This book investigates the archaeological significance of springs in the St. Johns River Valley of Florida. Archaeologists have long focused on springs' ecological capacities and have failed to recognize the importance of these places to ancient Floridians. Meanwhile, contemporary conservation narratives, rarely informed by archaeological knowledge, rely on a simplistic notion of eternal, pristine springs that likewise downplays their past significance. O'Donoughue develops an alternative approach that foregrounds springs as places of social interaction with deep historical import.