PREHISTORIC FORAGING PATTERNS at CA-SAC-47 SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA a Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Department Of
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PREHISTORIC FORAGING PATTERNS AT CA-SAC-47 SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Department of Anthropology California State University, Sacramento Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in Anthropology by Justin Blake Cairns SUMMER 2016 © 2016 Justin Blake Cairns ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii PREHISTORIC FORAGING PATTERNS AT CA-SAC-47 SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA A Thesis by Justin Blake Cairns Approved by: ________________________________, Committee Chair Mark E. Basgall, Ph.D. ________________________________, Second Reader Jacob L. Fisher, Ph.D. ____________________________ Date iii Student: Justin Blake Cairns I certify that this student has met the requirements for format contained in the University format manual, and that this thesis is suitable for shelving in the Library and credit is to be awarded for the thesis. __________________________________, Graduate Coordinator _______________ Jacob Fisher, Ph.D. Date Department of Anthropology iv Abstract of PREHISTORIC FORAGING PATTERNS AT CA-SAC-47 SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA by Justin Blake Cairns Subsistence studies conducted on regional archaeological deposits indicate that in the Sacramento Delta, as in the rest of the Central Valley, there is a decrease in foraging efficiency during the Late Period. A recently excavated site, CA-SAC-47, provides direct evidence of subsistence strategies in the form of faunal and plant remains. This faunal assemblage is compared to direct evidence of subsistence from Delta sites SAC-42, SAC-43, SAC-65, SAC-145, and SAC-329. The results and implications of this direct evidence are used to address site variability and resource selectivity. ___________________________________, Committee Chair Mark E. Basgall, Ph.D. _____________________ Date v DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to Robert Cairns And Kathy Cairns for their support throughout this investigation August 2016 vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project would not have been possible without help from several faculty members, my friends, and family. This investigation was first conceived in 2013, when the landowner of the Locke Ranch, Clarence Chu, asked for my help in determining where archaeological sites were located on his property. He gave me an opportunity that not many archaeologists get, and I thank him for his confidence in my abilities. I thank Dr. Mark Basgall for giving me the skills necessary for field excavation and instilling an element of scientific integrity. Through many discussions with Dr. Basgall, Dr. Michael Delacorte, and Dr. Jacob Fisher, I was able to create a research design from which to interpret the results. I would like to also thank Dr. Fisher for identifying all my large mammal and avian specimens with comparison skeletons. I would like to thank Bridget Wall for editing and formatting my thesis. I want to thank Julie Minor for volunteering for months during the field excavation. I want to thank Micah St. Hillaire, my nephew, who volunteered to help whenever I needed assistance. I also want to thank the people at the Archaeological Research Center who taught me many of the skills that would prove useful when on my own. Those people include Randy Bethard, Dave Glover, Brian James II, Michelle Noble, Anthony Pohl, and Bill Larson. I also thank my father, Robert Cairns, for visiting the Locke Ranch to set transect lines from which all excavation units were based. I thank my mother, Kathy Cairns, for allowing me to print whatever was necessary at her place of work, Wilcox Bros. I would also like to thank Wilcox Bros. for allowing me to use their office supplies, and Jose Campos for providing the graphic images seen in this report. I want to give special thanks to Tom Herzog. Tom is a descendant of the Herzog family, for which the Herzog mound, SAC-72, was named. His father’s experience as a dig bum for vii Robert Heizer at SAC-72 in the early 1930s led to his fascination with our local history. His advice, support, and hoard of books proved useful for reference throughout this project. He has seen many of the transformations that have occurred within the study area, and his familiarity with the landscape from his years of farming gives a perspective that can’t be found in books. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Dedication ....................................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ vii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. xv List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... xvi Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 1 Statement of Purpose .......................................................................................................... 3 2. NATURAL SETTING ................................................................................................................ 5 Paleoenvironmental Context ............................................................................................... 5 The Pleistocene/Holocene Transition .................................................................... 5 Early Holocene ...................................................................................................... 6 Middle Holocene.................................................................................................... 6 Late Holocene ........................................................................................................ 7 Study Area .......................................................................................................................... 8 Climate and Hydrology in the Delta ................................................................................... 9 The Delta Habitats ............................................................................................................ 10 Riparian Woodland .............................................................................................. 11 ix Freshwater Marsh ................................................................................................ 16 Grasslands ............................................................................................................ 18 Historic Alterations to the Delta Landscape ........................................................ 19 3. CULTURAL SETTING ........................................................................................................... 21 History of Archaeological Research ................................................................................. 21 Cultural History ................................................................................................................ 25 Early Period (4500 to 2800 B.P.) ......................................................................... 25 The Middle Period (2800 to 1200 B.P.) ............................................................... 27 Late Period-Phase I (1200-450 B.P.) ................................................................... 28 Late Period-Phase II (450-200 B.P.) .................................................................... 29 Ethnohistory ...................................................................................................................... 30 Historical Accounts.............................................................................................. 30 Ethnographic Evidence ..................................................................................................... 33 Territorial Boundaries .......................................................................................... 34 Plant Use and Gathering ...................................................................................... 35 Fishing ................................................................................................................. 37 Hunting ................................................................................................................ 37 Cooking and Food Preparation ............................................................................ 38 Material Culture ................................................................................................... 39 End of an Era .................................................................................................................... 40 x 4. HISTORIC LAND USE ON THE LOCKE RANCH AND THE RECORDED ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESOURCES ...................................................................................... 41 CA-SAC-75 ...................................................................................................................... 43 5. FIELD AND ANALYTICAL PROCEDURES ........................................................................ 46 Survey Procedures ............................................................................................................ 46 Auger Testing ................................................................................................................... 48 Field and Excavation Procedures ...................................................................................... 50