- AWIARE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13 7:00-8:00 PM EST
Roberts Recreation Center | 1246 50th Ave N, St Petersburg, FL 33703-3542, United States

The Anthropogenic Movement of Lightning Whelk Across the Eastern United States and Southern Canada

Michelle Calhoun, Archaeological Consultants Inc. (ACI)

Lightning whelk (Sinistrofulgur perversum) have been integral to the lives of some Native People throughout eastern North America since at least the Archaic, having been used as tools for woodworking, bowls and cups, ornamentation like beads and gorgets, and, most importantly, as a symbolic representation of the cosmos. Lightning whelk can be found in archaeological contexts in every eastern U.S. state and even into parts of southern Canada, even though the shell was most often obtained from the Gulf of Mexico, as chemical sourcing and spire angle studies have shown. This presentation will highlight the role that lightning whelk has played over the millennia and will provide hypothetical routes of travel for whelk and its travelling companions. Next time you admire the intricate perfection of a lightning whelk’s spire while walking the shoreline here in southwest Florida, just know that you are among a long line of people to do so, stretching back untold millennia.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS SPEAKER & SEE A MAP TO THE VENUE (Facebook Event Page)

AWIARE, in cooperation with the University of South Florida (USF), intends to conduct a multi-year, multi-institutional project to discover archaeological evidence of the earliest occupation of Florida’s west coast from submerged landscapes within Tampa Bay.

HELP US MEET OUR FUNDRAISING GOAL

A $12,500 grant from the Felburn Foundation and $5000 in private donations have brought us well over two-thirds of the way towards our goal of $20,000, which we intend to use to underwrite the first phase of research: to compile existing data related to now-submerged landscapes of Tampa Bay and use these data to identify locations with high preservation potential for intact archaeological deposits and important paleoenvironmental features. The results of this initial study will lay the foundation for the next phase: to conduct remote sensing surveys and coring of potential site locations, leading, eventually, to the excavation of submerged sites.

We are reaching out to you because you have expressed interest in supporting our mission. We hope you agree that investigating the earliest human occupation of Florida and its ancient environment is a worthwhile and significant scientific endeavor.

We hope you will consider a tax-deductible donation to help support “The Search For Tampa Bay’s Earliest People”.

International Archaeology Day 2025

Pop-Up Exhibits from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Archaeology Talk from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. FREE EVENT, BUT REGISTERING HELPS US PLAN BETTER, REGISTER HERE > Explore a one-day exhibit of pre-Columbian artifacts from the Tampa Bay region and beyond! Archaeologists will illustrate the use of early stone and shell tools and their importance […]

The Search for Tampa Bay’s Earliest People Project Update

Kendal Jackson and Bob Austin have been pulling together archaeological and geological data on Tampa Bay in an effort to develop a predictive model for submerged Indigenous sites in Tampa Bay. The project is being funded by a grant the Felburn foundation and several private donations. The accompanying map is a preliminary predictive model showing […]

THE SEARCH FOR TAMPA BAY’S EARLIEST PEOPLE

THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL POTENTIAL OF TAMPA BAY During the 1960s & 1970s, local avocational archaeologists collected Paleoindian (ca. 11,000 years ago) through the Late Archaic (ca. 4500 years ago) artifacts from along the bay shore and from spoil and oyster shell dredged from Tampa Bay. Marine geologists have shown that a large spring-fed, freshwater lake […]

JUNIOR ARCHAEOLOGY SUMMER CAMP 2024

AWIARE is planning an exciting new archaeology summer camp at Weedon Island Preserve designed for children 7-11 years old who are interested in exploring the past. The camp is conducted by professional archaeologists and allow kids to experience archaeology first-hand through activities, experiments, hikes, and an excavation. The summer camp is designed for children with […]

Featured on Fox 13 News: Discovering Weedon Island’s Past

Discovering Weedon Island’s Past Fifteen hikers recently got to walk out to an archeological dig site on Weedon Island where a USF professor and his students are learning about the first people to inhabit Pinellas County. Weedon Island walk leads hikers to archaeological excavation site By Photojournalist Mike Hughes | Published March 17, 2022, Pinellas […]

Michael Francis Appointed to Florida Historical Commission, Honored by the King of Spain

A history professor known for his groundbreaking research and archival work on early Spanish Florida has been appointed to the Florida Historical Commission (FHC) by Governor Ron DeSantis. Michael Francis, the Hough Family Endowed Chair of Florida Studies at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus, was named to the commission along with four […]

Weedon’s Prehistoric Past Gives Glimpse to Native American Culture

By Mike Hughes | Tampa Bay History | FOX 13 News ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - At approximately 3,700 acres, Weedon Island Preserve is an ecological jewel within an urban landscape on the shores of Old Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg. Weedon Island is known for its nature, kayak trails and walking trails, but there is […]

Digging into Weedon – Part II

Scallops: What They Reveal about Ancient Tampa Bay Communities

HANDS-ON WEEDON

AWIARE held its first Adult Archaeology Camp February 22 – 26, 2021. Eight participants spent a week of performing archaeological activities that included field and lab experiences at Weedon Island Preserve and informative site visits. The camp enjoyed great weather the entire week. Protocol was in place for Covid-19 restrictions at all times. On Monday, […]

Digging into Weedon

A UF/IFAS Pinellas County Extension Production with Phyllis Kolianos and Joan Landis

New Radiocarbon Dates

Being able to date archaeological sites and components are critical to documenting cultural and environmental changes through time and, more importantly, how people responded to these changes. Research supported by the AWIARE/Levett Foundation student grant has contributed new dates for the Tampa Bay region. University of Florida Ph.D. candidate Trevor Duke, obtained radiocarbon dates from […]

AWIARE/Friends of Weedon Island Grant

The AWIARE Student Grants Committee selected Morgan Grieg, USFSP undergraduate student in history, to receive the 2020 AWIARE/FOWI Student Grant. Morgan will receive $1250.00 to help support an eight-week research trip to Spain to conduct original archival research in Badajoz, Zafra, and Seville on the Hernando de Soto expedition. Morgan is working under the supervision […]

BE A PART
As we continue our quest to become a premiere research facility fostering scientific knowledge of our past requires expansion and growth of our current programs and facilities.

BE AN ADVOCATE
Become part of a living time capsule. From an individual donation to an endowment. Each gift connects people to nature, to history, and to Tampa Bay's legacy. A gift to the AWIARE Endowment Fund will help achieve our financial goal and support our mission of discovery, research, and education. All gifts will grow in value through the Pinellas Community Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization.

See How What You Give Becomes Something We All Can Keep
Endowed funds provide a lasting source of support for AWIARE. Donors may give either outright or defer gifts to establish these funds.

The AWIARE Endowment Fund can be accessed via this QR code
or at pinellascf.org/AWIARE

The Weedon Island Canoe is featured in a new book by University Press of Florida, Iconography and Wetsite Archaeology of Florida’s Watery Realms. The book includes a chapter written by Phyllis Kolianos and titled, “Wood Preservation Dilemmas of Florida’s Prehistoric Saltwater Sites: Key Marco and Weedon Island” which details the preservation of the canoe. This book edited by Ryan Wheeler and Joanna Ostapkowicz is part of the Ripley P. Bullen series, and explores new discoveries and reexamines existing artifacts to reveal the influential role of water in the daily lives of Florida’s early inhabitants.

To order a copy visit: www.upf.com

Weedon Island Preserve, at approximately 3,700 acres, is an ecological jewel within an urban landscape on the shores of Old Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg, Florida. A refuge for native flora and fauna, Weedon Island is also one of Florida's most important cultural resources. Discover the rich human history of the Island that began thousands of years ago and witness how the environment and people support and shaped each other to produce the Preserve we know today.

This production was made possible through the support of the Friends of Weedon Island, an organization dedicated to the continuing education, protection, and preservation of the Weedon Island Preserve.

UPCOMING SPEAKER PRESENTATION

The Anthropogenic Movement of Lightning Whelk Across the Eastern United States and Southern Canada

THE SEARCH FOR TAMPA BAY'S EARLIEST PEOPLE

HOW TO DONATE