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In November 1995, the Laboratory of Archaeology at the University of Georgia submitted inventories and summaries of Indigenous ancestors and funerary objects in its holdings to comply with the passage of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). However, after this submission, the Laboratory attempts at consultation with federally recognized descendant Tribal communities who have cultural ties in the state of Georgia were not successful, and NAGPRA-related activities essentially stalled at the Laboratory. Beginning in 2019, the Laboratory's staff recognized a lack of formal NAGPRA policies or standards, which led to a complete reevaluation of the Laboratory's approach to NAGPRA. In essence, it was the Laboratory's renewed engagement with NAGPRA and descendan tribal communities that became the catalyst for change in the Laboratory's philosophy as a curation repository. This shift in thinking set the Laboratory on a path toward building a descendant community–informed institutional integrity (DCIII) level of engagement with consultation and collaborative efforts in all aspects of collections management and archaeological research. In this article, we outline steps that the Laboratory has taken toward implementing meaningful policies and practices created with descendant Tribal communities that both fulfill and extend bounds of NAGPRA compliance.

This report presents findings from recent systematic surveys and excavations at the site of Finley’s Pond (9CH204) to evaluate craft production (e.g., shell beads) and settlement expansion on Ossab...

OBJECTIVE Research situated within the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease demonstrates that stressors are correlated with future mortality risk, especially if experienced frequently and during early periods of postnatal life. This study examines if the developmental timing and frequency of early life stressors influenced mortality risk for Indigenous Guale in Spanish Florida during the 17th century. MATERIALS AND METHODS The present study examines internal enamel microgrowth disruptions (accentuated lines-AL) from Guale individuals (n = 52) interred at Mission Santa Catalina de Guale on St. Catherines Island, Georgia (AD 1605-1680). Teeth were thin-sectioned and microscopically analyzed to document AL variables as predictors of age-at-death. RESULTS Individuals with AL died earlier than those without AL. This difference, however, was not significant. Individuals who exhibit AL formed during their first year of life died on average three times earlier than those who did not. The frequency of AL and age-at-first-AL are significantly correlated with age-at-death, and Cox hazard analyses indicates that individuals with early forming and frequent AL had increased risks of early death. DISCUSSION This study emphasizes how the lived experiences of Guale children shaped demographic patterns during the 17th century. The survival of early life stressors resulted in life history trade-offs and increased risks for early death. Mortality risks were exacerbated for individuals who experienced frequent stressors during the earliest periods of life. This underscores a role for bioarchaeology in understanding of how accumulative stress burdens during the earliest years of postnatal life may influence mortality risk.

Circular shell rings along the Atlantic Coast of southeastern North America are the remnants of some of the earliest villages that emerged during the Late Archaic Period (5000 – 3000 BP). Many of these villages, however, were abandoned during the Terminal Late Archaic Period (ca 3800 – 3000 BP). Here, we combine Bayesian chronological modeling with multiple environmental proxies to understand the nature and timing of environmental change associated with the emergence and abandonment of shell ring villages on Sapleo Island, Georgia. Our Bayesian models indicate that Native Americans occupied the three Sapelo shell rings at varying times with some generational overlap. By the end of the complex’s occupation, only Ring III was occupied before abandonment ca. 3845 BP. Ring III also consists of statistically smaller oysters (Crassostrea virginica) that people harvested from less saline estuaries compared to earlier occupations. These data, when integrated with recent tree ring analyses, show a clear pattern of environmental instability throughout the period in which the rings were occupied. We argue that as the climate became unstable around 4300 BP, aggregation at shell ring villages provided a way to effectively manage fisheries that are highly sensitive to environmental change. However, with the eventual collapse of oyster fisheries and subsequent rebound in environmental conditions ca. 3800 BP, people dispersed from shell rings, and shifted to non-marine subsistence economies and other types of settlements. This study provides the most comprehensive evidence correlations between large-scale environmental change and societal transformations on the Georgia coast during the Late Archaic period.

Historical ecology has revolutionized our understanding of fisheries and cultural landscapes, demonstrating the value of historical data for evaluating the past, present, and future of Earth’s ecosystems. Despite several important studies, Indigenous fisheries generally receive less attention from scholars and managers than the 17th–20th century capitalist commercial fisheries that decimated many keystone species, including oysters. We investigate Indigenous oyster harvest through time in North America and Australia, placing these data in the context of sea level histories and historical catch records. Indigenous oyster fisheries were pervasive across space and through time, persisting for 5000–10,000 years or more. Oysters were likely managed and sometimes “farmed,” and are woven into broader cultural, ritual, and social traditions. Effective stewardship of oyster reefs and other marine fisheries around the world must center Indigenous histories and include Indigenous community members to co-develop more inclusive, just, and successful strategies for restoration, harvest, and management. Results - Indigenous fisheries of abundance. - Oysters in monuments and ritual landscapes. - Not all forgotten: Indigenous use of oysters. Indigenous - Capitalist commercial fisheries and ecological collapse. Discussion Methods

Five thousand–year history of Native American oyster harvesting practices provides insight into modern oyster reef restoration., The eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) is an important proxy for examining historical trajectories of coastal ecosystems. Measurement of ~40,000 oyster shells from archaeological sites along the Atlantic Coast of the United States provides a long-term record of oyster abundance and size. The data demonstrate increases in oyster size across time and a nonrandom pattern in their distributions across sites. We attribute this variation to processes related to Native American fishing rights and environmental variability. Mean oyster length is correlated with total oyster bed length within foraging radii (5 and 10 km) as mapped in 1889 and 1890. These data demonstrate the stability of oyster reefs despite different population densities and environmental shifts and have implications for oyster reef restoration in an age of global climate change.

This study examines internal enamel micro-defects and incremental isotopic data from tooth dentin to reconstruct early life stress and dietary histories of native individuals interred at Mission Santa Catalina de Guale (ca. A.D. 1605–1680), St. Catherines Island, Georgia. Spanish missionization in North America is associated with dietary change and increased indigenous stress. By integrating incremental isotopic data with enamel defect records, malnutrition as a source of stress can be explored. One permanent canine from 14 individuals was analyzed for enamel defects, and, of these subsamples, seven were selected for incremental δ 13C and δ 15N analysis. Results reveal high levels of early life stress, with 93% of individuals exhibiting enamel defects and an average of 4.4 defects/individual. Stress chronologies show that individuals experienced the highest frequency of stress between ages 2.5 and 4.5 years, a period associated with weaning in many traditional societies. Post-weaning δ 15N and δ 13C values indicate a mixed diet of maize and marine foods, with values closer to what would be expected for a diet heavy in maize (9.9‰ and –11.4‰, respectively). In four individuals, δ 15N values decrease on average 2‰ during infancy and early childhood, while δ 13C values slightly increase by 0.7‰. These individuals show enamel defects associated with decreasing δ 15N and increasing δ 13C values, suggesting stress associated with weaning onto a maize-based diet. This study underscores the importance of combining isotopic and paleopathological data to explore sources of non-specific stresses, especially in providing a link between diet and nutritional stress during periods of growth and development. Este estudio examina los microdefectos internos del esmalte y los datos isotopicos incrementales de la dentina para reconstruir el estres de la vida temprana y las historias dieteticas de individuos indigenas enterrados en la Mision Santa Catalina de Guale (entre los anos 1605 y 1680), en St. Catherines Island, Georgia. La misionizacion espanola en America del Norte esta asociada con el cambio en la dieta y el aumento del estres sistemico en poblaciones indigenas. Se puede abordar la desnutricion como fuente de estres sistemico al integrar los datos isotopicos incrementales con los registros de defectos del esmalte. Se analizo un canino permanente de catorce individuos para identificar defectos en el esmalte y se seleccionaron siete submuestras para el analisis incremental de δ 13C y δ 15N. Los resultados revelan altos niveles de estres en la vida temprana ya que un 93% de individuos muestran defectos en el esmalte con un promedio de 4,4 defectos/individuo. Las cronologias de estres muestran que las personas experimentaron la mayor frecuencia de estres entre los 2,5 y 4,5 anos de edad, un periodo asociado con el destete en muchas sociedades tradicionales. Los valores δ 15N y δ 13C posteriores al destete indican una dieta mixta de maiz y alimentos marinos, con valores mas cercanos a lo que se espera de una dieta rica en maiz (9,9 ‰ y –11,4 ‰, respectivamente). En cuatro individuos, los valores de δ 15N disminuyen en promedio 2 ‰ y los valores de δ 13C aumentan gradualmente un promedio de 0,7 ‰ durante la infancia y la ninez temprana. Estos individuos muestran defectos del esmalte asociados con la disminucion de δ 15N y el aumento de los valores de δ 13C, lo que sugiere el estres asociado con el destete y una transicion hacia una dieta basada en maiz. Este estudio subraya la importancia de combinar los datos isotopicos y paleopatologicos para explorar las fuentes del estres sistemico, especialmente al proporcionar un vinculo entre la dieta y el estres nutricional durante los periodos de crecimiento y desarrollo.