AN INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDY OF SANDY ISLAND, GEORGETOWN COUNTY, SOUTH CAROLINA, USA: USING GEOMORPHOLOGY AND GEOARCHAEOLOGY TO DEVELOP A PREDICTIVE MODEL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES

Sandy Island is the largest undeveloped landmass located between Murrells Inlet and Winyah Bay in Georgetown County, South Carolina. The Great Pee Dee and Waccamaw Rivers form the western and eastern boundaries of Sandy Island, separating this riparian island from the mainland. Bull Creek and Thoroughfare Creek form the northern and southern boundaries of the island by connecting the Great Pee Dee and Waccamaw Rivers, completing the island's isolation from the mainland. A total of 9,164 acres of Sandy Island is preserved and protected by The Nature Conservancy.

The focus of this study was on the dune ridges and dune flats of the historically unoccupied northern half of the island. The geomorphic and stratigraphic records of the landscape were investigated using the geological techniques of ground penetrating radar, vibracoring, visual examination of outcrop stratigraphy, and aerial photographic interpretation. These data were used to create cross-sections, geological maps, and paleogeographic reconstructions. The occurrences and densities of 51 previously identified archaeological sites were investigated with respect to their position on the paleolandscape and used to develop a statistically based predictive model as well as to develop a map of high probability of site occurrences on Sandy Island.