Today, 6-16-99, we started to get things going down at the site, but it didn't take long before the rain got the best of us.  We packed up our things and headed up to the Archaeology Lab.  David Moore gave us a slide show and an in depth lecture about some of the prehistoric cultures in the southeastern United States, and the parts they played in relation to the people that inhabited the Warren Wilson Site.
    There are four periods in the southeast that are defined by temporal, technological, political, and economical changes to name a few.  The earliest of these is the Paleo-Indian Period, circa 15,000 BC-9,000 BC, when small bands of people were nomadic hunters and gatherers.
    The Archaic Period lasts from about 9,000 BC to 1,000 BC.  During this time, people were still traveling some, but were setting up more permanent campsites where they would stay for a few weeks, a month, or maybe even up to a year.  Middle Archaic Period artifacts have been found at the Warren Wilson site, so we can safely say that people were setting up camps here as early as 5,000 BC!
    The Woodland Period was between 1,000 BC and AD 1,000.  During this time period small settlements were being inhabited more permanently than before.  Ceramic pottery was introduced into the southeast early in the Woodland Period, if not in the late Archaic Period.  Also, the bow and arrow was developed at some point during this period.
    The Mississippian Period was from AD 1,000 to the time of contact, about AD 1500.  During this time, large villages were being occupied year round and social organization was very complex.  The main village at the Warren Wilson site was occupied between about AD 1200-AD 1400.  This was a Mississippian culture defined as 'Pisgah'.  Since the Warren Wilson site contains components of three of the four major culture periods, it is very important.