Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

"What Injures Royalty" Surnames, Inbreeding, And Genetic Structure In Sevier County, Tennessee: 1856-1905, Joseph C. Lewelling

Masters Theses

Inbreeding in Southern Appalachia has been a topic of discourse for both local color writers and academicians since the late 19th century, but only a few researchers have aspired to measure inbreeding or describe the genetic structure of Appalachian populations. This study attempts to assess the genetic structure in one small section of Appalachia--Sevier County, Tennessee.

Because surnames, like alleles, are inherited from a parent, their distribution on a population can give clues about the genetic structure of that population--including the degree of inbreeding. Census and marriage records from 1856-1905 were examined using several methods of surname analysis, and estimates …

Discerning Empirical Relationships Between The Natural Environment And Prehistoric Site Location: An Example From The Watts Bar Reservoir, East Tennessee, Kenneth Paul Cannon

Masters Theses

The Watts Bar Reservoir study area is an artificially defined region of 13,815 hectares, demarcated by the resevoir boundary of the Tennessee Valley Authority. Following completion of the Watts Bar Dam in 1942, the reservoir impounded 95 river miles of the main Tennessee River, in addition to portions of the Clinch, Emory and Piney rivers, as well as several smaller tributaries. Since the mid-nineteenth century archaelolgical investigations have been conducted in the region. However, the sporadic nature of these research endeavors has created a somewhat fragmented picture of the regions prehistory.

Following Smith's (1978b) model of the linear bandinog of …

A Reanalysis Of The Osteological And Cultural Remains From Ausmus Burial Cave, Claiborne County, Tennessee (3ce20), Carole Elizabeth Tucker

Masters Theses

Few excavations or analyses of remains from burial caves have been published. Those that are reported are frequently cited without considering context of the original excavations and analyses. This consideration is important, because previously collected data would be interpreted differently using modern approaches.

This study is a reanalysis of Ausmus Burial Cave (3CE20), Claiborne County, Tennessee. The site was excavated in the 1930's, and the authors' methodology, conclusion, and conjectures reflect this time. Their hypothesis was that the skeletons represented intruders in the area, they were killed in battle, and their bodies were dropped unceremoniously in the pit cave.

This …

The Analysis Of Saw Marks In Bone, Mark G. Guilbeau

Masters Theses

It has only been in the last two decades that the special circumstances of saw marks in bone have been addressed. The importance of these marks in forensic examinations has received little attention in the English literature, but this trend is changing.

The examination of saw marks in bone is an area of research which may prove useful in a variety of scientific investigations. This thesis examines the variation present in the saw marks made by a group of hand saws and provides a methodology for the examination and analysis of these tool marks.

The results of this investigation prove …

Porotic Hyperostosis And Artificial Cranial Deformation In Dallas Society, Stephen Patrick Langdon

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to evaluate, test, and amplify Lewis and Kneberg's (1946) observation that the severity of porotic hyperostosis at Hiwassee Island is related to the degree of cranial deformation. Statistical tests indicate a moderate, although non-significant, correlation between the two conditions. It is believed that this correlation may be explained by the differential treatment of infants, rather than a direct causality.

A sample of 364 crania from four Dallas Phase sites are examined. Age, sex, and status distributions of porotic hyperostosis, cribra orbitalia, and cranial deformation are examined in a biocultural framework that emphasizes the interaction …

A Geoarchaeological Investigation Of The Rush Creek Site, Cannon County, Tennessee, Michael W. Morris

Masters Theses

Geoarchaeological investigations were used to assess the depositional and post-depositional processes that effected the Rush Creek Site (40CN79) in Cannon County, Tennessee. Of particular interest was a buried landform, found in the floodplain of the East Fork Stones River, that was sealed by sterile alluvium. This formation contained both prehistoric and historic artifacts within the same context. The stratigraphy of the site was determined by deep testing to describe the site and the landforms associated with the site. Samples collected from the exposed profiles of the deep test pits were subjected to particle size, pH, carbon, and phosphorus analyses. Statistical …

An Experimental Examination Of Trampling Effects On The Lateral Movement Of Surface Artifacts, Richard Wayne Stoops Jr.

Masters Theses

An often cited but little understood archaeological disturbance process is the effect of a site's occupants walking across the surface. Human foot traffic will move and alter archaeological materials, artifacts, in characteristic ways. How surface items will respond to trampling is dependent on a variety of factors. These factors will determine the extent and dimensions available for movement. By controlling for some of the relevant variables, the effects of other variables can be examined.

In this thesis, experiments are described that identify each of the variables that influence or may possibly influence how surface artifacts respond to foot traffic. The …

Secular Trends In Stature In An Historic Sioux Population, Joseph M. Prince

Masters Theses

This study attempts to explore the possibility of the occurrence of secular trends in height in an historic population of Sioux American Indians, and presents the results from an analysis on anthropometric data from two primary sources. One data set was collected in the late 19th century under the direction of Franz Boas. A later early 20th century set was collected by Dr. James R. Walker. A cross sectional design is used to examine an unusually long span of Sioux history; ca. 1820-1880 for the adult (individuals over 20 yrs.) analysis, and ca. 1892-1907 for the children (aged 6 to …

A Trace Element Analysis Of The Gordon Town Site (40dv6): An Investigation Of Intra-Individual Variation And Dietary Inference, Susan Mary Thurston Myster

Masters Theses

The results of trace element analyses of archaeological human bone have been used to investigate questions pertaining to the dietary practices and subsistence behavior of various prehistoric populations. As a technique still in the experimental stage, however, a number of methodological difficulties have been identified. This thesis examined two aspects of trace element analyses of human bone. First examined was a methodological problem that has received increased attention since the initiation of this study: the documentation, measurement and control of intraindividual variability of trace element concentrations. Secondly, the validity of dietary inference from trace element concentrations were addressed using the …