News-Leader Story
In search of lost history
KEVIN
TURNER, News-Leader
Myles Bland and his company don't
have long to perform Nassau County's first extensive
archaeological and historic survey, but their hopes are still
high they will rediscover the county's lost history.Maybe,
Bland said, it will be found that history goes back further
than is currently known."It's very exciting, and the area is
very large," said Bland, president of Bland and Associates,
which sent out teams of researchers armed with historic and
archaeological leads Monday. "I'm interested in pushing the
chronology backwards. There is no complete survey of Nassau
County."Bland's company, which specializes in archaeological
and historic preservation consulting, won the bid for the
county's first large-scale historic preservation project. The
funding is being provided through the National Park Service
and the U.S. Department of the Interior and is administered by
the state's Bureau of Historic Preservation and the Florida
Historical Commission.The survey covers all areas of the
county that are unincorporated, so it will not include
Callahan, Fernandina Beach or Hilliard. Bland's employees have
less than two and a half months to unearth Nassau County's
hidden history, scattered over 600 square miles. Bland said
his team has done its homework and is prepared to handle the
lofty task."We went to the state repository in Tallahassee and
photocopied all of the historic records for the whole county,"
he said last week, noting that they fill an SUV that will
serve as the company's mobile filing cabinet. "We know
everything that the state knows about Nassau County and we
will start field work immediately . . . with four crew
trucks."Time is not on Bland's side as his team will fight
from the very beginning to make a May 10 deadline to have all
of their findings listed, compiled and in the expected
format."This is all being done concurrently," he said. "The
historic research is well on its way to completion. Everything
is basically going at once."First, the teams will visit known
archaeological sites and make sure the state's information is
current. Then they will work to locate archaeological sites,
cemeteries, historic roadways and railroads, as well as other
cultural resources that have been lost to time.Bland's team
will produce a report and model that will illustrate where
lost cemeteries, Indian villages or ghost towns are likely to
be located, as well as any other historic resource. The
county's Geographic Information System (GIS) specialists will
then incorporate the information into software that can
produce customized maps.These maps will help make the county's
march to its future sensitive to its past.John Crowder, Nassau
County's technical services manager, said the information will
allow the county to quickly produce maps that cover many of
its historic uses and what areas they affected.The finished
product will be in a format that will support the county's GIS
maps, he said."We'll incorporate it as soon as we get reports
that we can use," Crowder said."The pursuit of an
archaeological survey for unincorporated Nassau County is a
phenomenal endeavor which will link the old with the new and
capitalize on what is distinctively Nassau County," said
Nassau County Grants Coordinator Eron Thompson, who is
overseeing the project's grants funding. "The significance of
this type of exploration is enormous and out of it will come
opportunity for the county to grow in a strategic and sound
manner."It may also open the door to more historic tourism,
one of the country's most lucrative types. The information
also will help the county's master plan and update its
archaeological registry and its plan for historic
protection.However, Bland said covering the whole county will
mean visiting land now privately held."We would like to thank
the citizens of Nassau County in advance for their cooperation
and patience in allowing our personal access to their
property," Bland said. "County citizens can be of great
assistance to the surveyors by providing accurate historic
information and directions, and allowing photographs to be
taken."Of particular interest will be the histories of Spanish
land grants. These stories are known in the Amelia Island
area, but have been all but forgotten inland. The area
included in the county's "Area Wide DRI," north of Yulee and
south of the St. Marys River, is of particular interest, Bland
said."No one knows what's there," he said, noting that he
hopes to find remnants of Indian tribes such as those found in
Georgia.When Bland's team is certain they have found a site
that holds promise, they will dig small holes, 50 x 50 x 100
centimeters, to gather information.If they find pottery,
arrowheads or anything else of significance, they will close
the area and continue to dig north, south, east and west,
until they have determined the site's limits. Sites are
commonly closed to ward off history thieves until expert work
is completed.The grant specifies that Bland find 50 newly
recorded sites and update 100 known sites. But Bland said that
shouldn't be a problem considering, for example, the state has
only four recorded cemeteries for Nassau County when about 45
are known to exist.Thompson said the survey might lay the
groundwork for more archaeological and historic surveys in the
future."Phase 2 of this could be to integrate the county's
incorporated areas," Thompson said. "We could decide we want a
fully exhaustive survey of Nassau County." "Nassau County has
played a pivotal role in both the history and prehistory of
Northeast Florida," said BAI staff archaeologist Vicki
Rolland. "There are some great things out there just waiting
to be discovered."
kturner@fbnewsleader.com
Story created Oct 25, 2004 - 09:52:28 PDT.
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