Farming Villagers—SOCIAL SPACESecond Stop:

People who came to rely on farming often settled in permanent villages, and cooperation took on a greater role in society. Settled villages, like pueblos, included spaces for reaffirming social bonds through public meetings and rituals. Around AD 1250, many Southwestern pueblos had plazas at their centers.

The public space of the plaza fostered the close ties required for the cooperative production of farming. Used by the whole community, plazas were alive with daily activities. They were places where families made crafts, prepared food for cooking, met with neighbors, and watched children play.

Cross-Cultural Examples:Public space for social activities plays a key role in helping people form the social bonds that build community. In such spaces, like the pueblo plazas, people can ask questions, share ideas, and find solutions to the challenges that face their communities. Here are some examples from other Field Museum collections…

Maori Meeting House and Marae, Tokomaru Bay, Aotearoa, New ZealandMaori meeting houses are used for communal business and ceremonial occasions. Rautepupuke II, pictured here, was built at Tokomaru Bay, New Zealand, in 1881 and brought to The Field Museum in 1905, where it was reopened in 1993 with the endorsement and assistance of the Maori people. The Marae is the open public space adjacent to the meeting house where the past meets the present and people come to share ideas and encounter different perspectives. (Maori Meeting House)

The photo below shows a workshop being held on the Marae at The Field Museum with the Energy Action Network, a group of community organizations supported by the City of Chicago to engage their residents in the Chicago Climate Action Plan. © 2010 The Field Museum, GN91326_137d, Photographer John Weinstein

Masai Compound, Tanzania, around 1910 In the early twentieth century, the Masai of East Africa lived in compounds like this one, which included homes for a wealthy Masai man and each of his many wives or an extended family of men with multiple wives. The individual wives’ homes were arranged in a circle to corral the cattle and keep them safe. The compound also provided space for the wives to cooperate in daily chores and social space for the family members to interact. © 1997 The Field Museum, GN88339_7c, Photographer John Weinstein

Learning from the Past in The Ancient Americas Comparing Cultures:

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Contemporary Illinois Examples:As we saw in the pueblo, agriculture requires cooperation, which depends on building and reaffirming social bonds. Going green and building sustainable communities also depends on strengthening our social relationships.

Libraries Build CommunityLibraries play a unique role in building community by acting as neutral public spaces where residents can form social ties, learn new information, and share resources and ideas. A recent focus group of northern Illinois library staff highlighted that libraries play an increasingly important role as a place for customers to network and learn new job skills during the current economic recession.

In the picuture below, senior citizens build Internet skills through a class offered at the Gail Borden Public Library. Courtesy of Gail Borden Public Library

Open Streets ChicagoOn select weekends, Open Streets Chicago turns city streets into avenues for bike riders to exercise, mingle, and explore their neighborhoods. Alternative transportation methods, such as biking and walking, reduce carbon emissions and provide an environment for expanding and deepening neighborly connections. Courtesy of Lucy Gomez-Feliciano

Learning from the Past in The Ancient Americas Comparing Cultures:

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