NEW OSL AGES FOR THE WESTERN END OF WAITES ISLAND, SC

Waites Island is a barrier island located toward the center of the Long Bay compartment in northeastern South Carolina. Ground penetrating radar and coring have been used in previous studies to define its stratigraphic architecture. The island consists of a complex central barrier island core overlain by landward eolian dunes and a seaward prograding shoreline. Shorelines to the east and west of the core result from inlet and spit processes. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) chronology suggests the central core formed prior to ~2000 ya whereas flood tidal delta islands to the west formed at ~350 ya. Historical charts provide the timing of the younger eastern shoreline while OSL ages adds to our understanding of the older more western shorelines.