New Data on Archaic Period Chronology and Raw Material Variation from a Stratified Archaic Site in the Appalachian Summit Region

Summary

Excavations completed by AECOM documented deeply stratified Archaic deposits at the Weatherman Site (31YC31) in the Appalachian Summit Region of North Carolina. This site is located at 2,500 feet above sea level (10 miles north of Mt. Mitchell, the tallest peak east of the Mississippi River) and is situated in the floodplain of the South Toe River, which flows west to become the Nolichucky River and eventually the Tennessee River. The youngest Archaic component at the Weatherman Site is a Late Archaic horizon dominated by hearth remnants and dozens of broken and whole Savannah River projectile points made of local quartzites. The oldest and deepest component is an Early Archaic occupation dominated by cherts from East Tennessee, which produced a Kirk Serrated projectile point and multiple radiocarbon dates of circa 9200 calibrated radiocarbon years before present. These dates are among the oldest radiocarbon dates yet obtained in North Carolina. A summary of findings at 31YC31 is presented here and compared with other recent Archaic period site investigations in the Appalachian Summit region, with particular attention to spatial organization and changes in lithic resource utilization over time.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20897