Henry Reynolds was an important

Archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. In 1888, Henry L. Reynolds joined the Mound Exploration Division of the

Bureau of American Ethnology The Bureau of American Ethnology (or BAE, originally, Bureau of Ethnology) was established in 1879 by an act of Congress for the purpose of transferring archives, records and materials relating to the Indians of North America from the Interior D ...

. The purpose of this division, directed by

Cyrus Thomas Cyrus Thomas (July 27, 1825 – June 26, 1910) was an American ethnologist and entomologist prominent in the late 19th century and noted for his studies of the natural history of the American West. Biography Thomas was born in Kingsport, ...

, was to conduct an extensive survey of Indian mounds in the eastern United States. While the Mound Exploration Division investigated mound sites in many eastern states, Reynolds performed most of his research in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

and

. In fact, Reynolds’ excavations at the Hollywood Mounds site, located on a bend of the

Savannah River The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the norther ...

about ten miles south of

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...

are thought to be the most proficient excavation undertaken in Georgia during the Bureau’s involvement. The Hollywood Mounds site consists of two medium-sized platform mounds. Reynolds fully excavated the smaller of the two mounds and discovered many elaborate artifacts belonging to the Southern Cult, as well as several burials. In his investigations of the Hollywood Mounds site, Reynolds considered the site inside of an ecological setting; he was one of the first archaeologists in the world to think of any site in an ecological context. Many consider Reynolds to be the first “modern” archaeologist in Georgia. After the Mound Exploration project came to a close, Reynolds was the only assistant retained by the Bureau. In 1894, while completing the project’s report, Cyrus Thomas sent Reynolds back to Georgia and South Carolina to retrieve some final information. After finishing at the Hollywood site, Reynolds proceeded to South Carolina, where he took ill and died suddenly in the field.

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