About a 45-minute drive from the campus of Coastal Carolina University is Brookgreen Gardens, a botanical oasis that is peppered with American figurative sculpture and dedicated to the protection of the plants, animals, and history of the South Carolina lowcountry. The sprawling compound is the site of Laurel Hill, a former plantation where the CCU Department of Anthropology and Geography conducts its annual Maymester Historical Archaeology Field School. Here, students are introduced to historical plantation archaeology that covers field and laboratory methods, including excavation, mapping, survey, and consultation of historical sources in the interpretative process.

For first-generation student Nancy Alvarez, a CCU senior majoring in anthropology and geography, the field school served as the perfect place to connect the present to the past and share the impact that plantation culture had on the region. During Maymester 2023, she and a few of her classmates assisted David Palmer, Ph.D., the University’s James L. Michie Endowed Professor of Historical Archaeology, with his ongoing excavation and analysis of the cultural material found at the Laurel Hill site.

“This site was a former rice plantation, which has since left structural remains alongside the Waccamaw River,” said Alvarez. “There are three structures that we are studying. Our goal is to determine the purpose they served at the time they were in use based on the artifacts found from our excavation done during the 2023 and 2022 Maymesters.

“The structures we are excavating belong to a site that contributed to a long-lasting economic and cultural influence of rice growing and Gullah culture. Getting the opportunity to better understand the making of the lowcountry in South Carolina, as a local, piqued my interest in the research.”

(Above) Alvarez and David Palmer, CCU’s James L. Michie Endowed Professor of Historical Archeology, examine a discovered artifact. 

Alvarez was born and raised in Myrtle Beach. Her family moved to the area from Mexico shortly before she was born, and they continue to celebrate their Mexican heritage and culture. 

“A bilingual daughter of immigrants to the U.S., Nancy excels in the classroom, lab, and field while working part-time in catering to pay for college,” said Palmer. “Her keenness for archaeology, work ethic, and positive spirit set the standard for her classmates in the field, contributing to the team rapport and success of the May 2023 project.”

Prior to enrolling at CCU and engaging in valuable hands-on research, Alvarez earned an associate degree in criminal justice from nearby Horry-Georgetown Technical College. 

“I decided to continue my education at Coastal due to the number of majors and minors that fit my interests,” said Alvarez. “Ultimately, I decided to change my major to anthropology and geography, with a minor in Spanish, because there are a variety of career opportunities in the anthropology and geography field, some of which fall under the same principles of criminal justice, such as forensic anthropology.” 

Alvarez is grateful for all the skills that she has learned from Palmer and other professors during her field school experience. Her career aspiration is to work in the archeological field, and she also plans to earn a master’s degree in anthropology. 

“Coastal has been a great choice for me,” said Alvarez, who is a member of CCU’s Beta Omega chapter of Tri-Alpha, a national honor society for first-generation college students. “Not only do professors and administrators work thoroughly with the students to resolve any issues, but they work just as hard to share great learning opportunities. From scholarships, internships, research programs, and more, there is never a missed opportunity at Coastal.”

During Fall 2023, she has an internship at Brookgreen Gardens under the supervision of Robin Salmon, vice president of art and historical collections. Alvarez is conducting research on the archaeological collections at the site and assisting with the creation of an exhibit of artifacts from these collections and other public interpretation content.

Valuable support from within

Alvarez is the first-ever recipient of the Anthropology and Geography Field Study Scholarship. It was established by a donation from Carolyn Dillian, Ph.D., professor and associate dean of the Spadoni College of Education and Social Sciences, who, along with other department faculty members, continues to support the fund. According to Palmer, the scholarship was established to support promising anthropology and geography majors who face financial barriers, particularly students from groups underrepresented in the concentrations.

Alvarez used the scholarship to help pay tuition for her Maymester course. “I was able to complete the course free of any extra financial strain and put all my energy into the class. It is an honor to be the first recipient, as the work I am doing is also a reflection of the confidence that Coastal puts into their students.”

Society for Historical Archaeology Field School Scholarship Awarded

Ashlynn Dorroh was awarded the prestigious Society for Historical Archaeology Field School Scholarship, which is given to students to participate in field schools that provide instruction in historical archaeology and archaeological field methods. The scholarship allowed her to attend CCU’s 2023 Maymester Historical Archaeology Field School, located at Brookgreen Gardens. Dorroh is majoring in anthropology and geography.

Ashlynn Dorroh excavates a patch of land at the archeology field school.