Archaeological Institute of the Pee Dee - Middle to Late Archaic Period - Dr. Sean Taylor

The Florence County Museum is proud to partner with the Archaeological Institute of the Pee Dee in hosting a series of lectures focusing on Prehistory in the Pee Dee. On April 14, 2022, we welcomed Dr. Sean Taylor, Senior Archaeologist at South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.
Dr. Taylor focused on the cultural and demographic changes that began in the Middle Archaic period (8,000 to 5,000 years before the present) and accelerated during the Late Archaic period (5,000 to 3,000 years before the present).
The Middle Archaic period is generally viewed by most archeologists as a period of increased cultural regionalization as a result of growing populations and reduced territorial boundaries. As a result, there was a greater reliance on local raw materials in the manufacture of stone tools.
The Late Archaic period was a time of major technological and economic change for South Carolina's native peoples. By the close of this two millennial span, Late Archaic groups over much of the state had, to some extent, adopted the use of pottery, participated in long distance exchange networks to obtain non-local resources, and, although direct evidence is currently lacking in some areas, were probably experimenting with plant husbandry.