Archaeological Investigations at Yourhaney Plantation (38GE18)

ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS AT YOURHANEY PLANTATION17MISSISSIPPIAN PERIODThe Mississippian Period (A.D. 1100 to 1640) is characterized by a sedentary village life,agricultural food production, and regionally integrated and heirarchically organized social,political, and ceremonial systems (Anderson 1994). Not much is known about the MississippianPeriod in this area of the state. Most of the work has been done in the middle Savannah Rivervalley or along the Wateree River Valley in the central part of the state. It is possible thatMississippian occupations are aligned with the Scott’s Lake Mound Center on the Upper SanteeRiver as well as the Wateree Mound Complex near Camden. The influence of the Town CreekIndian Mound center located approximately 65 miles upriver is not clear. Anderson’s (1982)ceramic sequence is based on data supplied by local collectors, Coe’s (1995) work at Town Creekin North Carolina, and excavations conducted by Stanley South (1971) at Charlestowne Landing.Anderson’s phases include Santee II, which is dominated by Santee Simple Stamped and Pee Dee.As previously discussed, the Santee series is similar to the McClellanville series, but is thought to belater. It contains a fine to medium sandy paste with a surface treatment of primarily V-shapedstamping. The Santee series is placed at A.D. 800 to 1300 (Anderson et al. 1982: 303).The Pee Dee series is sand tempered and characterized by carved paddle stamped designsincluding concentric circles, the filfor cross, arc angles, herring bone, line blocks, quartered circles,and split diamonds (Reid 1967: 5-8). Dates on Pee Dee ceramics tend to cluster between (AD1400-1600) and are late in the period.HISTORIC OVERVIEWThe first Indians to make contact with the English settlers and explorers in this area were theCuccoes, Wandos, Wineaus (Winyahs), Etiwans, and Sewees. Using a variety of sources, Hodge(1910: 887) places the Waccamaws along the river of the same name, while others quoting a1715 government census, place them 100 miles northeast of Charleston. At that time, theWaccamaws had four villages containing 210 males and 400 females. Several writers suggestthat a Siouan stock tribe called the Woccon left North Carolina around 1711-1712 and becamethe Waccamaw of South Carolina. The only evidence of this is that it is around that time that theWaccamaw appear in South Carolina historical accounts and the Woccon disappear from NorthCarolina historical accounts (Rights 1957: 39). The Winyah Indians are depicted in the samecensus as being located 80 miles northeast of Charleston and are shown by Hodge (1910: 963)on the west side of the Pee Dee River near its confluence with Winyah Bay. They were a smallertribe that with only one village of 36 males and 70 females in 1715 (Rights 1957: 39).Trade with Native Americans began shortly after the first immigrants arrived in Charles Town in1670. By the beginning of the 17 th century, traders in the colony were conducting business withthe Yemasee to the south, the Waccamaw to the north, and the Cherokees, Catawbas, and Creeksto the west. The Lords Proprietors of Carolina initially controlled commerce, but as populationincreased, the trade was handled by the merchants themselves who either subsidized traders orbought deer skins from a growing number of private traders. While the businessmen and tradersbenefited from this system, the Indians suffered continuous emotional and physical abuse. Toremedy the situation, the Commons House established the Commission of the Indian Trade toregulate the trade and listen to grievances in 1707.