Archaeological Anthropology Commons^™

Definition And Evaluation Of The Mississippian Lithic Assemblage From The Wymer-West Knoll (20 Be 132), Berrien County, Michigan, Sean R. Brown

Masters Theses

Analysis of the lithic assemblage from the Wymer-West knoll site was undertaken with the following objectives: (1) to define the lithic technology of the Mississippian occupational component of the site, (2) to compare length, width and width/length ratios of triangular projectile points from the Wymer-West knoll with other Mississippian sites to clarify the cultural affiliation of the Wymer-West knoll, and (3) to use site function, from the perspective of the overall Wymer-West knoll material culture in general and the Mississippian lithic technology in particular, as a framework to better understand the Wymer-West knoll's place in the regional culture history.

A …

A Statistical Analysis Of The Ceramics From The Dieffenderfer Site (20sj179), St. Joseph County, Michigan, Mark A. Steeby

Masters Theses

The Dieffenderfer site, located in Constantine Township, St. Joseph County, Michigan, is a multi-component site situated in the middle St. Joseph River valley. Calibrated radiocarbon dates from several features at the site suggest multiple re-use during the Late Woodland period from A.D. 1000 to A.D. 1400, with the most intensive occupations occurring during the 12th through 14th centuries. These dates are supported by a large Late Woodland ceramic assemblage in association with three spatially discrete activity areas; two of these activity loci are represented by housefloors, suggesting a degree of permanence by the residents.

A cluster analysis performed on the …

Of Berry Pickers, Shanty Boys, And The Jack Pine Bird: Patterns Of Settlement And Subsistence In Nineteenth Century Oscoda County, Rose Lockwood Moore

Masters Theses

The provisions of the Homestead Act of 1863 (U.S. Congress 1862a) required a settlement pattern of dispersed single families on small tracts of land, which, in turn, affected the subsistence strategies available to the homesteaders. The interaction of federal land legislation with the ecosystem of southern Oscoda County resulted in marked spatial and temporal differences between the tracts that were homesteaded as opposed to those acquired for their timber. A sample population of quarter sections was analyzed in terms of the physical and biotic environments, date of entry, and use. The analysis confirmed that the timber lands were located on …

Patterns Of Refuse Disposal In New Orleans During The Middle To Late 19th Century, James M. Wojtala

Masters Theses

Patterns relating to refuse disposal practices during the middle to late 19th century in New Orleans are revealed through the analysis of artifacts from the Robin Street Nuisance Wharf site 16 OR 116. Various analyses allow chronological, economic, and behavioral patterns to be discerned. Intrasite patterns are compared on an intersite basis in an attempt to interpret refuse disposal behavior on a citywide basis. Historic documents are used to supplement archeological data and aid in the delineation of chronology and the economic and social makeup of those groups contributing to the archeological record. Observations are used as a basis for …

An Analysis Of The Lithic Material From The Late Woodland Component Of The Draper Park Site (20sc40) In Port Huron, Michigan, Fran Seager

Masters Theses

This research examines the lithic assemblage of the Draper Park site, which consists of over seventeen thousand specimens including detrital material, implying on-site manufacturing techniques. Artifact attributes are analyzed and correlated within the context of the site and compared with known Late Woodland fishing sites. The intensive use of the site and strategic location suggest that it was a fishing station located at the headwaters of the St. Clair River. The site was seasonally occupied from A.D. 600 through A.D. 1300.

Archaeology And The Public: A Survey Of People's Knowledge Of The Archaeology Profession, Heidi Stoneman

Masters Theses

Archaeologists have an obligation to communicate the significance of data and research results to a fascinated but often uninformed public. How much the public understands about the field of archaeology is important to the profession. Through the media, people learn about the discovery of spectacular artifact treasures. This information often fosters the practice of treasure hunting, the looting and destruction of important archaeological sites. Via treasure hunting, along with land alteration and traffic in the sale of antiquities, the field of archaeology loses vast amounts of valuable information.

An interview questionnaire was given to 232 people with varying levels of …

A Preliminary Report Of Investigations At The Kline 1 Site (20sj29), St. Joseph County, Michigan, Dale W. Quattrin

Masters Theses

The Kline 1 site, located in Mendon Township, St. Joseph County, Michigan, is a multi-component site situated on the eastern shore of Portage Lake. While the projectile points recovered during surface collecting suggest interm ittent presence on this site from late Paleo-Indian to Late Woodland times, the occupation offering the most substantial cultural and subsistence data is attributed to the Late Woodland period. Radiocarbon assays received on two features gave dates of 830 + 70 B.P. and 810 + 50 B.P. calibrated to be A.D. 1215 and A.D. 1223 respectively. The importance of this site relates to its spatially intermediate …

Lead Seals From Fort Michilimackinac, Mackinaw City, Michigan, Diane L. Adams

Masters Theses

Archaeologists have routinely identified small lead seals found on sixteenth- to eighteenth-century sites in North America as "bale seals." An analysis of the lead seals from Fort Michilimackinac, Mackinaw City, Michigan, (1715-1781) was conducted to determine whether the seals are actually cloth seals from individual textiles.

Four lines of evidence were examined in order to clarify the function(s) of lead seals: documentary sources, quantitative analysis of archaeological data from Fort Michilimackinac, comparative data from site reports, and cloth imprint analysis.

Available evidence supports an interpretation that most lead seals are cloth marks. Lead seals served as indicators of quality, ownership, …

Prehistoric Firewood Exploitation: A Case Study From The Carolinian Biotic Province, David Gordon De Fant

Masters Theses

A case study approach is applied to the problem of prehistoric firewood selection and utilization within a heterogeneous woodland environment. Prefaced by an indepth survey of theoretical and methodological approaches relevant to understanding resource exploitation, a wood charcoal analysis of the Schwerdt site (20AE127) is presented. This analysis is then discussed in regard to environmental, preservational, and functional contexts. It is suggested that this wood charcoal assemblage represents a subtle yet pervasive pattern of firewood selectivity operating within the overt bounds of expedient procurement.

An Analysis Of The Lithic Raw Materials And Diagnostic Projectile Points From The Settlement Pattern Survey Project In The Lower Kalamazoo River Valley, Amy L. Campbell

Masters Theses

This analysis was carried out on lithic materials collected during the three years of the Settlement Pattern Survey in the Lower Kalamazoo River valley, 1978-1980. The objectives of the study were to provide a firm temporal sequence for the prehistory of the area based on diagnostic projectile point styles, and to assess the dynamics of interregional contact via the identification of chert types from distant source areas. The sample of projectile points provided evidence of human occupation of the Lower Kalamazoo River valley from Paleoindian through Late Woodland times, most notably new evidence for significant occupation in the Early Archaic …

A Statistical Analysis Of The Lithic Material From The Zemaitis Site (200t68), Ottawa County, Michigan, Michael L. Murphy

Masters Theses

An analysis of the lith ic tools and a representative sample of debitage from the Zemaitis site is presented. The methodology employed in lith ic analysis is described with the goal of comparab ility with other studies. Based upon this comparison i t is suggested that the major occupation of the site was during the Middle Woodland Period and the site appears to have been occupied year-round. Because the Zemaitis site was undisturbed by modern agricultural techniques, special attention is given to the artifact distributions both vertically and horizontally across the site.

With the aid of various statistical models the …

The Prehistory Of The Birch Run Road Site, Saginaw County, Michigan, Caven P. Clark

Masters Theses

The Birch Run Road site (20SA393), located in the archaeologic ally complex Saginaw Valley, was partially impacted by the extension of Birch Run Road across the Flint River. In many respects typical of Saginaw Valley sites as a whole, the Birch Run Road site produced artifacts attributable to the Early Archaic, Late Archaic, Late Woodland and historic periods. The prehistoric occupations are evaluated with special attention to the context and form of lithic raw materials, and use of projectile points in determining temporal placement. The Late Woodland component, ca. A.D. 800-1100, represents the most intensive occupation of the site. Physical …

A Formal Analysis Of Ceramic Vessels From The Schlemmer Site (11-S-382): A Late Woodland/ Mississippian Occupation In St. Clair County, Illinois, Thomas Edward Berres

Masters Theses

The Schlemmer site is located about 20 km southwest of Cahokia Mounds State Park at the southern edge of Dupo, Illinois. This thesis analayzes 166 vessels recovered from 29 pit and structural features at the southern portion of the site. Using a newly defined late prehistoric American Bottom chronology, the Schlemmer vessels were assigned to either Patrick phase (A.D. 600-800) or Lindeman phase (A.D. 950-1000) components. The research discussed in this thesis attempts to describe and explain the formal variation in Schlemmer ceramic vessels through time and space. To this end, the ceramics have undergone both analytical attribute and typological …

The Upper Mississippi Component At The Fort Meigs Site, Northwest Ohio, With Special Emphasis On The Analysis Of The Ceramic Assemblage, William Evan Rutter

Masters Theses

An introduction to the late prehistoric Upper Mississippian component of the Ft. Meigs site is presented. Site context and history of research are presented, and the non-ceramic artifact assemblage is analyzed and discussed. An in depth analysis of the ceramic assemblage is presented, as well as discussion of the osteological, floral, and faunal remains. Ft. Meigs is then examined from a culture ecological perspective, and is discussed in terms of culture historical data and a theoretical schema. The site is employed to aid in illumination of the process of culture contact in general, and within the western Lake Erie Basin …

Archaeological Perspectives Of The Lumber Industry In Northern Lower Michigan, 1865-1920, Rebecca Ellen Dinsmore

Masters Theses

In an attempt to generate predictive statements about site structure and location, the nature of lumber industry development is examined through historical and environmental relationships between logging sites, early logging methods, transportation technology, and the presettlement forest as reconstructed from the original General Land Office surveyor field notes and plats. Eighteen historic logging sites recorded on the Huron National Forest and within the Au Sable River watershed comprise the data set. The purpose of this study is two-fold: (a) to reconstruct the lumber industry history along the Au Sable River, and (b) to develop a means of locating, identifying, and …

Distribution Analysis Of The Cultural Materials From The Mushroom Site (20 Ae 88), Allegan County, Michigan, Charles B. Stout

Masters Theses

An analysis of the features, lithics, and spatial distributions of all material culture recovered at the Mushroom site is presented. Based on this analysis and the ceramic analysis done by Mangold (1981:39-67), it is suggested that the major component at the Mushroom site was a warm season encampment, occupied during the late Middle Woodland period. The site appears to have been occupied by a few groups at a time. Comparison between the Mushroom site and the late Middle Woodland component at the Schultz site suggests that fishing may have been an important economic focus at the Mushroom site. Unlike the …

An Analysis Of Plant Remains From Draper Park, A Late Woodland Site In Southeastern Michigan, Jean F. Marek

Masters Theses

This paper presents an analysis of the plant remains from the Draper Park site, a food processing area located on the west side of the rapids at the head of the St. Clair River, which was occupied from the seventh century through the fourteenth century A.D. Activities relating to the procurement of two primary resources, fish and squash, were carried out during spring, summer, and fall. The exploitation of wild fruits (plums, cherries, elderberries, raspberries, and grapes) was of secondary importance.

Analysis Of The Prehistoric Settlement Pattern Survey Project In The Lower Kalamazoo River Valley: The 1978 And 1979 Field Seasons, Deborah K. Rhead

Masters Theses

Western Michigan University's Settlement Pattern Survey, Implemented in the Spring of 1978 under the direction of Or. Elizabeth Garland, is an intensive problem-oriented survey aimed at discerning patterns of prehistoric settlement in Allegan County, Michigan. This thesis is based on the analysis of the Settlement Pattern Survey data for the 1978 and 1979 seasons. The use of sampling strategies in archaeology and corresponding problems with analytical statistics is examined with particular reference to the Settlement Pattern Survey Project. The application of cluster analysis to the Settlement Pattern Survey project 1s also discussed. As a result of this analysis, distinct patterns …

Significance Evaluation And Research Potential Of Prehistoric Sites In Thunder Basin National Grassland, Wyoming, Christopher A. Cojeen

Masters Theses

Known and potential prehistoric archeological sites in Thunder Basin National Grassland in Wyoming are examined and problems involved in significance evaluation are discussed. Emphasis is placed upon the need to develop research strategies to contend with two frequently encountered site types -- lithic scatters and stone circles. Some archeologists (Frison 1978; Tibesar et al. 1987) have suggested that further research on these site types would contribute substantially to an understanding to an understanding of High Plains prehistory. In conclusion, a recent attempt to develop a conceptual basis for prehistoric study in Thunder Basin National Grassland is discussed, and some regional …

Jesuit Rings From Fort Michilimackinac And Other European Contact Sues, Judith Ann Hauser

Masters Theses

An in-depth search of historical documentation and archaeological references indicates that there exists very little information on Jesuit rings. The primary references were statements in the Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents which strongly suggest that Jesuit rings were used as religious items by missionaries in the area known as New France.

Cleland (1972) hypothesizes that changes in the design, quality, and production of the rings over a 60 year period Indicate that the rings were used as trade items. .Very little has been published on this subject but there is some support for this hypothesis.

The largest number of rings …

Middle Woodland Ceramics Of Northwestern Indiana And Western Michigan, William L. Mangold

Masters Theses

Much information regarding the Middle Woodland occupation of northwestern Indiana and western Michigan has been recovered since the definition of the Goodall Focus by Quimby (1941a). The object of this report is to undertake a detailed stylistic analysis of the ceramic assemblages from Middle Woodland sites, including the vessels used to elucidate Middle Woodland cultural relationships within this region. An attempt is made to establish stylistic zones through the use of typological and attribute analysis.

The Paleoethnobotany Of The Upper Mississippi Component At The Elam Site, A Seasonal Encampment On The Lower Kalamazoo River, Kathryn E. Parachini

Masters Theses

Carbonized floral remains from the Elam site (20AE195) located on the Kalamazoo River in Allegan County, Michigan are identified and analyzed in terms of the local Upper Mississippian subsistence system. The function of Elam as a specialized activity locus in the seasonal round of a late prehistoric people is examined. Interpretations of the botanical data permit hypothetical reconstruction of vegetation and natural ecosystems in the site vicinity as they were prior to Euro-American contact. A warm weather seasonal re-occupation of several months duration is indicated, with intensive exploitation of several plant and animal resources abundant in the riverine and marsh …

An Analysis Of The Faunal Remains From The Schwerdt Site, A Late Prehistoric Encampment In Allegan County, Michigan, Michael J. Higgins

Masters Theses

Analysis of faunal remains from the Schwerdt site, a fifteenth century encampment on the Kalamazoo River, reveals a temporary late spring occupation with an exploitative strategy aimed primarily at the spawning sturgeon. The position of Schwerdt in a larger subsistence/ settlement system is examined through comparisons with other contemporaneous sites in the southeastern Lake Michigan region. Changes in subsistence strategies on the northern periphery of effective maize agriculture.

A Petrographic Analysis Of Black Mesa, Arizona Ceramics, Elizabeth M. Garrett

Masters Theses

Seven ceramic types from excavated Anasazi sites on Black Mesa were examined petrographically in order: (1) to obtain an accurate description of the geologic tempering m aterial; (2) to determine if specific ceramic types from Black Mesa and the surrounding area share a common area of manufacture; and (3) to compare the tempering material in the ceramics with the mineralogical components in the Wepo and Toreva Formations in order to determine if the ceramic items contain locally available material.

Each of the ceramic types examined appear to have had more than one manufacturing locus. Only Black Mesa Black-on-white has temper …

The Schwerdt Site (20 Ae 127) Ceramics: A Berrien Phase Ceramic Assemblage In Allegan County, Michigan, Paul W. Mcallister

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Formal Analysis Of The Prehistoric Ceramics From Draper Park (20-Sc-40): A Wayne Tradition Occupation On The St. Clair River In Southeastern Michigan, Robert David Hoxie

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Description And Quantitative Analysis Of Artifacts Recovered From Fort Meigs (1813-1815) Wood County, Ohio, John P. Nass

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

An Analysis Of The Faunal Assemblage From The Elam Site: An Upper Mississippian Seasonal Encampment On The Kalamazoo River In Allegan County, Michigan, Kenneth A. Barr

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Allegan Dam Site: An Upper Mississippi Occupation In The Lower Kalamazoo River Basin, George B. Spero

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Lithic Assemblage Of The Hacklander Site, Allegan County, Michigan, Jerrel H. Sorensen

Masters Theses

Introduction

Orientation

In A History of American Archaeology Willey and Sabloff (1974) outline the development of archaeological method and theory in the Western Hemisphere. The authors defined 5 periods through which they traced advances in archaeology from the time Europe first discovered the New World. Each other these periods is characterized by certain attitudes and orientations toward archaeological data. Old ideas changed as new information, new tools of discovery, and new ways of interpretation and explanation transformed archaeology into what it is today.

Archaeologists are now in the Explanatory Period (Willey and Sabloff 1974:178). This period's theoretical orientation can be …