The Development of Southeastern Archaeology

Ten scholars with specialities ranging from ethno-history to remote sensing and lithic analysis to bio-archaeology chronicle the changes in the way prehistory in the South-east has been studied since the 19th century. Each brings to the task the particular perspective provided by his or her own subdiscipline. The result is a multifaceted overview of the history of archaeology in a region that has played an important but variable role in the overall development of North American archaeology. Some of the specialities discussed in this book were traditionally relegated to appendices or ignored completely in site reports that are more than 20 years old. Today, most are part of the bodies of the reports but this integration has been hard won. Others have been, and will continue to be, of central concern to archaeologists. Whatever the case, each chapter details the way in which changes in method can be related to changes in theory by reviewing major landmarks in the literature. As a consequence, the reader can compare the development of each of the subdisciplines, which is not always uniform. Also, each chapter provides access to a different aspect of the rich literature on south-eastern prehistory. The book should be valuable to south-eastern archaeologists. Because many of the major figures in American archaeology have worked in the south-east, the book also provides important insights for archaeologists everywhere. The general reader should find the book of interest because the development of Southeastern archaeology reflects trends in the development of social science as a whole.