The St. Johns River: An archival project investigating interior occupation of the St. Johns River Region by Native Americans during the Colonial Period

Abstract

Abstract

My project focuses on studying burial mounds along the St. Johns middle valley during the Colonial Period, ca. 1500-1845CE. Currently, little is actually known regarding the interior of the St. Johns or which cultures utilized mounds and to what extent. What we do know is that the St. Johns River Region in Florida experienced numerous social interactions since the Middle to Late Archaic Periods (6050-1250BCE) however, most archaeological research has focused on mound structures along the St. Johns River prior to the Colonial Period (1500CE). The purpose of my research is to evaluate the extent of occupation of the St. Johns River Region interior in the Colonial Period by looking for characteristics that suggest mound usage during this time. This is an archival project that is comparing and analyzing the early investigations of the St. Johns River Region with current research to determine interior occupation of the St. Johns River. By doing so, we see the long-standing importance that moundedness held to St. Johns cultures and the relevancy of mounding through time and space. Past peoples along the St. Johns constructed their life through the building of mounds which served as sacred spaces where social processes were ongoing. By studying mound reuse through time, we can better understand why these spaces were continually returned to. Additionally, by studying mound use through time I am also exploring theoretical concepts of mound identity, language, and cosmology that were important to Native American communities that inhabited the St. Johns River both prior and after European incursion, and whether these spaces offered Native American communities spaces to resist colonialism.