Save The Date! May 25, 2012

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

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

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

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 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

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.

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

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

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

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!

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

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

"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

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

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

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!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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!

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

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

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

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

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!

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

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

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

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.