Research Interests
Archaeology, hunter-gatherers, regional survey, settlement patterns, coastal adaptations, shellfish analysis, eastern North America
Specializations
ArchaeologyResearch Background
Throughout my years as an archaeologist, my focus has been the study of the lifeways of Native communities living near the Chesapeake Bay estuary between 1000 BCE and 1600 CE. I have investigated the changes that occurred in regional settlement and community patterns over this long period. I have also devoted considerable time to methods for identifying the season of harvest and collection habitat for the Eastern oyster, a bivalve mollusk common in ancient shell middens found along the Atlantic coast and the Gulf of Mexico. This work has included the analysis of modern, controlled collections of Crassostrea virginica from Dauphin Island, Alabama and from the Patuxent River estuary, Maryland, along with archaeological samples from surrounding areas.
Education
PhD, SUNY Binghamton, 1987