Castalian Springs Archaeological Project

CASTALIAN SPRINGS ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT

Field Projects: 2005-2011

A cooperative project of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Middle Tennessee State University, the Bledsoe's Lick Historical Association, and Tennessee Division of Archaeology.

Project Directors: Kevin E. Smith and Emily L. Beahm

The Castalian Springs Archaeological Project is an on-going cooperative archaeological research project sponsored by the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Middle Tennessee State University, the Bledsoe's Lick Historical Association, and the Tennessee Division of Archaeology. The first field phase of the project was in summer 2005 on private property, followed by six seasons of field research on the state-owned portion of the site.

2005 - June 6-July 8, 2005
2006 - June 5-July 7, 2006
2007 - June 4-July 6, 2007
2008 - June 2-July 3, 2008
2009 - June 1-July 2, 2009
2010 - June 7-July 9, 2010
2011 - June 6-July 8, 2011

The primary objectives of the project are:

To begin to develop an initial understanding of the size and extent of this prehistoric Native American town dating to A.D. 1000-1400 so that development of trails and other facilities on the state lands will not negatively impact important archaeological deposits;
To provide university students with training in the methods and techniques of professional field and laboratory archaeology;
Through public tours, to highlight the significance of the Castalian Springs Mound Site;
To emphasize to the interested public the value of archaeological research ;
To gather sufficient detailed information to plan future excavations and exhibits on the prehistoric native peoples who lived at Castalian Springs.

The field portion of the project included what was, at that time, a relatively novel approach to "daily field updates" on the Internet -- a practice that has become more common in recent years. This web page consolidates the "daily update" pages from 2005-2011 in summary form. The labwork and writing portion of the project is nearing completion, and we anticipate the distribution of final project reports within the next year.

Location of Field Excavations by Year

Project Crews, 2005-2011

Daily Journal
June/July 2005

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted. Click on the date links to view a specific date or [Click Here] to browse the entire field season.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 1 2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Daily Journal
June/July 2006

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted. Click on the date links to view a specific date or [Click Here] to browse the entire field season.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

4 5 6 7 9 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Daily Journal
June/July 2007

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted. Click on the date links to view a specific date or [Click Here] to browse the entire field season.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

17 18 19 20 21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

f

Daily Journal
June/July 2008

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted. Click on the date links to view a specific date or [Click Here] to browse the entire field season.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30 1 2 3 4 5

Daily Journal
June/July 2009

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted. Click on the date links to view a specific date or [Click Here] to browse the entire field season.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

31 1 2 3 4 5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16 17 18 19 20

21 22 23 24 25 26 27

28 29 30 1 2 3 4

Daily Journal
June/July 2010

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted. Click on the date links to view a specific date or [Click Here] to browse the entire field season.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 15 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30 1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Daily Journal
June/July 2011

At the end of each day, a short narrative and a few photographs of the day's work were posted -- this year in PDF format. Click on the date links to view a specific date.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 1 2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9