The Exploring Joara Foundation...”unearthing the forgotten past”

aeology program that includes field schools, teacher workshops, summer archaeology camps, and presentations and workshops for schools and organizations. Archaeological discoveries at the Berry Site, north of Morganton NC, reveal glimpses of the sixteenth-century Native American and Spanish settlers in Western North Carolina's Catawba River Valley. These finds suggest that Fort San Juan was the earliest European settlement in the interior of the United States – predating the Lost Colony of Roanoke by 20 years. In 1567 they built Fort San Juan near the Native American town of JOARA, the first of six forts constructed along the river valley. All six were destroyed by fire in 1568. Locally known as “the Berry Site,” the burned remains of Fort San Juan and Joara, the Native American village are archaeological treasures.