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Charleston -- South Carolina’s Annual Archaeological Conference for the South Carolina Lowcountry will be held from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 8, at the Marlene & Nathan Addlestone Library (room 227) on 205 Calhoun St., at the College of Charleston.

Presented by the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism and the College of Charleston’s Archaeology Program and Department of Anthropology and Sociology, the conference will offer sessions focusing on Cultural Heritage and Tourism. Leading experts in public history and tourism will help examine the role that South Carolina’s history plays in attracting visitors and how that heritage can continue to be leveraged to enhance the visitor experience.

Among the lineup of speakers is Ron Daise, Brookgreen Gardens’ Vice President for Creative Education, as well as author and entertainer probably most widely known for co-hosting the popular Nickelodeon television series “Gullah Gullah Island.” His presentation on Gullah Geechee Skrent (Strength) will explore how distinctive cultural expressions broaden a destination’s appeal.

Also speaking will be

·         Taryn P. Ricciardelli, Jeremy C. Miller, Joanna Gilmore and Ade Ofunniyin of the Gullah Society at the College of Charleston on DeReef Park as a case study of the importance of preserving cultural memory in a changing landscape;

·         Eric Poplin and Carol J. Poplin of Brockington and Associates Inc. in Mount Pleasant on how cultural resource management practices can create engaging interpretive programming for historic sites, presenting the Mitchelville project on Hilton Head Island as an example;

·         Sara Daise, a cultural history interpreter at Union Institute and University, about the need to discuss the challenges African American public historians face when presenting stories about the Lowcountry’s past;

·         Dawn Dawson-House with SCPRT, about a new web-based mobile travel guide developed by the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission that compiled and promotes historic markers and heritage attractions in a format specifically designed for tourists, and

·         Stacey Young of Hampton Plantation State Historic Site on how public archaeology has enhanced the visitor experience at the park, near McClellanville.

A reception will immediately follow the sessions.

Admission to the conference is free.  Parking is available in the College of Charleston Parking Garage at 81 St. Philip St. and at the St. Philip Garage at 34 St. Philip St. The cost for parking will be about $15 for the day. Lunch will be on your own. 

For more information, contact David Jones, SCPRT Archaeologist, at (803) 734-1521 or djones@scprt.com. 

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