SHOVEL TESTING THE SQUIRE'S RIDGE (31ED365) SITE : EDGECOMBE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

Abstract

In this study, artifacts from the 2009 field season at Squire's Ridge (31ED365) are analyzed. One-hundred and fourteen shovel tests were completed by students under the supervision of I. Randolph Daniel that account for approximately 7000 artifacts. Three main categories of artifacts are considered by the author: stone, ceramic, and miscellaneous. The assemblage includes artifacts diagnostic of the Early, Middle, and Late Archaic and the Early and Middle Woodland. A spatial analysis is completed using artifact density maps created in Golden Software SURFER 8. This analysis reveals an occupation that is largely isomorphic with the ridge crest. This study suggests that the archaeology of the North Carolina Coastal Plain will benefit from the continued study of relict sand dunes such as Squire's Ridge and Barber Creek and supports the conclusions of Christopher Moore 2009 that relict sand dunes provided sites for occupation during the Archaic and Woodland along the Tar River. It also provides an initial step in the creation of a culture-history that is specific to the Coastal Plain.