Announcements:

Notice: It has been reported that this site does not function properly with the MS Explorer browser. The "About," "Time Period." and "Resources" tabs above should have drop down menus. These are apparently not working with MS Explorer for some unknown reason. We will try to fix the problem ASAP. Meanwhile, it works fine with Firefox, Chrome and Opera. These are all free downloads. Contact Carl Steen at diachronic@aol.com if you have any questions or solutions.

2010 Fieldwork - March 8-19, 2010

Our 2010 field season will be held between March 8 and 19, with Public Day falling on Saturday, the 13th. This year we will continue excavating the four meter square block and work on filling out our sample. Two meter squares will be focused on exploring an extensive early prehistoric component that produced the Dalton point shown below, and on a late Native American component that may illustrate the movement into the area of the historic period Sara and Pee Dee Indians. Public Day will feature the same demonstrators as 2009 along with expanded displays and exhibits. Links to maps and contact information are found below.

2009 Fieldwork
2009 Public Day
Visit us on Site

2009 Fieldwork

In 2009 fieldwork will begin March 9 and end March 20, 2009.   Last year we  broke out of our traditional mold of sampling with two meter squares and started excavating a four meter block. We hoped to take this to the base of the topsoil to try to expose enough features to trace out a house pattern. This year we will finish, hopefully. 

Last year we were very pleased to find a  Dalton type point that is about 11,000 years old. We have fragments of points this age or older, but this is the first whole one we have seen. We plan to excavate units in the surrounding area in hopes of pursuing this early occupation. 

In 2008 researchers presented a new theory on the ancient environment. They believe a comet impact caused a massive die-off in North America  about 13,000 years ago. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/323/5910/94  This year we will pay close attention to geoarchaeology, and have invited experts to visit and consult.

In the 2008 field season  we also recovered a small, coin silver spoon engraved with the initial E over LB. Johannes Kolb's granddaughter Elizabeth Kimbrough married Lemuel Benton around the time of the American Revolution, so it is assumed that these are their initials.

Colonial silver expert Grahame Long believes that this is a Colonial piece, if not Southern, and that it dates between 1720 and 1740. Further, he says it would not be unusual at all for a family to “update” an existing heirloom for a wedding gift.

Johannes Kolb was a German from a Mennonite family who settled in southeastern Pennsylvania around 1700. He and his brother Dielman moved south in the 1730s with the Welsh Baptists who were granted lands in the “Welsh Neck.” Hard coinage was in short supply at that time, and often a family's assets would be stored in the form of silverware and passed down through the generations.

This artifact provides us with a clue for understanding the site's history. We know that Johannes Kolb was there in the 1730s, but he seems to have died by about 1760. Archaeological evidence shows a continuing occupation that lasts at least until the American Revolution, then appears to pick up again in the 1820s – 1860s era.

The documentary record is not helpful, because the only time the property changed hands, and a deed was recorded, was in 1849 when Bright Williamson passed it along to his son, Thomas. It has been speculated that the property was passed down in the family, but to which family member it was not known. Now we can argue that it was passed to granddaughter Elizabeth through her mother, Hannah. The Kimbrough, and later Benton lands abutted the Johannes Kolb property on the north and west sides. The people who worked the land and lived here after Johannes Kolb's death were probably slaves and overseers. His son's Peter and Martin had farms of their own, across the river on what is now Byrds Island.

Col. Lemuel Benton was born in NC in 1754, but came to the Pee Dee region before the American Revolution. He became a major in the Militia in 1777 and served with Francis Marion in the war. He served as a member of the state house of representatives in the 1780s, and as a US Congressman in the 1790s. He was related to Thomas Hart Benton, senator from Missouri, and grandfather of the artist of the same name.

Our educational focus will be on:

Archaeology and Primitive Technology.

Scott Jones discussing primitive technology with visitors in 2007

This Year's Demonstrators:

Fuz Sanderson
 
Day long presentation focused on the interpretation of the prehistoric use of natural resources, specifically those items that do not survive the archaeological record. Demonstration includes; friction fire materials, pitch sticks, soapstone materials and other natural resources.
 
Keith Grenoble
 
Demonstrates prehistoric pottery manufacture, firing and use in cooking. Archaeological sites rarely produce whole vessels and the public interpretation of the site benefits greatly from seeing replicas of ancient pots and their use.

Bobby Southerlin

Demonstrates and teaches pottery making, with opportunities for hands on experience.
 
Scott Jones
 
General demonstration of primitive technologies. Demonstration will focus on interpretation of archaeological record, activities include: Flint knapping, Stone axes, Woodworking, Stone tool hafting and Atlatl.
 
Tom Ray
 
Demonstrates Catawba Indian fishing techniques

 SEAC Grant

In 2007 we were honored to receive a grant from The Southeastern Archaeological Conference (SEAC) to assist with our public education efforts. Our grant report can be found at the link.