How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)

How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)

The state of Florida is an intermittent flashpoint of shell mound research. This process was initiated in the 19 century by Jeffries Wyman, whose 1875 publication Fresh-Water Shell Mounds of the St. John's River, Florida highlighted methods that are now commonplace. Wyman’s innovations are ofte...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Asa R. Randall
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Ubiquity Press 2015-05-01
Series:Bulletin of the History of Archaeology
Subjects:
Shell Midden, Florida, Regional Survey, GIS, Excavation Methods, Jefferies Wyman, Prehistory, Harvard Peabody Museum
Online Access:http://www.archaeologybulletin.org/articles/568
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spelling doaj-bb76c71c973d45c6acda8a487ed6d8102020-11-24T21:44:37ZengUbiquity PressBulletin of the History of Archaeology1062-47402047-69302015-05-0125210.5334/bha.259558How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)Asa R. Randall0Department of Anthropology, University of OklahomaThe state of Florida is an intermittent flashpoint of shell mound research. This process was initiated in the 19 century by Jeffries Wyman, whose 1875 publication Fresh-Water Shell Mounds of the St. John's River, Florida highlighted methods that are now commonplace. Wyman’s innovations are often attributed to familiarity with the Scandinavian shell midden school. I examine how Wyman’s experiences engaging with the archaeology of northeast Florida also structured his methods and interpretations. I employ GIS to reconstruct Wyman’s reconnaissance surveys based on his daily field journals. I consider the characteristics of his encampments and changing field methods. By visualizing Wyman’s excursions, I consider why he emphasized certain sites and observations over others, and reconstruct how he conducted his excavations. The results have significance for local researchers who use Wyman’s research, and anyone interested in the influence of field experiences on the emergence of prehistory as scientific inquiry and its theoretical consequences.http://www.archaeologybulletin.org/articles/568Shell Midden, Florida, Regional Survey, GIS, Excavation Methods, Jefferies Wyman, Prehistory, Harvard Peabody Museum
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Asa R. Randall
spellingShingle Asa R. Randall
How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)
Bulletin of the History of Archaeology
Shell Midden, Florida, Regional Survey, GIS, Excavation Methods, Jefferies Wyman, Prehistory, Harvard Peabody Museum
author_facet Asa R. Randall
author_sort Asa R. Randall
title How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)
title_short How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)
title_full How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)
title_fullStr How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)
title_full_unstemmed How Jeffries Wyman put Florida and Shell Mounds on the Map (1860–1875)
title_sort how jeffries wyman put florida and shell mounds on the map (1860–1875)
publisher Ubiquity Press
series Bulletin of the History of Archaeology
issn 1062-4740
2047-6930
publishDate 2015-05-01
description The state of Florida is an intermittent flashpoint of shell mound research. This process was initiated in the 19 century by Jeffries Wyman, whose 1875 publication Fresh-Water Shell Mounds of the St. John's River, Florida highlighted methods that are now commonplace. Wyman’s innovations are often attributed to familiarity with the Scandinavian shell midden school. I examine how Wyman’s experiences engaging with the archaeology of northeast Florida also structured his methods and interpretations. I employ GIS to reconstruct Wyman’s reconnaissance surveys based on his daily field journals. I consider the characteristics of his encampments and changing field methods. By visualizing Wyman’s excursions, I consider why he emphasized certain sites and observations over others, and reconstruct how he conducted his excavations. The results have significance for local researchers who use Wyman’s research, and anyone interested in the influence of field experiences on the emergence of prehistory as scientific inquiry and its theoretical consequences.
topic Shell Midden, Florida, Regional Survey, GIS, Excavation Methods, Jefferies Wyman, Prehistory, Harvard Peabody Museum
url http://www.archaeologybulletin.org/articles/568
work_keys_str_mv AT asarrandall howjeffrieswymanputfloridaandshellmoundsonthemap18601875
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