Ye Pleasant Mount: 1989 1990 Excavations - Open site which ...

date of 1723 based on the tobacco pipe stem date, and a tenninus post quem of 1720 based
on European ceramics for most ofthe town. We know from Baron Von Reck (lIvidt
1980) that the town was occupied by Yuchi in 1735, but by the mid 1740s there are
indications that the site had been abandoned. British traders are associated with the site by
1739, and possibly earlier. The abandonment of the town did not mean that Indians
completely abandoned the site. Fons and trading posts were notorious for satellite
settlements ofIndians. The Indians may have served as a labor source, or they may have
settled nearby simply to have better access to trade goods. The traders often left for
extended periods to gather pelts in exchange for trade goods. Once a large quantity ofpelts
had been amassed they were taken to Charleston for sale. This exchange probably
followed a seasonal cycle, and the Indian presence at Mount Pleasant also may have been
seasonal. The Indian presence may have continued throughout the British trader and ranger
garrison eras. During this period the Indians continued to produce pottery. They also
scavenged bottles, and other useful items, for their use.
A large pan of the artifact diversity observed at Trader Point may result from the British
trader and ranger components. We suspect that Trader Point contains the actual Mount
Pleasant fon, and it probably was settled by traders prior to the construction of the fon.
Euro-American trade items found at Mount Pleasant can be compared with artifacts
from three contemporaneous areas in the Savannah River valley. Reported artifacts from
the Cherokee lower towns (fugalo, Estatoe, Chauga, & Chattooga), the Rae's Creek Site
near Augusta, and Pallachacolas Town near Mount Pleasant are compared with the Mount
Pleasant site in Table 19.
Table 19. Summary of Euro-American Artifacts found at Other Historic
Indian Settlements in the Savannah River Valley.
KITCHEN GROUP
Cherokee Raes Ck. Pallachacolas Mt. Pleasant
European ceramics x x x x
Chinese porcelain x x
boltle glass x x x x
table glassware x
iron butcher knives x x
iron forks x
pewler spoons x
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