By: Presley F. Yesnach, SCDNR Archaeology Intern

When I was young, I dreamed of ancient landscapes and voyaging people. I dove into history, gobbling up every morsel of information like a man half-starved. As my knowledge grew, so too did my hunger for knowledge. I wondered how one became a name in a textbook. Did they know in life that would be their legacy?  

By the time I entered high school, I discovered this fascination had a name: archaeology. A term heard in passing throughout my childhood in TV and film. It was associated with grand adventurers, wide-brimmed hats, daring stunts, cursed artifacts, and pyramids. While that’s all well and good, the real archaeology is far different. So, before I committed to a college degree in a similar field, I wanted a taste of the real thing. I am forever grateful to my high school art history teacher who got me in contact with Meg Gaillard at the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) Parker Annex Archaeology Center, who was kind enough to take me on as an inexperienced high school intern. From August 2024 to May 2025, I had the opportunity to spend every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon at Parker Annex learning the basics of archaeology. During my first weeks, I was nervous, practically tiptoeing around the building so I would go unnoticed. But gradually, after weeks of kind interactions that reminded me that my presence there wasn’t a problem, I began to settle in. During the course of this internship, I found a workplace that felt like home. The very archaeologists I aspired to be took me under their wing to help train me on the basics of everything such as lab work, photogrammetry, public outreach, and even fieldwork. During long hours at festivals, I got to know my co-workers as individuals and began to feel less like an uneducated high schooler and more like a part of the team. They never belittled me, they never hesitated to answer my questions, and I truly felt that this was a place I could belong. I assisted with many members of the archaeology team on different projects including library work with Reece Spradley, artifact sorting with Larry Lane, photogrammetry with Gabe Donofrio, archaeology outreach with Leila Rice and my wonderful boss Meg Gaillard. I felt like a part of the community cultivated at Parker Annex. And when graduation neared and my internship drew to a close, they bid me farewell with a chocolate pie and an afternoon of archaeology stories. I left feeling as though I had not only grown as an archaeologist, but as a person.  

Throughout my first year of college, majoring in Archaeology, I thought often of Parker Annex. The classroom pales in comparison to the real thing. So when the SCDNR summer archaeology internship applications opened, I jumped at the opportunity to go back. I didn’t know if they would accept me. I was only a freshman, but I wanted to try my hardest to get back there. So I submitted my application. And waited. And after weeks of checking my inbox religiously, there it was! My acceptance email! I was ecstatic, overjoyed. From that moment, I wasn’t missing Parker Annex. I was just waiting to come home.  

Come June first, I picked out my best work outfit, packed a lunch, downed some coffee for confidence, and headed to work. Walking through the doors to Parker Annex for the first  

time in over a year, I felt as though nothing and everything had changed. So much happens in a year: confidence grows, knowledge expands, but when I walked through that old heavy door, I felt at home. I no longer tiptoed around the building like a ghost. I walked as though I belonged, because everyone had made me feel as though I did. I sat amongst a cohort of students all older than me, and I didn’t feel anxious. I felt proud. I had learned enough since my first internship, learned my place, and earned my spot at that table. And just as last time when I found a community through my time there, I found friends among the students who will likely be my colleagues someday. Nothing and everything had changed. The atmosphere was the same as I remembered it, as was everyone there, but the work was more intense. I was trusted with more because I knew more. If I thought that I learned a lot during my first internship, it’s nothing compared to the knowledge I gained with my second. The first time I interned, it solidified that archaeology was the path in life for me. This time, it equipped me with field-ready skills that put me ahead of my peers and wherever this career will take me, and I feel confident in my ability. My time with SCDNR has developed not only my field and lab skills, but also my professional and social skills. I have nothing but thanks and praise for the incredible people at Parker Annex Archaeology Center. Wherever this path may take me, I will forever hold you in my heart for helping lead me in this direction.