public. The keeping of a tavern was no simple task. How clean and tidy a tavern was maintained was an indicator of the level of class. Lower class taverns were often riddled with various pets such as rodents, fleas and bedbugs. They were often dirty and did not offer much in the way of amenities. Taverns of a higher class were sparse on the frontier and usually found in the urban regions. Clean beds and sheets were a luxury that few travelers were able to partake in. These three chapters combined will help to give better perspective on the culture surrounding frontier taverns in Early America, hopefully adding to the wonderful expanding interest in the history of taverns in America.