Serenity's Surprise 2 (18CH953)
Site History
The Serenity's Surprise 2 site (18CH953) is a multicomponent site consisting of a late 17th to early 18th-century house and a Late Archaic to Middle Woodland base camp in Benedict in Charles County, Maryland.
Archaeological Investigations
Artifacts associated with this site were originally identified on the plowed ground surface by the owner of Serenity Farm Inc. in Benedict, Maryland. Phase I survey investigations at the site, conducted by Charles County Department of Planning and Growth Management staff, included a controlled surface inspection, interval shovel testing, and metal detecting, which documented artifacts across an area approximately 953 ft by 554 ft in size, covering an area of approximately 10 acres.
A total of 738 artifacts, both precontact and historic, were found during the Phase I/II investigations. The combination of historic period domestic and architectural materials recovered suggests an occupation associated with the late 17th- to early 18th-century plantation site known as Serenity’s Surprise (18CH821) and likely extending past the occupation by Richard Jenkins, who died in 1713. The date range of the artifacts suggests that it may be related to the orphans and woman to whom he bequeathed his estate or may represent a tenant occupation.
In total, 398 artifacts were found during the Phase I investigation, including 172 historic, 124 prehistoric, and 102 faunal remains. Included within the historic assemblage are ceramics (table and utilitarian wares), bottle glass, table glass, tobacco pipe fragments, architectural materials, metal buckles, and a gun flint. Precontact artifacts consisted of lithic debitage, a variety of lithic tools, including four projectile points, and a small amount of fire cracked rock. The presence of Normanskill (n= 1), Savannah River (n= 2), and Brewerton Side Notch (n= 1) projectile point types and the absence of ceramics suggest a Late Archaic camp site. Between the surface and shovel testing, 81 rhyolite flakes were recovered. The presence of such a large assemblage of rhyolite suggests that the occupation includes the Selby Bay phase of the Middle Woodland period in addition to the Late Archaic occupation identified by the projectile points.
A total of 340 precontact and historic artifacts were recovered from the single excavated test unit. Faunal remains (mostly oyster shell) encompass the largest percentage of artifacts (59 percent) recovered from Test Unit 1. Historic artifacts were ceramics (table and utilitarian wares and unidentifiable forms), bottle glass, tobacco pipe fragments, architectural materials and unidentifiable metal fragments. Precontact artifacts consisted only of lithic debitage associated with tool production and a small amount of fire cracked rock.
References
2019 Addendum Report: Archaeological Survey and Corridor Study of MD 231: Benedict, Charles County, Maryland. SHA Archaeological Report No. 511 (AECOM) MHT # CH 202 ADD.
