Late Pleistocene Archaeology and Ecology in the Far Northeast

266 Pages·2012·19.88 MB·English

by  Claude Chapdelaine (ed.)

Late Pleistocene Archaeology and Ecology in the Far Northeast
Peopling of the Americas Publications
Sponsored by the Center for the Study of the First Americans
general editors: Michael R. Waters and Ted Goebel
A list of other titles in this series appears at the end of the book.

Late Pleistocene
Archaeology
&
Ecology
in the Far Northeast
Edited by Claude Chapdelaine • Foreword by Christopher Ellis
Texas A&M University Press
college station
Copyright © 2012 by Texas A&M University Press
Manufactured in the United States of America
All rights reserved
First edition
This paper meets the requirements of ansi / n iso z39.4- 1992 (Permanence of Paper).
Binding materials have been chosen for durability.
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Late Pleistocene archaeology and ecology in the far Northeast / edited by Claude Chapdelaine ;
foreword by Christopher Ellis.—1st ed.
p. cm.
Eight contributions adapted from presentations given at a symposium held at the 2009 annual meeting of the Quebec
Archaeological Association in Sherbrooke; 2 additional contributions and the introd. written specifi cally for this book.
“Peopling of the Americas publications”—Prelim. p.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978- 1- 60344- 790- 4 (cloth : alk. paper)—ISBN 1- 60344- 790- 3 (cloth : alk. paper)—
ISBN 978- 1- 60344- 805- 5 (e- book)—ISBN 1- 60344- 805- 5 (e- book)
1. Paleo- Indians—Canada, Eastern. 2. Paleo- Indians—Northeastern States. 3. Indians of North America—Canada,
Eastern—Antiquities. 4. Indians of North America—Northeastern States—Antiquities. 5. Canada, Eastern—
Antiquities. 6. Northeastern States—Antiquities. 7. Antiquities, Prehistoric—Canada, Eastern. 8. Antiquities,
Prehistoric—Northeastern States. 9. Land settlement patterns, Prehistoric—Canada, Eastern. 10. Land settlement
patterns, Prehistoric—Northeastern States. I. Chapdelaine, Claude. II. Association des archéologues du Québec.
E78.E2L35 2012
971.3'01—dc23
2012004370
contents
List of Figures and Tables vii
Foreword, by Christopher Ellis xi
Acknowledgments xv
chapter i. Introduction: Toward the Consolidation of a Cultural and Environmental Framework
Claude Chapdelaine and Richard A. Boisvert 1
PART I. REGIONAL SYNTHESES
chapter ii. Paleoindian Occupations in the Hudson Valley, New York
Jonathan C. Lothrop and James W. Bradley 9
chapter iii. Maritime Mountaineers: Paleoindian Settlement Patterns on the West Coast of New England
John G. Crock and Francis W. Robinson IV 48
chapter iv. The Paleoindian Period in New Hampshire
Richard A. Boisvert 77
chapter v. Geographic Clusters of Fluted Point Sites in the Far Northeast
Arthur Spiess, Ellen Cowie, and Robert Bartone 95
PART II. SPECIALIZED STUDIES
chapter vi. New Sites and Lingering Questions at the Debert and Belmont Sites, Nova Scotia
Leah Morine Rosenmeier, Scott Buchanan, Ralph Stea, and Gordon Brewster 113
chapter vii. The Early Paleoindian Occupation at the Cliche- Rancourt Site, Southeastern Quebec
Claude Chapdelaine 135
chapter viii. The Burial of Early Paleoindian Artifacts in the Podzols of the Cliche- Rancourt Site, Quebec
François Courchesne, Jacynthe Masse, and Marc Girard 164
chapter ix. The Bull Brook Paleoindian Site and Jeff reys Ledge: A Gathering Place near Caribou Island?
Brian S. Robinson 182
chapter x. Between the Mountains and the Sea: An Exploration of the Champlain Sea and
Paleoindian Land Use in the Champlain Basin
Francis W. Robinson IV 191
chapter xi. Late Pleistocene to Early Holocene Adaptation: The Case of the Strait of Quebec
Jean- Yves Pintal 218
Contributors 237
Index 239

figures
2.1. Physiographic regions of New York 10 3.10. Cormier / Nicholas projectile point and point frag-
2.2. Late Pleistocene landscapes and key deglacial events ment from Vermont 62
in eastern New York and vicinity 12 3.11. Ste. Anne / Varney chert projectile point and Mount
2.3. Schematic of maximum footprint of Glacial Lake Jasper / J eff erson rhyolite bifaces and projectile point
Albany 12 bases 64
2.4. Digital elevation map of west- central New 3.12. Ste. Anne / Varney projectile point fragments recov-
York, showing west- to- east trending Cross State ered from Vermont 67
Channels 17 3.13. Map of the Far Northeast showing sources of lithic
2.5. Locations of selected Paleoindian sites in eastern raw materials 70
New York and vicinity 18 3.14. “Miniature” chert fl uted point from Newbury,
2.6. Railroad 1 site, bifaces 22 Vermont 71
2.7. Railroad 1 site, evidence of toolstone reduction 22 4.1. Map of Paleoindian sites and isolated fi nds in New
Hampshire 78
2.8. Railroad 1 site, unifacial tools 22
4.2. Colebrook site and terrain 82
2.9. Twin Fields site, fl uted points and endscrapers 23
4.3. Whipple site and terrain 83
2.10. Twin Fields site, gravers, sidescrapers, and utilized
fl akes 23 4.4. Potter site shovel test pits 84
2.11. Sundler sites, selected tools 24 4.5. Potter site and terrain 84
2.12. County centroids and rank order for ten New York 4.6. Israel River Complex sites and terrain 85
counties with highest fl uted point densities 27 4.7. Thornton’s Ferry and Hume sites and terrain 85
3.1. Map of Vermont showing the location of Paleo- 4.8. Thorne site and terrain 86
indian sites and spot fi nds 50 4.9. Paleoindian points from New Hampshire sites 89
3.2. Bull Brook / West Athens Hill fl uted projectile 5.1. Geographic clusters of Paleoindian sites in the Far
points and projectile point fragments 52 Northeast 96
3.3. Quartzite projectile point preforms and biface frag- 5.2. Michaud site points 97
ments and chert biface, Mahan site 53
5.3. Vail geographic site cluster in the fl ooded Magallo-
3.4. Chert scrapers recovered from the Early Paleoindian way River valley 101
Mahan site 54
5.4. Aziscohos large biface made of red Munsungun
3.5. Tools from the Jackson- Gore site, attributable to chert 102
the Middle Paleoindian period 56
5.5. Lower Wheeler Dam site fl uted point 102
3.6. Reagen site points attributable to the Middle and
5.6. Morss site points 103
Late Paleoindian periods 58
5.7. Vail area Kill Site 2 point 103
3.7. Michaud / Neponset projectile points attributed to
5.8. Michaud geographic site cluster 104
the Fairfax Sandblows site 59
5.9. Lamoreau site artifacts 105
3.8. Michaud / N eponset fl uted points and fragments
from Vermont 60 5.10. LaMontagne site artifacts 105
3.9. Crowfi eld type tools from Vermont, attributable to 5.11. Taxiway site under excavation, Auburn airport 105
the Middle Paleoindian period 61 5.12. Taxiway site artifacts 106
vii
viii Figures and Tables
5.13. Beacon Hill site artifacts 106 7.7. Endscrapers, Cliche- Rancourt site 142
5.14. Keogh site artifacts 107 7.8. Sidescrapers, Cliche- Rancourt site 144
5.15. Cormier site fl uted points 107 7.9. Gravers, Cliche- Rancourt site 147
6.1. Radiocarbon dates for features at the Debert 7.10. Wedges, Cliche- Rancourt site 150
site 114 7.11. Channel fl akes, Cliche- Rancourt site 152
6.2. Schematic section of the Debert deposit 115 7.12. Nuclei or cores, C liche-R ancourt site 153
6.3. Original fi eld profi les and plan view of a unit exca- 7.13. Tool distribution in Cliche- Rancourt Area 1 154
vated at the Belmont I site 116
7.14. Tool distribution in Cliche- Rancourt Area 3 155
6.4. Belmont II 2 unit showing profi les to the level of
7.15. Debitage distribution in Cliche- Rancourt
the presumed living fl oor 116
Area 3 155
6.5. Roofi ng shingles dumped at the original MacDon-
7.16. Cliche- Rancourt lithic network and the locations of
ald site 117
major related sites 158
6.6. Elder Douglas Knockwood and executive director
8.1. Profi le distributions of artifacts at the Cliche-
Donald Julien 117
Rancourt site 165
6.7. Schematic of Debert Site Delineation Project unit
8.2. Mégantic Lake area and location of the Cliche-
with test pits 118
Rancourt site 166
6.8. Schematic of Debert Site Delineation 119
8.3. Plan view of the fi ve Cliche- Rancourt site excava-
6.9. Artifacts found in the Debert Site Delineation tion areas and location of soil profi le D 166
Project survey testing 119
8.4. Plan view of Cliche- Rancourt Area 3 and location
6.10. LIDAR relief base map showing locations of 20 m of soil profi les A, B, and C 167
survey squares 120
8.5. Values of soil pH in water and organic carbon con-
6.11. Map of the 2006 Debert geological augering tent in soil profi les, Cliche- Rancourt 170
survey 121
8.6. Concentrations of extractible Fe and Al in soil
6.12. Size distribution histograms for selected sand de- profi les, Cliche- Rancourt 171
posits, Debert site 122
8.7. Ancient pedoturbation in soil profi le A, Cliche-
6.13. Typical soil expression at Debert, showing L- F- H, Rancourt 172
Ae, Bf, B, and C horizons 123
8.8. Ancient pedoturbation in soil profi le B, Cliche-
6.14. Debert unit 12–20 showing a possible buried soil Rancourt 172
expression 124
8.9. Recent pedoturbation in soil profi le C, Cliche-
6.15. LIDAR image showing Debert archaeological sites Rancourt 172
in relation to the Younger Dryas cover sands 124
8.10. Two- dimensional spatial distribution of artifacts,
6.16. Comparative stratigraphies of the Debert sites and Cliche- Rancourt 173
four nearby geological sections 125
8.11. Three- dimensional spatial distribution of artifacts,
6.17. Extents of glaciation, sea levels, vegetation, and Cliche- Rancourt 174
glaciofl uvial / glaciolacustrine activity during the late
8.12. Floralturbation of a forest soil in the Lower Lauren-
Allerød and Younger Dryas 126
tians, Quebec. 174
6.18. Chronology, climate, and pollen stratigraphy com-
8.13. Faunalturbation of a soil profi le 175
pared with a Greenland ice core 128
8.14. Cryoturbation in a soil of the Rupert River area,
7.1. General location of the Cliche- Rancourt site 136
Quebec 175
7.2. Map of the Cliche- Rancourt site 136
8.15. Synthesis of vertical distribution of dominant pedo-
7.3. Map of the Mégantic Lake area 137 turbation processes, Cliche- Rancourt site 179
7.4. Projectile points, Cliche- Rancourt site 139 9.1. Gulf of Maine showing exposed land at lowstand,
7.5. Large alternate beveled biface, Cliche- Rancourt circa 10,500 C yr BP 184
site 141 9.2. Features of the southern Gulf of Maine at the Late
7.6. Biface fragments, Cliche- Rancourt site 141 Pleistocene lowstand 185
Figures and Tables ix
10.1. Overview of the Far Northeast region and the 11.7. Corner- notched point and borer from site CeEt-
Champlain Sea, ca. 11,800 cal BP 194 657, upper occupation level 224
10.2. Close- up view of Bull Brook / West Athens Hill 11.8. Point, drill, and gravers from site CeEt- 778 224
Paleoindian sites 200 11.9. Lanceolate to leaf- shaped points with concave bases
10.3. Paleoindian sites in relation to the Champlain Sea from site CeEt- 481 226
maximum 201 11.10. Lanceolate to leaf- shaped points with oblique bases
11.1. General map of the study area around Quebec from site CeEt- 481 227
City 219 11.11. Basally thinned points from site CeEt- 481 227
11.2. Holocene relative sea- level fl uctuations in the St. 11.12. Leaf- shaped points with undulating parallel oblique
Lawrence estuary 220 surface patterns from site CeEt- 481 228
11.3. Paleovegetation maps of Quebec, 13,000–9000 11.13. Points or drills tips from sites CdEt- 1 and
cal BP 220 CdEt- 2 228
11.4. Strait of Quebec, ca. 11,500 cal BP 221 11.14. Basally thinned point and drill from site
11.5. Locations of archaeological sites, Quebec City and CeEv- 5 228
surroundings 222 11.15. Corner- notched point, scraper, and drill from site
11.6. “Fluted” biface and knife from site CeEt- 657, lower CeEt- 5 230
occupation level 223
tables
2.1. Comparison of modal point forms, New England– 7.5. Graver attributes, Cliche- Rancourt site 148
Maritimes and eastern Great Lakes 15 7.6. Utilized fl ake attributes by area, Cliche- Rancourt
2.2. Settlement characteristics of Hudson Valley Paleo- site 151
indian sites 20 7.7. Lithic distribution in the fi ve areas of the
2.3. Rank order of ten New York counties with highest Cliche- Rancourt site 153
fl uted point densities 26 7.8. Relative chronologies of Paleoindian point
2.4. Transport of Paleoindian toolstone into and from styles 157
the New York region 29 8.1. Physical properties of the horizons of soil profi le A,
2.5. Investigated Paleoindian sites with reported artifacts Cliche- Rancourt site 168
of Normanskill Group cherts 31 8.2. Exchangeable cations and cation exchange capac-
2.6. Jasper tools found at selected fl uted point sites in ity in soil profi les A, B, and D, Cliche- Rancourt
the Hudson- Mohawk Lowlands 33 site 169
4.1. Paleoindian sites and isolated fi nds in New 8.3. Mineralogy of the clay fraction in soil profi le A,
Hampshire 80 Cliche- Rancourt site 170
4.2. Fluted point temporal sequence for the Far 8.4. Mineralogy of fi ne silts in soil profi le A, Cliche-
Northeast 88 Rancourt site 170
6.1. Dates for features from the Debert site 115 8.5. Synthesis of the temporal changes in the dominant
7.1. Early Paleoindian lithic assemblage from the pedoturbation processes, Cliche- Rancourt site 178
Cliche- Rancourt site 138 11.1. Main attributes of the most complete points,
7.2. Major attributes of fragmented fl uted points, Quebec City sites 225
Cliche- Rancourt site 140 11.2. Preliminary chronological sequence for the late
7.3. Endscraper attributes, Cliche- Rancourt site 143 Pleistocene / early Holocene occupation of the Strait
of Quebec 231
7.4. Sidescraper attributes, Cliche- Rancourt site 145