Current Research in Tennessee Archaeology Meeting (2010): East Tennessee State University, Presentation Title: Prehistoric Ceramic Analysis for the Tilthammer Shoals Site, Kingsport, TN (original) (raw)

Archaeological Explorations of Workshop Rock Shelter, Upper Cumberland Plateau, Tennessee

The following research presents the results of archaeological survey and testing of Workshop Rock Shelter (40FN260), a small upland “rock house” on the Upper Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee. Luminescence dated ceramics and the ceramic assemblage from Workshop Rock Shelter are used to highlight an approach for establishing the prehistoric culture history of the region, a culture history that is expected to be significantly different than those of adjacent lowland regions. Specifically, the proximate aim of this essay is to elucidate Woodland ceramic systems on the Upper Cumberland Plateau. Problems with existing formal ceramic type designations are also discussed. Lastly, it is further suggest that scholars and cultural resource managers working in the Tennessee region use luminescence dating to aid in their archaeological investigations and National Register assessments.

The Archaeology of Linville Cave (40SL24), Sullivan County, Tennessee

Caverns (historically known as Linville Cave) is a large, extensive karst system near Blountville in Sullivan County, Tennessee. Confusion sometimes arises because there is a Linville Caverns across the state border in North Carolina, as well as an Appalachian Caverns in Virginia. The historic name is used because the site is listed as Linville Cave on the Blountville USGS topographic quadrangle, and on the site form submitted to the Tennessee Division of Archaeology .

An Archaeological Investigation of the Indian Hill Site, 1Wx15, a Middle Woodland Culture

Auburn University , 2013

The object of this study was to assess the variability in adaptive strategies for an extinct Middle Woodland population in the Alabama River valley. Previous archaeological investigations demonstrate a disputed cultural chronology and limited sample sizes for a clear representation of this cultural period. Ceramic and lithic materials from the Indian Hill site in Wilcox County, AL were the primary units of analysis. This study, relying heavily upon archaeological theoretical constructs, previous archaeological investigations into the Middle Woodland, and the analysis of ceramic and lithic material from 1Wx15, demonstrates that this area was occupied by a group of aboriginal people that created a unique container and lithic inventory. Ceramic analysis of the Indian Hill site represents limited interaction of these people with other ethnic groups. It is the purpose of the research to provide a narrative about the cultural identity of this Middle Woodland population in Wilcox County, AL.

The Social Memory of Upper Hampton Farm: An Organizational and Ceramic Study of 40RH41

2011

The Upper Hampton Farm site (40RH41) is located in the Watts Bar Reservoir in East Tennessee. The site was excavated under the Works Progress Administration between 1940 and 1941 and the collections are currently curated in the Frank H. McClung Museum in Knoxville, Tennessee. Based on the excavation notes and artifact analysis, a complex culture history emerged at Upper Hampton Farm, which culminated in a land modification project to conceal a Late Woodland Hamilton burial mound by a Late Mississippian Period population. The goal of this thesis is to examine and explain the complex archaeological record of Upper Hampton Farm and add to our understanding of Native American life ways in East Tennessee. In order to examine the cultural history of Upper Hampton Farm three main goals are outlined in this thesis. First, since the Upper Hampton Farm site has never formally been reported on, this thesis provides the first comprehensive report on the site. Secondly, to explain the land modification of the mound a social memory model has been employed to show a break in the social memory between the Woodland and Mississippian Periods. Lastly, an analysis was conducted on the ceramics uncovered from the village components. The results of this analysis are used to establish the cultural phases present in the archaeological record and provide supporting evidence for the social memory model. Based on the analysis of the extant collections, from Upper Hampton Farm the archaeological record shows a continuous habitation of the land from the Archaic Period up to the Contact Period. In addition, XRF testing of European trade beads and artifact analyses show a possible occupation of the site into the seventeenth century. It is during the Late Mississippian Period occupation that the archaeological record is most complex. The village shows evidence of both Dallas and Mouse Creek Phase characteristics within in the same level. This mingling of traditions may suggest an amalgamated society made up of different groups of people coming together on the landscape and possibly coexisting into the Contact Period.

EVIDENCE OF PREHISTORIC VIOLENT TRAUMA FROM A CAVE IN MIDDLE TENNESSEE

TENNESSEE ARCHAEOLOGY 3(2):139-156, 2008

We are pleased to welcome you to the sixth issue of Tennessee Archaeology. With the number of submissions increasing, we are gaining ground on e-publishing an issue every six months -but we are always looking for new reports and articles, so please consider sending us the results of your research. As always, we extend our sincere appreciation to the contributing authors and the scholars who provide thorough (and timely!) reviews of submissions. This journal would not be possible without their support.