DETECTING ARCHAEOLOGICAL SIGNATURES IN SHALLOW WATER: A STUDY OF THE CHICAMACOMICO RACES BATTLESCAPE (1-5 OCTOBER 1861)

Abstract

After the Confederate surrender at Forts Hatteras and Clark in August of 1861, the Union took control of Pamlico Sound. Confederate soldiers, however, remained in control of an outpost on nearby Roanoke Island. This was their last line of defense against Union dominance of eastern North Carolina. In September 1861, Union forces set up an outpost at Chicamacomico (present-day Rodanthe on Hatteras Island). Once the Confederates discerned the Union's presence at Chicamacomico, they launched an attack to retake Pamlico Sound. Both Union and Confederate forces engaged each other on land and at sea. There were few casualties and the balance of power did not shift between the two sides. The "Chicamacomico Encounter" (also known as the "Chicamacomico Affair," and "Chicamacomico Races") has been documented in the historical record; however there has not been extensive archaeological study of the battlefield. This may be because it represents a challenge to battlefield archaeologists. The area of conflict is not only inundated with sand and vegetation, but it has also gone through drastic coastal change. Moreover, its marine battlescape is potentially expansive, and lies within exceptionally shallow water -- requiring the adaptation and combination of terrestrial and underwater archaeological surveying techniques to study it. The present study is an archaeological analysis of the battlescape which utilized the principles of KOCOA survey techniques from the American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) to reconstruct battlefield behavior, analyze tactics and strategy, and in doing so considered the pros and cons of various surveying and remote sensing methodologies.