Archaeological Field Schools on USC's Historic Horseshoe
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Want to volunteer with our campus archaeology project? Email us at archaeology@mailbox.sc.edu!
Want to volunteer with our campus archaeology project? Email us at archaeology@mailbox.sc.edu!
Established in 1801, the University of South Carolina's Historic Horseshoe is one of the nation's oldest planned university campuses and remains the symbolic heart of the university today. From the construction of its earliest buildings through the daily operation of the college, the campus was built, maintained, and sustained through the labor of enslaved African Americans who worked as builders, cooks, gardeners, laundresses, laboratory assistants, domestic servants, and skilled craftspeople. Although their contributions were essential to the university's growth, their stories have often remained absent from the historical record. Through archaeological excavation, archival research, and collaboration with descendant communities and campus partners, the Public Heritage Lab seeks to better understand the lives and experiences of the people who lived and labored on the Horseshoe, sharing this history with students, researchers, and the broader public.
“Looking out across the antebellum landscape and reading the names that grace it is a study in the historically powerful white planters who created South Carolina College. It is important to remember, though, that the college itself would not exist without the labor performed by enslaved persons, who were owned or hired by the builders of the college. Throughout the antebellum period, enslaved men, women, and children built this landscape and kept the college operational, although their contributions are seldom discussed."
West and Allen, On the Horseshoe: A Guide to the Historic Campus of the University of South Carolina. University of South Carolina Press, 2015.
Field School Goals:
Since 2024, the Public Heritage Lab has conducted archaeological field schools and research excavations on USC's Historic Horseshoe. Through a combination of Honors courses, anthropology field schools, and independent research, these investigations have identified significant archaeological deposits associated with the university's earliest campus. Recent excavations have focused on an outbuilding associated with the First President's House that likely served as both a kitchen and living space for individuals enslaved at South Carolina College. While the university archives preserve important aspects of USC's history, archaeology provides another perspective, helping recover the experiences of the enslaved laborers, workers, and families whose lives shaped the early university but have often been overlooked in the historical record.
Check out blog posts from former field school students here!
Historic Maps and Photos of the Horseshoe
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map (1884)
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map (1884)
The classes used this map to locate possible outbuildings associated with Rutledge College and the original President's House. House fires were common at the time, thus this map was created to keep track of buildings.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map Overlay
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map Overlay
This is an overlay of the modern USC campus on the Sanborn Map. This was an invaluable tool in locating potential dig sites.
Rutledge College (1870)
Rutledge College (1870)
This image of Rutledge College was featured in the spring class's McKissick exhibit (found below) but also served as a resource that allowed students to picture how the campus has dramatically changed since the 19th century.
Rutledge College. (2011). University of South Carolina Digital Collections.
Bird's Eye View (1872)
Bird's Eye View (1872)
This Bird's Eye View is a hand-drawn map of all of Columbia. We've zoomed in here on the area that included South Carolina College. Can you identify any of the buildings that are still standing today?
Artifacts
Because of the sheer number of artifacts recovered from the Horseshoe, several undergraduate anthropology students are helping the Public Heritage Lab by washing, cataloging, and photographing artifacts. Most of the recovered artifacts range from the early 19th century through the mid-20th, primarily featuring ceramics, glass, and other materials associated with campus activities from the past 200 years.
Image 1: Slate: Slate can be interpreted both structurally and educationally. The slate here was likely used to make chalkboard. Students in the 19th century would have used slate to practice problems and take notes, as paper was not as widespread and quite expensive.
Images 2, 3, and 4: Decorated Whiteware: Whiteware is also a valuable tool. There are various examples of whiteware here. Each style experienced its own phase of popularity during 19th century.
Image 5: Animal Bone: This piece of mammal bone has a cute edge, revealing that it was likely used in the context of cooking.
Images 6, 7, 8: We've found many objects made out of bone, including a domino, brush, and handle, among others!
A Notable Find: Water Main Under the Original President's House
The first President’s House was not located where it currently stands. Originally, it was located at the head of the Horseshoe in front of the modern-day McKissick Museum. Archival resources confirm that this area of the Horseshoe carries a rich history, making it the perfect location for an excavation. Before the students broke ground, GPR was conducted in the area in front of the McKissick Museum to define areas of interest. Expecting to unearth the solid foundation of the original President’s House, the spring class was surprised by what they found. At about 70 centimeters below the surface, a large iron pipe, wrapped in cloth and wood, was uncovered. The pipe was also surrounded by rusted iron wire. The discovery of this pipe prompted the expansion of the unit, and upon broadening the unit, a second pipe that ran perpendicular to the original pipe was uncovered. Through much research, the students were able to identify the pipes as the original President House's water main.
Exhibit at the McKissick Museum
Exhibit at the McKissick Museum
As part of a final project, the spring class teamed up with the McKissick Museum to showcase the class's work on the Horseshoe
Featured Exhibits
Rutledge College and Outbuilding: The Sanborn fire insurance map of campus from the nineteenth century revealed an outbuilding in the courtyard between Rutledge College and Currell College that is no longer standing. Although there is no way to know what the outbuilding was used for, we can use historical accounts of Rutledge College and artifacts that we have recovered to help interpret what its function may have been. The outbuilding could have been used as a kitchen for Rutledge College or as enslaved quarters. Our excavations have yielded artifacts ranging from cut nails to whiteware (a type of ceramic) and features that show differences in soil color, which serve as evidence of human activity. Take a look at the artifacts on display, and think about how they could have been used in and around the building that is currently Rutledge College.
How Artifacts Can Tell Stories of Different Voices on Campus: It is the nature of archaeology that we cannot confirm that something found in the ground was certainly used by any particular individual. But what we do know is how an object that was found could be used by different groups of people. Here at the University of South Carolina, there are various populations we can focus on when interpreting artifacts; those major groups would be, students, faculty, staff, and individuals who were enslaved on campus. Individuals in each of these categories may have experienced the same locations on campus in very different ways. To an extent, some experiences can be learned about through the written record, but for marginalized groups like enslaved individuals, the written record is often limited and does not equally represent their experiences. Archaeology can step in where the written record fails, and make it stronger where it already exists. This exhibit case offers interpretations of artifacts in the context of different campus groups.
Student Experience
Student Experience
Jacob Young, undergraduate anthropology student participated in the summer 2024 field school. He notes of his experience:
"Being able to dig into history on the University of South Carolina Horseshoe was an amazing experience as an anthropology student. The artifacts that were discovered helped us better understand the stories of those who helped build the university since its founding in 1801. By analyzing these artifacts, we can help interpret what life may have been like for the enslaved persons that labored at the university. This field school, and its research, will help provide a voice to those who were subsequently forgotten about in our university's history. The field school also resonated with me on a personal level. The University of South Carolina has always held a special place in my family's story, as four generations of my family have attended the university. So, contributing to understanding its history has helped create a special connection to the generations that walked the Horseshoe before me."
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
We are thankful for financial contribution for the Horseshoe excavation project to:
McCausland College of Arts and Sciences
SC Honors College
Department of History
Department of Public History
Southern Studies
Department of Anthropology
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