Archaeological Society of South Carolina (ASSC)

ASSC Annual Conference: Call for Papers

2012-02-08T23:08:00.000-08:00

Archaeological Society of South Carolina

Annual Conference on South Carolina Archaeology

Call for Papers - Deadline is March 6!

The Archaeological Society of South Carolina invites submissions for the general session of our annual conference on April 14, 2012. Accepted posters and papers must incorporate South Carolina archaeology, but we hope to integrate a range of topics and perspectives.

Avocational archaeologists, undergraduate students, graduate students and professional archaeologists interested in participating are encouraged to email a title and short abstract to James Stewart (stewartseneca@gmail.com) by March 6, 2012.

Paper presentations are limited to 20-minutes. Please specify whether submitting a poster or paper.

February 9: Joseph McGill and the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry

2012-02-07T07:43:00.000-08:00

Beaufort County Historical Society & the SC Humanities Council present Joseph McGill at noon on Thursday, Feb 9th.

Joseph McGill, Jr. will be discussing the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry in first person and in uniform. McGill, a native of Kingstree, SC, is currently a Program Officer for the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He works in the Southern Office in Charleston, SC and is responsible for the states of Alabama, Louisiana, and South Carolina.

Mr. McGill received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Professional English from South Carolina State University. He spent six years in the United States Air Force. He is the founder of Company "I" 54th Massachusetts Reenactment Regiment in Charleston, SC.

The 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was the regiment portrayed in the award-winning movie Glory. As a Civil War re enactor, Mr. McGill participates in parades, living history presentations, lectures, and battle reenactments.

Mr. McGill is a member of the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission and the African American Historical Alliance.

Please RSVP to Pamela Ovens 843-785-2767 by Feb. 6th at 5 pm for a $10 optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington served at 11:30 prior to the meeting.

All meetings are held at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC . The public is welcome and encouraged to attend at no charge. this event is in partnership with the SC Humanities Council.

Upcoming Events:
May 17th Annual Meeting

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.
For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President
sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767

February 9: African American Civil War Lecture at Penn Center

2012-02-07T07:25:00.000-08:00

African American Civil War Lecture at Penn Center

The South Carolina African American Heritage Commission is proud to announce that its Foundation has been awarded a $7,000.00 matching grant from The Humanities Council SC for the "African American Civil War Lecture Series". The goal of the lecture series is to enlighten the general public to the roles of African Americans during the American Civil War, moreover the series will provide opportunities for much needed dialogue about one of the most pivotal events in United States history. The series is timely and appropriate because through 2015 this nation will be commemorating the sesquicentennial of the war.

"The Civil War was the defining moment in American history," says Dr. Abel Bartley, Director of the Pan-African Studies Program at Clemson University. "It split the nation in two before and after slavery," he adds. "It is an event which continues to separate Americans," he concludes.

The following venues, dates, presenters and subject matters will be addressed:

The Penn Center, 16 Penn Center Circle W. St. Helena, SC / These lectures will be held on Thursday, February 9, 2012 from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm in Darrah Hall.

* Dr. Eric Emerson: "The Ordinance of Secession"
* Dr. Abel Bartley: "The Causes of the War"
* Nicole Green: "Slavery in South Carolina"
* Rosalyn Brown: "The Port Royal Experiment"
　
Upcoming Lectures:
The Hartsville Memorial Library, 147 West College Avenue, Hartsville, SC / These lectures will be held on Thursday, May 17, 2012 from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm.
* Dr. Bernard Powers: "Black Charlestonians"
* Attorney Billy Jenkinson: "Lieutenant Stephen Swails"
* Donel Singleton: "Resistance, Runaways and Slave Revolts"
* Dr. Larry Watkins: "Black Confederates"
　
The Spartanburg Regional History Museum, 200 E. St. John Street, Spartanburg, SC / These lectures will be held on Thursday, August 23, 2012 from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm.
* Dr. Veronica Gerald: "Grapevine: How African Americans Communicated During the Civil War"
* Dr. Eric Emerson: "The Ordinance of Secession"
* Nicole Green: "Slavery in South Carolina"
* Dr. Abel Bartley: "The Causes of the War"
　
The South Carolina Department of Archives and History, 8301 Parklane Road, Columbia, SC / These lectures will be held on Thursday, October 2, 2012 from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm.
* Dr. Veronica Gerald: "Grapevine: How African Americans Communicated During the Civil War"
* Ernest Parks: "The Battle of Sol Legare"
* Dr. Larry Watson: "Black Confederates"
* Jeannie Cyraique: "The Men at the Meeting with General Sherman

"With particular but not exclusive emphasis on the South Carolina experience, this multifaceted lecture series will delve deeply into the daunting issues that propelled the nation into an unprecedented fratricidal conflict, the myriad roles played by African Americans and the lasting implications for our time," says Dr. Bernard E. Powers, Jr., Professor of History and Associate Chairman at the College of Charleston. "Given the nature of the subjects, I expect many lively, frank and enlightening discussions to result ; it will be a welcome and needed educational opportunity," adds Dr. Powers.

All lectures are free and open to the public. Anyone needing additional information on the lectures should contact Joseph McGill, Commissioner for the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission and project coordinator. He can be reached at 843-408-7727.

The mission of the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission is to identify and promote the preservation of historic sites, structures, buildings, and culture of the African American experience in South Carolina and to assist and enhance the efforts of the South Carolina Department of Archives and History. The 15-member commission includes representatives from all regions of the state.

This event is free and open to the public. The Penn Center is located on Martin L. King, Jr. Drive, St. Helena Island, SC.

For more information, contact the Penn Center at (843) 838-2474 or Joseph McGill at (843) 408-7727 or email: joseph_mcgill@nthp.org

March 23: Conference on Native American Archaeological Research in the Catawba/Wateree Valley, 1000-1860 A.D.

2012-02-04T03:14:00.000-08:00

Conference on Native American Archaeological Research in the Catawba/Wateree Valley, 1000-1860 A.D.

Sponsored by: University of South Carolina Lancaster Native American Studies Program

Organizers: Stephen Criswell and Christopher Judge

Funded by: Charlotte Area Educational Consortium

USC Lancaster
Friday March 23, 2012
Bundy Auditorium
Lancaster, South Carolina

Conference Abstract
The unique history and cultural traditions of the indigenous populations of the Catawba/Wateree region were shaped by very early contact with Europeans and subsequent devastations as a result of disease, warfare, and attempts at removal. For these Native Americans, who were often erased from written histories, archaeological research provides the only insight into histories and cultures of these indigenous populations and their interactions with Europeans. Scholars from around the Carolinas, including from CAEC institutions, have approached their fieldwork and research in this region from a variety of perspectives and timeframes, from prehistoric Woodland and Mississippian eras to the antebellum period. USC Lancaster’s “Native American Archaeological Research in the Catawba/Wateree Valley, 1000-1860 A.D.” conference attempts
to bring these researchers together for a comprehensive review of this scholarship, a discussion of conflicting perspectives, and a synthesis of discoveries and theories.

The format of the conference will be 30 minute papers followed by a panel of discussants and concluding with an opportunity for audience and participant questions and answers.

ASSC members: Do we have your current email address?

2012-02-02T03:15:00.000-08:00

Attention ASSC Members:

Have you changed your email since last year at this time?

Please email Erika Shofner, ASSC Secretary if you have so we can keep you informed via our emailing list. Erika can be reached at Ehshof@gmail.com

Memo to the ASSC membership

2012-02-01T17:18:00.000-08:00

Editor's note: Congrats to Chris on his election! ASSC could not ask for a better president!

MEMO

TO: The membership of the Archaeological Society of South Carolina.

FROM: Christopher Judge, President 2012/2013

RE: The new year and beyond

DATE: February 1, 2012

Greeting members of the ASSC. I am honored to have been nominated and elected to be the President of our ASSC. First let me state that I hope to get a chance to visit all of the Chapters and visit with you in your part of the state. Last year I visited with Hilton Head and Upstate in a lecture capacity so I will begin with Coastal and Charleston.

Chapter Presidents, I urge you to try to attend our executive meetings if at all possible. I know our Saturday morning schedule can ruin a weekend. If you cannot make it please send a proxy or send me an email with current activities, comments and needs so that I may bring them to the attention of the Officers and Board. I want to reach out to the chapters. The meetings for 2012 will be Feb 11, March 24, APRIL 14 ANNUAL CONFERENCE, May 19, July 21, Sept 8 and Nov 17th. All of these meetings are open to any and all members. The meetings will be held in Room 108 Hamilton College, Department of Anthropology USC Columbia. The street address is 1512 Pendleton Street 29208. The building is locked so I need to know if you are coming so I can expect you and let you in. Enter the building from the north or east side ground floor.

Chapter Presidents and members, please send Chan Funk, our newsletter editor, your meeting dates, locations, speaker topics and news about what you do. Take some pictures and email them to Chan. His email is chanfunk@aol.com. I plan on submitting a President’s column each time to Chan. Don’t forget to update the ASSC website and Facebook pages too.

My concerns for 2012 include boosting membership, reconnecting with other archaeological organizations in the state, increasing attendance at our two signature events—Annual Conference on SC Archaeology and Fall Field Day and meeting our stated mission.

Please contact me with concerns, comments and ideas. My email is judge@sc.edu.

Chris Judge

Post and Courier: Secrecy protects Indian Mounds

2012-01-29T09:25:00.000-08:00

Check out a nice piece in the Charleston Post and Courier:

Buriedhistory: Secrecy protects local Indian mounds

Indian mounds are mysterious snakes of dirt rising along the river floodplains, sacred calling cards left by another people from another time.

Piled hundreds of years ago as daises for burial grounds, temples or the homes of chiefs who were considered descendants of the sun, the mounds are scattered in remnants across the Lowcountry, as well as the state and nation.

If you roam or hunt a Lowcountry woodlands, you might well have stepped across one.

The raised area running from the lower left to the right side of this photo is thought to be a remnant of an Indian mound in the Santee River basin.
But they aren't nearly as widely known as coastal shell middens or rings. Tribal groups and archaeologists keep most of them a closely held secret: The mounds are illegally looted for trinkets.

It's a crime that can be prosecuted as a felony under state laws governing burial grounds, archaeological artifacts on public lands, and under federal laws pertaining to public land.

To tribal descendants, it's no different than grave robbing. To archaeologists, it's like burning rare books.

A mound was discovered dug into earlier this month in Manchester State Forest outside Sumter. A bridge contractor apparently dug inadvertently into a mound that was not a burial mound, said Scott Hawkins of the S.C. Forestry Commission.

But the incident raised fresh concerns about a problem so prevalent that archaeologists regularly find holes already dug when they are called to confirm a newly "found" mound.

"A lot of them have been dug into for centuries," said Chester DePratter of the S.C. Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology.

"It's an atrocity and a disrespect when someone will go in and desecrate a mound," said Chief James Caulder of the Pee Dee Indian Tribe of South Carolina. "Your mother and father and brother and sister are buried in there. You don't want to see someone dig up that box to see what's in there."

Tribal members who find a mound keep so quiet about it that -- even though Caulder knows about mounds in Marlboro County near where he lives -- he doesn't know where they are. The mounds often are found by hunters and, if the word gets out, treasure seekers soon follow.

Mound types

Platform: Held the homes of chiefs. Gradually raised over time as death, destruction or natural disaster required a new home.

Burial: Held the remains of esteemed tribal members, usually buried with elaborate "furniture" such as pottery or ornaments they would use in the afterlife.

Temple: Held ceremonial halls often ornately decorated and containing sacred bones of ancestors.

Authentic tribal items are valuable on the market, he said.

A few dozen mounds have been identified across the state, DePratter said.

More of them easily could be out there. In the Lowcountry, the Santee River was a major trade route for any number of coastal and inland tribes, so the mounds ought to be relatively commonplace.

But generations of overgrowth, erosion, as well as human digging, have left a lot of them unrecognizable. Caulder talks about scouring a Pee Dee River bottom for a mound the tribe knew about, but not finding any sign of it after years of logging and plowing.

Maybe the best-known of the mounds is a 50-foot-tall platform in Santee National Wildlife Refuge in Clarendon County. But the smallest found has worn down to little more than a swell, DePratter said.

You can read the entire piece here

Buried Edgefield jar inspires documentary on slave potter known only as 'Dave'

2012-01-11T23:19:00.000-08:00

The Augusta Chronicle published a piece about The "Dave" documentary:

Buried Edgefield jar inspires documentary on slave potter known only as 'Dave'

Savannah River Site historian George Wingard’s fascination with the slave potter known as “Dave” began with a phone call in 2006 and led to an upcoming film honoring one of the South’s most mysterious artisans.

“That morning, we had people looking around in an area where some monitoring wells were planned,” said Wingard, the administrative manager for the Savannah River Archaeological Research Program, whose workers are required to evaluate areas to be disturbed by construction.

As routine, random test holes were dug to determine whether any important artifacts might lie beneath the soil, the technician discovered the proverbial needle in a haystack: a large, greenish-glazed shard of stoneware pottery.

“When he pulled it out, it had ‘Dave’ inscribed on it,” Wingard said. “He called me right away, from his cellphone.”

Both men knew immediately the find was an important one.

Dave was a slave who worked among the dozens of potteries that operated during the 1800s throughout South Carolina’s plantation-strewn “Edgefield District” near Augusta.

The region’s alkaline-glazed pottery is widely sought by art collectors, but the works of the mysterious Dave are the most prized examples of all. Further excavation at the remote hillside within Savannah River Site yielded more pieces of Dave’s handiwork.

“We were digging in what turned out to be a mid-20th century trash pile,” Wingard said. “We found about 95 percent of the jar.”

In addition to Dave’s signature, the jar – which was carefully reassembled – carried the date of manufacture: April 16, 1862. Soon it became a popular item in the research program’s outreach activities, which include educational programs to acquaint others with the region’s cultural past.

Wingard’s interest in Dave’s legacy expanded. He soon teamed up with Augusta filmmaker Mark Albertin, of Scrapbook Video Productions, and they began work on a documentary.

Their film, Discovering Dave – Spirit Captured in Clay, is expected to be completed and released this year for selected local showings and educational television.

“We have five or six more interviews to do, and we plan to hire an actor to play Dave and get some shots of him at work, too,” Wingard said. “We’re aiming to have it finished by late summer, hopefully.”

It wasn’t just the quality of the clay vessels that made Dave special. He was also a poet who, despite being born into slavery, learned to read and write – and inscribed insightful verses on some of his jars.

His vessels, often signed and dated like the one found at SRS, can be seen at the Smithsonian Institution, the Philadelphia Museum, the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts in North Carolina, Atlanta’s High Museum, Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts and Detroit’s African-American Museum.

The Dave jar found at SRS, however, is unusual in that it is available for everyone to see, enjoy – even touch.

“These pots were made to be used – to keep meat, lard or butter – so they were utilitarian,” Wingard said. “Today, so many of these pots are behind glass or hidden in private collections, but our pot is still being used in a utilitarian way. People can touch it and feel it. They can even run their fingers across Dave’s name.”

[...]

You can read the entire article here.

USC Aiken also wrote a piece about the documentary here.

Save The Date! May 25, 2012

2011-12-30T08:57:00.000-08:00

Jean Ribaut 450th commemoration May 25,2012--SAVE THE DATE

The Jean Ribaut 450th commemoration will be May 25,2012 on Parris Island, SC.

The basic plan is in motion...more details as they become available!

Discovering Dave

2011-12-29T01:51:00.000-08:00

The Savannah River Archaeological Research Program (SRARP) is a division of the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (SCIAA) at the University of South Carolina (USC). The SRARP is located on the Savannah River Site (SRS) and manages the cultural resources for the United States Department of Energy (DOE).

This trailer highlights the upcoming documentary on the slave potter Dave. It will focus on the archaeological excavation of a stoneware vessel created by Dave. It will also include interviews with historians, artists, and authors discussing Dave's life and the time he lived in. Finally, the documentary will share what plans the SRARP has for the future of this important artifact.

For more information please contact SRARP.

December 8: Bubba Von Harten to speak to Beaufort County Historical Society

2011-12-07T06:49:00.000-08:00

Bubba Von Harten to speak to Beaufort County Historical Society, Dec. 8th

Beaufort County Historical Society is pleased to present long time Beaufort County Historical Society member and former Treasurer, Bubba VonHarten, who will discuss his new book Little Geech: A Shrimper's Story at the society's meeting on Dec. 8th.

The meetings will be held at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend at no charge.

Vonhaten was born in Beaufort in 1930, joined the Air Force and helped create a shrimping heritage that's nearly "legendary along the coast of SC." His fun biography is an easy read for anyone interested in shrimping, the Low Country or just local name dropping (just enough to make it interesting but not incriminating, isn't that really what we want to read?)

Please RSVP to Pamela Ovens 843-785-2767 by Dec. 5th at 5 pm for an optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10.

Upcoming Events:
Feb. 9th, Joseph McGill will speak on the 54th Mass. presented by SC Humanities Council.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.
For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President
sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767

December 8: Author discusses new book which claims Blackbeard is an SC Lowcountry native

2011-12-07T04:52:00.000-08:00

North Carolina Historian, Writer and Filmaker Kevin Duffus will talk about his book, The Last Days of Black Beard, on Thursday, December 8 at 6 pm at the Old Exchange Building and Provost Dungeon on 122 East Bay St. in Charleston.

Duffus discussed the upcoming talk, and his theory that Blackbeard was not from Bristol, England, but in fact from Goose Creek, SC, in an article in yesterday's Post and Courier.

According to the article, "almost everything we know about the origins of the famous pirate Blackbeard comes from a seven-word phrase in an 18th-century book: 'Edward Teach was a Bristol man born.'"

Duffus disputes that theory, arguing that it made no sense that a man from Bristol name his ship -- the Queen Anne's Revenge -- for a Stuart monarch, or have a crew largely from the colonies or be "so solicitous of Stede Bonnet, a Barbadian pirate he allegedly had just met."

Duffus theorizes that Blackbeard was Edward 'Black' Beard, a son of Captain James Beard, and was likely born at Goose Creek sometime around 1690.

Duffus will detail his evidence during his December 8 talk, and while he still hopes for some evidence that proves his theory conclusively, he admits it's a longshot.

You can read the full Post and Courier article here

If you go:
What: Kevin Duffus talks about his book on the final days of Blackbeard

When: 6 p.m. Thursday, December 8

Where: Old Exchange Building and Provost Dungeon, 122 East Bay St.

Cost: Free, but a $3 donation is requested

Beaufort County Historical Society: In celebration of Veteran's Day

2011-11-04T05:21:00.000-07:00

2011 Fall Speakers Series for Beaufort County Historical Society:

In celebration of Veteran's Day

The Beaufort County Historical Society presents Kristina Dunn Johnson, Curator of History at the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum. She will discuss the history of the Beaufort National Cemetery, Thursday, Nov. 10 (the day BEFORE official Veteran's Day).

All meetings are held at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend at no charge.

Kristina earned a Bachelor’s degree in history with a concentration in Civil War Era studies from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia and a Master’s degree in public history from the University of South Carolina. She also furthered her studies at Gettysburg College.

Kristina has previously worked at Historic Columbia Foundation, Gettysburg National Military Park, and the Atlanta History Center.

Kristina recently published her first book, No Holier Spot of Ground: Confederate Monuments and Cemeteries of South Carolina (History Press, 2009). Additionally, she has served as a history consultant for the History Channel, South Carolina Educational Television, and ABC Columbia’s "Hidden Columbia" segments.

Please RSVP to Pamela Ovens 843-785-2767 by Nov. 6th at 5 pm for an optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10.

Upcoming Events:

Dec. 1-4 Sesquicentennial Commemoration-Historic Honey Horn, Hilton Head. Beaufort County Historical Society will be on the grounds near the re-enactors. Come by and say hello.

Dec. 8- Long time Beaufort County Historical Society member and former Treasurer, Bubba VonHarten will discuss his new book Little Geech: A Shrimper's Story.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.

For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President
sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767 or visit our website

　

TOMORROW, OCTOBER 29! ASSC Fall Field Day

2011-10-28T07:06:00.000-07:00

The Archaeological Society of South Carolina Presents

Fall Field Day

at Lynches River County Park

Ben Gause Road, Coward, S.C.

This year’s Fall Field Day event will be held October 29, 10-4, at Lynches River County Park, in Florence County (more info and maps, visit Lynches River Park and ASSC). This is a fun and family friendly event so please join us. There will be displays, demonstrations, lectures, artifact identification, and educational programs. Admission is free.

This Year’s Theme is the history and archaeology of the Pee Dee River System. Excavations at the Johannes Kolb site (38DA75), in Darlington County, near Mechanicsville, will be featured.

Primitive Technology - Native American Lifeways Demonstrations
* Scott Jones (General demonstration, technology
* Keith Grenoble (General demonstration, foodways, pottery making and firing)
* Roger Lindsay (Throwing spears with an atl atl)
* Fuz Sanderson (Making Fire with Friction)
* Sean Taylor (Primitive Technology in Archaeology)
* Keith “Little Bear” Brown (Catawba Pottery making)

Displays
* New South Associates - The Yauhannah Bluff Site
* USC Anthropology- student and faculty research
* SCIAA Sport Diver Management Program
* SCIAA Underwater Division and the Pee Dee Research and Recovery Team:
* The Mars Bluff Confederate Navy Yard
* PAST Foundation- Excavations at the Robertson Farm, Pickens County SC
* Savannah River Site- Carolina Bays and Archaeology

Artifact Identification
* Tommy Charles
* Hands On Demonstrations
* Pottery making with Bobby Southerlin
* SCAPOD- Pottery refits, Dig boxes, handouts
* Archives and History (Digging into Archives)

For More Info on the ASSC, visit here
For More Info on the Kolb Site, visit here.

Charleston ASSC Chapter and SC State Parks Sponsor Volunteer Dig at Hampton Plantation November 6-13.

2011-10-26T04:07:00.000-07:00

Across the Border – An Archaeological and Environmental Discussion of the Sandhills Physiographic Province: A View from North and South Carolina.”

2011-08-07T08:48:00.001-07:00

Across the Border – An Archaeological and Environmental Discussion of the Sandhills Physiographic Province: A View from North and South Carolina.”

August 20, 2011

In conjunction with the North Carolina Department of Transportation, Fort Bragg Cultural Resources Program, and the National Forests in North Carolina, The North Carolina Office of State Archaeology is pleased to announce the symposium, “Across the Border – An Archaeological and Environmental Discussion of the Sandhills Physiographic Province: A View from North and South Carolina.” Scheduled for August 20, 2011, from 8:00 am until 5:00 pm. The conference will be held at Weymouth Woods State Park in Southern Pines, North Carolina.

The symposium will present the state of current research and provide suggestions for future studies for this unique physiographic region. Topics for discussion include prehistoric and historic settlement and subsistence practices, paleo-environmental studies, and military sites archaeology. If you plan on attending please contact either John Mintz at 919-807-6555, or john.mintz@ncdcr.gov or lawrence.abbott@ncdcr.gov to register

USC Lancaster Hosts Catawba Pottery Show and Sale August 27th

2011-08-05T07:56:00.000-07:00

USC Lancaster Hosts Catawba Pottery Show and Sale August 27th

Visitors will have the opportunity Saturday August 27th to view and purchase examples of one of South Carolina’s oldest art forms as potters from the Catawba Indian Nation show and sell their creations on the USC Lancaster campus. Hosted by the USCL Native American Studies Program, this event will fature works by established and emerging potters from the Catawba Nation in Rock Hill, SC. Pieces ranging from small, inexpensive collectibles to large ceramic vessels and effigies, all handmade by Catawba artists, will be available for purchase. Arts and crafts by Native American artists from other South Carolina tribal groups will also be available.

Catawba Indian pottery, while less familiar than its Southwestern counterparts and many other traditional American Indian art forms, is recognized by scholars as, possibly, the oldest continuous ceramics tradition east of the Mississippi. Early European explorers in the Carolinas encountered Native Catawba, or Iswa, making pottery from clay gathered from the river which today bears their people’s name, as their ancestors had done for generations, and as their descendents continue to do today. Collectors recognize this pottery as a unique and significant art form that balances tradition and artistic innovation.

This artistry will be on display at the USC Lancaster event, which starts at 10:00 am and runs until 3:00 pm in the Carole Ray Dowling Center on the USCL campus. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Brittany Taylor, Curator of Collections, at 803-313-7036 or by email at taylorbd@mailbox.sc.edu,; or Stephen Criswell, Director of Native American Studies, at 803-313-7108.

2011 Fall Speakers Series for Beaufort County Historical Society

2011-08-04T08:58:00.000-07:00

The Beaufort County Historical Society is pleased to announce their Fall Speaker Series. All meetings are held at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC . The public is welcome and encouraged to attend at no charge.

Please RSVP to Nancy Gilley at 843-524-7969 for an optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10.

Sept. 22th- Joseph McGill will discuss the 54th Massachusetts Troops

This program is funded by The Humanities Council SC speakers Bureau: Humanities Out Loud.

Nov. 10th- Kristine Dunn Johnson will speak on her book No Holier Spot of Ground: Confederate Monuments and Cemeteries of South Carolina and the history of the Beaufort US National Cemetery.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.

For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President

sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767

www.beaufortcountyhistoricalsociety.org

Mark Your Calendars! October 29 is ASSC Fall Field Day!

2011-08-03T08:51:00.000-07:00

24th Annual Archaeology Field Day

Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011

The 24th Annual Archaeology Field Day sponsored by the Archaeological Society of South Carolina will be held at Lynches River County Park in Florence County, SC on Sat. Oct. 29 from 10 AM-4 PM. It is free and open to all. Bring your artifacts for identification in the Artifact ID Tent. This event will focus on various aspect of archaeological research being conducted in South Carolina, particularly the Johannes Kolb site located on the Great Pee Dee River in Darlington County, SC. Offered will be an array of living history demonstrations, exhibits, educational hands-on activities, and poster presentations and lectures that span the entire prehistoric and historic occupations throughout time in South Carolina. Bring the whole family!

Watch this space for more information in the months to come.

ASSC Hilton Head Chapter Fall Speaker Series begins Sept. 20th

2011-08-02T09:03:00.000-07:00

ASSC Hilton Head Chapter Fall Speaker Series begins Sept. 20th

Hilton Head, SC: The Archaeological Society of South Carolina, Hilton Head Chapter will host the next meeting Tuesday, Sept 20th at 1 pm at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn featuring Nena Powell Rice of SCIAA (South Carolina Institute of Anthropology and Archaeology). The meeting is free and open to the public.

In preparation of the celebration of Archaeology month in October, Rice will discuss Discovering South Carolina Archaeology: 16,000 Years of Cultural Occupation

Nena Powell Rice will deliver a general synopsis of the archaeology of South Carolina during the past 16,000 years or more focusing on technological change through time. She will have a series of slides (with power point) that address the time periods defined by archaeologists in South Carolina, i.e., Paleoinidan, Archaic, Woodland, Mississippian, protohistoric, colonial, American Revolution, etc. She will then relate each time period and technological change with specific projects that Institute archaeologists focus their research on, and give examples of how folks can get involved or volunteer on these projects. She will also address a large variety of programs offered during the 20th Annual South Carolina Month in October 2011.

Bio

Nena Powell Rice received her AA in Liberal Arts from Sullins College in 1973, BA in Anthropology from Southern Methodist University in 1975, and her MA in Anthropology from the University of Denver in 1990. She has conducted archaeological field and laboratory work in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Montana, South Dakota, Wyoming, Alaska, and South Carolina. Nena has been at the Institute for over 26 years and has served in several areas. Currently she is Director of Outreach/Development, South Carolina Archaeology Month Coordinator (20 years), Acting Librarian, and staff to the Archaeological Research Trust Board. She is also the editor of the SCIAA magazine, Legacy. She works closely with the Archaeological Society of South Carolina. Nena has traveled extensively and has led trips to Europe, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Middle East, and China, including several tours to Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala, two tours to Peru, a tour to the American Southwest, Costa Rica, Ecuador, two tours to Turkey, Jordan and Egypt, and Greece and Cyprus. Future tours are planned for Almafi Coast of Italy and Sicily, the Pantanaal in Southwestern Brazil, and Spain and Morocco.

Upcoming Events:

Sept. 20- Nena Rice of SCIAA will speak at 1 pm

Oct. 18- Colin Brooker the expert who supervised the stablization of the ruins on Dataw Island, will discuss "Worldwide Tabby Architecture"at 1:00 PM.

Nov 15th- Chica Arndt of CGAS (Coastal Georgia Archaeology Society) will discuss the Mary Musgrove site in Savannah at Historic Honey Horn at 1 pm

Dec. 6th Christmas Social will all be at 7 pm at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Historic Honey Horn, Hilton Head

For further information: George Stubbs- 843-363-5058 www.assc.net

"THE BEAUFORT BASKET"BY JERY BENNETT-TAYLOR

2011-07-10T09:01:00.000-07:00

"THE BEAUFORT BASKET"BY JERY BENNETT-TAYLOR

Celebrating South Carolina History

Through the Arts

The York W. Bailey Museum at the historic Penn Center proudly presents the debut exhibition of "The Beaufort Basket" by sweetgrass basket maker Jery Bennett-Taylor on Saturday, July 16, 2011. This will be the first in a series of exhibits celebrating Gullah traditional art in South Carolina. The gallery will also preview the film, "Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art", a companion to the national traveling exhibit by the Museum of Art, at 12 noon. The exhibit opens at 1:00 p.m. followed by a lecture and demonstration by Ms. Taylor from 2:00-4:00 p.m.

This exhibition of ten original pieces is the first revival in Beaufort of the 300-year old native island coiled "work" basketry once practiced by generations of slaves who transported the craft from Africa. This museum-quality collection was inspired by the 150-year old "Penn School baskets" that were formerly made by the men using the fibrous bulrush plant found in the marshes. This exclusive collection of original bulrush baskets in various sizes, also includes a rare and unique "Marsh Tackey" sweetgrass basket that has never before been shown publicly.

Ms. Taylor has used a certain weaving technique reminiscent of the native island style, which has separated her from other basket weavers. She says that she has tried to capture the "soul" in the ancient baskets of her ancestors to re-create an authentic representation. This exhibit will also compare original heirloom baskets from the Penn School Collection with Ms. Taylor’s reproductions.

The Penn School’s history of Sea Island basketry goes back to the early 1900’s when its founders added the craft to the school’s curriculum and later instituted a mail-order catalog business to raise revenue for the school. A recently published account of the 300-year documented history of the origin of African basket making in America is beautifully illustrated with photographs from the Penn School Collection in the book Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art, published by the Museum for African Art.

Jery Bennett-Taylor is widely collected and is regarded as a master weaver in the circle of native Mt. Pleasant basket makers. Born in the Christ Parish Church community of Mt. Pleasant, she has been making baskets since she was five years old and is the third generation of basket weavers in her family. A resident of Walterboro, she is currently the only practicing basket maker in the St. Helena Island community. A highly recognized artist, Jery Taylor has presented workshops in many museums and has exhibited baskets in the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. Over the past three years, she has also become a self-taught folk artist and her paintings, which will also be exhibited, capture the essence of Gullah life growing up on Boone Hall Plantation.

Own a piece of history today; these baskets will undoubtedly appreciate in value. All baskets will be sold to the public. The exhibit closes on August 26, 2011. For more information, contact the York W. Bailey Museum at (843) 838-2474 or visit the Penn Center, 16 Penn Center Circle West, St. Helena Island, SC 29920. Museum admission is $5-adults; $3-children under 17 years old. Penn Center is a 501©3 non-profit organization.

June 17: COSCAPA meeting

2011-06-13T11:04:00.000-07:00

The next COSCAPA meeting will be held on Friday, June 17 at 10:00 am at SC Archives and History.

May 19: Beaufort County Historical Society Annual Meeting

2011-05-18T11:00:00.000-07:00

Beaufort County Historical Society Annual Meeting

May 19th Noon

Beaufort Yacht and Sailing Club

The Beaufort County Historical Society will celebrate their 72 Annual Meeting May 19th at noon at the Beaufort Yacht and Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend at no charge.

Dr. Gerald Schwartz will discuss his book, A Woman Doctor's Civil War: Esther Hill Hawks' Diary.

A physician, a Northerner, a teacher, a school administrator, a suffragist, and an abolitionist, Dr. Esther Hill Hawks was the antithesis of Southern womanhood. Dr. Hawks' served in Beaufort during the Civil War.

While most women of the 1860s stayed at home, tending husband and house, Dr. Esther Hill Hawks came South to Beaufort to minister to black Union troops and newly freed slaves as both a teacher and a doctor. She kept a diary and described the South. Her pen, honed to a fine point by her abolitionist views, missed nothing as she traveled through a hungry and ailing land.

Remarkably frank, Esther Hill Hawks' story is one that is long overdue in the telling.

Dr. Schwartz will be at McIntosh Books on Bay St. for a book signing from 3:30-5 on the 19th, if you are unable to attend the BCHS meeting.　

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Gerald Schwartz is a professor of history at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina. A graduate of Mexico City College, Dr. Schwartz holds a Ph.D. from Washington State University. His article, "An Integrated Free School in Civil War Florida," which also concerns the career of Dr. Esther Hill Hawks, appeared in The Florida Historical Quarterly.

Please RSVP to Nancy Gilley at 843-524-7969 for an optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10.

Upcoming Events:

Sept. 22th- Joseph McGill will discuss the 54th Massachusetts Troops
Nov. 10th- Kristine Dunn Johnson will speak on her book No Holier Spot of Ground: Confederate Monuments and Cemeteries of South Carolina and the history of the Beaufort US National Cemetery.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.

For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President
sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767
www.beaufortcountyhistoricalsociety.org

May 17th- ASSC Hilton Head Chapter Meeting

2011-05-16T10:57:00.000-07:00

Hilton Head, SC: The Archaeological Society of South Carolina, Hilton Head Chapter will host the next meeting Tuesday, May 17th at 7 pm at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn at 7 pm. The meeting is free and open to the public.

Guest speaker Brooke Brilliant will discuss the interactions between Native Americans and African Americans in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina through a Stylistic Analysis of Colonowares, a beautiful ceramic artform.

This talk, a presentation on Brilliant's Master's Thesis, will explore the nature of the interactions occurring between Native Americans and African Americans through the comparison of the colonowares recovered from 1720s and 1738-1779 occupations at Drayton Hall and a late 17th century occupation at the Lord Ashley Settlement.

The comparison between these ceramic assemblages can illuminate the maintenance, fluidity, and creation of social boundaries between African Americans and Native Americans in the plantation and frontier contexts during the Colonial period.

Biography
Brooke Brilliant received a BA in Anthropology from the College of Charleston in 2005. She recently received a Master’s in Anthropology with a concentration in historical archaeology from the University of South Carolina. Brooke has over four years experience in cultural resource management archaeology and has worked on historic and prehistoric sites across the Southeast.

Upcoming events:
Sept. 20- Nena Rice of SCIAA will speak at 1 pm

Oct. 18- TBA

Nov 15th- Chica Arndt of CGAS will discuss the Mary Musgrove site in Savannah at Historic Honey Horn at 1 pm

Dec. 6th Christmas Social will all be at 7 pm at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Historic Honey Horn, Hilton Head

For further information: George Stubbs- 843-363-5058 www.assc.net

Saturday, May 14: Canal Days!

2011-05-13T10:56:00.000-07:00

Canal Days

May 14, Saturday from 10-4 at the Savannah-Ogeechee Canal Museum & Nature Center, 681 Ft. Argyle Rd., (Rte. 204) Savannah, GA, located 2.3 mi. west of I-95.

Step back in time! "Civil War Savannah" book signing with Barry Sheehy 1:00 p.m., talks and living history demos with reenactors, blacksmiths, etc.

Exhibits of American Indian Crafts and Native Reptiles, sales of plants, crafts, food and gift items. Admission: $2 Adults, $1 Children 4-12.

Info: (912) 748-8068 or info@savannahogeecheecanal.com.

Tomorrow: Society for Georgia Archaeology Spring Meeting

2011-05-13T10:54:00.000-07:00

Society for Georgia Archaeology Spring Meeting
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Henry County Chamber of Commerce

8:30am Registration

9:00am Welcome: SGA President Catherine Long

9:15am Hernando de Soto Slept Here? Evaluating Evidence of Early
16th-Century Spanish-Indian Contact in South-Central Georgia Dennis Blanton, Fernbank Museum of Natural History

10:05am Archival Research of the Hollywood Mound Site Collection
Adam King and Keith Stephenson, South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology—Savannah River Archaeological Research Program

10:25am Coffee Break

10:45am A Preliminary Report on 9HL554 the “Duckett Site” William H. Phillips, University of West Georgia

11:00am The Challenges of a Civil War Battlefield Tom Gresham, Southeastern Archeological Services; Heather Mustonen, Georgia Department of Transportation; Dan Elliott, LAMAR Institute; and Mark Pollard, Georgia Historical Artifacts and Research Group

11:30am SGA Business Meeting

12–1:15pm Lunch

1:30pm Resaca Battlefield and the Myth of the “Hunted Out” Site
Chris Espenshade, New South Associates

1:50pm Lessons Learned in Survey Techniques at Camp Lawton, Kevin Chapman, Georgia Southern University

2:10pm Chattahoochee River Line, Scott Butler, Brockington and Associates

2:30pm Break

2:45pm On the Trail of Sherman and Johnston: Managing and Research
Civil War Sites on National Forest Land in Northwest Georgia,
James R. Wettstaed, Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests; Daniel T. Elliott LAMAR Institute; and P. T. Ashlock, Jr., LAMAR Institute

3:15pm Garrett Silliman, Edwards-Pitman Environmental

3:30pm “A Fierce and Obstinate Engagement:” Surveying the Atlanta
Campaign in Northwest Georgia, Jonathan C. Harton, MA History Student North Georgia College and State University

Announcement of Winners of the Silent Auction

Presentation Abstracts
*************

Hernando de Soto Slept Here? Evaluating Early Evidence of 16th-Century Spanish-Indian Contact in South-Central Georgia
Dennis Blanton, Fernbank Museum of Natural History

A large assemblage of early 16th-century European artifacts recovered from a Native community near the Ocmulgee River in south-central Georgia challenges conventional wisdom about where early Spanish exploration occurred in the Southeast. One plausible source of the material is the entrada of Hernando de Soto. Additional lines of evidence support the argument that the site was a place of direct Spanish-Indian encounter, and very possibly a temporary entrada encampment. Implications of the findings for the Soto route across the region will be discussed. In addition, details regarding the indigenous community will be offered, including description of a large council house structure.

Archival Research of the Hollywood Mound Site Collection
Adam King and Keith Stephenson, South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology—Savannah River Archaeological Research Program

Hollywood (9RI1) is a double-mound Mississippian period site located 12.75 miles below the Fall Line near Augusta. It was investigated by Henry Reynolds of the Bureau of American Ethnology in 1889-1890. Reynolds’ Mound B excavations revealed an impressive collection of elaborate, non-local materials that along with local pottery was incorporated into mortuary deposits. Those objects figured prominently in the definition of a widespread set of art styles and ritual themes collectively called the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex (SECC). In recent years, the exact dating of those deposits has become part of a larger debate over the dating of so-called SECC goods. Our radiocarbon chronology for the Hollywood site indicates a date range from A.D. 1250 to 1350. This places the appearance of those goods at a time when Mississippian chiefdoms were just forming in the middle Savannah River valley. We suspect those SECC goods and the beliefs that accompanied them formed part of the impetus for the formation of a distinctive version of Mississippian society most clearly reflected in the archaeological record during the Mississippian period in the middle Savannah River valley. The blending of both foreign and local practice and belief can be seen in the arrangement of people, objects, and archaeological features within Mound B at Hollywood.

A Preliminary Report on 9HL554, the “Duckett Site”
William H. Phillips, University of West Georgia

This report is a preliminary overview of 9HL554, the “Duckett Site.” Ceramic evidence found thus far strongly suggests inhabitation during the Middle and Late Woodland sub-periods with the presence of Cartersville Simple Stamp and Swift Creek. In regards to field work and its results, the report’s scope will be narrowed to a specific portion of the site that has shown the most artifact density. Methods and research used up to this point will also be presented. Following this will be a discussion of the site’s uses as an outreach opportunity with public groups and Anthropology students from other universities, ending with the site’s larger scope and future research considerations.

The Challenges of a Civil War Battlefield
Tom Gresham, Southeastern Archeological Services; Heather Mustonen, Georgia Department of Transportation; Dan Elliott, LAMAR Institute; and Mark Pollard, Georgia Historical Artifacts and Research Group

This paper examines some of the challenges of archaeologically investigating The Battles of Lovejoy Station, a large, complex battlefield in suburban Atlanta. Archaeological investigations of the area, covering thousands of acres along Jonesboro-McDonough Road in Henry and Clayton counties, south of Atlanta, have been undertaken as a result of the proposed widening of the road by the Georgia Department of Transportation. Historic background research by Dan Elliott and a large scale metal detector survey led by Mark Pollard have supplemented two phases of survey and site testing. The challenges discussed in this paper include: delineation and evaluation of a resource boundary including numerous engagements, integration and interpretation of metal detector survey results and other archaeological data, and the interpretation and evaluation of a narrow linear corridor through this resource type.

Resaca Battlefield and the Myth of the “Hunted Out” Site
Chris Espenshade, New South Associates

The 2008 archaeological investigations of a proposed access road and visitor center at the Resaca Battlefield provided a detailed examination of a portion of the battlefield. The study included the intensive metal-detector survey of 37 acres of the floodplain and terraces of Camp Hill Creek. This portion of the battlefield of the Civil War Battle of Resaca has been intensively relic hunted for many years. Nonetheless, our survey was successful in recovering 126 battle-related artifacts. The GIS analysis of the recovered items provides new insights into the nature of the battle on this section of the battlefield.

Lessons Learned in Survey Techniques at Camp Lawton
Kevin Chapman, Georgia Southern University

Camp Lawton provided a unique arena to use various survey techniques on an ephemeral military site of intermediate occupation duration which had seen little disturbance since the Civil War. Traditional shovel testing survey strategies were used and compared with a survey conducted using metal detecting in a controlled, systematic, and scientific way. The metal detection survey was conducted in such way as to maximize information acquisition and minimize damage to the site. The results of the surveys demonstrate the strengths of the techniques, but also highlight their respective weaknesses.

Chattahoochee River Line
Scott Butler, Brockington and Associates

In 2010, Brockington completed archaeological survey, documentation, and GIS analysis within the Chattahoochee Line Battlefield in Cobb County. Demonstrations against the Chattahoochee River Line (July 5-10, 1864) were part of the 1864 Atlanta Campaign. In June 1864, the Chattahoochee River was the last significant natural obstacle between the approaching Federal armies and Atlanta. General Francis A. Shoup presented his commander with an idea for construction of a river defensive line using enslaved labor. As planned, Shoup’s defenses were a series of uniquely designed timber and earthen redoubts that would deter any assaulting Union force. General Sherman later described these as “the strongest field fortifications I ever saw.”

On the Trail of Sherman and Johnston: Managing and Researching Civil War Sites on National Forest Land in Northwest Georgia
James R. Wettstaed (Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests); Daniel T. Elliott (LAMAR Institute); and P. T. Ashlock, Jr. (LAMAR Institute)

In 1864, Union forces advanced from Chattanooga to Atlanta, passing through what is now the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests. Sites associated with the Civil War battles of 1864 are present on National Forest land, but have never been documented using modern techniques. In order to better manage these sites and assist in the development of management plans, archaeologists and 11 volunteers directed by the LAMAR Institute spent a week metal detecting at a battlefield and encampment, and a preliminary assessment of the results of these investigations will be presented.

“A Fierce and Obstinate Engagement:” Surveying the Atlanta Campaign in Northwest Georgia
Jonathan C. Harton, M.A. History Student: North Georgia College and State University

The hills and valleys surrounding the town of Dalton, Georgia contain numerous sites associated with the wartime operations of 1863 and 1864. In February 2011, the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests conducted a Passport in Time project to pursue documentary and archaeological examinations of previously unstudied Civil War sites on Forest Service land in Northwest Georgia. The sites correspond to the opening of the Atlanta Campaign through the Battle of Dug Gap Mountain and the movements leading the Battle of Resaca. The nature of the sites and their artifacts provide opportunities to examine the Battle of Dug Gap from the soldier’s perspective, how inter-disciplinary research works for military archaeology, and how to protect and infuse these lesser known events with new life for scholars and the general public.

TOMORROW! Hilton Head ASSC Chapter Meeting

2011-04-19T13:38:00.000-07:00

April 20th- ASSC Hilton Head Chapter Meeting

The Archaeological Society of South Carolina, Hilton Head Chapter will host our next meeting April 20th.

Guest speakers Gibbes McDowell and Dr. Chester DePratter of SCIAA (South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology) will present their new movie re: archaeology of the SC & GA marshes, Sea Island Secrets. The meeting will be at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn at 1 pm.

Gibbes McDowell, a native Beaufortonian, has always held a passion for the marshes of the Low Country. But it was his constant trips to his fish camp off Hunting Island that piqued his interest in the sherds of pottery and apparent shell rings that caused him to contact Dr. DePratter at SCIAA. This duo contacted Mike Hudson, a Beaufort born, cinematographer to film and document their finds which are remarkable.

Chester DePratter earned his doctoral, master's and bachelor's degrees in anthropology from the University of Georgia. He has worked on a number of American Indian sites, primarily in South Carolina and Georgia, and has written many articles on prehistoric archaeology, exploration routes of Spanish explorers and the early European presence in the southeastern US. He is the author of the book "Late Prehistoric and Early Historic Chiefdoms in the Southeastern United States." Since 1989 DePratter has focused on the 16th century Spanish site of Santa Elena and the search for the French site of Charlesfort on Parris Island, SC.

Light refreshments will be served. This will be your opportunity to see the film before it's public airing.First shown at the Beaufort Film Festival to a sell out crowd (filling both theatres) Sea Island Secrets was a smashing success. Sea Island Secrets will be premiered on SCETV, May 5th.

Upcoming Chapter Events:

May 17 - TBA

Sept. 20- Nena Rice of SCIAA will speak at 1 pm

Oct. 18- TBA

Nov 15th- Chica Arndt of CGAS will discuss the Mary Musgrove site in Savannah at Historic Honey Horn at 1 pm

Dec. 6th Christmas Social will all be at 7 pm at the Coastal Discovery Museum at Historic Honey Horn, Hilton Head

For further information: George Stubbs- 843-363-5058 www.assc.net

HISTORIC FICTION WRITER, CLARE ADKIN, TO VISIT BEAUFORT COUNTY APRIL 17

2011-04-10T08:13:00.000-07:00

Hilton Head Island, SC -- A private reception and book-signing will be held on April 17, 2011 at 4 pm to introduce Mr. Clare Adkin, noted historic fiction author. Refreshments and book copies will be available at the signing. To attend the Hilton Head Island reception for Mr. Adkin, please contact heartz@adelphia.net.

Mr. Adkin first received national and international acclaimed for his commissioned book, BROTHER BENJAMIN (1990). Like Brother Benjamin, QUIET GUILT is set in Michigan. A year out of high school and still working in his family’s apple orchard, Quiet Guilt’s main character, Chuck, yearns for a life of adventure. Suddenly as an invitation to his prayers, he is offered the job of reporting a high profile murder. QUIET GUILT has the reader in suspense as the journey with Chuck set in the Depression Era in small town America unfolds.

Clare Adkin was raised on a fruit farm in Allegan County, Michigan. After graduating from Michigan State University with a degree in history, he embarked upon a 38 year career in teaching and coaching. He has been thinking about Mary Anne Starr, the subject of QUIET GUILT, since he discovered her while doing research for his first book, Brother Benjamin. True to mantra, “History is interpretation, the essence of which is research and writing.” Adkin and his wife Sally make their home in Durham, North Carolina.

Contact:
Dr. Linda Vingelen
843-681-9927
heartz@adelphia.net

Archaeological Field School on Edgefield, South Carolina Pottery Communities

2011-04-07T13:41:00.000-07:00

Archaeological Field School on Edgefield, South Carolina Pottery Communities

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Anth. 454-CF and 455-CF (6 credits; 6 weeks), May 23, 2011 to July 1, 2011

This field school will provide training in the techniques of excavation, mapping, controlled surface surveys, artifact classification and contextual interpretation. Students will work in supervised teams, learning to function as members of a field crew, with all of the skills necessary for becoming professional archaeologists. Many students from past University of Illinois field schools have gone on to graduate study and professional field-archaeology positions. Laboratory processing and analysis will be ongoing during the field season. Evening lectures by project staff, visiting archaeologists, and historians will focus on providing background on how field data are used to answer archaeological and historical research questions.

Learn more on our web site

** Historical Significance and Project Background

The first innovation and development of alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery in America occurred in the Edgefield District of South Carolina in the early 1800s.

It remains an enduring mystery as to how these new ceramic methods were developed in that place and time, and how the techniques of clay choice, temper, and glaze developed over the following century. These potteries employed enslaved and free African-American laborers in the 19th century, and the stoneware forms also show evidence of likely African cultural influence on stylistic designs. Edgefield potteries thus present fascinating research questions of understanding technological innovations and investigating the impacts of African cultural knowledge and racial ideologies on a craft specialization during the historic period in America. This project entails an interdisciplinary, collaborative, and archaeological study of the first development in America of alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery forms, the development of that South Carolina industry over time, and the impacts of racism and African cultural influences on those processes.

The technological innovation of alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery was introduced in North America by potteries operated by Abner and John Landrum in the Edgefield, South Carolina area in the first decades of the 19th century. These technological developments by entrepreneurs of Scots-Irish heritage played out in a landscape shaped by racial difference. Numerous African-American laborers, including "Dave the Potter" who added inscriptions to his vessels, worked at these production sites.

Advertisements in local newspapers in the early decades of the 1800s listed enslaved laborers with skills in pottery production. African Americans most likely participated in all phases of the production process, such as: building and maintaining the kilns; digging and transporting clay; working and grinding raw clay in "pug" mills; chopping wood for fuel; preparing glaze mixtures, tempers, and clay pastes; turning the pottery wheels and shaping the vessels; and loading and unloading the kiln firings.

As local historians Holcombe and Holcombe (1989: 22) observed, the "District's ceramic entrepreneurs would never have been able to manufacture such large quantities of Edgefield wares without the slave participation." Indeed, in the period of 1800-1820, the recorded number of enslaved African Americans in the surrounding area had increased to comprise half of the Edgefield District's population. An illegal transport of enslaved laborers on the ship Wanderer delivered 170 newly-captive Africans to the Edgefield District in 1858. The production of remarkably shaped "face vessels" at local potteries have also been analyzed as presenting evidence of the influence of stylistic traditions from cultures of West Central Africa.

This project seeks to undertake detailed archaeological investigations of principal sites in Edgefield, conduct archival research, and start a multi-year community engagement and education program related to these subjects.

Archaeological field schools and research teams at such pottery sites can
explore both the production facility remains and the residential sectors for the enslaved and free African-American laborers. Primary research questions include:

(1) examining the distribution of work areas and residential locations in each pottery site and analyze the degree of spatial segregation due to the impacts of slavery and racism;

(2) understanding differential uses and development of those work and residential spaces, as reflected in archaeological features and artifact distributions, and the degree to which variations correlate with
different racial categories associated with the occupants;

(3) analyzing faunal and botanical remains to explore and contrast dietary and health patterns between residential sites and the degree to which variations correlate with different racial categories associated with the occupants; and

(4) understanding the development and changes over time in the technologies of pottery production at these three manufacturing sites.

** Field School Overview

This six-week archaeological field school will focus on the site of Pottersville, where Abner Landrum started the first stoneware production
facility in the Edgefield district in the early 1800s. We will excavate the kiln and related production areas and conduct surveys to locate the house sites of the craftspeople and laborers who created the Pottersville village surrounding that manufacturing facility. Instructors will include Prof. Fennell, U. Illinois doctoral student George Calfas, and archaeologist Carl Steen of Diachronic Research Inc., among others. The instructors and students will stay in local housing in the Edgefield area during this six week field school, and visit nearby archaeology sites and museums on weekend trips.

For additional information about this field school opportunity, please contact Chris Fennell by email at cfennell@illinois.edu, by cell phone at 312-513-2683, or check his faculty web page for background information on the multi-year archaeology project in Edgefield, South Carolina. You can also contact George Calfas at gcalfas2@illinois.edu.

To apply for participation in this fieldschool, please download and complete a short application form, available here, and submit it to Chris Fennell by April 8, 2011. Accepted students should register for the related course numbers (listed above) for the summer session.

Please note that all students must register for both courses (a total of 6
credit hours). Students from colleges other than the University of Illinois can register through our exchange program and receive transfer credits.

***************************************

Christopher C. Fennell
Associate Professor
Director of Graduate Studies
Associate Head
Department of Anthropology
University of Illinois
109 Davenport Hall, MC-148
607 S. Mathews Ave., Urbana, IL 61801
http://www.anthro.illinois.edu/faculty/cfennell

Upcoming Conferences

2011-03-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few conferences coming up in late March and April that you might be interested in attending:

*Archives Preservation Conference at the SC Department of Archives and History. The workshop is scheduled for Thursday, March 31 from 9:30 AM to 12:15 PM. For more information, visit the conference website.

* The ASSC Annual Conference will be held on April 9, 2011 at Gambrell Hall located on the University of South Carolina campus, see the announcement below and visit the ASSC website for details.

* April 11-14, 2011 is Native American Studies Week and several talks will be held at USC Lancaster.

*April 18-19, 2011- The South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology and Department of Anthropology at USC will be holding the 2011 Postdoctoral Fellows Conference, "Moving the Middle to the Forefront: Re-Visiting the Second Epidemiological Transition" for more information visit: here.

ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON SOUTH CAROLINA ARCHAEOLOGY

APRIL 9, 2011

GAMBRELL HALL RM 153

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA COLUMBIA

What do Ice Age hunters on the banks of the Saluda River near Columbia, General Francis Marion, slave potters in the Lowcountry, the Confederate Navy and cadavers dug up on USC’s horseshoe have in common? They are all topics of public presentations at the Annual Conference on South Carolina Archaeology to be held at the Columbia campus of the University of South Carolina. Geared for non- professional audiences this all day affair is open to the public for a $10 registration fee and $5 for students and seniors.

The Keynote lecture, Fifteen Years of Archaeology and Public Education at the Johannes Kolb Site, will be delivered at 4pm.

For pre-registration, a detailed schedule of events, and more information see the ASSC Web page or contact Program Chair Chris Judge at judge@sc.edu or at 803-206-4125.

News From Georgia Archaeology

2011-03-25T06:09:00.000-07:00

Camp Lawton Excavation at Magnolia Springs State Park will offer "Public Days" on Sunday, March 27, from 11:00-4:00, and Saturday, April 9 from 10:00-3:00. This information is from the state park website: www.gastateparks.org/MagSpr. They have a $5 parking fee. Phone number is (478) 982-1660. The Georgia Southern University website has more detailed information, since the dig is being directed by Dr. Sue Moore of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology.

Society for Georgia Archaeology Spring Meeting on May 14-15 in McDonogh, Georgia. The theme for this meeting is: "Gone But Not Forgotten: Rediscovering the Civil War through Archaeology". More information and a registration form is available at: http://thesga.org/2011/02. Archaeology Month is May, so if our group wants to have an event, we should send in our information by the end of the month to have it publicized on the SGA website.

And lastly, we have an opportunity to see the Brunswick Canal and the ruins of Elizafield Plantation, both located right next to each other at a site near Darien, Georgia. If there are enough people interested in making the trip, there is a possibility of using a bus or van for the drive, and stopping off at a choice of several good restaurants for lunch. Let us know if you would be interested in going this trip?

Chica Arndt
Coastal Georgia Archaeological Society
CArndt2651@aol.com,

March 26: Ossabaw Island will host Gullah Geechee Day

2011-03-24T16:35:00.000-07:00

Ossabaw set to share its story

Island will host Gullah Geechee Day Trip next week

By Chuck Mobley
Lifting snippets of history from antebellum documents, archaeological discoveries, census records and oral recollections, the Ossabaw Island Foundation is stitching together a script portraying the experiences of the Gullah-Geechee people who farmed its fields as slaves and as free families.

The “biggest challenge” has been to decide what to include in the narrative, and what to leave out, said Paul Pressly, the director of the Ossabaw Island Educational Alliance.

“We want to balance the story of the colonial period with that of the antebellum period, and we want to give an appropriate place to Reconstruction and the eventual migration of African Americans to Pin Point,” Pressly said.

Sturdy reminders of the past

A state-owned barrier island located some 20 miles south of Savannah, Ossabaw is reachable only by boat. The alliance and the foundation, as part of the terms of a $40,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, are expanding visitation opportunities to the public.

On March 26, they will host the first Gullah Geechee Day Trip.

This excursion will include a visit to the three tabby slave cabins, which are part of the old North End Plantation site. One of the cabins was built around 1825, the other two in the 1840s. They were part of what used to be a row of seven slave cabins, said Jim Bitler, the on-island coordinator for the foundation.

North End Plantation, according to the 1850 census, had 65 enslaved people working on it.

“We’re looking at how the people on Ossabaw fit into the larger world,”a system of plantation labor and commerce that ran from South Carolina to Florida and to the other side of the Atlantic, said Deborah Mack, a Savannah-based museum consultant who is co-chair, along with Pressly, of the NEH-funded project.

Chasing the paper trail

The tabby cabins sit on a gently-curving, deeply-lined dirt road that once led to fields that produced indigo, sea island cotton and other crops.

A student of Georgia’s colonial years, Pressly said there’s also evidence of a nascent shipbuilding business around 1770. It’s certain that oak trees on Ossabaw were cut and then used to produce timbers for sailing ships.

Pressly has used an 18th-century manuscript collection at the Georgia Historical Society to pursue primary information about the shipbuilding venture.

The papers of George Jones Kollock of Savannah, who owned the island’s South End Plantation, are housed in the University of North Carolina’s Southern Historical Collection. South End, according to the 1860 census, had 71 slaves, and Kollock’s overseer kept detailed information on its operation, said Bitler.

It’s sadly ironic, pointed out Bitler, that there is extensive documentation on South End, but no physical evidence, while North End has the slave cabins, but absolutely no written record.

Seeking new voices

In the absence of documentation on North End, Mack and Bitler have turned to still another source, the oral recollections and stories of descendants of the people who once lived there. The 1880 census put Ossabaw’s population at 160 people, but they moved to adjacent settlements, particularly Pin Point and Skidaway Island, over the next 20 or so years.

A nationally recognized anthropologist, Mack is a member of the scholarly advisory committee for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. She’s worked with museums around the world, including the B.B. King Museum and Delta Heritage Center in Indianola, Miss., and the Theodore Monod African Art Museum in Dakar, Senagal.

On Ossabaw, she’s working to collate the oral stories, written records and physical evidence and turn them into a picture of its Gullah-Geechee residents — what crops they grew, what they ate, how they lived, where they worshipped and why they eventually left the island where they had lived for generations.

This upcoming tour will be the first opportunity for her and Bitler to share with the public what has been learned, and their first opportunity to go through their script of the island’s history.

“We hope to offer the trip at least twice a year and perhaps more, depending on the interest,” said Pressly.

ON THE WEB

Go to Savannah Now to see a video of the three slave cabins that have stood on the north end of Ossabaw island since the mid-19th century.

IF YOU GO

What: Gullah Geechee Day Trip to Ossabaw

When: 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (approximate return time) on March 26

Where: The boat will depart from and return to Delegal Marina at The Landings on Skidaway Island.

Details: Deborah Mack, a nationally-recognized museum consultant who lives in Savannah, and Jim Bitler, the on-island coordinator for the Ossabaw Island Foundation, will lead the trip. Passengers are to bring their own picnic lunch and beverages.

Fees: $50 per person for members of the Friends of Ossabaw and $70 per person for non-members.

More info: Call 912-233-5104 or go to Ossabaw Island

You can watch a video here.

Beaufort County Historical Society-Upcoming Events

2011-03-22T18:33:00.000-07:00

The Beaufort County Historical Society reminds you to check your calendars for these great events.

March 24 – Speakers: Barry Sheehy and Cindy Wallace re: Civil War Savannah Series. Meeting starts at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC . This series is being designed for TV and the photographs are just amazing.

May 19- Annual Meeting Speaker and location TBA

Please RSVP to Nancy Gilley at 843-524-7969 for an optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.

For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President

sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767
http://www.beaufortcountyhistoricalsociety.org/

March 24: Lectures on Edgefield Pottery!

2011-03-21T15:19:00.000-07:00

This Thursday brings two opportunities to hear about current research in Edgefield pottery.

First, at 12:30 in Room 302 in Hamilton College, at the University of South Carolina, Christopher Fennel and George Calfas of University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, will give a brown bag on the topic.

Then they will make their way to Founders Hall, located at 1500 Old Towne Road in Charleston for a 6:30 pm lecture on their work.

Hope you can make one of these two great talks!

March 24: Beaufort County Historical Society

2011-03-19T19:11:00.000-07:00

The Beaufort County Historical Society will host Barry Sheehy and Cindy Wallace speaking about their new endeavor regarding their Civil War Savannah Series on March 24th at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club, Meridian Rd., Beaufort, SC .

This new book is stirring rave reviews in the Savannah area and is designed to become a televised series.

Cindy Wallace will share her photographs on display during and after the talk.

May 19- Annual Meeting Speaker and location TBA

Please RSVP to Nancy Gilley at 843-524-7969 for an optional light lunch catered by Debbi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.

For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President
sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767
www.beaufortcountyhistoricalsociety.org

Funding shortage threatens archeological Kolb Project

2011-03-19T09:12:00.000-07:00

Funding shortage threatens archeological Kolb Project

MECHANICSVILLE, SC - In the past 15 years, archaeologists have dug up artifacts that date back as far as 13,000 years at the Johannes Kolb site in this Darlington County community.

You can watch the video report here.

And you can still donate! Donations are tax deductible! Go to 38da75.com to help.

Digging for answers, finding more questions

2011-03-18T16:31:00.000-07:00

DARLINGTON COUNTY -- For the last 16 years, archaeologists have been digging up the past at the Great Pee Dee Heritage Preserve in Darlington County. Excavations of the 2,725-acre site, owned and managed by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, have produced American Indian artifacts dating back 12,000 years. Evolution of the Annual Johannes Kolb Archaeology and Education Project gives the public and students the opportunity to see what makes the Great Pee Dee site so unique.

"We dig small holes and that gives us basic information about the site. Where are the artifacts? Not only horizontally, but vertically. How deep are things buried? Our shovel testing after 200 or 300 holes all produced artifacts which is incredibly rare for an archaeology site," Sean Taylor, an Archaeologist with DNR, said.

The field project started as an attempt to not only look for artifacts that belonged to our earliest ancestors and discover what their lives were like through excavations, but to also give students a rare learning opportunity.

"There wasn't a lot of field opportunities for students, so the main point of the project is to get some students out to get some field expertise. How do we do archaeology? Why do we do archaeology? What are we learning from archaeology? That has been our main focus all along," Taylor said.

Very discreet clusters of Early Archaic, 8,000 B.C. to 1,000 B.C., and Paleoindian artifacts, from between 13,000 B.C.and 7,900 B.C., have been found since the excavation expanded to four meter square blocks. "We can take those and we are very careful to map and coordinate items so we can see where certain activities are, just like in your kitchen or perhaps your workshop today. We organize ourselves so we can function and do certain tasks and the same is true for people in the past," Taylor said.

An artifact may very well be the answer to a question, but it's a little piece of a very big puzzle. Take for example the spear point Archaeologist Chris Young found. Based on other research in the area he was able to determine a time period when people would have used that particular kind of tool. "The only problem we have is that the base is broken off and that is probably the most diagnostic part of the point. What I mean by diagnostic is it's an attribute that we can associate with a certain time period. We believe this is from the early Archaic or Middle Archaic period. If we can figure out what the material is and where it came from, then we can make interpretations of the source. Were they getting it out of the Pee Dee River or were they trading stone with other people we think they may be encountering along their natural path or journey?," Young said.

And that's the point of archaeology. It's not necessarily finding an artifact, but finding human behavior. "It's not so much the point to collect artifacts for the sake of those artifacts. All the things we find are neat little items and we very much enjoy finding them, but we're very much interested in finding what are the behaviors, the types of activities the people were doing that caused these artifacts to be created or be left behind. To learn about what people were doing in the past," Taylor said.

A Florence mother visiting the site with a group of students said visiting the site and being able to touch history helped even young children develop a better understanding of human behavior. "You know that there were Native Americans here. Right here, walking around. You can kind of even imagine them, wow! They were out here by the river and making their pottery and here we are hundreds of years later, looking at these things."

And it's that sense of the awesomeness of history that keeps archaeologists digging.

The Johannes Kolb Archaeology site was discovered in the 1970's by Chip Helms.

You can watch the CarolinaAlive video here.

SC Department of Archives and History’s Preservation Conference March 31-April 1

2011-03-18T15:33:00.000-07:00

SC Department of Archives and History’s Preservation Conference

March 31-April 1.

Workshops include:
* Archaeologists and Archivists Working Together
* Unique Preservation Stories from Rural SC
* Running an effective public meeting

...and more.

You can view the complete program here.

The workshop, Archaeologists and Archivists Working Together: Digging into South Carolina’s Past, may be of particular interest:

The popular perception of archaeologists includes excavations. Yet aside from examining material culture, for historical archaeologists, documents, such as birth and death records, census records, family trees, wills, probate inventories, newspaper articles, diaries, maps, and photographs, can provide additional information for understanding the past. The documents located in the archives help to identify the people who once lived at a particular site, provide the social-cultural context in which the sites were occupied, and contribute to the social meanings of the landscape and the objects recovered.

The workshop has three parts: (1) Documentary Archaeology: How do archaeologists use documents and primary sources? (2) Archives Basics: What are archives? What’s available? What sorts of documents are useful for archaeological research? (3) Case Studies: Archaeologists discuss how they use primary sources in their archaeological research. This workshop is for practicing archaeologists, students of archaeology, or people who want to think like archaeologists. It is also for archivists, students of library science, or people who are interested in documents and maps.

Participants:
Jodi Barnes, Archaeologist, SC Department of Archives and History
Brian Cuthrell, Archivist, South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina
Craig Keeney, Archivist, South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina
Charles Lesser, Archivist, SC Department of Archives and History
Steve Smith, Archaeologist, Applied Research Division, SC Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology
Carl Steen, Archaeologist, Diachronic Research Foundation

COSCAPA meeting TOMORROW!

2011-03-10T18:24:00.000-08:00

The Quarterly meeting of COSCAPA will be held at the Kolb Site on March 11.

ASSC/Hilton Head Chapter March 15th Meeting at 7 pm

2011-03-10T18:07:00.000-08:00

Archaeology Society of SC/Hilton Head Chapter March 15th Meeting at 7 pm

Steven Smith will present information on Francis Marion's Snow Island Retreat at the Discovery House at Historic Honey Horn

Hilton Head, SC: The Archaeology Society of SC/Hilton Head Chapter will be hosting Steven Smith (SCIAA) who will speak on Revolutionary Battle Sites in SC including Francis Marion's Snow Island archaeological results at 7 pm Tuesday, March 15th. All meetings are held at the Discovery House at Historic Honey Horn.

Prior to the American Revolution the region around Snow’s Island, South Carolina was the home of a close-knit colonial community. During the war, this community strongly supported the American Whig resistance against the British. In August of 1780 Francis Marion took command of the partisan militias there. The Snow’s Island region became Marion’s base of operations until late March 1781. At that time the British destroyed Marion’s base, however, the community, consisting of both warriors and civilians, continued to support Marion and the American cause until the end of the war. Steven D. Smith will present the story of Francis Marion and his relationship with the Snow’s Island partisan community. The presentation will include a discussion of the archaeological evidence of Marion’s camp and redoubt near Snow’s Island.

Steven D. Smith Ph.D. is the Associate Director for Applied Research at the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology. For 34 years he has been a professional archaeologist and historian, and specializes in the archaeological study of battlefields and campgrounds associated with the American Revolution and Civil War. He is author, co-author or editor of 7 books and booklets, 9 journal articles, 14 book chapters, 14 encyclopedia entries, 57 technical reports, and 54 professional presentations. He has taught African American Military History at USC. As a research archaeologist and historian, Steve has conducted archaeological investigations at Revolutionary War battlefields including Camden, Blackstocks, Williamson’s Plantation, Fort Balfour, Fort Motte, and 15 sites associated with Francis Marion. He has also worked at Civil War battlefields on Folly Island, Honey Hill, and at River’s Bridge. Steve lives in Columbia, South Carolina.

The public is always invited and welcome to attend our Chapter Meetings.

For further information: George Stubbs- 843-363-5058 www.assc.net

Save these dates:

May 17, Sept 20, Nov 15 and Dec 6th Christmas Social evenings at 7 PM

Apr 19 and Oct 18 afternoons at 1 PM.

Jan 28th 2012 3rd Annual What the Heck is it? Artifact Identification

Saturday, February 26: Archaeological Conference at Charlestowne Landing State Historic Site

2011-02-01T14:03:00.000-08:00

Archaeological Conference at Charlestowne Landing State Historic Site

Saturday Feb. 26th, 2011

Keynote address by Chris Judge, University of South Carolina, Lancaster. Fifteen Years of Archaeology and Education at the Johannes Kolb Site.

Additional presentations:

Megan King, Distribution of Debitage from the Topper Site: An Evaluation of the Purported Pre-Clovis Occupation.

Michael Stoner, Pots of the Caribbean: Barbadian Redwares and the Carolina Connection.

Kimberly Pyszka, Maureen Hays, Scott Harris, "unto seynte Paules": A Tale of St. Paul's Church and Parsonage.

Elizabeth Reitz, Martha Zierden, Wildlife in Urban Charleston, South Carolina, USA.

Carl Steen, Making Stoneware Pottery in the Old Edgefield District of South Carolina: An Introduction.

Lonnie Franklin, Archaeology of Standing Buildings: South Carolina Textile Mills and Culture Change.

Natalie Adams, The Archaeology of Community: Understanding Society from the Bottom Up.

For more information, contact David Jones, SCPRT Archaeologist djones@scprt.com

Pieces of boat that could date to Civil War discovered on Hilton Head

2011-01-08T13:38:00.000-08:00

By Tom Barton, Island Packet

Coastal waters uncovered a potential piece of Civil-War-era history found last week by a visiting diplomat on a Hilton Head Island beach.

Sea Pines resident Sally Peterson was walking on the beach in Sea Pines with her brother, Peter Thomson, who was visiting for the holidays. Thomson is a Fiji diplomat and his country's permanent representative to the UN.

During their walk, Thomson discovered what appears to be the ribs of an old wooden boat protruding from thick mud, like bones in a partially uncovered grave, on a shell beach opposite the 18th tee at the Harbour Town Golf Links.

An 8-to-10-foot portion is exposed, including holes for the wooden pegs that held the boat together and what Peterson believes are ballast stones in the hull's remains.

The rest of the boat is buried in mud. "It must have been preserved because of that," Peterson speculated.

"It became obvious from looking at it that it was an old boat," she said. "It looked like something that was being unearthed by the water. It was obviously something special."

Pictures of the wreck were shown to a local boat builder, who said the boat dates from the late 1800s to early 1900s, Peterson said.

Peterson said Indian pottery sherds have been found along the beach, but she never expected to stumble across something as substantial as the remains of a boat.

"We're very interested to find out what it was about -- how big it is, how old it is and what it was used for," she said. "Finding out that information will be exciting. This was a wonderful find."

Peterson said an attempt to contact the S.C. Institute of Archeology and Anthropology at USC was unsuccessful because officials were on vacation. The institute serves as the state's cultural resource management agency.
State archeologist Jonathan Leader said he has not seen the boat or been contacted about it. Based on its description, it could date to the Civil War, he said.

"Finding something like this along the beach is not unusual. South Carolina was very active in coastal shipping, fishing and maritime travel," Leader said.

Gunboat Discovery Comes After Years of Sightings, Botched Efforts

2010-12-30T12:59:00.000-08:00

Archaeologists Hope To Raise 145-Year-Old Confederate Ship

BY CRAIG BRANDHORST

As South Carolina’s deputy state archaeologist for underwater, USC’s Chris Amer has helped discover, map and excavate more than a few shipwrecks over the years, including the Civil War submarine H.L. Hunley and a slew of other vessels along the East Coast and elsewhere. Now, Amer and his colleagues are in the news again following the recent discovery of a Civil War vessel in the muddy waters of the Pee Dee River.

The Confederate gunboat CSS Pee Dee, which Amer and State Archeologist Jonathan Leader discovered near Marion in November — 18 months after discovering two of the boat’s three enormous cannons at the bottom of the river — was one of 22 similar gunboats built at inland naval yards across the South.

Since discovering the Pee Dee’s cannons, Amer and his colleagues have brought up seven artillery shells and plan to bring up several more. They are also making plans to raise the two cannons they’ve already found — a 9-inch Dahlgren and a 6.4-inch Brooke Rifled Cannon — sometime next summer. If they can find the third gun, also a Brooke cannon, they will raise that as well. All of the artifacts will be housed in the Florence County Museum.

“They’re building a huge new facility there,” Amer says. “There will be a whole exhibition about the Civil War, and specifically about the Mars Bluff Naval Yard and the shipwreck.”

As warships go, the CSS Pee Dee had a fairly humble military career — in fact, it never reached the open sea, as by the time of its completion the Union army had already captured Georgetown. It has nonetheless enjoyed a storied afterlife, marked by sightings, disruptions and attempts to salvage pieces of it for posterity and/or profit.

Launched at Mars Bluff in January of 1865, the 150-foot gunboat participated in exactly one skirmish three months later, about 40 miles upstream, near Cheraw. There, it provided cover for the Confederate troops of General William Hardee as they retreated from the advancing troops of General William T. Sherman. Subsequently, the gunboat was returned to Mars Bluff, where it was torched, possibly blown up and irretrievably sunk by its own crew so it would not be captured.

In the ensuing century-and-a-half, the river level periodically changed and the CSS Pee Dee reappeared several times. Amer says that an ensign in the U.S. Navy spotted the boat shortly after the Civil War, and in 1906 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pushed its wreckage onto a sandbar while dredging the river. Nearly two decades after that, the United Sons of the Confederacy managed to remove the boat’s propellers, which wound up on display at the Florence County Museum.

In 1954, however, much of what remained of the CSS Pee Dee was lost to history after a group of local businessmen also spotted the wreckage. Amer says the men brought in a bulldozer to make a road to the riverside then attempted to drag the boat ashore for display at a roadside attraction called Confederateland.

“Of course, this vessel had been burned and pushed ashore by the Corps of Engineers and possibly blown up, so it wasn’t very integral, and when they tried to pull it up it just broke into pieces,” Amer explains.

“So what they did is grab whatever they could — a 30-foot piece of the stern that was intact, a boiler and the two engines, the propeller shafts, anything else they could put their hands on. Then they put them on display across the highway and charged two bits for people to see them. Over time, things disintegrated, and that was that. I suspect the wood just dried up into powder. It was pretty much the end for those pieces.”

Somehow, the boiler did wind up for a time on display at South of the Border, but like everything else salvaged by the amateur archeologists, that, too, eventually disappeared.

“Who knows what happened to it,” Amer says, “but I suspect that the metal parts got sold for scrap.”

For all the folly, however, the 1954 salvage attempt was not a total bust, as it was witnessed by a 12-year-old boy named Michael Hartley — a boy who would eventually go on to become an archeologist himself. At the time, Hartley drew a sketch map, which he showed to Amer decades later. Amer credits that map with leading him to the site. Now, it’s just a matter of waiting for the river to subside this summer and finding the right contractor to hoist the 9,000-pound cannons from the water.

Of course, recovering the gunboat’s guns does not close the book on this particular excavation. Amer and Leader still want to locate the Mars Bluff Naval Yard, which at one time boasted at least 12 structures, plus a forge, slipways and a dry dock. Amer is certain they’re closing in on the site, even though efforts last summer by archeology students from East Carolina University failed to turn up any evidence.

“The students dug test holes all over the property where we thought [Mars Bluff] was, and they didn’t find one artifact related to the shipyard,” Amer says. “They found lots of Native American artifacts —there was a continuous occupation there for about 4,000 years — but nothing related to the shipyard. But we figure it’s got to be somewhere nearby.”

CALL FOR PAPERS: Archaeology of the Pee Dee Region

2010-12-15T14:32:00.000-08:00

CALL FOR PAPERS

Annual Conference on South Carolina Archaeology

Archaeological Society of South Carolina

Schedule of Events:

Friday April 8th

Colloquium: Portable XRF Lecture and Workshop.

Dr. Carolyn Dillian, Coastal Carolina University.
3:30- 5: 00 PM Room 153 Gambrell Hall

Sponsored by USC Department of Anthropology and ASSC

Informal Gathering: Hunter Gatherer South Main Street immediately following

Saturday April 9, 2011

THEME: Archaeology of the Pee Dee Region.

Conference: USC Columbia -Gambrell Hall Room 153 9:00 am -4:00 pm

Session One: General Open Session

Coffee Break

Session Two: Pee Dee River Archaeology

Lunch, Business Meeting, and Award Ceremony

Keynote Address: Fifteen Years of Archaeology at the Johannes Kolb Site. by Chris Judge, Carl Steen and Sean Taylor.

Session Three: Johannes Kolb Site Archaeology.

Send Titles and 100 word Abstracts to Chris Judge at Judge@sc.edu

Room is equipped with computer, data projector, document camera (Elmo), dvd/vcr combo, lectern, and network connection

DEADLINE: FEB. 1, 2011

December 18: Catawba Indian Pottery Sale

2010-12-15T14:23:00.000-08:00

Catawba Indian Pottery Sale

HOSTED BY

THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA OF LANCASTER’S

NATIVE AMERICAN STUDIES PROGRAM

Featuring works by established and emerging potters from the Catawba Nation in Rock Hill, SC.

December 18th, 2010

10:00 am until 3:00 pm
Bradley Arts and Sciences Building on the USCL campus

The event is free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Dr. Stephen Criswell,
Director of Native American Studies, at 803-313-7108 or
by email at criswese@mailbox.sc.

Archaeological Field School on Edgefield, SC Pottery Communities

2010-12-15T14:14:00.000-08:00

Archaeological Field School on Edgefield, South Carolina Pottery Communities

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Anth. 454-CF and 455-CF (6 credits; 6 weeks), May 23, 2011 to July 1, 2011

This field school will provide training in the techniques of excavation, mapping, controlled surface surveys, artifact classification and contextual interpretation. Students will work in supervised teams, learning to function as members of a field crew, with all of the skills necessary for becoming professional archaeologists. Many students from past University of Illinois field schools have gone on to graduate study and professional field-archaeology positions. Laboratory processing and analysis will be ongoing during the field season. Evening lectures by project staff, visiting archaeologists, and historians will focus on providing background on how field data are used to answer archaeological and historical research questions.

Learn more on our web site.

** Historical Significance and Project Background

The first innovation and development of alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery in America occurred in the Edgefield District of South Carolina in the early 1800s.

It remains an enduring mystery as to how these new ceramic methods were developed in that place and time, and how the techniques of clay choice, temper, and glaze developed over the following century. These potteries employed enslaved and free African-American laborers in the 19th century, and the stoneware forms also show evidence of likely African cultural influence on stylistic designs. Edgefield potteries thus present fascinating research questions of understanding technological innovations and investigating the impacts of African cultural knowledge and racial ideologies on a craft specialization during the historic period in America. This project entails an interdisciplinary, collaborative, and archaeological study of the first development in America of alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery forms, the development of the South Carolina industry over time, and the impacts of racism and African cultural influences on those processes.

The technological innovation of alkaline-glazed stoneware pottery was introduced in North America by potteries operated by Abner and John Landrum in the Edgefield, South Carolina area in the first decades of the 19th century. These technological developments by entrepreneurs of Scots-Irish heritage played out in a landscape shaped by racial difference. Numerous African-American laborers, including "Dave the Potter" who added inscriptions to his vessels, worked at these production sites.

Advertisements in local newspapers in the early decades of the 1800s listed enslaved laborers with skills in pottery production. African
Americans most likely participated in all phases of the production process, such as: building and maintaining the kilns; digging and transporting clay; working and grinding raw clay in "pug" mills; chopping wood for fuel; preparing glaze mixtures, tempers, and clay pastes; turning the pottery wheels and shaping the vessels; and loading and unloading the kiln firings.

As local historians Holcombe and Holcombe (1989: 22) observed, the "District's ceramic entrepreneurs would never have been able to manufacture such large quantities of Edgefield wares without the slave participation." Indeed, in the period of 1800-1820, the recorded number of enslaved African Americans in the surrounding area had increased to comprise half of the Edgefield District's population. An illegal transport of enslaved laborers on the ship Wanderer delivered 170 newly-captive Africans to the Edgefield District in 1858. The production of remarkably shaped "face vessels" at local potteries have also been analyzed as presenting evidence of the influence of stylistic traditions from cultures of West Central Africa.

This project seeks to undertake detailed archaeological investigations of principal sites in Edgefield, conduct archival research, and start a multi-year community engagement and education program related to these subjects.

Archaeological field schools and research teams at such pottery sites can explore both the production facility remains and the residential sectors for the enslaved and free African-American laborers. Primary research questions include:

(1) examining the distribution of work areas and residential locations in each pottery site and analyze the degree of spatial segregation due to the impacts of slavery and racism;

(2) understanding differential uses and development of those work and residential spaces, as reflected in archaeological features and artifact distributions, and the degree to which variations correlate with different racial categories associated with the occupants;

(3) analyzing faunal and botanical remains to explore and contrast dietary and health patterns between residential sites and the degree to which variations correlate with different racial categories associated with the occupants; and

(4) understanding the development and changes over time in the technologies of pottery production at these three manufacturing sites.

** Field School Overview

This six-week archaeological field school will focus on the site of Pottersville, where Abner Landrum started the first stoneware production
facility in the Edgefield district in the early 1800s. We will excavate the kiln and related production areas and conduct surveys to locate the house sites of the craftspeople and laborers who created the Pottersville village surrounding that manufacturing facility. Instructors will include Prof. Fennell, U. Illinois doctoral student George Calfas, and archaeologist Carl Steen of Diachronic Research Inc., among others. The instructors and students will stay in local housing in the Edgefield area during this six week field school, and visit nearby archaeology sites and museums on weekend trips.

For additional information about this field school opportunity, please contact Chris Fennell by email at cfennell@illinois.edu, by cell phone at 312-513-2683, or check his faculty web page for background information on the multi-year archaeology project in Edgefield, South Carolina. You can also contact George Calfas at gcalfas2@illinois.edu.

To apply for participation in this fieldschool, please download and complete a short application form and submit it to Chris Fennell by March 25, 2011. Students will be notified of acceptance no later than April 8, 2011. Accepted students should register for the related course numbers (listed above) for the summer session. Please note that all students must register for both courses (a total of 6 credit hours).

Students from colleges other than the University of Illinois can register through our exchange program and receive transfer credits.

MONDAY: SCV meeting discusses Robert E. Lee

2010-12-05T17:53:00.000-08:00

The next Sons of Confederate Veterans meeting will be held Monday, December 6th, at the Harmony Masonic Lodge located at 2710 Depot Road in Beaufort, starting promptly at 7:00 pm. Guest speaker will be Michael Givens, Beaufort resident and recently elected Commander-in-Chief of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. He will be discussing "Robert E. Lee, Master of War, Servant of the Lord"

The group will also be electing Camp Officers For 2011.

Please remember, all meeting dates, and planned speakers can be seen on the SCV web site.

Post-Doctoral Fellows Archaeology Conference in April 2011

2010-10-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

Post-Doctoral Fellows Archaeology Conference in April 2011
Moving the Middle to the Forefront: Re-Visiting the Second Epidemiological Transition

The South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Department of Anthropology at the University of South Carolina will hold their third annual Post-Doctoral Fellows Archaeology Conference in April 2011.

Moving the Middle to the Forefront: Re-Visiting the Second Epidemiological Transition is a two-day conference to be held at the Inn at USC in Columbia on April 18th -19th. The central theme of this year’s conference focuses on addressing the causes and consequences of the second transition through an interdisciplinary integration of skeletal, archaeological, biochemical and historical evidence.

For addition information, please contact:
Molly Zuckerman, Ph.D.
South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology
University of South Carolina
1321 Pendleton St.
Columbia SC 29201
Zuckermm@mailbox.sc.edu

Phone: 803-576-6572
Fax: 803-254-1338

Starting Today! Digging the Past Through Archaeology

2010-10-23T10:51:00.000-07:00

Digging the Past Through Archaeology

Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site
Archaeologists discover “new” things everyday at the site of the colonial town of Dorchester, now Colonial Dorchester State Historic Site. The often untold stories of daily life take shape through the efforts of archaeologists as they uncover, clean, analyze and care for the clues left behind of life in a frontier village and trading town. If you have ever thought “it would be neat to work with an archaeologist,” this is your opportunity. Experience first-hand the excitement of discovery, help curate artifacts in the laboratory, and spend the day with us. This program offers insight into the roll of an Archaeologist while promoting proper ethical involvement in the protection and preservation of South Carolina’s historical resources.

GENERAL
Ranger Demonstration: Yes
Registration Deadline: 1 week prior to the program
Meeting Place: Ranger Station
What to Bring: Wear closed-toe shoes. Bring insect repellent, your lunch and water.

HOURS
Event Hours: 10am-4pm

RATES AND DISCOUNTS
Fee: $25/participant

SCHEDULE
October 23, 2010, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
November 20, 2010, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
December 11, 2010, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM

South Carolina Archaeology Education Manual

2010-10-23T10:37:00.000-07:00

Check out South Carolina Archaeology Public Outreach Division (SCAPOD) draft of the South Carolina Archaeology Education Manual for 3rd graders.

October 26: Archaeology of the Gullah People

2010-10-23T10:33:00.000-07:00

"Gullah Archaeology" Program at Council Chambers

"Archaeology of the Gullah People”
with Carl Steen and Dr. Jodi Barnes
Tues., Oct. 26th
5:30 pm—6:30 pm
Council Chambers, 100 Ribaut Road

The African American citizens of the Sea Islands and tidally influenced areas of the coast from Northern Florida to Southern North Carolina developed a distinctive dialect and culture and became known as the Gullah people. Few of them could read or write, and almost none left a written record of their lives. But like all humans they left material evidence of their time here. Therefore archaeology is one of the few avenues we have into documenting their lives.

Steen and Barnes will discuss the role of archaeology, and cite some examples of archaeology at Gullah sites in South Carolina, including the Penn Center site for the proposed new St. Helena Branch Library.

Please join us for this "Archaeology Month" program on Tues., Oct. 26th beginning at 5:30 pm.

"Archaeology Month 2010" is brought to you by Beaufort County Library, Beaufort County GIS, and Beaufort County Planning. The presentation is free and open to the public. Anyone older than 12 with an interest in archaeology and local history is welcomed to attend. Details: http://www.beaufortcountylibrary.org/

Archaeology on Palmetto Bluff

2010-10-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

Archaeology on Palmetto Bluff

BDC @ The Branches celebrates Archaeology Month in Bluffton Branch on Tues., Oct. 19th.

Join our guest speaker Dr. Mary Socci, the resident archaeologist at Palmetto Bluff. Learn about the earliest known octagonal structure in North America. As this is a lunchtime program, we encourage you to bring a bagged lunch! Everyone is welcome to attend, no registration necessary.

Mary Socci, Ph.D.

"18th Century Science and Architecture at a Lowcountry Plantation"

Tuesday, October 19th at 12 Noon

Bluffton Branch Library

Large Meeting Room

We hope you can attend this "Archaeology Month" program on Tues., Oct. 19th beginning at high noon.

"Archaeology Month 2010" is brought to you by Beaufort County Library, Beaufort County GIS, and Beaufort County Planning.

County Proclaims October "Archaeology Month"

2010-10-13T10:38:00.000-07:00

County Proclaims October "Archaeology Month"

Representing Archaeology Month Team 2010, I accepted the Beaufort County Council's proclamation that October is "Archaeology Month" yesterday. Unfortunately, neither Ian Hill nor Ian deNeeve were able to attend.

Archaeology Month 2010 is always a collaborative venture. This year we were very fortunate to have Beaufort County GIS employee Ian deNeeve on our team. Ian deNeeve created the GIS mapping poster going on display in each Branch of the Beaufort County Library (just as soon as the courier can deliver them) as well as a self-guided map of tabby sites in downtown Beaufort that is available through the Library’s website.
A gentle reminder: We have two presentations coming up. Mary Socci, Palmetto Bluff’s resident archaeologist will be in Bluffton Branch Library on Oct. 19th to talk about how historical documents and archaeological sciences and new technologies have facilitated her work inside Palmetto Bluff. On Oct. 26th, Carl Steen and Dr. Jodi Barnes will be here in Council Chambers to discuss the special documentary and technological challenges of uncovering “Gullah archaeology.” Each presentation is free and open to the public.
In addition to finding the program schedule on the Library’s website, we have an "Archaeology Month" button on the County’s new website.

Dean Hall: Historical Archaeology at a Nineteenth Century Cooper River Rice Plantation

2010-10-12T10:56:00.000-07:00

Dean Hall: Historical Archaeology at a Nineteenth Century Cooper River Rice Plantation
Sponsored by Carolina Lowcountry & Atlantic World Program at the College of Charleston

Thursday, October 14, 2010 - 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Location:
Johnson Center, Room 206
28 George Street
Charleston, SC 29424
United States

Members of Brockington and Associates, a cultural resource management company in Mt. Pleasant, will be giving a public lecture on recent work at Dean Hall Plantation in Berkeley County, South Carolina. Charles Philips, Jr., senior historian, will present the history of Dean Hall Plantation. Andrew Agha, senior archaeologist, will discuss the recent excavations, which uncovered over 125,000 artifacts, including 59,000 Colonoware sherds. Nicole Isenbarger, lab supervisor, will discuss the significance of the found artifacts and Colonoware. Analysis of these sherds has helped shed light on the folkways of the enslaved people at Dean Hall plantation. This event is co-sponsored by the Addlestone Friends of the Library.

Website: http://www.cofc.edu/atlanticworld

Contact:
Lisa B Randle
randlel@cofc.edu

October is Archaeology Month!

2010-10-06T13:57:00.000-07:00

by Jodi Barnes, Editor SC Antiquities and State Historic Preservation Office Archaeologist

October is archaeology month! South Carolina has been celebrating the archaeology and history of the state for 21 years. The annual celebration is put together by the Archaeological Society of South Carolina (ASSC)., local museums and historical associations, state agencies, such as the South Carolina Department of Archives and History, the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (SCIAA), and state parks, such as Charles Town Landing State Historic Site or Kings Mountain State Park as well as local governments.

Archaeology month events and programs have been developed by dedicated professionals, avocationalists, and organizations in order to bring our state’s prehistoric and historic past to life for all ages. Through such public outreach efforts, the archaeological community hopes to build regional and local public support for the preservation of our Native American, African, and European heritage.

By sponsoring an annual event like SC Archaeology Month, the archaeological community of South Carolina wants to: 1) Stimulate pride in our state’s archaeological heritage; 2) Increase understanding of why archaeological research is important; 3) Heighten awareness of how many archaeological resources are lost each year in South Carolina; 4) Educate people about what they can do to help protect and study the state’s archaeological resources; and 5) Get more people involved in archaeological activities and discourage the practice of pot-hunting and unsupervised digs.

Each year, archaeology month has a theme and a poster. This year’s theme is archaeology and technology. Archaeology is often thought of as digging. Yet archaeologists use a variety of technology in order to learn about the past. Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR), ethnobotany, Geographical Information Systems (GIS), Petrographic Analysis and the sourcing of raw materials are just a few of the tools archaeologists use.

Another aspect of technology in archaeology is experimental archaeology or the study that attempts to replicate past processes to understand how the archaeological materials came about. Experimental archaeology can include flint knapping, pottery production or atlatl studies, past farming techniques, or the construction of ships and buildings. Archaeology month provides a number of opportunities to see first hand how archaeologists engage with technology to understand the past.

Events include lectures, reenactments, tours of historic sites, excavations, museum exhibits, and workshops. During archaeology month, you can learn about gravestone motifs and the movement to protect, preserve, and document cemetery history, primitive technology and experimental archaeology, or how to make a pine needle basket.

The main event, Archaeology Field Day: “Piecing Together the Past with Archaeology”, is hosted by the Archaeological Society of South Carolina (ASSC). This year Fall Field Day will be held between 10am and 4pm on October 9 at Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site in Charleston. Charles Towne Landing is the site of the first permanent settlement of the Carolina Colony. The park features an animal forest, hiking trails, a museum, an experimental garden, and living history.

Building upon the theme of "Archaeology and Technology", there will be array of demonstrations, exhibits, hands-on activities, and lectures that span the prehistoric and historic occupations of South Carolina. Lectures and exhibits will focus on archaeological work on Carolina Bays and Stone Quarries, Petrographic Analysis of Stone from the Great Pee Dee River, the use of Ground Penetrating Radar in archaeology, and the artifacts from the Hunley.

Meet archaeologists from Charles Towne Landing and around the state while you tour dig sites where Native American and colonial finds have been unearthed. Try your own archaeology skills in hands-on programs and learn how flint was used as a weapon, tool, and fire starter. Hear archaeologists and preservation specialists talk about their current research on topics such as plantation life in the French Caribbean, Lord Anthony Ashley Cooper at St. Giles Kussoe House, Hampton Plantation State Historic Site, the archaeology of Gullah people and South Carolina's 'Separate but Equal' Schools.

Join us to discover the science of archaeology and the history revealed below the surface. Discover how archaeologists see beyond written records and learn about past cultures based on artifacts left behind.

ASSC is an association of professional and avocational archaeologists and concerned citizens uniting together in a cooperative effort to understand the prehistory and history of South Carolina. It is a Society of dedicated members exerting their combined efforts toward the interpretation and preservation of South Carolina's rich cultural heritage. The Society is assisted and supported by the Office of State Archaeology, South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of South Carolina, and also works closely with the Council of South Carolina Professional Archaeologists. For more information about ASSC or to become a member (http://www.assc.net/home).

For information about archaeology month, check out the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (http://www.cas.sc.edu/SCIAA/) or the South Carolina Department of Archives and History (http://shpo.sc.gov/) websites. For more information on Field Day go to www.assc.net.

TOMORROW: "Exploring the Archaeology of Lake Marion" at Elloree Museum

2010-09-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

From the Times and Democrat

Busy fall on tap at Elloree museum

ELLOREE - Three special events are scheduled at the Elloree Heritage Museum and Cultural Center in September and October.

On Friday, Sept. 17, Dr. Robert C. Costello of the University of South Carolina-Sumter will conduct a lecture on "Exploring the Archaeology of Lake Marion."

The presentation, set for 7 p.m., will highlight photographs and discuss archaeological artifacts of Lake Marion as well as its flora, fauna and shoreline landscape.

Illustrations will include projectile points - from 13,000-year-old Clovis to more recent lithic tools, pot shreds from ancient fiber-tempered to colonial-era North Devon gravel-tempered ware, cypresses in barrier beach ponds, birds and alligators.

It is hoped those who attend will leave with an enhanced appreciation both for the beauty and the historic significance of Lake Marion, and with the conviction that Hickory Top Wildlife Management Area, the principal location of these studies, is a priceless resource that should remain forever immune from commercial development.

Those in attendance are welcome to bring their own archaeological finds to show the speaker and his research collaborator, Kenn Steffy, following the formal presentation.

There is no charge for the lecture, but seating is limited. Call 803-897-2225 or e-mail elloreemuseum.ntinet.com to make reservations.

You can read the rest of this Times and Democrat article here.

TOMORROW! Beaufort County Historical Society-Meeting Sept. 16th

2010-09-15T14:38:00.000-07:00

Beaufort County Historical Society-Meeting Sept. 16th

The Beaufort County Historical Society will present Parris Island Museum’s Dave Smoot Sept. 16th at noon at the Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club 30 Yacht Club Drive. Smoot will discuss military medical practices during the Civil War.

An optional light lunch catered by Debi Covington will be served at 11:30 for $10. RSVP, please to Nancy Gilley 843·524·7969

Directions: The Beaufort Yacht & Sailing Club is across the Swing Bridge from Carteret onto Lady’s Island, turn right on Meridian Road ,second right after the bridge. In less than 2 miles, turn right onto Yacht Club Drive.

Upcoming Events:

Nov. 11th --Speaker Kristina Dunn Johnson to discuss the history of the Beaufort US National Cemetery

Dec. 3th – Night on the Town-Downtown Beaufort http://www.downtownbeaufort.com/night-on-the-town

Dec. 4th --The 2nd Annual Beaufort County Historical Society Tour of Historic Churches, this year to include holiday entertainment and optional lunch.

The Beaufort County Historical Society is the oldest association in Beaufort County dedicated to the study and preservation of history. A member based organization, the society was established in 1939.

For further information contact: Pamela Ovens-President
sail@singlestar.us or call 843-785-2767

ASSC/Hilton Head Chapter Fall Speakers Series kicks off Tuesday

2010-09-15T14:33:00.000-07:00

Archaeology Society of SC/Hilton Head Chapter Fall Speakers Series Kicks Off Tuesday, September 21

The Archaeology Society of SC/Hilton Head Chapter is pleased to announce that Carl Steen will kick off the Fall speaker series this Tuesday, Sept. 21st, at Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn on Hilton Head, SC at 7 pm. The public is always invited and welcome to attend our Chapter meetings.

Steen's talk will highlight his archaeological exploration at Penn Center, including both American Indian and historic African American (Gullah) recoveries. A native of Charleston, SC, Steen attended College of Charleston, received his BA from USC, and his MA from William and Mary. he began workng as an archaeologist in 1981, and founded Diachronic Research Foundation, a non-profit corporation, in 1991.

Some of Steen’s major projects have included excavations at the John de la Howe site in McCormick County; a survey of pottery kiln sites in the old Edgefield District (modern Aiken, Edgefield and Greenwood counties); excavations at Fort Bragg, concentrating on sites occupied by descendants of the early Scot settlers there; and excavations at Fort Johnson, on James Island, where he examined a variety of occupations including a freedmen's settlement and several military-related occupations.

Upcoming events:

Oct. 20th- Charlie Cobb discussing the campaigns at Palachacolas Town on the Savannah River near Garnett, SC. This will be Wednesday, Oct 20 at 1:00 PM

Nov 16th-- Dan Elliott discussing the Yuchis of Mt Pleasant, SC

For further information: George Stubbs- 843-363-5058 www.assc.net

Legendary guitarist and passionate historian passes

2010-09-10T14:50:00.000-07:00

Michael C. Taylor

Legendary guitarist and passionate historian, archaeologist and preservationist, Michael Curtis Taylor, 62, of Hilton Head passed away on Sunday, September 5 at Hilton Head Regional Medical Center.

Taylor was born on July 21, 1948, to Katie Steed and George F. Taylor in Fayetteville, N.C. While a teenager, he taught himself to play the acoustic guitar. His mastery of the instrument put him in demand in the 1960s as a lead guitarist for a variety of folk singers in both Fayetteville and New York City, playing for such legends as Joni Mitchell.

In 1969, he joined an up-and-coming singer named John Denver and with Denver wrote such hits as Sunshine on My Shoulders and Rocky Mountain High. His guitar technique in songs such as The Season Suite and The Eagle and The Hawk often led to his being considered the best guitarist in the country. While playing with Denver, he married Mary Kay Kolacz of Washington, N.C., on July 25, 1970.

Taylor, seeking to escape winter in Aspen, Colorado, came to Hilton Head in January of 1973 at the suggestion of a friend to spend the season. As a boy he had always loved collecting arrowheads and other artifacts with his father, and found the relatively undeveloped Hilton Head and Daufuskie Islands fertile fields for exploring and piecing together the history of the islands. His passion for educating others about the complex relationship between man and his environment, and assuring that historical sites were secured soon surpassed his love of the stage, and Taylor put down roots on Hilton Head and began studies at the University of South Carolina in Columbia in archaeology and anthropology. As with the guitar, Taylor completely immersed himself in the subjects and became a Research Fellow at the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology at USC.

In 1985, Taylor and a group of islanders began an effort to create The Museum of Hilton Head Island (now Coastal Discovery) and Taylor became the first director in 1988. Under his leadership, beach, nature and history walks and lectures began, archaeological projects were undertaken at Fish Haul Creek & Mitchelville (site of the first freedman's village), the museum took over management of the pre-historic Green's Shell enclosure, and a bird hospital and Project Turtle Watch operated under the museum's umbrella.

Taylor later was the co-founder of the Southeastern Ecological Institute and was that organization's Executive Director. He wrote and narrated "Mike Taylor's History of Hilton Head Island," an audio-cassette feature in Southern Living Magazine as well as a video series Hilton Head Island - A Television History which aired on the History Channel. In addition, he collaborated and contributed in 1993 on a limited edition book The Forgotten History: A Photographic Essay on Civil War Hilton Head Island.

In 2002, Taylor was named Executive Director of the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust. Among the many accomplishments during his tenure was the preservation of Battery White, a Civil War Confederate fortification near Georgetown; the confirmation and preservation of Fort Pemberton, a Confederate site on James Island; and he was currently involved in preservation and interpretive signs at Battery Brayton, a Union Fort near Beaufort. Over the past several years, Taylor consulted with filmmaker Mike Kirk on several documentaries including The Trumpet at the Walls of Jericho about a slave who obtained freedom and became the chaplain of the African-American 54th regiment during the Civil War. He just completed work as co-writer and associate producer for America's "Iliad: The Siege of Charleston," a 2-hour film about Charleston during the Civil War which is set to air nationally on PBS stations in April of 2011.

In addition to his wife, Mary Kay, Taylor is survived by his sister Janet Taylor Knight (David), of Washington, N.C., and a brother, George Taylor, of Chapel Hill, N.C. A Celebration of Life will be held at the The Island Funeral Home and Crematory, 4 Cardinal Road, on Friday, September 10 at 6:00 p.m. In honor of the many ways Mike sought to help others, memorial contributions may be made to The Deep Well Project, P.O. Box 5543, Hilton Head, SC 29938 or to the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust, P.O. Box 21781, Hilton Head, SC 29925 The Island Funeral Home and Crematory is in charge of arrangements.

Coastal Carolina University Dig Unearths Shipbuilding History

2010-08-31T11:24:00.000-07:00

Coastal Carolina University Dig Unearths Shipbuilding History
Boat fire marked end of an era
By Steve Jones - sjones@thesunnews.com

CONWAY -- Work at Government Shipyard of Conwayborough stopped when the steam-driven vessel Maggie burned up at a dock on the Waccamaw River during an early May night in 1897.

The ship fire, which started around midnight, spread to some of the nearby warehouses as well as the shipyard. Reports from the time record the end of the Maggie, a Waccamaw Line ship that hauled cargo and passengers. Archaeologists at Coastal Carolina University can tell it was the end of the shipyard because the layering of the soil at a site near Kingston Presbyterian Church showed only fill material and then parking lot material above the layer of charred soil.

"We see this all over the world," said Cheryl Ward, director of the Center for Archaeology and Anthropology at CCU.

After evidence of a fire is found at an archaeological site anywhere on the globe, there typically is evidence in the soil layer above the charred layer that the destruction has been cleaned up and those using it have converted its use to something different.

Ward's hiring by the university last year and the subsequent hiring of two more archaeologists will open up a field of study for students and give the area a new resource for readily and literally digging into its past.

Ward, for instance, said she has been asked to join the board of the Horry County Museum and is planning a dig on the grounds of the Burroughs School, where the museum is relocating.

Ben Burroughs, president of the Horry County Historical Society, said the things Ward and the other archaeologists uncover could alter historical misimpressions and give more detail to the county's history.

"Horry County history has not been thoroughly researched, in my opinion," said Burroughs.

He said CCU hired an earlier archaeologist around 1990 who uncovered the site of Richmond Hill Plantation in the Wachesaw area of Horry County. Historical evidence of the plantation existed, but the archaeological dig gave proof of the size of the plantation house and the life its owners lived.

Ward also does maritime archaeology and speaks with pride of the reconstruction of an Egyptian vessel discovered at a site she has worked in Egypt for decades. The Waccamaw, she said, contains what's left of any number of vessels that sank in the county's early English history.

She and the other archaeologists at CCU were lured there from other universities by the opportunity to create an archaeology program from the ground up. They are writing the documents that will allow archaeology to be a program minor at the school. Eventually, it will evolve into a major study program of its own and then undertake a graduate program.

One of the things that excites Ward about starting the CCU program is that she will be able to involve undergraduates in the investigation that is archaeology.

The hole that opened up near the Conway waterfront in June was dug by crews who were burying utility lines, Ward said.

"We realized it was a phenomenal opportunity," Ward said.

Not only was it a small trench into the city's past, but it came at a time that it could be incorporated into her program's archaeological field school. Students at the time participated in the recovery of artifacts and will help in their specific identification as part of this year's classwork.

The hoped-for dig at Burroughs School will show students and others that the artifacts found underground are often a piece of a puzzle, the full picture of which doesn't come without researching historical records and the memories of those with direct experience of things found underground.

In the pit near Kingston Presbyterian, which measured between 12 feet and 20 feet wide by about 12 feet deep, there was enough resin to immediately determine that the site was likely used for shipbuilding. The resin came from the sap of pine trees, which yielded materials such as tar, pitch and turpentine, essential to keep commercial, wooden ships afloat.

The site also yielded things such as metal hoops used on wooden barrels, factory and handmade nails and other items that would further substantiate the industrial use of the area.

Additionally, two dime-size pieces of pottery were found. The patterns on them will lead to dating when and where they were made as well as how they might have been used.

The artifacts from that dig were already above ground when CCU's archaeologists and students got to the site. The crews who dug them up recognized there could be historical value in them and called the school.

"All over the surface were huge lumps of things from naval stores and bits of pottery from the 18th century. The deepest level of the hole was dated to about 1820.

It wasn't the ideal situation for an archaeologist, who wants to be the first one to disturb a site for study. But it helped to reinforce Ward's conviction that she made the right decision to relocate to Conway.

It showed her that people there are tuned into history as something important and are willing to act on it, she said.

"I've never been in a place," Ward said, "where you can call up on Wednesday and, by Friday, everybody says 'yes.'"

Contact STEVE JONES at 444-1765.

Experts call discovery a 'most unusual find'

2010-08-25T11:24:00.000-07:00

David Bertrand of Georgetown didn’t know what he had found when he discovered a rock-like object in the dirt near his home. Archaeologists are puzzled over the object, but say it could have been used by early Native Americans.

Experts call discovery a 'most unusual find'

Georgetown, S.C. — David Bertrand, a volunteer at the Georgetown County Museum, was planting jasmine in his garden when his shovel hit what he thought was a rock.

He put the object aside, wondering why a rock would be in the shallow soil near his driveway.

The object, after he washed away the mud, appeared to have a tiny, human face.

There are crosshatch marks on the object, which appear to have been made with a thin, sharp edged object.

“I only went down about six inches, and when I turned the dirt over, I saw this thing that looked like a rock in the dirt,” Bertrand said. “I continued with the rest of the jasmine and went back to it. I wanted to find out what kind of rock it was. It wasn’t a rock.”

On Tuesday, archaeologists speculated that it could be anything from a net weight to a rare “boat stone,” which some say they have never encountered in Georgetown County.

The object could date back to the earliest settlements of Native Americans in Georgetown County.

A boat stone, according to archaeology Web sites, is a weight attached to a throwing stick. The weight improves the distance the stick can be thrown and improves the accuracy.

Rare find

The search for the true nature of the object has taken Bertrand, a history buff, to archaeologists in Charleston and Mount Pleasant.

Many other archaeologists also weighed in Tuesday on the question of what the object could be.

“I've been in archaeology in South Carolina for nearly 30 years and have never seen one before, if that means anything,’’ said researcher Carl Steen.

The object has a hole in the top and bottom and appears to fit on a necklace, stick or a fishing net.

It is about the size of an egg and has a hollowed out back.

It appears to be made of unglazed clay, Bertrand said.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,’’ said Ron Anthony, an archaeologist at the Charleston County Museum. “I don’t know what to tell you. Usually when we get something really odd like this, I suspect it’s something genuine. In all the publications, I haven’t seen anything like this.”

He said it closely resembles artifacts that come from the Deptford period, but he isn’t sure.

According to Internet sources, the Deptford culture was from 2500 BCE to 100 BCE.

“It was characterized by the appearance of elaborate ceremonial complexes, increasing social and political complexity, mound burial, permanent settlements, population growth, and an increasing reliance on cultigens.”

Steen said the piece appears to be Native American in origin.

“It’s a pretty curious object,’’ he said. “I would say it’s an important find because of how interesting it is. It will stimulate conversation, if nothing else.”

Bertrand said he has been told by some experts that the object could be about 3,000 years old.

“We didn’t know anything about it and we still don’t,’’ said Martha Zierden, curator of the Charleston County Museum.

“It wasn’t anything we recognized. From time to time, people bring us odd things we don’t have an answer for.”

For now, the piece is housed at the Georgetown County Museum, along with other Native American objects.

Bertrand hopes one day he can find out more about the object and make a display featuring the piece at the museum.

Visitors to the museum are surprised at the appearance of the strange object.

Bertrand said, so far, he hasn’t found any other unusual pieces in his yard.

He doesn’t know if his house rests on other unique historical objects.

“People are astounded that it was found in the area,” he said.

By Kelly Marshall Fuller

Kfuller@gtowntimes.com

Waccamaw Chapter of Archaeological Society of South Carolina: Field Excursion

2010-08-19T11:30:00.000-07:00

Waccamaw Chapter of Archaeological Society of South Carolina: Field Excursion

Hot off the planning table—we are having a field excursion on Friday and Saturday August 20 and 21. Chapter members have a special opportunity to participate as full team members in the investigation of a small historic residence at the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center property. The Refuge is located just south of the Georgetown county line on Hwy 701, and we will be opening excavation units at the wooded site and also working in the laboratory during the day.

Chapter members will begin at 8.30 am and we hope you’ll be able to stay until 3 pm. Lunch is on us, and you may also camp with the core crew from Coastal Carolina University’s Center for Archaeology and Anthropology on Friday evening and get an early start at setting things up plus enjoying good camp cooking. For more information on camping, please contact me at cward@coastal.edu.

Everyone is welcome to observe the activities, and the Refuge is planning more fun from kayaking to birdwatching for the day (please see the attached flyer, and share it), but only full chapter members may participate in excavation and recording finds.

If you would like to join us, please send me an email with your contact information, your member status (paid or will pay at the site), and whether you will camp with us. We need to hear from you by Thursday the 19th at noon, please!

Please share this with friends and others who might be interested in visiting the refuge or joining us at the dig.

With best wishes for this first week of school across the state and all levels,

Archaeology Field Day - Save The Date!

2010-08-13T09:54:00.000-07:00

Archaeology Field Day is just around the corner, and we hope you will make plans now to join us on October 9 from 10 to 4 at Charles Town Landing!

This year's theme is the Science of Archaeology, and the event has the makings of the best Field Day ever, and you won't want to miss it!

In addition to the exhibits you have come to know and love, Charleston Museum will be holding their annual fall archaeology event with us this year. And the park itself has archaeologists and will be giving site and lab tours. The park also has an American Indian ceremonial center, original settlement, plantation complex, the trading ship Adventure, African American cemetery, indentured servants house, animal forest and more.

Camping is allowed at Charles Town Landing, but campsites must be broken down by the time the park opens at 9 am. Watch this space for local hotel information for non-camping out of towners.

We hope to see you there!

Beaufort District Collection Connection Plans for Archaeology Month

2010-08-11T08:14:00.000-07:00

Found this over at Beaufort District Collection Connection:

Progress Report on Archaeology Month Programs

Under normal circumstances, October is a very busy time for the BDC. But October 2010 is extra busy. (There's that matter of opening a new Research Room and all attendent orientations and tours pursuant therefrom to consider, you know.) Ian Hill (Beaufort County's Historic Preservationist and the Library's stalwart partner in Archaeology Month programming) and I are scaling back a little for 2010.

As a refresher, the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (SCIAA) organizes an annual celebration of our state's archaeology and archaeological sites. Ian Hill and I began offering a formal series of Archaeology Month programs in 2004.

The goals of Archaeology Month are to:

1) stimulate public pride in our state’s archaeological heritage,

2) increase public understanding of why archaeological research is important,

3) heighten public awareness of how many archaeological resources are lost each year in South Carolina,

4) educate the public about what they can do to help protect and study the state’s archaeological resources, and

5) get more people involved in legitimate archaeological activities.

We are very fortunate to have fellow Beaufort County employee, Ian deNeeve, on our AM Team 2010. Ian deNeeve, an archaeologist who works with Beaufort County's Geographic Information Systems department, is using his considerable skills with technology to supplement Ian H.'s and my more traditional approach of lectures and demonstrations. Given that the 2010 theme for Archaeology Month is "Archaeological Science," we are happy indeed to have Ian deNeeve on our team!

Please start making notes on your calendars. Here is the outline of what AM Team 2010 has planned to celebrate Archaeology Month this year:

Ian Hill has arranged for Archaeologist Carl Steen of Diachronic Research Foundation to come to County Council Chambers on Tues., October 26th at 5:30pm to share his deep knowledge of "Gullah Archaeology."

Ian d.'s skills are already apparent in the self-guided tour map of tabby structures that he created which I've posted as a component of the Library's Local History and Nature page "Tabby: Concrete of the Lowcountry" authored by Dennis Adams.

Mary Socci, Palmetto Bluff's resident archaeologist, will speak on "18th Century Science and Architecture at a Lowcountry Plantation" TBD.

Ian d. is also working on a multi-poster exhibit highlighting how Beaufort County uses archaeological science to interpret its own archaeological sites and resources. Beaufort County Library system will display the posters throughout the county during October.

As you can see, without Ian d., Ian H. and I would have a considerably abbreviated program schedule for 2010. Schedules and activities to celebrate Archaeology Month 2010 will announced as they are finalized.

Digging into time with 'Archaeology at Colonial Brunswick'

2010-08-08T07:08:00.000-07:00

Digging into time with 'Archaeology at Colonial Brunswick'"

By Ben Steelman
Ben.Steelman@StarNewsOnline.com

Published: Saturday, August 7, 2010 at 3:30 a.m.

From 1958 to 1968, Stanley A. South was an archaeologist at the Brunswick Town State Historic Site in Brunswick County, uncovering most of the artifacts that can now be seen at the visitors' center.

He would move on to a distinguished career at the University of South Carolina, virtually inventing the field of historical archaeology – unearthing sites for which we have written records, rather than, say, prehistoric remains – in the United States.

In many ways, however, South never left Brunswick Town behind. Now, after many years, his old employer, the state Office of Archives and History, has published South's account of his busy, fruitful decade on the west bank of the Cape Fear River.

In “Archaeology at Colonial Brunswick,” South updates and expands an unpublished account he wrote back in 1961 with the benefits of a half-century of hindsight.

He carefully credits the late E. Lawrence Lee Jr., the Wilmington native and longtime history professor at The Citadel in Charleston. In the early 1950s, Lee agitated with state officials to have the Brunswick Town site preserved at a time when it was threatened by encroachment from the adjoining Sunny Point military terminal then under construction.

During a series of summers, Lee saw to it that decades of undergrowth were mowed from parts of the site, identifying ruins where they peeked from the soil. He also did the library spadework, combing colonial records for clues to Brunswick Town's appearance.

Armed with Lee's homework, and his approximate reconstruction of the town's original plan, South grabbed the ball and ran. Surveying the site, he quickly lined up lots with Lee's maps, identifying historic local buildings (including Brunswick County's original courthouse) and starting to dig.

With just a few named streets and slightly more than 100 known structures, Brunswick Town was never very big. In 1769, when it was fast losing ground to Wilmington up the river, its population was only about 250. In its heyday, it was not much bigger.

“The town is very poor – a few scattered houses on the edge of the woods, without streets or regularity,” wrote Janet Schaw, a Scottish visitor, in 1775, just as the Revolution was breaking out.

Less than a year later, a British raiding party would burn Brunswick, effectively killing the settlement barely a half-century after its founding in 1725. South would find traces of inhabitants trailing into the 1800s – some U.S. coins, some U.S. Army buttons – but by 1830, Brunswick had all but vanished.

While it lasted, though, Brunswick was important out of all proportion to its size. For a while, it was the center of the British empire's trade in naval stores – tar and pitch from the pine forests, essential ingredients for a navy and merchant marine built of wood.

As South demonstrated, it was also the nexus of a global economy. Almost every house excavated at Brunswick contained porcelain from China. At the “Public House,” South and his assistants found a Malay pocket knife with Arabic lettering, possibly brought to the port by a sailor from the British East India Company.

South's account gives a neat summary of Brunswick's brief history, including the Spanish privateer raid of 1748 (which supposedly yielded the famous “Ecco Homo” painting, now at St. James Episcopal Church in Wilmington), the hurricane of 1769 which blew down the courthouse and nearly wiped out the town and the erection of the Confederate Fort Anderson on the site during the Civil War.

He also gives a non-archaeological taste of the town's raucous lifestyle. Cornelius Harnett Jr., the father of the Patriot leader, who bought Brunswick Town's first lots, headed to the Lower Cape Fear ahead of the law – accused of helping his friend, ex-Gov. George Burrington, assault the new governor, Richard Everard.

Then there was the “extraordinary” 1765 duel between Royal Navy officers Alex Simpson and Thomas Whitehurst of the HMS Viper, which ended with Simpson beating his foe to death with his pistol butt. (He later surrendered to local authorities, was tried and sentenced to have the letter “M,” for manslaughter, branded on his left thumb.)

South's patient, non-technical account makes archaeological fieldwork seem enthralling, even without any Indiana Jones exploits. Moreover, his contention that much of Brunswick Town has yet to be properly explored ought to spur some new research.

ARKANSAS ARCHEOLOGICAL SOCIETY TO CELEBRATE 50TH ANNIVERSARY

2010-08-07T06:38:00.001-07:00

The Arkansas Archeological Society will be celebrating its 50th anniversary at its Annual Meeting, to be held in Hot Springs, Arkansas, September 24-26. In addition to the the usual presentation of papers on Saturday, many of which will focus on historical themes, there also will be a number of special activities at this year's meeting. At the Friday night reception will be a showing of the 1972 film Preserving the Past for the Future, as well as a DVD of 50 Years of the Society in Photos. The keynote speaker, following Saturday's banquet dinner, will be Dr. Brian Fagan, who will discuss the art of storytelling about the past. Sunday tours include visits to a novaculite whetstone company and a historic estate in Hot Springs. Additional information about the meeting can be found on the Arkansas Archeological Society web site at http://www.arkarch.org/, or by calling 479-575-3557.

Scientists to rotate historic Confederate submarine for first time since it sank off SC coast

2010-08-06T15:44:00.000-07:00

Scientists to rotate historic Confederate submarine for first time since it sank off SC coast

By: BRUCE SMITH
Associated Press

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — A decade after the raising of the Confederate submarine Hunley off the South Carolina coast, the cause of the sinking of the first sub in history to sink an enemy warship remains a mystery. But scientists are edging closer.

On Friday, scientists announced one of the final steps that should help explain what happened after the hand-cranked sub and its eight-man crew rammed a spar with a powder charge into the Union blockade ship Housatonic off Charleston in February, 1864.

Early next year the 23-ton sub will be delicately rotated to an upright position, exposing sections of hull not examined in almost 150 years.

When the Hunley sank, it was buried in sand listing 45 degrees to starboard. It was kept that way as slings were put beneath it and it was raised and brought to a conservation lab in North Charleston a decade ago.

Sunday marks the 10th anniversary of the raising of the Hunley, discovered five years earlier by shipwreck hunter Clive Cussler.

As thousands watched from boats and the shoreline, the Hunley was brought from the depths and back to the lab by barge. Thousands turned out again in April 2004 when the crew was buried in what has been called the last Confederate funeral.

During the past 15 years, about $22 million has been spent excavating and conserving the Hunley, according to Friends of Hunley, the nonprofit group that raises money for the project.

About $10.8 million came from the state and federal government, with the rest raised through donations and tour ticket and merchandise sales. About a half million people have seen the sub that sits in a tank of water at the conservation lab.

An economic analysis earlier this year estimated the project has returned its investment many times over.

The study found that publicity from hundreds of news stories, a half dozen documentaries and a made-for-TV movie has generated at least $30 million in a state where tourism is an $18 billion industry.

"I have absolutely no misgivings," said state Sen. Glenn McConnell, the chairman of the South Carolina Hunley Commission. "The state is spending millions of dollars to get its message out to get people to visit here and the Hunley, in just one new historic revelation, makes history and makes news all over the world."

U-Haul also has the picture of the Hunley on the side of 1,200 of its rental trucks that travel throughout the country, essentially free advertising that the company says would otherwise be worth $117 million.

Rotating the sub will allow scientists to, for the first time, completely examine the Hunley's hull.

It's a delicate operation, involving replacing the existing slings before the sub is turned upright. The pressure on the straps will be monitored electronically and a laser will monitor to make sure the surface doesn't get warped.

The Hunley is "a ghost of an iron object," said senior conservator Paul Mardikian, adding it has "hundreds of different parts and everything has to move together."

Putting it upright should provide clues to the sinking.

Was it damaged by fire from the Houstonic or perhaps struck by a second Union ship coming to the aid of the blockade vessel? Were the Hunley sailors knocked out by the concussion of the explosion that sank the Housatonic?

The clues indicate the crew died of anoxia, a lack of oxygen which can overtake a person very quickly, and didn't drown. The remains showed they were at their crank stations and there was no rush for an escape hatch.

McConnell concedes he didn't expect the project to take so long and thought it would have been in a museum by now.

"The Hunley is a very complex artifact and we decided we had only one chance to do it and that was to do it right," he said.

He estimates the Hunley could now be displayed in a museum by 2015.

Conservation of such artifacts often takes years, underwater archeologists say.

It was almost 30 years before the Swedish royal warship Vasa, which sank in 1628 in Stockholm Harbor and was raised in 1961, went on display in a permanent museum.

Scientific reports on the Vasa are just coming out, said Lawrence Babits, director of the Program in Maritime Studies at East Carolina University.

"The Hunley is iron and the iron isn't very thick and iron that has been in salt water is in a very nebulous state," he said. Putting it in shape where it can be displayed "does take time."

Frederick Hanselmann, a field archaeologist at the Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M said the most painstaking part of conserving iron objects is removing the salts from years in sea water.

Conserving a ship cannon alone can take three to four years, he said.

"For conservation it's not an unusually long time, especially considering they are conserving an entire submarine," said Mark Gordon, the president and chief executive officer of Odyssey Marine Exploration.

The company salvaged more than 50,000 coins and other artifacts from the wreck of the SS Republic off Savannah, Ga., in 2003 and while many of those coins are being displayed, some of the artifacts are still being conserved seven years later, Gordon said.

Hunley archaeologist Maria Jacobsen isn't surprised the cause of the sinking hasn't been found and expects a new series of questions and answers when the Hunley is rotated.

"I do think with persistence and patience and a good deal of luck we will get there," she said.

In this Aug. 3, 2010 photo, the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley, with some of the hull panels removed to allow excavation, rests in a conservation tank at a lab in North Charleston, S.C. Aug. 8 marks the 10th anniversary of the raising of the sub, the first in history to sink an enemy warship. (AP Photo/Bruce Smith)

Read more at the Washington Examiner

USC produces award winning documentaries with ETV: ‘Finding Clovis’ from ‘Carolina Stories’ wins 2010 Telly

2010-08-04T15:58:00.000-07:00

From The Daily Gamecock:

USC produces award winning documentaries with ETV

‘Finding Clovis’ from ‘Carolina Stories’ wins 2010 Telly; ‘Take on the South’ takes regional Emmy

Three ETV documentaries produced with the University of South Carolina have won awards.

“Finding Clovis,” a special featured as part of ETV’s weekly documentary series “Carolina Stories,” won a 2010 bronze Telly Award in the documentary category.

The episode featured USC archaeologist Al Goodyear (pictured right holding the Telly Award with “Finding Clovis” producer Steve Folks, photo courtesy of sc.edu) and focused on his research on the sudden disappearance of the Clovis people, a tribe of hunters and toolmakers who dwelled in South Carolina more than 13,000 years ago.

The episode was filmed at USC’s Topper excavation site in Allendale, which is considered to be one of the most important Clovis sites in the United States.

Goodyear’s research and findings suggest that a pre-Clovis people occupied the area who date back about 50,000 years, which has sparked scientific debate and interest. Dennis Stanford from the Smithsonian Institution and geophysicist Allen West from Arizona accompanied Goodyear on his excavation.

You can read the rest of the piece here.

Deadline Extended for "Notes from the Field"!

2010-08-02T16:37:00.000-07:00

What Did You Do This Year?

Let folks know! Submit an article or “Notes from the Field” for South Carolina Antiquities 2010! The deadline has been extended to August 15!

South Carolina Antiquities seeks articles about archaeology in South Carolina and adjacent areas. Professional and avocational archaeologists should send papers you have been working on for review. In addition, this year Antiquities will include a “Notes from the Field” section for you to update colleagues on current projects and recent finds. This is a great way to contribute to a larger discussion of archaeology in South Carolina.

Manuscripts submitted for review should conform to the American Antiquity style guide (see the ASSC website for a pdf copy). The deadline for submission for 2010 is June 30.

Please send submissions to the Journal Editor, Jodi Barnes at jodib9@gmail.com.

SCNAPR.info - The South Carolina Native American Pottery Research web site

2010-07-30T12:15:00.000-07:00

SCNAPR.info - The South Carolina Native American Pottery Research web site

By Carl Steen
Earlier the year a new web site dedicated to Native American pottery research was posted at http://SCNAPR.info. Although we have seen decades of archaeology in South Carolina that has involved Native American pottery no one has ever succeeded in synthesizing the data. That is not to say that I have finally done so. With this web site I have not tried to write a full synthesis or come up with the last word on the subject. Indeed, my conclusion is that someone - or group of someones - needs to spend about ten years, full time researching the subject and another ten writing it up. It's not as simple as making up a few type names and descriptions and slotting everything into them.

But what I have managed to accomplish is to get electronic copies of all of the important pottery studies I could find and post them on the web site. Many of these were available on the internet. In other cases the authors had pdfs, while in still others I scanned books and gray literature reports. There are some golden oldies up there that have sat on many of us older South Carolina archaeologists' bookshelves for years that the younger generation has not had the opportunity to consult. And there has been a spate of good dissertations coming out of North Carolina in the last decade that many of us older folks probably haven't seen. Those and similar works are posted as well.

I have also tried to summarize what disparate researchers have said about the various pottery “types” we all refer to in our work. South Carolina falls on the fault line between what early researchers call northern and southern traditions. Well, as usual it isn't as simple as that. Some things, like cord marked and fabric impressed surface finishes are dominant in the north. Carved paddle stamping is dominant in the south. But cord marked pottery is made throughout South Carolina at different times, and paddle stamped pottery is found in the north. With some wares like Stallings and Thoms Creek we can see the practice spreading northward along the coast and up the rivers, as if people were exploring and spreading out. Yet people far to the north took up pottery making within a thousand years of its introduction and their practice of cord and fabric marking surfaces spread back to the south just as quickly.

To make matters worse, at different times sherds that would fit a given pottery type description can actually be hundreds of years younger or older. In looking at carbon dates we find pottery identified as a given type, such as Wilmington, with dates that run from about 300BC to 1500AD. I have collected as many carbon dates as I could find, and corrected them. I've looked at analysis techniques and terminology and tried to set forth, if not standardize definitions. I've tried to put together as much information as possible in hopes that interested parties can carry the work forward.

And, by popular demand, there is a “pottery for beginners” page. If you find a sherd somewhere you can at least try to identify it by type and get an idea of its age and cultural affiliation. I hope the members of the ASSC find this site as enjoyable to use as it was to put together. This work was sponsored by the people of Beaufort County, with the guidance of the State Historic Preservation Office and the Department of Transporatation.

Archaeologist to research Sherman’s march

2010-07-30T12:11:00.000-07:00

Archaeologist to research Sherman’s march

An archaeologist in the University of South Carolina’s College of Arts and Sciences has been awarded a grant by The American Battlefield Protection Program, part of the National Park Service, to research Union Gen. William T. Sherman’s campaign across South Carolina.

Dr. Steven D. Smith, associate director of applied research in the college’s S.C. Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, will begin the two-year project this fall.

The $64,200 grant calls for researching, identifying, locating and providing a current status of multiple battlefields, skirmish sites and camps associated with Sherman’s march across the Palmetto State. Smith’s research also will include the study of two “Yankee” POW camps within Columbia’s city limits. He expects to document 60 sites; no excavation work will be done.

The grant is one of 25 NPS grants awarded to preserve and protect significant battle sites from all wars fought on American soil. Smith has spent 18 years conducting military site archaeology in South Carolina and the Southeast.

Archaeologist's research could boost South Carolina's heritage tourism

2010-07-01T11:14:00.000-07:00

Archaeologist's research could boost South Carolina's heritage tourism
Article and photo courtesy of http://sc.edu

Francis Marion, South Carolina's legendary Swamp Fox who helped repel the British during the Revolutionary War, is a legend in American history.

But when Mom and Dad are on their way to Florida, how do you get them to stop in the Palmetto State and tell Marion's story to their kids?

There are no interpretive centers at any of the places Marion frequented during his lifetime, though there could be in the future, thanks in part to the work of Steven D. Smith, associate director of applied research at the S.C. Institute of Archeology and Anthropology at the University of South Carolina.

Smith, who oversees the Institute's Military Sites Program, has been conducting archaeological research at Revolutionary War battlefields since 2002. He has been the principal investigator for archival and field surveys at battlefields like Camden, Blackstocks, Musgrove Mill, Fort Motte, and Francis Marion battlefields like Blue Savannah, Snow's Island, Wadboo Plantation, and Parker's Ferry.

The research is helping South Carolina's heritage tourism industry to interpret the sites for tourists.

"You need an infrastructure in order for tourism to work and you need to interpret the story," said Smith, who recently confirmed the location of a Revolutionary War battlefield called Williamson's Plantation at Historic Brattonsville for the York County Culture and Heritage Museums.

"The centers have to be developed," said Smith, "but our research provides the history and archaeology that will be used to develop accurate language for signage, interpretive programs, and tours."

In the past, Smith's field survey and research with institute colleague James B. Legg has led to a battlefield interpretive trail at the Battle of Camden for the Palmetto Conservation Foundation.

The idea, said Smith, is to entice people off the interstate to spend time and money in South Carolina while learning about a unique chapter in American history.

This could be especially important in the economically depressed Lowcountry between Georgetown, Charleston, and Florence, where Francis Marion lived and fought the British. The state's Francis Marion Trail Commission sponsored Smith's archaeological study of Marion's battlefields in that region.
Developing tourism related to the Swamp Fox is actually just a byproduct of Smith's personal interest and research on the famous partisan fighter.
Smith has been pursuing Marion's legacy ever since 1993 when he began to receive grant and contract funding from organizations like the Sonoco Products Co., the Lowcountry Council of Governments, and most recently, the trail commission, to confirm the authenticity of sites associated with the Swamp Fox.
Over time, the research enabled Smith to enter the Ph.D. program in anthropology at Carolina and begin work on his dissertation that focuses on the partisan community around Snow's Island, S.C., during the Revolution.

The area provided a base of operations, secure campsites, supplies, and men who helped Marion, who is "widely acknowledged as America's most successful partisan fighter," Smith said.

Smith's dissertation examines the Snow's Island community, including analysis of historic documents, landscape, and archaeology. It will also review the national memory of Marion from the early 19th century to the present.

In addition to Snow's Island, Smith's dissertation will examine another Marion site known as Dunham's Bluff, as well as Wadboo Plantation in the Moncks Corner area.

All told, he has examined 15 sites since the start of his research on Marion, five of which have turned up material evidence of a campground or battlefield where the Swamp Fox lived or fought, and which hold promise that they could be incorporated into some type of an interpretive center, trail, or program.

"Step one is to find the sites. Step two is to develop the infrastructure for interpreting those sites. And step three is the acquisition of the sites in order to preserve them," said Smith.

A long-range plan by the Francis Marion Trail Commission, he added, calls for facilities that would attract visitors at places like Francis Marion University, Moncks Corner, and Georgetown.

In addition to confirming the location of places frequented by Marion, as a result of his research, Smith has also begun to rethink how Marion fought the British. Increasingly, he said, archeologists and artifact hunters working with him are finding fewer musket balls than expected and instead are turning up smaller caliber lead shot in battlefields.

That indicates to Smith that Marion's forces relied more on smooth bore trade guns and rifles, and often fired birdshot, evidence of yet another classic guerilla tactic for which Marion was well known.

The smaller weapons were still quite effective as "you didn't have to kill the enemy, you could just disperse him or put him out of commission," Smith said.

"I'm kind of an old-fashioned historian in the sense that I still like facts," Smith said. "I like to try to verify the past as much as I can using the evidence of archaeology, so my main interest in Marion is to combine primary source material and archaeology to wrest from the mythology who the real Francis Marion was.

"I like to understand history in terms of the way people understood themselves rather than the way we want to look at them. That is my thing and Francis Marion is sort of my cause célèbre for that."

What did you do this year?

2010-06-15T12:07:00.000-07:00

Submit an article or “Notes from the Field” for South Carolina Antiquities 2010!

South Carolina Antiquities seeks articles about archaeology in South Carolina and adjacent areas. Professional and avocational archaeologists should send papers you have been working on for review. In addition, this year Antiquities will include a “Notes from the Field” section for you to update colleagues on current projects and recent finds. This is a great way to contribute to a larger discussion of archaeology in South Carolina.

Manuscripts submitted for review should conform to the American Antiquity style guide (see the ASSC website for a pdf copy). The deadline for submission for 2010 is June 30.

Please send submissions or queries about books to review to the Journal Editor, Jodi Barnes at jodib9@gmail.com.

Archaeological Resource Act Passed

2010-06-15T11:13:00.000-07:00

I am very pleased to relate that the Archaeological Resource Act
introduced by House Bill 4129 was signed into law on 11 June 2010.
A copy of the act as signed is attached. The final form of the act will
be distributed after publication to the Acts etc.

It was a great privilege to work with Representative Funderburk, Camden.
Her leadership was instrumental and should be recognized and commended
by all of us. The members of COSCAPA who weighed in on behalf of the
bill should also be commended. The opposition had come out in force (it
made the front page of a newsletter in Pattaya, Thailand) and the
support was very important to the bill's passage.

Thank you all very much,

Jon

Jonathan Leader, PhD
SC State Archaeologist

Digging in: Research team looks for clues on Indian life at Tuckasee King

2010-06-01T11:10:00.000-07:00

Digging in
Research team looks for clues on Indian life at Tuckasee King

By Patrick Donahue
pdonahue@effinghamherald.net

An afternoon by the river was a day of work for a team of researchers at Tuckasee King on Thursday.

Under the leadership of Dr. Charles Cobb, a team from the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology conducted a series of test digs at Tuckasee King as they continue their research into the lives of Colonial-era Indians.

The South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology received a grant from the National Science Foundation to research the migration of Native Americans in the 1600s and 1700s as those Indians traveled to Charleston, S.C., to engage in trade. The goods they traded mostly were deer skins, being shipped out of Charleston to Europe.

What the team is hoping to uncover is how trade affected the mass migrations of Indians to the Lowcountry and how the influx of Europeans may have changed Indian ways and culture.

“To us, it’s really important, because it’s not in the history books,” said Dr. Christian DePratter, a USC archaeologist. “There’s not enough documentation as to what they were and on their everyday life.”

The Indians moving through the area included the Uchee from Tennessee and the Chickasaw from Mississippi.

“There was a huge swath of Native Americans,” Dr. Cobb said.

The project is in its second year, and Cobb envisions it as a long-term endeavor. Their trip to Tuckasee King on Thursday was their first foray across the Savannah River from the Palmetto State into the Peach State. They have conducted digs at Stokes Bluff.

“This is our second field search in what’s probably a 12-15-year project to look up and down the river,” Dr. DePratter said.

What Dr. Cobb and his team have found are sites dating back to the 1700s. They were having lunch in Springfield one day and noticed the name Tuckasee King. That got them to thinking about that site being a potential home to Indians.

“We said, ‘that’s an Indian name,’ and said, ‘we’ve got to find out,’” Cobb noted.

Tuckasee, he said, is the Uchee name for chief.

The team conducted 15 shovel tests at the Tuckasee King landing. Each individual dig was a square of 50 centimeters, or about 20 inches.
“We’re looking for Indian pottery,” said Joseph Johnson, a senior archaeology major at USC.

And what they’ve found, mostly quarter-sized pieces, leads them to believe they selected the right location for a dig.

“Now, we’re pretty sure,” Dr. Cobb said. “The ceramics we’re finding are identical to those on the other side of the river.”

“It’s enough to tell us there was a settlement here, and at least we know there was something here from that period,” Dr. DePratter said.

Dr. DePratter said the “tribes” were breaking down and re-forming as they migrated and as they were defeated by other groups of Indians.

The area at Tuckasee King is similar to a site upriver on the South Carolina side, with a high bluff allowing for views up and down the river. It’s a strategic spot, “for defensive purposes as much as anything,” Dr. Cobb said. “This is an incredibly important trade route.”

Thursday’s dig was a one-day visit, but Cobb and his crew hope to return to Effingham for a longer stay and will talk with county officials about doing something more extensive in the future.

Coastal Carolina's first archaeological field school

2010-06-01T11:01:00.000-07:00

Coastal Carolina's first archaeological field school
By Dr. Cheryl Ward

Here at Coastal Carolina, we’re getting ready for our first archaeological field school as Dr. Carolyn Dillian has arrived from Princeton just in time to start shopping and planning for an archaeology extravaganza. The field school will be based at the Waccamaw National Wildlife Refuge, where we will be conducting survey and excavation work (and camping out) as well as traveling a bit to The Oaks at Brookgreen, other refuge properties, and some other sites that need attention. Historic and prehistoric time periods will be covered, and we’ll send out a link for you to follow along with us.

We will be starting right here in Conway, where a utilities excavation opened up part of the late 19th-century shipyards near the river. There are a few spots open for volunteers in good physical health who are interested in helping to screen heavy clay sediments and otherwise record artifacts from the pit spoil. If you’re interested and available on Tuesday 8-12, or 1-5, or Wednesday 8-12, contact me directly for more information at cward@coastal.edu.

A recent discovery at Charles Towne adds to the understanding of its chronology.

Please feel free to forward these notes, and encourage people who want to subscribe to visit http://www.coastal.edu/archaeology/mailinglist.html to do so.

Our next group meeting will be on Tuesday, July 13, at 7 pm, in the Waccamaw Center for Higher Education, and we will present the results of our field school work and outline plans for the rest of the year’s programs and field days.

--
Cheryl Ward
Director, Center for Archaeology and Anthropology
Associate Professor of History, Maritime Archaeologist
Coastal Carolina University
P.O. Box 261954
Conway, SC 29528 http://ww2.coastal.edu/cward/drward.php
cward@coastal.edu tel. 843.349.6657

SC State Park Archaeology Newsletter

2010-05-30T10:43:00.000-07:00

SC State Park Archaeology Newsletter

The 2nd quarterly ArchNews Letter is now posted!

Click here and enjoy. Please send us your comments and/or any friends who might be interested in receiving it.

Thanks for your interest in South Carolina State Parks archaeology. Visit us soon.

Saving grace: Rare slave artifacts uncovered during site work to be put on display at Cypress Gardens

2010-05-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

Saving grace
Rare slave artifacts uncovered during site work to be put on display at Cypress Gardens
By Allyson Bird
The Post and Courier
Tuesday, May 25, 2010

A one-time reptile house at Cypress Gardens reopens in a few days with a more culturally significant exhibit: artifacts from slaves who toiled nearby on Dean Hall plantation.

The Heritage Room at the picturesque Moncks Corner attraction welcomes its first guests June 7, about two years after a routine archaeological survey uncovered a historical jackpot. DuPont Cooper River had announced plans to build a Kevlar fibers plant and, as part of its site preparation work, discovered the artifacts, according to plant site manager Ellis McGaughy.
"We went into it not expecting this," he said. "We rearranged some work to allow archaeologists to do their work. When you hear archaeologists get excited, everybody else gets excited, too."

That meant bringing about 30 people from the firm Brockington and Associates out to the site just north of Cypress Gardens for a month -- about three times the normal manpower on a dig, according to archaeologists. They excavated some 125,000 artifacts primarily from the 19th century: bone buttons and silver coins, stoneware bowls and glass bottles, porcelain doll heads and pipe stems, a lamp wick and brass keys, even Native American arrowheads that the slaves collected.

Lab program manager Nicole Isenbarger said an estimated 150 slaves lived at the site in a 19-cabin village. The dig included about 58,000 pieces -- one of the largest concentrations ever discovered in the United States -- of handmade clay pottery known as Colonoware.

Slaves used Colonoware to cook one-pot meals, most of which relied on the plantation's staple: rice.

Archaeologist Ralph Bailey said the excavation team worked closely with a historian. The extensive collection of items showed that the same families lived on the land for about 150 years.

Brockington's public outreach division, The History Workshop, interpreted the artifacts to create the exhibit for Cypress Gardens. For now, it all sits in dozens of white boxes in the firm's office in a Mount Pleasant business park, ready for transport.

DuPont spent an estimated $250,000 on the dig, according to Bailey. Berkeley County, which owns and manages Cypress Gardens, funded the $100,000 renovation of the old reptile house, with an extra financial boost from private supporters.

Berkeley County Supervisor Dan Davis said the artifacts turned up at an opportune time, when officials wanted a new focus for cash-strapped Cypress Gardens.

"The animal exhibit was expensive," he said. "We were looking to eliminate that. At the same time, DuPont was preparing (the) site for Kevlar and began to discover artifacts. You would think this was all scripted, but it wasn't."

The renovation included building an heirloom garden with species that people would have planted around their homes in the mid-19th century. Staff at the attraction also relocated many of the reptiles to the "Swamparium" before closing their exhibit last year.

Cypress Gardens Director Dwight Williams said the Heritage Room will showcase a small fraction of the thousands of artifacts recovered but fill an important niche previously missing from the attraction.

"It's just one facet of the whole park story that we really hadn't been addressing before," Williams said. "People get a little frustrated. They know that Cypress Gardens is part of the plantation, but we don't have the plantation structures there any more to show them. This will help us out with that."
One of the Dean Hall buildings was moved off site to accommodate the Berkeley Chamber of Commerce in 1969, and the mansion was shipped to Beaufort and reassembled after DuPont purchased the site.

As for the Kevlar plant, where the artifact story began, it should start cranking out strong fibers in early 2012 and employ more than 100 local workers.

From Picture: Nicole Isenbarger holds a large, nearly complete piece of Colonoware found on the Dean Hall tract during the construction of the future site of the DuPont factory. The artifacts will be on display at Cypress Gardens.

2010-05-20T10:59:00.000-07:00

320-year-old floor found at SC's birthplace

Associated Press
CHARLESTON, S.C. - You might call it the foundation of South Carolina.
The Post and Courier of Charleston reports scientists have found a floor thought to be 320 years old at Charles Towne Landing, the site of the first permanent English settlement in South Carolina.

The foundation is the oldest archaeological remains found at the site on the Ashley River. It is made of tabby, a material of that day made of lime and oyster shells.

Scientists think the floor dates to 1690, just after the colonists moved from the site to the Charleston peninsula where the center of Charleston stands today.

Georgetown County graveyard goes to court; Damage to Campfield cemetery a mystery

2010-05-18T10:53:00.000-07:00

Georgetown County graveyard goes to court; Damage to Campfield cemetery a mystery

CHOPPEE COMMUNITY -- A state court might finally solve the mystery of who - or what - destroyed gravesites in an African-American cemetery at Campfield Plantation, but archaeologists say the bigger issue of preserving culturally important cemeteries from the antebellum South is largely being ignored.

That is because most governments and developers take a reactive approach to preservation, said Michael Trinkley, director of the Columbia-based Chicora Foundation Inc.

"Instead of trying to identify cemeteries and working to preserve them, they wait until after problems occur," said Trinkley, whose foundation advocates for historic preservation. "They often have to deal with it after the damage has already been done."

Such is the case at Campfield Plantation, one of the former Black River rice plantations that once powered Georgetown County's economy. At its pre-Civil War peak, Campfield Plantation produced about 160 million pounds of rice each year.

Everyone agrees that something happened to damage the cemetery between 1974 - when descendants of those buried there say they were banned from the property - and five years ago, when those descendents discovered some graves were missing.

Descendents say the property's owners - who include the late nephew of billionaire philanthropist Doris Duke - either intentionally destroyed the graves or negligently allowed the destruction to take place. The descendents say they aren't certain of the motive, but believe the owners might have wanted to develop the property.

"Since all of this started, I have tried to speculate about why they wouldn't let us visit the cemetery and why they did what they did, and I just can't understand it," said Jackie Tucker, whose parents are buried at the cemetery. "What their motives were, I could not tell you."

The property owners say they are not to blame: The cemetery was partially destroyed when Hurricane Hugo blew through the area in September 1989.
"Hugo did extensive damage to the forest and trees at Campfield Plantation," said Wells Dickson, a Charleston lawyer who represents the property owners.

Many of the graves never were marked and Dickson said Hugo tore away some of the primitive grave markers - such as ribbons or nails hammered into a tree - that did exist, making it difficult to determine where graves might have been.

"The property doesn't look anything like it did when a cemetery was there," Dickson said. "The [descendants] have a legitimate concern in finding the graves of their families, but we do not believe that any desecration took place."

The descendents filed a civil lawsuit in 2008, accusing the property owners of negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The property owners - Victor "Butch" Deer and the late Walker Inman Jr., who spent most of his childhood living with Duke - have denied the allegations in court documents.

Inman died in February at the age of 57. Deer's wife referred all questions to Dickson.

The lawsuit appears to have gained momentum following an April 29 hearing in which 30 people were identified as having been buried at Campfield Plantation. Judge Steven John wants a list of all of the descendants of those buried at the cemetery by July 1, and a hearing to determine which descendents can take part in the class-action lawsuit is scheduled for the end of that month.

"We have to find a lot of people, but we don't have much time to do it," said Lisa Davis, a Surfside Beach lawyer who is representing the descendents.

No more mourning

The cemetery at Campfield Plantation was established in the late 1700s or early 1800s for slave families who worked at the plantation, according to a 1983 study published by Martha Zierden, curator of historical archaeology at The Charleston Museum.

The cemetery - which is located off Choppee Road - continued to be used by the area's black residents until 1974, when Tucker said the property's owners padlocked the gates and "told us we can't bury anyone there any more and we can't come back."

Tucker said she and her family were not allowed to visit their relatives' graves for the next three decades.

"We could see the cemetery from the road and we would stop at the gate, but it was always chained closed," Tucker said. "All we could do is stand by the fence and look."

Davis said no one visited the cemetery until 2005, when descendents started noticing construction vehicles entering the property and large plumes of smoke coming from near the cemetery site. The descendants, worried that the cemetery was being damaged, nominated Harry Lawrence - whose mother and father were buried there - to sneak onto the property and investigate.

"Mr. Lawrence saw that several of the tombstones he had remembered were no longer there," Davis said. "When he went to see his father's grave, the tombstone was no longer there. He went back and told the others that something had happened to the cemetery."

That announcement set off an intense investigation by archaeologists and the State Law Enforcement Division, which wanted to know if the disturbed gravesites were the result of a criminal act.

"Originally, there were allegations that people were digging up bones and having rituals, but nothing like that ever happened," said Pete Logan, a former SLED agent who investigated the case. No one was charged with a crime.

"We didn't find any evidence that anyone had intentionally desecrated the graves, and we worked on that case for a long time, probably a year," Logan said.

State archaeologist Jonathan Leader worked with SLED on its investigation and visited the site in early 2006. Leader said at the time it appeared some grave markers had been moved while others were pointed in the wrong direction or placed too close together.

Leader told The Sun News last week that several relatives told him about gravesites that no longer existed, but he could not independently verify their stories.

It was obvious some damage had been done to the cemetery, he said, but he saw no evidence that anyone purposely destroyed it.

"The real question is how much of the damage occurred during Hugo and during the cleanup process afterward," Leader said. "If it happened during the cleanup, it would not be malicious."

Davis said she isn't sure if the damage was malicious or the result of negligence. Either way, she said, the property owners were aware of the cemetery and should be held accountable.

"For them to say they didn't know where the cemetery was or how big it was, it just doesn't add up," she said.

Deer - who was Campfield Plantation's property manager during the 1980s and later bought the property from Inman in the late 1990s - had helped Zierden, the Charleston archaeologist, with the 1983 study in which the cemetery was identified. Zierden also took photographs of some of the gravesites at that time.

Zierden's study also included a 1943 U.S. Geological Survey map that showed the cemetery's location and a size ranging from 10,000 square feet to 20,000 square feet. Another map from 1946 - which was produced for Inman's father, who bought the plantation in 1935 - also showed the cemetery.

Today, the property owners say the cemetery is limited to an approximately 100-square-foot area, Davis said.

"They are adamant that the cemetery is not very large because the smaller you keep the cemetery, the more land there is for potential development," Davis said.

Deer also was in charge of the post-Hugo cleanup of Campfield Plantation, Davis said.

"He was well aware that the cemetery existed, then he let them do all the cleanup without telling anyone to watch out for the cemetery," Davis said. "He didn't take any steps to make sure that the cemetery was protected."

Dickson, the property owners' lawyer, said Deer has offered to fence off any other unmarked graves if relatives can show where they exist.

Cultural differences

The destruction of old, African-American cemeteries often occurs because cultural differences make them difficult to identify and easy for developers to overlook, Trinkley said.

"African-American cemeteries are fairly isolated, often deep in the woods, and there's not much of a written track record to say what happened or who is buried where," said Trinkley, whose foundation specializes in the preservation of cemeteries. "They look very different from Euro-American cemeteries, and that frequently brings them in conflict with modern development."

Trinkley said graves in African-American cemeteries often are not arranged in a linear fashion, as they are in modern cemeteries. The graves often are unmarked or marked in a way that would not be recognized by someone not familiar with the culture. For example, some African-American graves are marked with shells, glass or household items - such as cups or bottles - that might be mistaken for debris.

The lack of identifiable markings means African-American cemeteries often are much larger than they first appear, Trinkley said, because there usually are more people buried without tombstones than with them.

"Another problem with African-America cemeteries is that they usually were never deeded to anyone," Trinkley said. "That leaves in limbo the ancestors' burial rights and their rights to visit."

Trinkley said he has been asked to be an expert witness in the Campfield Plantation case, but he has not yet been deposed by either side. Trinkley declined to talk specifically about that cemetery because of the pending litigation.

"I'd like to see a state agency, such as the Department of Archives and History, begin a statewide survey using a standardized form," he said. "I'd like to see counties work with that department to train volunteers to search out these burial grounds. Simply having the cemetery identified and recorded would provide an initial warning that a burial ground is present and needs further study if the property is to be developed."

Horry County has been surveying and cataloging old cemeteries for a couple of years to make sure they are protected. To date, county planners have put together a list of more than 400 cemeteries. Most counties, including Georgetown, do not have such a program and officials estimate there could be thousands of undocumented cemeteries statewide.

"We need to totally re-examine our cemetery laws, looking at issues of access, burial rights and other long-term preservation issues," Trinkley said, adding that the issue does not appear to be a priority for the state legislature. "Another decade of stumbling along may be necessary before anything of substance happens."

Marker Commemorating the 1780 Siege of Charleston Dedicated

2010-05-13T10:34:00.000-07:00

Marker Commemorating the 1780 Siege of Charleston Dedicated

On May 12, two hundred and thirty years to the day that General Benjamin Lincoln surrendered his force of 6,000 men to the British after their 42-day siege of Charleston, a marker commemorating the event was dedicated in Marion Square.

The Surrender of Charleston was one of the largest defeats for the Patriots in the War, but it was also the beginning of the end for British rule in the colonies. More than 500 American and British troops fell in the area between Spring and Calhoun Streets in downtown Charleston, and organizers of the commemoration hope this marker will serve as a reminder of the sacrifice those troops made and will bring attention to an often overlooked era in Charleston's history.

The marker is made possible through the South Carolina State Historic Marker Program, and was funded through the MGen William Moultrie Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution, the State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and the State Society of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. It is being placed with the permission of the Washington Light Infantry/Sumter Guards Board of Officers, owners of Marion Square.

Archaeology club being started for Coastal Carolina community

2010-04-01T11:08:00.000-07:00

Archaeology club being started for Coastal Carolina community

A local chapter of the Archaeological Society of South Carolina is being formed for those interested in learning about the region's history. An inaugural meeting is set for Tuesday, April 6 at 7 p.m. at Coastal Carolina University's Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts, room 245. All are welcome.

Cheryl Ward, maritime archaeologist and director of the University's new Center for Archaeology and Anthropology, is initiating the new club "for everyone who wants to be part of exploring the lives of the region's historic and prehistoric peoples."

Annual dues are $15. Officers will be elected, and there will be quarterly meetings with field trips to local sites and museums, as well as guest speakers.

"This group is for anyone, whether they're 15 or 50 or 500," says Ward. "It's all about understanding more about the life and livelihoods of people in this part of the world. We will study prehistoric people, native Americans, people who were building steamboats on the Waccamaw and sailing ships at Bucksport, as well as tobacco barns in Horry County."

For more information, e-mail Ward at cward@coastal.edu or visit the Web site at http://sites.google.com/site/asscsite/.

http://archaeologyatcoastalcarolina.wordpress.com/

Groundbreaking for Vesey Monument

2010-02-05T10:50:00.000-08:00

Groundbreaking for Vesey Monument
By David Slade

Article posted online Feb. 2, 2010, at
http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2010/feb/02/groundbreaking/
Copyright 2010 Post and Courier of Charleston, S.C.

Vesey known for planning slave rebellion; monument bound to stir feelings of admiration, anger

In an event sure to rekindle the racially polarized debate over Denmark Vesey's place in history, a site in Hampton Park was dedicated Monday for a monument to the man hanged for plotting a slave rebellion in Charleston.

A model of the new Denmark Vesey Memorial that will be erected in Hampton Park, designed by Ed Dwight.

To the local politicians, religious leaders and historians at the event, Vesey was a civil rights leader acting on a universal desire for justice that unites all people. Monument designer Ed Dwight favorably compared Vesey to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

But this is Charleston, where the hanging of a portrait of Vesey in the municipal auditorium in 1976 -- more than 150 years after Vesey was himself publicly hanged -- prompted much criticism, and the theft of the painting.

"It was very controversial," College of Charleston history professor Bernard Powers Jr. said. "People were writing to The News and Courier expressing outrage that the portrait of a criminal could be hung in a public place."

The painting was returned, and more securely mounted, after Charleston Mayor Joe Riley said the city would commission a replacement if the painting remained missing.

Powers, a member of the committee planning the Vesey monument, said he smiles every time he sees the painting.

In Hampton Park on Monday, in a clearing not far behind the large gazebo on Mary Murray Boulevard, the Rev. Joseph Darby acknowledged both the strong feelings about Vesey and the day's chilly weather in his opening comments.
"God ordered this weather for everyone who said it would be a cold day before there was a statue for Denmark Vesey in Charleston," Darby said.
Riley described Vesey as an important civil rights figure, part of the "substantially untold story of African-American history and life in this community and this country, and their role in building America."

"We tell these untold stories so the truth will set us free," the mayor said.

Vesey and 34 other alleged conspirators were hanged in the summer of 1822. Vesey was convicted of plotting a bloody uprising in Charleston, in which enslaved blacks and freed men like himself would take up arms and slaughter the white residents, and then flee to Haiti.

Vesey had purchased his freedom after winning a lottery.

Artist Ed Dwight discusses the new Denmark Vesey memorial that will be erected in Hampton Park. The civil rights leader was hanged in 1822 for plotting an uprising in Charleston.

Whether Vesey actually plotted an uprising remains a question debated by historians, with little to go upon but spotty records of the trial. Much of the evidence was testimony from slaves who were rewarded financially, freed, or spared death sentences for their cooperation.
Powers said some questions are unanswered, but he believes the case has been made that Vesey did plan the uprising.

Certainly, South Carolinians had no doubt the insurrection was real.
The foiled uprising prompted the city to establish an armory and militia training ground that became The Citadel and what is now Marion Square, and restrictive laws put harsh new limits on blacks in Charleston, whether enslaved or free.

The planned Vesey monument has been in the works since 1996, with Charleston County Councilman Henry Darby leading the effort.

The "Denmark Vesey: Spirit of Freedom Monument" has been designed to feature a bronze statue of Vesey and the other ringleaders in the plotted uprising, Peter Poyas and Jack "Gullah Jack" Purcell, standing atop a 5-foot granite pedestal on a plaza.