Hardaway Today
The Legacy of Hardaway: Then and Now
The name “Hardaway” originates from the Hardaway Construction Company of Columbus, Georgia, which was the primary contractor for the construction of the Narrows Dam around 1917. It was the world’s highest overflow type dam at completion.
Many of the construction workers lived in tents and later a shack village that covered what was discovered to be the most significant archaeological site in North Carolina. After the dam was completed, workers from the Carolina Aluminum Company (later Alcoa) used the ridgeline overlooking the dam for farming and gardening. The plowing and farming disturbed projectile points and pottery and mixed together different layers of soil, greatly complicating future archaeological research.
In 1937, Herbert M. Doerschuk, an Alcoa employee and local amateur archaeologist, introduced Joffre Coe to the Hardaway Site. Following World War II, serious excavations and studies commenced. During these phases, an astonishing number of artifacts were collected. The University of NC at Chapel Hill held a lease of the Hardaway Site with Alcoa from 1954 to 1980. During that time, they tried to help keep the many looters off the site. During this period, they did additional research.
Joffre Coe's 1964 publication, The Formative Cultures of the Carolina Piedmont, argued that since Coe had completed his work, they should be allowed to dig. Despite these challenges, Coe and others continued their research, but the extensive damage made it more unlikely to obtain accurate radiocarbon dates for artifacts like the Hardaway Blades.
In 1990, the Hardaway Site’s security improved significantly when it was designated a National Historic Landmark by the Secretary of the Interior, with guidance from the National Park Service. As one of approximately 2,600 National Historic Landmarks in the U.S., this designation provided the highest level of protection for an archaeological site. Alcoa responded by funding security measures through grants to the Stanly County Sheriff's Office. Starting around 1990, Deputy Darnell Almond and other members of the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office with some assistance from the Badin Police Department, significantly improved the security and protection of the Hardaway Site.
Hardaway Site via gift from Alcoa becomes part of Morrow Mt. State Park
In 2002 Alcoa began the relicensing process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on their four hydroelectric dams along the Yadkin River. In 2007 Alcoa submitted a Relicensing Settlement Agreement that contained some key public benefits that were supported by more than twenty stakeholder organizations. The major public benefit was Alcoa’s gift of over one-thousand acres to Morrow Mountain State Park that included the Hardaway Site, connected lands and lands along the scenic Falls Reservoir. In May of 2020, the Hardaway Site officially became part of Morrow Mountain State Park. Today the four hydro dams, once owned by Alcoa, are operated, and owned by Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, a subsidiary of Ontario Power Generation.
Since 2020 the security and protection of the Hardaway Site is the best it has been with both the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office and Morrow Mountain State Park fully working together using multiple security methods and surveillance. The Hardaway Site is now fully preserved and protected as part of Morrow Mountain State Park.
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Showcasing American Indian ingenuity at Uwharrie's Hardaway Site through history and modern voices.