The 2003 UNC Archaeological Field School excavated at Catawba New Town, Locus #2, from May 30th until June 6th. The area excavated represents the location of a Catawba log cabin that was occupied during the early 1800s. A brief summary of what we found here is provided below.

The excavations were directed by RLA staff archaeologists Steve Davis and Brett Riggs, with supervisory assistance from UNC graduate students Michelle Schohn and Jon Marcoux, and UNC undergraduate student Rebecca Richman. Twelve UNC students participated in the excavation. The pictures below give a glimpse of our experience at Catawba New Town, Locus #2.

Click on any thumbnail image below to view a larger picture.

Maps and digital mosaic of the 2003 excavations.

Excavation Summary

Excavations at Catawba New Town (RLA-SoC 632) were undertaken at two cabin locations, designated Loci #2 and #3. At Locus #2, a block of 26 contiguous one-by-one-meter squares was excavated. This area was selected based on a metal-detector survey that showed a concentration of metal artifacts here. These piece-plotted items include cast iron kettle and Dutch oven fragments, buttons, knives, forks, spoons, a fleam, buckles, Jew’s harps, thimbles, a padlock, lead shot, and a large cent piece of a style that dates from 1796 to 1807. Locus 2 appears to have been plowed only a few times, as the plowed soil was very shallow (less than 10 cm) and contained numerous large potsherds. The lack of more intensive agricultural activity here likely is due to the fact that the soil is extremely rocky.

Excavations at Locus 2 exposed a square cellar pit (Feature 1) and an associated fired stick-and-clay chimney base (Feature 2). A small, shallow pit (Feature 3) containing an English-made pearlware sherd and large fragments of a Catawba-made jar also was found. Among the artifacts from Feature 1 were numerous Catawba-made sherds, several polishing pebbles, pearlware and lead-glazed earthenware sherds, Catawba pipe fragments, several large iron objects, a wine bottle base, a 1793 French two-sol coin, glass beads, and a sheet-iron container lid.