The Archaeology and Physical Anthropology Of

LENNOX AND MOLTO ... THE E.C. ROW SITE ... 5 THE ARCHAEOLOGY AND PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY OF THE E. C. ROW SITE: A SPRINGWELLS PHASE SETTLEMENT, ESSEX COUNTY, ONTARIO Paul A. Lennox and J. Eldon Molto The proposed construction of the E.C. Row on a low sandy knoll adjacent to Turkey Creek. Expressway - Highway 3 interchange in Wind- The creek's mouth, on the Detroit River, lies sor by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation about five kilometres to the southwest of the involves the disturbance of lands adjacent to site. The low sandy rise on which the site is the Lucier Site (AbHs-l). Lucier, excavated by located is one of many in the area. At 183 m Wintemberg in 1935, produced cultural materi- above sea level, it appears to be an abandoned als and burials pertaining to the Late Wood- shoreline feature, and is part of a much land Western Basin Tradition. Although the broader, unnamed sand plain at the modem extent of the site had not been determined at town of La Salle. that time, later archaeological survey of the Sandy soils are a rare feature of the Essex area to be impacted by construction identified Clay Plain. There are two similar areas located a second; spatially discrete occupation and immediately north of Point Pelee and in the burial area designated the E. C. Row Site vicinity of Harrow. These "islands" are well- (AbHs-7). This report describes the survey and drained soils with associated Carolinian floral the results of salvage excavations undertaken and faunal communities in the midst of the at the E.C. Row Site. The site appears to be a poorly-drained Essex Clay Plain (Chapman warm season settlement attributed to the and Putnam 1966), which is characterized as a Springwells Phase of the Western Basin Tradi- black ash swamp (Finlay 1978). These condi- tion. We consider Wintemberg's investigations tions undoubtedly led to prehistoric concentra- and the relationship between E.C. Row and the tions of populations at such "island" centres. Lucier Site. The number of burials recovered at the two sites help to illustrate a pattern which History of Investigations is unique to the Western Basin Tradition. Com- parisons with contemporary Iroquoian sites to Any discussion of the E.C. Row Site (AbHs-7) the east help in determining the biocultural must also include an understanding of the affinities of the E.C. Row Site occupants. While nearby Lucier Site (AbHs-1), otherwise referred our results are not definitive, they strongly to as 'The Windsor Mound Site", 'The Toronto suggest that there are distinct biocultural and Betts Streets Indian Mound Site", 'Wintem- differences between the Springwells Phase of berg's Windsor Site", "Marentette Site", and the the Western Basin Tradition and the southern "Lancaster Site" (Wright 1976:13). Attention was Ontario Iroquoians. first directed to this area in the early 1930s when the Betts Avenue and Toronto Street INTRODUCTION road allowances were being graded to service a proposed housing development (Figure 2). The Location housing project did not materialize and the roads were never completed, although the The E.C. Row Site is located in the extreme graded intersection is clearly visible on early air southwestern part of the Province of Ontario, photographs and the road allowances still within the City of Windsor, approximately four appear on various subdivision plans. At the kilometres from the Detroit River. As indicated time of discovery several perforated skulls were in Figures 1 and 2, the E.C. Row Site is located recovered along Betts Avenue (Wintemberg 1935,1936; Wright 1976) and these led to 6 ONTARIO ARCHAEOLOGY No. 60, 1995 excavations in July of 1935, undertaken by W.J. Antiquity (Wintemberg 1936:17), the only re- Wintemberg of the Anthropological Division, cord of this excavation is found in a set of National Museum of Canada, and assisted by Wintemberg's (1935) field notes on file at the J. C. B. Grant, Professor of Anatomy, University Museum of Civilization. Attempts to reconstruct of Toronto. Wintemberg's findings from his field notes Unfortunately, Wintemberg passed away have met with limited success and, while it is before reporting on his findings at the site and, difficult to reconstruct his grid, burial types and aside from a short statement in American positions, as well as other details, can be LENNOX AND MOLTO ... THE E.C. ROW SITE ... 7 inferred. Wintemberg's excavations apparently structure that was still in use at the time of the focused on the intersection of Toronto Street interview (Reid 1978:4). and Betts Avenue and resulted in the discovery In 1984 Lennox was asked to review the next of 19 burials containing an estimated minimum stage in the completion of the E.C. Row over- of 25 individuals. The site was briefly investi- pass of Highway 3 and the construction of an gated again in 1967 when the Hiram Walker inner loop in the northeast quadrant of that Museum opened a test trench at the northeast intersection (Figure 2). In light of Dickson's corner of the same intersection; this produced observation, such construction had the poten- negative results (Wright 1976:12). tial of disturbing additional portions of a pre- In 1975, Phillip Wright, then Historical Re- historic burial component. sources Co-ordinator (Southwest Region) of the Ministry of Culture and Recreation, as- Survey Strategy sisted by his wife Mary and the senior author, conducted an archaeological survey of the site The area to be examined in 1984 was vicinity in response to the Ministry of initially defined as all right-of-way to be Transportation's proposal to build the E.C. Row impacted by the proposed construction, Express-way. This survey uncovered a few including the west-ern extension of the E.C. pieces of prehistoric cultural material in the Row Expressway and the circular ramp or vicinity of Wintemberg's investigations, but the inner loop located in the northeast quadrant area had since seen numerous disturbances of the Highway 3 intersection (Figure 2). It was which led Wright to conclude that much of the decided that an intensive sampling procedure site had been destroyed (Wright 1976:5). was appropriate and that the construction Wright's 1976 report includes valuable infor- zone should be stripped in search of subsoil mation gleaned and/or transcribed from features. Several bulldozers were contracted to Wintemberg's notes; he was also able to con- strip the proposed right-of-way, beginning on duct an analysis of materials collected by the eastern portion of the inner loop closest to Wintemberg. This previously unpublished the Lucier Site (Figure 2). This was a closely material has proved very useful in our own supervised endeavour, and the last pass of the study. dozer cut only a few centimetres into the In 1978 the Caldwell Band of Essex County subsoil. No early historic or prehistoric artifacts (with the encouragement of the property or features were encountered in this area. owner), succeeded in temporarily halting The first area examined was bounded on the highway construction and, after five months of south and the north by existing fill conditions. negotiations between the band, various gov- The large fill area to the south, encompassing ernment ministries and the City of Windsor, the southern portion of the inner loop and the another archaeological investigation was E.C. Row Expressway, had been covered in conducted in the proposed construction zone previous years to a depth of approximately immediately southwest of the Toronto Street four metres. Any archaeological remains lying and Betts Avenue intersection. This investiga- beneath this fill will remain undisturbed tion, by Peter Reid of the University of Windsor indefinitely. Fill conditions and modem involved a search for subsoil features and disturbances were also discerned in a test burials through extensive manual trenching trench located on the west edge of the overpass and mechanical stripping. Reid (1978) identi- fill. On the northeast portion of the inner loop a fied several small, prehistoric features and temporary topsoil pile covered a portion of the retrieved a few pieces of cultural material, but construction zone (Figure 2). Originally, it had did not locate burials. Interestingly, Reid al- been decided to move this material to expose luded to a brief interview he had with John the underlying ground, but the stripping Dickson, who had worked as a labourer for operation adjacent to this area revealed a Wintemberg during the 1935 excavations. mottled dark grey, silty clay (indicative of a Dickson stated that, in addition to Wintem- former wetland) and the plan was abandoned. berg's primary investigations, some burials These subsoil conditions persisted along the were excavated from a low mound located 500 north and northwest portions of the inner loop, to 600 feet (150 to 180 m) to the west, in the where test trenches revealed almost a metre of vicinity of the Beaver Gasoline Station - a clay fill and modern debris on top of the original soil 8 ONTARIOARCHAEOLOGY No. 60, 1995 profile. The York Motel and parking lot had cultural materials. been built on this fill, as is indicated by the Prehistoric features were recognized along anomalous contour configuration (Figure 2). the southern section of the inner loop, between The western portion of the inner loop, adja- the north edge of the existing overpass fill and cent to Highway 3, may have been a favour- the back slope of the proposed ditch line (i.e., able location for settlement during prehistoric the limit of construction requirements). This times, but this area has seen considerable area included part of the slight knoll behind activity during the present century, and is now the Beaver Station that Dickson identified as a characterized by asphalt parking lots, ruins of secondary focus of Wintemberg's excavations.

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