Image Number: C683180
Image Number: PR20386
The piece of pottery being reassembled is dated from between 1656 and 1704 (the dates that Mission San Luis was occupied).
Image Number: PT04891
Included in the image are: Rachel Watson, Rep. Donna Clarke, Rep. Gus Bilirakis, Rep. Don Davis, Rep. Dick Kravitz, Lynne Overton, Administrative Assistant Shelby Bishop, Dave Dickel.
Image Number: FPS1267
The sign reads: "Confederate Earthworks. Erected, equipped and manned to defend the railroad bridge and head of navigation on the Suwannee River at the town of Columbus. This was the federal objective as they marched westward from Jacksonville in the federal campaign of 1864. They were defeated and turned back at the Battle of Olustee, fifty miles east of this point."
Image Number: PR24700
The photographer was a park ranger at the park. The archaeological site was located directly across the Fort George River from Kingsley Plantation. The middens are the remains of the St. Johns culture (Timucuan peoples), and was perhaps related to the Spanish mission Sarabay (the original Spanish name of the island.)
Image Number: FPS00137
In 1964, archaeologist Ripley Bullen discovered this limestone ceremonial stone (stele). While not all agree with his interpretation, Bullen believed this was purposely erected for ceremonial and celestial purposes. Located 75 yards east of the main burial complex, it dates to 440 A.D. A drawing of what Bullen believed was a human can be seen in this image.
Image Number: COM00318
State archaeologists, led by Calvin Jones, found pig bones, pottery, coins, Spanish chain mail and beads that identified the site where Hernando de Soto and his army spent the winter of 1539. To date, this is the only verified site for the entire DeSoto expedition. The State of Florida purchased the site in 1988.
Image Number: RC16747
Archaeologists show school children the excavated ruins of the "bombproof". Stone walls are the foundation portion of the "bombproof", which was 100 feet long and about 30 feet deep. It consisted of four vaulted rooms 15 feet high.
Image Number: PR04408
Hale Smith was the chairman of the FSU Anthropology Department. He conducted several excavations throughout the state and the southeast. He published along with John Griffin the landmark book "Here They Once Stood", a 1951 study of Spanish missions in Florida, focusing primarily upon Mission San Luis.
Image Number: PR12561
Marine archaeologist, W. A. "Sonny" Cockrell, demonstrates the use of an astrolabe, a 16th century navigation instrument found in one of the treasure ships sunk off Florida's coast.
Image Number: RC17122
Made about 1350 A.D. out of pine. Found and dredged from the St. Johns River near DeLand, by Victor Roepke, in 1955.
Image Number: PR20393
The majority of archaeologists are employed by government agencies,
such as the Bureau of Archaeological Resources, the Department of
Interior and the Florida Park Service. Consequently, public and political
understanding of and commitment to archaeology are crucial to continued
support for research and interpretive facilities and the maintenance
and preservation of established and future sites for public access.
Museums and parks are where people most often encounter the work
of archaeologists, and these facilities are essential to making knowledge
of a region's historic and pre-historic past tangible and meaningful
for the public. Parks and museums also help illustrate to the public
the importance of scientific study, as well as the preservation of
unique and fragile resources. According to the Florida Department
of Environmental Protection, there are more than 1,500 preserved archaeological
sites in Florida state parks alone.
Park rangers, museum professionals, and archaeologists from state
and federal bureaus not only perform the important work of excavation
and conservation, but they also interpret archaeological resources
for site visitors and create educational materials, including everything
from trail markers and outdoor signage to pamphlets, artifact displays,
brochures and in-depth books.
Now the ever-growing number of educational materials created by archaeologists includes interactive Web sites that allow students to explore previously inaccessible areas of archaeological significance.
