Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 36
Due to the sensitive nature
of the excavation, the
public is generally not
allowed to visit, but there
are a few rare opportunities
to feel like a modern-day
Indiana Jones.
Top: Students sift every
bucket of dirt that is
removed from the site.
Lower: Dr. Chris Rodning
shows off a recently
discovered artifact.
of the archaeologists from three universities - Moore
of Warren Wilson College near Asheville, North
Carolina; Beck of the University of Michigan, and
Rodning of Tulane University. Financial support has
come from major grants through the National
Geographic Society and the National Science
Foundation.
Public support of the archaeological site is important to help protect and defend these historically
sensitive areas from development. The non-profit
Exploring Joara Foundation (EJF) was formed in
2008 to promote public archaeology, blending university research with community outreach about the
need to protect and preserve land beyond the Berry
Site which is projected to be lost to development in
the next 15 years.
36 | BlueRidgeCountry.com
Through EJF and university partnerships, students of all ages and teachers are able to volunteer at
the site during the summer - a unique opportunity
to gain archaeological skills and to unearth nearly
500-year old artifacts.
Due to the sensitive nature of the excavation, the
public is generally not allowed to visit, but there are a
few rare opportunities to feel like a modern-day
Indiana Jones. The EJF hosts an annual Field Day at
the Berry Site for one day each June (June 20, 2015).
The Catawba Meadows Archaeological Interpretive
Center near downtown Morganton, developed by the
EJF, is a living history complex with reconstructed
models of the Joara village along with displays and
exhibits of the discoveries made at the Berry Site.
While finding the oldest inland European settlement in the U.S. is shocking, the real surprise is how
close the Blue Ridge Mountains were to becoming
Spanish territory. While the Spaniards were busy trying to find gold in Mexico and transport it back to
their country, they unknowingly were building on a
site that had gold in local rivers. The gold rush actually
started in this section of North Carolina, long before
the California version. If the Spanish had found the
existing gold, everything from the Carolinas south
would surely have been claimed by Spain, dramatically
changing the course of world history.
Abra Johgardt, who works in the Warren Wilson
College archaeology lab during the school year and
at the Berry Site during the summer, sums up what
most volunteers feel during each year's field school:
"Every time you think you understand what's going
on, you realize that you're completely wrong and
it's actually something way more interesting than
you thought."
http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015
8 States of Great Drives for Spring
Photoessay: The New Green and New Blossoms of Spring
Dining Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley
Move Over Jamestown: Was the First Inland U.S. Settlement in the N.C. Mountains?
Weekend! Visiting the Historic Cumberland Gap of Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia
New Home from the Ashes: The Bonesteels’ Asheville Residence
Letters, From the Editor, Worth a Click
Mill Creek Stories
Creature Feature
The Hike
Mountain Report
Great Buys in the Mountains
Festivals & Events
Mountain Garden
Guest Column
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Intro
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Cover1
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Cover2
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 3
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 5
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Letters, From the Editor, Worth a Click
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 7
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Mill Creek Stories
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 9
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Creature Feature
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 11
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - The Hike
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 13
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Mountain Report
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Great Buys in the Mountains
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Festivals & Events
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 17
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 8 States of Great Drives for Spring
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 19
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 20
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 21
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 22
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 23
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 24
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 25
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Photoessay: The New Green and New Blossoms of Spring
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 27
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 28
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 29
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Dining Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 31
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 32
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 33
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Move Over Jamestown: Was the First Inland U.S. Settlement in the N.C. Mountains?
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 35
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 36
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Weekend! Visiting the Historic Cumberland Gap of Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 38
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 39
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 40
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 41
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - New Home from the Ashes: The Bonesteels’ Asheville Residence
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 43
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 44
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 45
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 46
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 47
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Mountain Garden
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - 49
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Guest Column
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2015 - Cover4
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