Archaeology of the Ossary at the Baum Site, Page 1

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SALVAGE OF AN OSSUARY
AT THE BAUM SITE

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by David Sutton phelps

Final Report of Research Accomplished under a North Carolina
Coastal Area Management Act Grant with matching funds from
the Currituck County Board of Commissioners and the Currituck
County Historical Association.

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Archaeology Laboratory
Department of Sociology and Anthropology
East Carolina University
Greenville, North Carolina 27834

October, 1980

**TABLE OF CONTENTS**
Acknowledgments (below) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Baum Site and Previous Investigations . . . . . . . . . . . . Description of the Site and its Cultural Sequences . . Salvaging the Burial 5 Ossuary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Ossuary and Its Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References Cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	i 1 2 4 8 8 9 14 15

**List of Figures**
Figure 1. Distribution of Archaeological Sites in the central section of the Currituck peninsula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Figure 2. Plan of the Baum site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Figure 3. The shore side of the Baum site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Figure 4. Location of ossuaries and extent of low bank erosion at the Baum site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Figure 5. Burial 5 during excavation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	3 5 7 10 12

**List of Tables**
Table 1. Prehistoric Ceramics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Table 2. Lithic, Metal and Shell Artifacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	13 13

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Mr. Milford J. Baum has been one of the most hospitable and cooperative site owners the author has had the pleasure of knowing in his years of professional experience. Without Mr. Baum's interest in the history of his land and his spirit of cooperation, the valuable information from this site would have been lost forever.

Special thanks are offered to Mrs. Barbara Snowden, President of the Currituck County Historical Association, for providing not only part of the matching funds for this grant, but for the continuing interest and support she and the Association have shown for Currituck County's past.

The author is grateful to the Currituck County Board of Commissioners and Mr. Webb Fuller, County Manager, who applied for this grant under provisions of the North Carolina Coastal Area Management Act.

Many Currituck County citizens have shown interest in this project as well as our previous work, have given valuable information about sites and artifacts, offered their aid, and made us feel at home in many ways. With such support, the investigation of the past becomes an exciting challenge above and beyond the usual professional interest.

Without the cooperation and support of the Office of Coastal Management and the Coastal Resources Commission, this salvage project would not have been possible. Personnel in both the Washington and Raleigh offices were most helpful in expediting the grant application and understanding the need to save this important part of North Carolina's coastal heritage.