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Urban adaptation in Charleston, South Carolina, 1730–1820

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Abstract

Archaeologists studying urban areas have recently begun to investigate the adaptive strategies of city residents in an effort to determine how these may differ from those practiced by their rural counterparts. The authors of this article, an archaeologist and an historian, have applied a joint historical-archaeological approach to a study of adaptation in Charleston, South Carolina, during the years 1730 to 1820. Five main topics are addressed in this paper: site-specific spatial patterning, city-wide settlement patterning, artifact patterning, site formation processes, and subsistence strategies. A background of general historical information is given to create a framework within which specific archaeological sites are discussed in terms of their importance as indicators of archaeological manifestations of urban adaptive behavior in Charleston.

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Zierden, M.A., Calhoun, J.A. Urban adaptation in Charleston, South Carolina, 1730–1820. Hist Arch 20, 29–43 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03374059

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