Exploring Well-Being at Three Great Lakes Lighthouses

Archaeological inquiry into health is typically centered on ableism, which views healthiness and non-(dis)abledness as the desirable norm. To see beyond these normative perspectives, I propose a view of (dis)ease and (dis)ability as “well-being.” Well-being should be conceived as a complex assemblage that includes a focus on lived experience and an intersectional view of social and personal identities. I use archaeological and archival evidence from three lighthouses in the Great Lakes region of the United States to propose ways to apply the concept of well-being.