HARDAWAY SITE AND TOWN CREEK BURIAL MOUND Excavations at the Hardaway Site:
Archaeologist Joffre Coe, from UNC and former president of Eastern States Archaeological Foundation
The Hardaway Site in Badin is not only the most significant site in Stanly County, but it is also one of the most important archaeological sites in North Carolina and the piedmont region. Herbert Doerschuk of ALCOA engineering showed the site to Joffre Coe an archaeologist from University of North Carolina in 1937. The site has particular significant because it remains one of the few sites in the piedmont region that was able to distinctly separate the points chronologically. Points such as the “Hardaway,” “Palmer,” and “Kirk” give archaeologists an understanding of the life in the early archaic period. During the early archaic period Native Americans based their lives on a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, relying on a vast array of natural resources offered by the North Carolina Piedmont. The Natives utilized rhyolite gathered from Morrow Mountain, which constituted a majority of point formations found at the Hardaway site.
Troubles at the Hardaway Site: Native American objects are well sought after for their historical and economic significance. Thievery plagued the Hardaway Site because of its vast array of artifacts and regional significance. Local newspapers classified these robbers as “pot hunters,” who searched for artifacts to add to their own personal collection or to sell for profit. Theft became so prevalent that the site had to hire regular watch guards at night and on the weekends to prevent further damage to the excavation site.
TOWN CREEK BURIAL MOUND:
Archaeologists at Town Creek Burial Mound in 1957
Town Creek currently resides within the boundaries of Montgomery County, but the burial mound exists within Stanly County’s former boundaries. Similar to the Hardaway Site, the Town Creek burial Mound has great regional significance and gained designation as a National Historic Landmark. The Native Americans who lived at and near Town Creek identified as a part of the Pee Dee culture. Town Creek burial mound remained a place of reverence for the Pee Dee culture, and archaeologists believe that only priests and their attendants lived at the burial site, both other natives had the ability to visit the site. Upon the burial mound lay a temple or town house and outside the mound resides a plaza where ceremonial activities took place. Because of the religious and culture significance, Town Creek remains one of the most visited Native American sites in North Carolina