Gail Wagner is Professor Emerita of Anthropology at the University of South Carolina and a respected paleoethnobotanist (one of the few in the Southeast). Her fields of study are the precolonial archaeology of eastern North America (especially South Carolina) and ethnobotany (the study of the interrelationships between plants and peoples). She is a veteran of archaeological projects in the Midwest, Southwest, Israel, India, and South Carolina and has a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis.
Click here for the application to have Gail Wagner speak in your community.
Can Nature Knowledge Save the World? Presented by Gail Wagner. What are the implications of Videophilia and Nature Deficit Disorder for the future of our world? Studies of children and South Carolina college students reveal the relationships between knowing nature, knowing the names of plants, human health, and conservation of biodiversity. Click here for the … Read more
Indian Gardens Presented by Gail Wagner. You might be surprised to learn that corn, beans, and squash were not always important and that eastern North American Indians once depended on the now-extinct crops of marshelder, goosefoot, and maygrass. Learn about Indian gardens through time, find out how plants were domesticated, and discover the role of … Read more
Use of Plants by American Indians Presented by Gail Wagner. This slide show focuses on the uses of plants by Indians for food, drink, medicine, fiber, smoking, construction, and even poison and is based on both archaeological evidence and historic accounts. The show can also be combined with a 1-2 hour outside walk and talk … Read more
Colonial Encounters Presented by Gail Wagner. What happens to people’s diets when two worlds collide? Find out how life changed for the Indians in South Carolina following European exploration and settlement 1520-1730. Why were some crops adopted, and how did the encounter change the Europeans? Click here for the Speakers Bureau Application.
Cofitachequi: A Chiefdom Presented by Gail Wagner. What is a chiefdom, the type of society encountered by de Soto when he visited South Carolina in 1540? Find out what recent digs have revealed about the late prehistoric Indians who lived in central South Carolina, in the vicinity of Camden. Click here for the Speakers Bureau … Read more
What is a Vegetable? Presented by Gail Wagner. Wait a minute – don’t we all know what is a vegetable? Or do we? Discover what we’ve learned from over 600 interviews. Do we agree on a definition of vegetable, and do we agree on which foods are vegetables? The answers will surprise you. Click here … Read more
Why Garden? Presented by Gail Wagner. Why do South Carolinians grow vegetables, and how does their ethnic background affect what they grow? You might be surprised to learn about the intangible benefits as voiced by local gardeners and to learn why some plants have special meaning. Click here for the Speakers Bureau Application.
PO Box 5287
Columbia SC 29250
2711 Middleburg Drive
Suite 203
Columbia SC 29204
803-771-2477
