PREHISTORIC SNOWBIRDS OF FLORIDA
Instructors:
Drs. Michele Williams and Kira Kaufmann
(New LLS Faculty Members)

Course Description:  This class will be a four-part exploration of Native Americans who have lived and traveled throughout Southern Florida.  You will learn about these prehistoric snowbirds and the evidence they left as they made seasonal rounds throughout the United States.  In addition, we will visit a site in Palm Beach County to understand the relationship between Prehistoric Snowbirds and today’s waterways.

Four Lectures:

1.  First Arrivals:  In this lecture we will discuss the journey from Siberia to   South Florida taken by Florida’s first residents:  the Paleoindians.
2.  Expert Traders:  This lecture will focus on later residents of Florida: the Tequesta and Jeaga.  These expert traders maintained long-distance partnerships with tribal groups as far away as Wisconsin!
3.  Historic Travelers:  The final lecture will focus on historic Native Americans such as the Seminoles who explored Florida in the 17th and 18th c.
4.  Archaeological Field Trip to Dubois Historic Home and Jupiter Inlet:
The trip will highlight the importance of Jupiter Inlet as a trade network connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee.
Students will be responsible for arranging their own transportation to and from the field trip.

Biographical Information:
Michele Williams, Ph.D., RPA, is the Director and Terrestrial Archaeologist for the Southeastern Region of Florida Public Archaeology Network.  Dr. Williams has participated in archaeological excavations throughout the southeastern United States for the past 20 years.  Her specialty within archaeology is the use of plants by prehistoric Native Americans.
Kira Kaufmann, Ph.D., RPA, is the Marine Archaeologist for the Southeastern Region of the Florida Public Archaeology Network.  Dr. Kaufmann has conducted archaeological projects in the Southeast and Midwest United States and in Peru.  She is an actively teaching PADI IDC Staff SCUBA instructor with numerous specialties and has been teaching SCUBA for over 15 years.