© 2009 by Richard VanderHoek. All rights reserved. THE ROLE OF ECOLOGICAL BARRIERS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CULTURAL BOUNDARIES DURING THE LATER HOLOCENE OF THE CENTRAL ALASKA PENINSULA BY RICHARD VANDERHOEK DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2009 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Professor R. Barry Lewis, Chair Professor Stanley H. Ambrose Professor Thomas E. Emerson Professor William B. Workman, University of Alaska ABSTRACT This study assesses the capability of very large volcanic eruptions to effect widespread ecological and cultural change. It focuses on the proximal and distal effects of the Aniakchak volcanic eruption that took place approximately 3400 rcy BP on the central Alaskan Peninsula. The research is based on archaeological and ecological data from the Alaska Peninsula, as well as literature reviews dealing with the ecological and cultural effects of very large volcanic eruptions, volcanic soils and revegetation of volcanic landscapes, and northern vegetation and wildlife. Analysis of the Aniakchak pollen and soil data show that the pyroclastic flow from the 3400 rcy BP eruption caused a 2500 km² zone of very low productivity on the Alaska Peninsula. This "Dead Zone" on the central Alaska Peninsula lasted for over 1000 years. Drawing on these data and the results of archaeological excavations and surveys throughout the Alaska Peninsula, this dissertation examines the thesis that the Aniakchak 3400 rcy BP eruption created a massive ecological barrier to human interaction and was a major factor in the separate development of modern Eskimo and Aleut populations and their distinctive cultural traditions. Distal volcanic effects include ash fall, sulfuric acid rain, and sulfur dioxide injected into the atmosphere. The ash fall and sulfuric acid rain from the Aniakchak eruption heavily impacted western Alaska to the northwest of the volcano. The ash fall and acid rain had pronounced negative effects on low-growing biota (especially lichen), small mammals and birds, ungulates, and probably land-locked fish. The eruptive effects were catastrophic for western Alaska caribou and the Arctic Small Tool populations that relied on them. The research results, which draw on several independent lines of evidence, unequivocally support the study‘s main thesis as an explanation for the rise of Eskimo and Aleut populations ii and cultural traditions. Viewed generally, these results also make a strong case that northern volcanic eruptions have had greater impacts to subarctic/arctic populations than previously thought. Such eruptions had the potential to extirpate human populations from regions and leave them unpopulated for decades or centuries, particularly if the affected landscapes were confined by hostile environments. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation is broadly focused and has taken a decade to complete, leaving me indebted to a great many people, in many different fields, for the help and input they have provided. This dissertation developed from my involvement on a project in Southwest Alaska with the National Park Service. I would like to thank Jeanne Schaaf, NPS Cultural Resource Manager, for employing me on the Aniakchak Archaeological Survey project. The survey put me in a position to confront the intriguing ecological and cultural questions that archaeologists deal with in southwest Alaska. Jeanne encouraged me to pursue the concept that Alaska Peninsula volcanism had formed ecological boundaries and divisions between prehistoric cultures. She also graciously granted permission for use of text and figures from the archaeological overview and assessment of Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve (VanderHoek and Myron 2004). I was very fortunate in receiving financial support for this project from several sources. NPS National Natural Landmark administrator Judy Alderson was instrumental in my receiving a National Natural Landmark Grant from NPS for logistical support on the Alaska Peninsula in 2001, which allowed the pollen and soil testing reported in this dissertation. Anna Kerttula was very helpful and supportive in my foray into the National Science Foundation grant submittal process, resulting in NSF support via a Dissertation Improvement Grant (#1116325). The completion of this dissertation required months away from my employment. I would like to thank Judy Bittner and Dave McMahan from the Alaska Office of History and Archaeology for their continued support, allowing me to take the time needed to complete this project. iv The intellectual attraction of a multidisciplinary project such as this is the exploration of information from other disciplines. The danger is that one is constantly working with bodies of literature outside of one‘s parent discipline, literature which may have been unevenly sampled, allowing the generation of erroneous conclusions apparent to someone working in that field. I have been very fortunate in the amount of help I have received from professionals in other disciplines. Chief among these are the following four people. Tina Neal and Game McGimsey, volcanologists with the USGS Alaska Volcano Observatory, have been very gracious and patient with my numerous requests for references, photos, and advice on volcanic eruptions and their related effects. Layne Adams, caribou biologist with the USGS Biological Resources Division, provided thoughtful discussions evaluating the possible effects of volcanic products on caribou. Gary Michaelson, soil scientist for the University of Alaska Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, provided invaluable guidance on the analysis and interpretation of soil data from the Alaska Peninsula. Other individuals over the past decade that have provided helpful comments, references, or other support include: Joseph Antos, Leonid Baskin, Jeff Blackford, Ted Birkdal, Elisabeth Brouwers, Joan Dale, Alan Depew, Mark Elson, Peter Frenzen, Ray Gavlak, John Grattan, Patricia Heiser, Maureen Howard, Sherrie Johnson, James Jordan, Darrell Kaufman, Garrett Knudson, Michael Livingston, Alan Levenson, Herbert Maschner, Thomas Miller, Katie Meyers, Vladimir Mikhailov, Nicole Misarti, Tom O‘Hara, Mathew O‘Leary, Richard Payne, Nicholas Pearce, Vera Ponomareva, Sharon Prien, James Riehle, Bud Rice, Page Spencer, Robert Toby, Robin Torrence, Patrick Saltonstall, Theodore Schurr, Robert Shaw, Dale Vinson, Kristi Wallace, Christopher Waythomas, John Westgate, and Gregory Zielinski. v It was a pleasure to work with geologist Robert Nelson from Colby College, who was attracted to the project after seeing a photo of the Cabin Bluff profile. Bob spent many days sampling, then processing and counting to produce the fascinating pollen record for Cabin Bluff. Several individuals provided crucial technical support to this endeavor. Judy Kesler provided critical 11th hour computer support. William Kiger provided false-color satellite images and soil testing locations for the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and the Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve. I would like to thank my friends Thomas Dilley, Michael Hilton and Randolph Tedor for their field support and endless stimulating discussions on the topics included in this dissertation as well as many others. I was fortunate to work with Tom on Late Pleistocene sites in the Tanana Valley, and then for three field seasons (1998-2000) on the Alaska Peninsula. Tom is very good at teaching the archaeologists he works with the geology they need to know to do their job appropriately, as well as keeping them grounded in the real world. Tom‘s geological report (Dilley 2000) on his geomorphic and tephra work during the Aniakchak archaeological survey formed the basis for several chapters in the final NPS archaeological overview and assessment, as well as a background for my work in the region. Mike Hilton was an invaluable field partner on the 1997 and 1998 Aniakchak surveys. His warmth, good humor, and professionalism make him a standout in the field. I have been fortunate to work with Randy for five field seasons (2004-2007, 2009), as we share the same love of the outdoors and enthusiasm for the past. I am fortunate to have had the friendship and advice of William and Karen Workman for the last two decades. It was Bill‘s Introduction to Anthropology class the spring of 1987, his archaeological field school later that summer in Kachemak Bay, and his role serving as my undergraduate advisor, that started me on this adventure. Karen worked with me on the vi Aniakchak project, and was an important part of the Aniakchak field crew in 2000. Bill‘s willingness to serve on my dissertation committee brought the process full circle. I would like to thank Stan Ambrose and Thomas Emerson for their willingness to serve on my committee. Both provided suggestions that added considerably to the end result. This dissertation would not have been finished without the continual support of my advisor, Barry Lewis. Barry kept faith in me while I was distracted for years by home, family and job. His intercession on my behalf with the University of Illinois Graduate College procured a tuition waver that allowed savings to be put toward living expenses while I took time off work to write. His rigorous editing tightened up and clarified the final document. The other two people that made this dissertation possible are my wife Susan Bender and daughter Marlena VanderHoek. Their love and emotional support