The
Great Dismal Swamp covers a vast area of southern Virginia and eastern
North Carolina. For 200 years, the main residents of the swamp were
escaped slaves and their descendants, people who found safety in the
place that was too dangerous and unpleasant for those who would look for
them. Water moccasins, mosquitoes, thorns, and steamy humidity beat a
life of slavery any day. Historical archaeologist Dan Sayers is digging
up evidence to supplement what meager historical documentation we have
on these communities.
In early 2004, one of the refuge
biologists strapped on his waders and brought Sayers to the place we’re
going, a 20-acre island occasionally visited by hunters, but completely
unknown to historians and archaeologists. Before Sayers, no archaeology
had been done in the swamp’s interior, mainly because conditions were
so challenging. One research party got lost so many times that it gave
up.
When you’ve been toiling through the sucking ooze, with
submerged roots and branches grabbing at your ankles, dry solid ground
feels almost miraculous. We step onto the shore of a large, flat,
sun-dappled island carpeted with fallen leaves. Walking toward its
center, the underbrush disappears, and we enter a park-like clearing
shaded by a few hardwoods and pines.
“I’ll never forget seeing
this place for the first time,” recalls Sayers. “It was one of the
greatest moments of my life. I never dreamed of finding a 20-acre
island, and I knew instantly it was livable. Sure enough, you can’t put a
shovel in the ground anywhere on this island without finding
something.”
Sayers had planned to spend a few months
digging and then write his dissertation. Instead, he worked for years
and wrote a book on his findings. Read about the archaeological digs
that tell
the story of the people who found freedom in the Great Dismal Swamp at Smithsonian.
No comments:
Post a Comment