University of South Carolina Scholar Commons Faculty Publications Anthropology, Department of 1-2009 The Archaeology of the Camden Battlefield: History, Private Collections, and Field Investigations Steven D. Smith University of South Carolina - Columbia, [email protected] James B. Legg University of South Carolina - Columbia, [email protected] Tamara S. Wilson University of South Carolina - Columbia, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/anth_facpub Part of the Anthropology Commons Publication Info Published in 2009. Smith, Steven D., James B. Legg, and Tamara S. Wilson. The Archaeology of the Camden Battlefield: History, Private Collections, and Field Investigations. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina--South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, 2009. http://www.cas.sc.edu/sciaa/ © 2009 by University of South Carolina--South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology This Book is brought to you by the Anthropology, Department of at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Archaeology of the Camden Battlefield: History, Private Collections, and Field Investigations By Steven D. Smith, James B. Legg, and Tamara S. Wilson South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, Columbia, South Carolina 1321 Pendleton St. Columbia, SC 29208 Presented to: Palmetto Conservation Foundation 1314 Lincoln St., Suite 305 Columbia, South Carolina 29201 and Save America’s Treasures National Park Service Washington, D.C. 20036 1201 Eye St., NW Washington, D.C. 20005 January 2009 The Archaeology of the Camden Battlefield: History, Private Collections, and Field Investigations By Steven D. Smith, James B. Legg, and Tamara S. Wilson South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, Columbia, South Carolina 1321 Pendleton St. Columbia, SC 29208 Presented to: Palmetto Conservation Foundation 1314 Lincoln St., Suite 305 Columbia, South Carolina 29201 and Save America’s Treasures National Park Service 1201 Eye St., NW Washington, D.C. 20005 ----------------------------------------------------------- Steven D. Smith Principal Investigator January 2009 ii Materials herein are based upon work assisted by a grant from the National Park Service-Save America’s Treasures, through the Palmetto Conservation Foundation. Additional funding was provided by the College of Arts and Sciences, University of South Carolina. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Save America’s Treasures or the Palmetto Conservation Foundation. iii Management Summary This report presents the results of battlefield archaeology at the site of the Revolutionary War Battle of Camden, August 16, 1780, located in Kershaw County, South Carolina. The analysis of historic documents, an intensive, controlled metal detector survey, and relic collector artifacts are combined to present an interpretation of the battle as it unfolded across the landscape. iv v Table of Contents Chapter 1: Revealing Camden....................................................................................................1 Introduction .....................................................................................................................1 Specific Project Goals......................................................................................................1 Previous Research...........................................................................................................2 General Methods.............................................................................................................4 The Physical Setting of the Camden Battlefield ...........................................................6 The Battlefield Since 1780...............................................................................................7 Project History.................................................................................................................9 Chapter 2: Battle of Camden, August 16th, 1780, History ......................................................13 Introduction .....................................................................................................................13 Prelude..............................................................................................................................13 Phase I: Night March and Clash of Armies .................................................................15 Phase II: Opening Gambits ...........................................................................................20 Phase III: Flight of the Militia and Advance of the Continentals..............................23 Phase IV: Destruction of the Continentals...................................................................24 Phase V: Rout of the Americans ...................................................................................25 Aftermath .........................................................................................................................28 Endnotes ...........................................................................................................................30 Chapter 3: The Camden Battlefield Collector Survey, 2000-2008.........................................37 Introduction .....................................................................................................................37 Methods and Results .......................................................................................................37 Conclusions ......................................................................................................................39 Endnotes ...........................................................................................................................47 Chapter 4: The Metal Detector Survey Methods and Results Introduction .....................................................................................................................49 Field Methods...................................................................................................................49 Analysis Methods.............................................................................................................53 Lead Shot Analysis...............................................................................................54 Results...............................................................................................................................57 Figure 4.8: Distribution of clothing artifacts.....................................................57 Figure 4.9: Distribution of arms-related artifacts.............................................57 Figure 4.10: Distribution of artillery artifacts...................................................57 Figure 4.11 Distribution of unfired .69 caliber musket balls and cartridges..64 Figure 4.12: Distribution of unfired buckshot, .250” to .320” in diameter.....65 Figure 4.13: Distribution of unfired .75 caliber musket balls..........................65 vi Figure 4.14 Distribution of unfired buckshot, .320” to .360” in diameter......70 Figure 4.15: Distribution of miscellaneous unfired lead shot ..........................70 Figure 4.16: Distribution of all unfired lead shot..............................................71 Figure 4.17: Distribution of fired .69 caliber musket balls ..............................71 Figure 4.18: Distribution of fired buckshot, .250” to .320” in diameter .........71 Figure 4.19: Distribution of fired .75 caliber musket balls ..............................71 Figure 4.20: Distribution of fired buckshot, .320” to .360” in diameter .........78 Figure 4.21: Distribution of miscellaneous fired lead shot...............................78 Figure 4.22: Distribution of all fired lead shot ..................................................78 Figure 4.23: Distribution of all battle artifacts..................................................78 Summary of Data Presented...........................................................................................78 Endnotes ...........................................................................................................................85 Chapter 5: Archaeological Interpretation of the Camden Battlefield ...................................87 Introduction .....................................................................................................................87 Camden Battlefield Archaeological Coverage ..............................................................87 Night Battle......................................................................................................................88 Phase I...............................................................................................................................88 Phase II.............................................................................................................................91 Phase III...........................................................................................................................91 Phase IV............................................................................................................................92 Collector Data and Archaeological Data Compared....................................................95