Historic Contexts
Historic contexts play an important role in evaluating the significance of
archaeological sites and historic resources. As defined by the National Park
Service, “historic contexts are those patterns or trends in history by
which a specific occurrence, property, or site is understood and its meaning
(and ultimately its significance) within history or prehistory is made” (National
Register Bulletin 1990). Historic contexts also aim to define property types,
take stock of sites (known and projected), pose research questions, provide
evaluation criteria, and discuss key bibliographic material.
This section of the website includes historic contexts that have been developed
in consultation with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO). Some of the historic contexts presented on this
page were developed as mitigation components for archaeological sites lost
to development. Other contexts were either developed through the SHPO’s
federal
grants program, the Council of South Carolina Professional Archaeologists (COSCAPA), or independent research.
See also Historic Contexts,
Survey Reports, and Other Historical Background Studies.
All contexts are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.
Gold Mining in the Carolinas: A Context for Archaeological Resources
Management. (10.7 MB)
Sumter National Forest Cultural Resources Overview.
Provides
information on the nature and distribution of cultural resources, placing these
resources in a framework of the cultural history of upstate South Carolina, in
addition to examining the U.S. Forest Service's predictive model. (8 MB)
South Carolina Land Phosphates in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth
Centuries: Toward an Archaeological Context. Provides an archaeological
context for the study of South Carolina's phosphate industry, with a special
emphasis on phosphate mining camps.
Rice Cultivation, Processing, and Marketing in the Eighteenth-Century.
Discusses South Carolina's rice production from introduction through the
American Revolution.
Context for Eighteenth-Century Overseers.
Provides information about how overseers were retained, salaries, and social
standing.
A Preliminary Archaeological Context for Greenville County, South
Carolina.
Earliest Americans National Historic Landmark Theme Study.
Archaic Shell Rings of the Southeast US, National Historic Landmark Historic
Context/Theme Study. (5 MB)
Fig Island Ring Complex: Coastal Adaptation and Question of Ring Function in the
Late Archaic. (8.1 MB)
Beneath These
Waters, Archeological and Historical Studies of 11,500 Years
Along the Savannah River, is an interpretation for a general audience of
archeological and historical research conducted in the Richard B. Russell
Multiple Resource Area
from 1969 through 1985. This research preceded
building of the Richard B. Russell Dam and Lake. Archeologists and others
investigated prehistoric and historic sites in Elbert and Hart Counties in
Georgia, and Abbeville and Anderson Counties in South Carolina.
In Those Days: African-American Life Near the Savannah River, is
an oral history from elderly African Americans in Elbert Co., Georgia, and
Abbeville Co., South Carolina. The oral histories
were collected by researchers as part of the Richard B. Russell Dam construction
in the early 1980's.
National Register Multiple Property Submissions (MPS)
These MPS cover documents contain valuable historic context information on groups
of archaeology related properties in South Carolina:
Civil War Defenses of Charleston
Congaree Swamp National Monument
Early Ironworks of Northwestern SC
Flue-cured Tobacco Production
Georgetown Co. Rice Culture
Shell Rings of South Carolina
Pacolet Soapstone Quarries
Yamasee Indian Towns