Morgan Furr
Field site Proposal
February 10, 2009

I propose my field site to be in a broad sense, the lowcountry of Charleston, and perhaps further out, to St. Helena, where I will hopefully conduct interviews and research among Gullah cooks. I would like to focus my research project on Gullah cuisine from around the coast of South Carolina and how this type of food, locally known as lowcountry cuisine, has shaped the Charleston community. I would also like to explore how this specific kind of food has come to represent Charleston as predominately as we see today.
I know there has been a lot of research done on the Gullah Geeche people, focused mainly on the basket weaving techniques they are so famously known for. I would like to shift that focus to food and pay it the attention I believe it deserves, mainly because Gullah influence is just as prevalent in food as it is in baskets around Charleston, South Carolina. Not only do I want to tell a back story I think deserves to be shared, but I am also very interested in the actual ingredients, recipes and preparation of the meals. These elements are intriguing because I personally love to cook, watch other people cook, and taste the finished product, so I would enjoy seeing, first hand, how this art is created.
This project will be challenging for a few reasons, the first I believe will be access to such history. There might be a bit of hesitation to share special traditions and family recipes that are traditionally passed down family lines with a total stranger. Entrée will prove to be an obstacle. Also, the St. Helena location might be a little difficult because I won’t have many weekends to spend out there for hours at a time. The fact that it is not in the immediate Charleston area is tough too. This just means I will have to be prepared when I do actually visit (if I’m allowed to interview) and be ready to collect as much information as I can while I’m there!
One of the best aspects of this subject is opportunity during the presentation at the end of class to creatively share my research. I may cook something I have learned to make through my time with my resources, or try in some other way to physically share some of the food most important to the Gullah people and the region around Charleston. This would be an excellent testament to what I learned, and while we ate, I would discuss what the meal meant to the Gullah groups and to us now, as modern Charlestonians.
I hope this will be a surprising and thought provoking project on a group and their heritage which unknowingly affects everyone and everything around us. I am excited to begin researching and collecting data.