Horr's Island Archaeological Site - Permanent Occupation

Permanent Occupation

Some of the fish and shellfish caught and eaten by the inhabitants of Horr's Island gave clues as to what time in the year they were caught. The three most common kinds of fish in the Horr's Island diet, catfish, threadfin herring and pinfish, were caught while immature. The time of year when they were caught is indicated by the average size of a group of harvested fish. Bay scallops disappear from the area each winter, and new scallops start growing in the spring, so the size of the scallop shells also indicates the time of year when they were gathered. Finally, quahogs have seasonal bands in their shells, which can be used to determine what season, or even what month, the quahog was gathered.

Analysis of the bones and shells found at the site indicate that quahogs were gathered in the winter and spring, scallops were gathered in the summer, and the fish were caught mainly in the fall, but also in winter and summer. The archaeologists concluded that Horr's Island was occupied year-round during the late Archaic period. Horr's Island is the largest known community in the southeastern United States to be permanently occupied during the Archaic period.