Proceedings of the Third Caldwell Conference, St. Catherines Island, Georgia, May 9-11, 2008

341 p. : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.) ; 26 cm. "Issued June 23, 2010." Includes bibliographical references (p. 303-341).The late Archaic of the American Southeast is typically described as a time of population growth, innovative developments in subsistence strategies, and increased social complexity. Although it is difficult to generalize, many early Woodland communities are characterized as relatively small scale, fairly mobile foragers organized into unranked or minimally ranked lineages and clans. Early Woodland groups also seem to be more socially isolated than their late Archaic predecessors, with a decline in regional exchange networks. The papers in this volume were presented at a conference entitled "What Happened in the Late Archaic?" which was co-sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the St. Catherines Island Foundation and held on St. Catherines Island (Georgia), May 9-11, 2008. The Third Caldwell Conference invited the participants to engage the appropriate archaeological data from the American Southeast, specifically addressing the nature of change during the late Archaic-early Woodland transition. This volume consists of a dozen substantive papers, followed by three discussant contributions. TABLE OF CONTENTS: Trend, tradition, and transition at the end of the Archaic / Tristram R. Kidder -- "Nothing but the river's flood" : late Archaic diaspora or disengagement in the lower Mississippi Valley and southeastern North America / Jon L. Gibson -- The two rings of St. Catherines Island : some preliminary results from the St. Catherines and McQueen shell rings / Matthew C. Sanger and David Hurst Thomas -- Two late Archaic period shell rings, St. Simon's Island, Georgia / Rochelle A. Marrinan -- The Archaic above Choctawhatchee Bay : hydrodynamics, adaptation, and abandonment / Rebecca Saunders -- Prehistoric landscapes of complexity : Archaic and Woodland period shell works, shell rings, and tree islands of the Everglades, South Florida / Margo Schwadron -- Shell rings and other settlement features as indicators of cultural continuity between the late Archaic and Woodland periods of coastal Florida / Michael Russo -- "What happened to the southeastern Archaic?" : a perspective from St. Catherines Island / David Hurst Thomas -- Leaving the rings : shell ring abandonment and the end of the late Archaic / Matthew C. Sanger -- The rhythms of space-time and the making of monuments and places during the Archaic / Victor D. Thompson -- Getting from the late Archaic to early Woodland in three middle valleys (those being the Savannah, St. Johns, and Tennessee) / Kenneth E. Sassaman -- Late Archaic? : what the hell happened to the middle Archaic? / Joe Saunders -- Thoughts on the late Archaic-early Woodland transition on the Georgia and South Carolina coasts / Chester B. DePratter -- Mounds, middens, and rapid climate change during the Archaic-Woodland transition in the southeastern United States / William H. Marquardt -- The end of the southeastern Archaic : regional interaction and archaeological interpretation / David G. Anderson

Proceedings of the Sixth Caldwell Conference, St. Catherines Island, Georgia, May 20-22, 2011.

494 pages : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 26 cm. Conference sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the St. Catherines Island Foundation.Although this volume covers a broad range of temporal and methodological topics, the chapters are unified by a geographic focus on the archaeology of the Georgia Bight. The various research projects span multiple time periods (including Archaic, Woodland, Mississippian, and contact periods) and many incorporate specialized analyses (such as petrographic point counting, shallow geophysics, and so forth). The 26 contributors conducting this cutting-edge work represent the full spectrum of the archaeological community, including museum, academic, student, and contract archaeologists. Despite the diversity in professional and theoretical backgrounds, temporal periods examined, and methodological approaches pursued, the volume is unified by four distinct, yet interrelated, themes. Contributions in Part I discuss a range of analytical approaches for understanding time, exchange, and site layout. Chapters in Part II model coastal landscapes from both environmental and social perspectives. The third section addresses site-specific studies of late prehistoric architecture and village layout throughout the Georgia Bight. Part IV presents new and ongoing research into the Spanish mission period of this area. These papers were initially presented and discussed at the Sixth Caldwell Conference, cosponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the St. Catherines Island Foundation, held on St. Catherines Island, Georgia, May 20-22, 2011. TABLE OF CONTENTS: Revising the ¹⁴C reservoir correction for St. Catherines Island, Georgia / David Hurst Thomas, Matthew C. Sanger, and Royce H. Hayes -- An assessment of coastal faunal data from Georgia and northeast Florida / Alexandra L. Parsons and Rochelle A. Marrinan -- Archaeological geophysics on St. Catherines Island : beyond prospection / Ginessa J. Mahar -- Paste variability and clay resource utilization at the Fountain of Youth site, St. Augustine, 8SJ31 / Ann S. Cordell and Kathleen A. Deagan -- Petrographic analysis of pottery and clay samples from the Georgia Bight : evidence of regional social interactions / Neill J. Wallis and Ann S. Cordell -- Past shorelines of the Georgia coast / Chester B. DePratter and Victor D. Thompson -- Coastal landscapes and their relationship to human settlement on the Georgia coast / John A. Turck and Clark R. Alexander -- The role of small islands in foraging economies of St. Catherines Island / Matthew F. Napolitano -- Ever-shifting landscapes : tracking changing spatial usage along coastal Georgia / Matthew C. Sanger -- A paleoeconomic model of the Georgia coast (4500-300 B.P.) / Thomas G. Whitley -- A survey of Irene phase architecture on the Georgia coast / Deborah A. Keene and Ervan G. Garrison -- Life and death on the Ogeechee : a view from the Redbird Creek village / Ryan O. Sipe -- Mission San Joseph de Sapala : mission-period archaeological research on Sapelo Island / Richard W. Jefferies and Christopher R. Moore -- The Guale landscape of Mission Santa Catalina de Guale : 30 years of geophysics at a Spanish colonial mission / Elliot H. Blair -- Missions San Buenaventura and Santa Cruz de Guadalquini : retreat from the Georgia coast / Keith H. Ashley, Vicki L. Rolland, and Robert L. Thunen -- Entangling events : the Guale coastal landscape and the Spanish missions / Victor D. Thompson, John A. Turck, Amanda D. Roberts Thompson, and Chester B. DePratter -- Island and coastal archaeology on the Georgia Bight / Scott M. Fitzpatrick

Proceedings of the Fourth Caldwell Conference, St. Catherines Island, Georgia, March 27-29, 2009.

391 p. : ill. (chiefly col.), maps (chiefly col.) ; 26 cm. "Issued March 23, 2011."This edited volume addresses the geoarchaeology of St. Catherines Island (Georgia). The field of geoarchaeology has typically been defined as either geology pursued within an archaeological framework or (sometimes the reverse) as archaeology framed with the help of geological methodology. Either way, the formalized objectives of geoarchaeology define a broad range of pursuits, from placing archaeological sites into relative and absolute temporal context through the application of stratigraphic principles and absolute dating techniques, to understanding the natural processes of site formation, to reconstructing the landscapes that existed around a site or group of sites at the time of occupation. The editors of this volume have generally followed the lead of G.R. Rapp and C.L. Hill (2006, Geoarchaeology : the earth-science approach to archaeological interpretation) by stressing the importance of multiple viewpoints and methodologies in applying geoscience techniques to evaluate the archaeological record. In the broadest sense, then, Geoarchaeology of St. Catherines Island applies multiple earth science concepts, techniques, or knowledge bases to the known archaeological record and the processes that created that record. This volume consists of 16 papers presenting the newest research on the stratigraphic and geomorphological evolution of the St. Catherines Island landscape. Of particular interest are presentations addressing the relative timing and nature of sedimentation, paleobiology, sea level change, stream capture, hydrology, and erosional patterning evident on St. Catherines Island (and to some degree the rest of the Georgia Bight). These papers were initially presented at the Fourth Caldwell Conference, cosponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the St. Catherines Island Foundation, held on St. Catherines Island (Georgia), March 27-29, 2009. Table of contents: Why this archaeologist cares about geoarchaeology : some pasts and futures of St. Catherines Island / David Hurst Thomas -- Evolution of late Pleistocene-Holocene climates and environments of St. Catherines Island and the Georgia Bight / Fredrick J. Rich, Anthony Vega, and Frank J. Vento -- Geoarchaeological research at St. Catherines Island : defining the geological foundation / Gale A. Bishop, Brian K. Meyer, R. Kelly Vance, and Fredrick J. Rich -- Development of a late Pleistocene-Holocene genetic stratigraphic framework for St. Catherines Island : archaeological implications / Frank J. Vento and Patty A. Stahlman -- Ichnological diagnosis of ancient storm-washover fans, Yellow Banks Bluff, St. Catherines Island / Anthony J. Martin and Andrew K. Rindsberg -- Quaternary vegetation and depositional history of St. Catherines Island / Fredrick J. Rich and Robert K. Booth -- Recent shoreline erosion and vertical accretion patterns, St. Catherines Island / Donald B. Potter Jr. -- Role of storm events in beach ridge formation, St. Catherines Island / Harold B. Rollins, Kathi Beratan, and James E. Pottinger -- Drainage changes at Ossabaw, St. Catherines, and Sapelo sounds and their influence on island morphology and spit building on St. Catherines Island / Timothy M. Chowns -- Vibracores and vibracore transects : constraining the geological and cultural history of St. Catherines Island / Gale A. Bishop, David Hurst Thomas, Matthew C. Sanger, Brian K. Meyer, R. Kelly Vance, Robert K. Booth, Fredrick J. Rich, Donald B. Potter, and Timothy Keith-Lucas -- Application of ground penetrating radar to investigations of the stratigraphy, structure, and hydrology of St. Catherines Island / R. Kelly Vance, Gale A. Bishop, Fredrick J. Rich, Brian K. Meyer, and Eleanor J. Camann -- Postsettlement dispersal and dynamic repopulation of estuarine habitats by adult Mercenaria mercenaria, St. Catherines Island / Robert S. Prezant, Harold B. Rollins, and Ronald B. Toll -- The foundation for sea turtle geoarchaeology and zooarchaeology : morphology of recent and ancient sea turtle nests, St. Catherines Island, Georgia, and Cretaceous Fox Hills Sandstone, Elbert County, Colorado / Gale A. Bishop, Fredric L. Pirkle, Brian K. Meyer, and William A. Pirkle -- Sea turtle habitat deterioration on St. Catherines Island : defining the modern transgression / Gale A. Bishop and Brian K. Meyer -- Modeling indigenous hunting and harvesting of sea turtles and their eggs on the Georgia Coast / Gale A. Bishop, David Hurst Thomas, and Brian K. Meyer -- Geomorphology, sea level, and marine resources : St. Catherines Island / Harold B. Rollins and David Hurst Thomas -- Appendix 1. Noncultural radiocarbon record from St. Catherines Island : a compendium -- Appendix 2. Vibracore record from St. Catherines Island : a compendium.Conference sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History and the St. Catherines Island Foundation

Native American landscapes of St. Catherines Island, Georgia. (Anthropological papers of the American Museum of Natural History, no. 88)

Issued March 3, 2008. 3 v. (xiii, 1136 p.) : ill., maps ; 26 cm. Contents: pt. 1. The theoretical framework -- pt. 2. The data -- pt. 3. Synthesis and implications.Four deceptively simple questions have guided our long-term research into the aboriginal lifeways of St. Catherines Island: 1. How and why did the human landscape (settlement patterns and land use) change through time? 2. To what extent were subsistence and settlement patterns shaped by human population increase, intensification, and competition for resources? 3. What factors can account for the emergence of social inequality in Georgia's Sea Islands? 4. Can systematically collected archaeological evidence resolve the conflicting ethno-historic interpretations of the aboriginal Georgia coast (the so-called 'Guale problem')? Over a span of four decades, the American Museum of Natural History has addressed these four fundamental questions using a broad array of field and analytical techniques. We conducted a 20 percent probabilistic transect survey of St. Catherines Island, walking and probing for buried sites across a series of 31 east-west transects, each 100 m wide. During this initial survey we located 122 archaeological sites, which we tested with more than 400 one-meter by one-meter units. Because the transect sampling was heavily biased toward sites with marine shell, we also conducted a systematic shovel testing program. We also augmented these systematic surveys with a direct shoreline reconnaissance (mostly following the late Holocene surfaces), recording roughly 84 additional shoreline sites on St. Catherines Island. By plotting the distribution of these known-age sites across the Holocene beach ridges, we have developed a detailed sequence documenting the progradation and erosion of beach ridge complexes adjacent to tidal estuaries and oceanward shorelines on the island. To evaluate the results of the 1000+ test explorations and excavations on St. Catherines Island, we have processed 251 radiocarbon determinations, including two dozen dates on 'modern' mollusks (known-age specimens collected prior to atomic bomb contamination) to compute a 'reservoir' correction factor specific to the estuaries around St. Catherines Island (of [Delta]R = -134 [+ or -] 26). The results have been compiled into a dataset of 239 radiocarbon determinations for samples from St. Catherines Island. One hundred and ten of these dates (from 31 distinct mortuary and midden sites) could be directly associated with datable ceramic assemblages, which were classified according to Chester DePratter's (1979, 1991) Northern Georgia Coast chronology .By comparing the results of typological classification with the radiocarbon evidence currently available from St. Catherines Island, we propose a slightly modified ceramic chronology for St. Catherines Island. We analyzed the seasonal growth increments in modern hard clams (Mercenaria mercenaria) for a 9-year interval (beginning in 1975). Mercenaria suitable for seasonal analysis were recovered from nearly 85 percent (110 of 130) of the sites identified and sampled in the island wide survey. We analyzed about 2000 individual hard clam shells recovered from these shell middens and, of these, 1771 individual specimens (or fragments) provided usable growth increment estimates, enabling us to address seasonal patterns during the 5000 years of human history. This study is reinforced by an oxygen isotope study of modern and ancient clams from St. Catherines Island. This transect survey produced an extensive and diverse set of vertebrate faunal remains collected systematically from archaeological sites tested across the entire island. Elizabeth Reitz and her colleagues analyzed this vertebrate faunal assemblage, which contains at least 586 individuals represented by 14,970 vertebrate specimens weighing 21,615 g. These materials provide a solid basis for refining hypotheses not only for St. Catherines Island, but for most coastal locations. With the exception of the first and last occupations (the St. Simons and Altamaha periods), the samples suggest a stable pattern of resource use through time, with little variation through time or across space (although the small sample sizes for each time period and circumscribed geographical setting might constrain this interpretation). She also notes the presence of numerous seasonal indicators in the vertebrate zoo archaeological samples recovered from archaeological sites on St. Catherines Island--including unshed deer antlers, juvenile deer dentition, and shark and sea catfish remains. But we also recognized the importance of examining diverse sources of seasonal information in our attempt to flesh out overall patterns of site utilization. We also include analysis of the vertebrate zooarchaeological assemblages from Meeting House Field and Fallen Tree, two additional sites intensively investigated by the American Museum of Natural History and the University of Georgia. The intensive program of mortuary archaeology has recovered the remains of more than 725 individuals from 18 archaeological sites on St. Catherines Island. More than 90 percent of these remains were analyzed by Clark Spencer Larsen and his colleagues, using a variety of microscopic, biomechanical, and stable isotopic techniques. In this monograph, we address the archaeology of St. Catherines Island using the broad- based theoretical approach known as optimal foraging theory, which is grounded in the more general paradigm of human behavioral ecology (that studies human behavior by applying the principles of natural selection within an ecological context). The broad rubric of 'optimal foraging theory' encompasses a broad range of specific models, each of which employs a unique set of simplifying assumptions and constraints, and each can be used to derive testable hypotheses about foraging behavior under certain environmental circumstances. Each model is a formal, mathematical construct and they share the key assumption that during 'economic' pursuits, the forager will operate to maximize the overall rate of energetic return. Specifically, we have employed three basic models to address the archaeology of St. Catherines Island. The diet-breadth (or prey choice) model addresses the issue of which foods should an efficient forager harvest from all those available on St. Catherines Island. Diet-breadth models predict that foragers will optimize the time spent capturing prey, and employ the simplifying assumptions that all resources are randomly distributed (without patches) and that 'capture/handling' and 'search' times represent the sum total of all time spent foraging. We also apply the patch choice model, which, combined with the central limit theorem, predicts that foraging effort will correlate directly with efficiency rank order, meaning that foragers should spend more time working the higher-ranked patches and less time in patches with lower energetic potential. Finally, we likewise employ the central place foraging model to investigate the time/energy spent processing resources at temporary camps before transport to a residential base. We find central place foraging theory to be useful for addressing the role and location of the residential base as a locus for provisioning offspring and mates or potential mates. This monograph also reports the results of optimal foraging experiments conducted over a 2-year period on St. Catherines Island, specifically addressing procurement and return rates for key marine and terrestrial resources that would have been available to aboriginal foragers on St. Catherines Island.Publisher: American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY