ALBERTA ARCHAEOLOGICAL REVIEW

Number 9 ISSN 0701-1776 Autumn 1984

Copyright © 1984 by the publisher, The Archaeological Society of Alberta

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SOCIETY OFFICERS FOR 1984-85 EDITOR'S NOTE President: Dr. John Dormaar I appreciate the co-operation of Gerald T. Conaty and his 634 - 15 Street South co-workers in furnishing so promptly this report on the Blood Lethbridge, Alberta T1J 2Z8 Tribe Historic Sites Development Project carried out this past 327-2357 summer and early autumn. This unique project enjoys the support Executive Sec./ Jeanne Cody of federal, provincial, and Blood Tribe authorities. Mr. Conaty, an Treasurer: P.O. Box 4609, Station C Albertan, received his B.A. from the University of Alberta, his M.A. Calgary, Alberta T2T 5P1 from Memorial University in Newfoundland, and is presently pur­ 243-4340 suing doctoral studies at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C. Editor, Review & Dr. T.A. Moore The illustrations are by Mr. Conaty. Publications: The University of Lethbridge The 10th Annual Meeting of the Archaeological Society of 4401 University Drive Alberta will be held in Lethbridge at the El Rancho Hotel, 526 Lethbridge, Alberta T1K 3M4 Mayor Magrath Drive, April 12-14. President Dormaar has organ­ 329-2524 ized the conference on Saturday, April 13, around the theme: Past President: Grant L. Weber human population dynamics across the southern Alberta land­ 979 Ranch Estates Place N.W. scape. Topics to be addressed cover the sweep of time from the Calgary, Alberta T3G 1M5 environmental setting and early prehistoric peoples through to the 239-0774 twentieth century. For further information contact Mr. Peter Vice-President: Janice Andreas Slemko, 306 - 23 Street South, Lethbridge, Alberta T1J 3M6 or 46 Rossland Crescent S.E. telephone 327-8950. Medicine Hat, Alberta TIB 2B6 The Canadian Archaeological Association will hold its 18th 526-3346 Annual Conference in Winnipeg, April 24 to 27,1985 at the Hotel Elected Sec./ Peter Slemko Fort Garry. For further information please contact the conference Treasurer: 306 - 23 Street South co-ordinator, Elizabeth Snow at 621 Academy Road, Winnipeg, Lethbridge, Alberta T1J 3M6 Manitoba R3N 0E7. 327-8950 The efforts of all those who have contributed to the produc­ Calgary Centre: President: Louise (Mrs. L.M.) Travis tion of this issue are appreciated; and a special thank you to Jim 1815 Varsity Estates Drive N.W. and June Carpenter. Calgary, Alberta T3B 3Y7 286-5738 Rep.: David B. Coutts 3817 - 7 Street S.W. Calgary, Alberta T2T 2Y4 243-2101 Members of the Archaeological Society of Alberta receive a Edmonton Centre: President: G.F. Paschen copy of the Alberta Archaeological Review. Non-members and 11911 University Avenue institutions may subscribe to the Alberta Archaeological Review Edmonton, Alberta T6G 1Z6 for $5.00 per calendar year. Cheques should be made payable to 436-4913 The Archaeological Society of Alberta. Rep.: Nick Sheptycki Unsolicited contributions are welcomed for consideration for 5811- 113A Street possible publication. All communications regarding subscriptions Edmonton, Alberta T6H 1A9 and the Alberta Archaeological Review should be sent to the 434-2316 Editor, Dr. T.A. Moore, The University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Lethbridge Centre: President: Mary Cumming Alberta, T1K 3M4. 1605 - 14 Avenue South Comunications regarding the Archaeological Society of Lethbridge, Alberta T1K 0T6 Alberta should be addressed to the Executive Secretary/Treasurer, 328-1305 Mrs. Jeanne Cody, P.O. Box 4609, Station C, Calgary, Alberta, Rep.: Lawrence Halmrast T2T5P1. P.O. Box 165 Partial funding for this issue is provided by a grant from Warner, Alberta T0K 2L0 Alberta Culture. 642-2126 South Eastern Centre: President: Alan Loose 867 - 16A Street N.E. Medicine Hat, Alberta T1A 5W8 526-1768 Rep.: Bill Tidy 35 Garden Place N.W. Cover: Many-Spotted-Horses Medicine Wheel, Medicine Hat, Alberta T1A 7R3 Blood Indian Reserve, Alberta 527-1048 Photo by Gerald T. Conaty ARCHAEOLGICAL RESEARCH ON THE BLOOD RESERVE, 1984 by Katie Wells1, John Tallow1, Esther Tailfeathers1, and Gerald T. Conaty5

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS THE PRESENT PROJECT

We wish to thank the Blood Tribe Administration, the The Blood Tribe Historic Sites Development Project Environment 2000 Programme of Environment Canada, the has two general objectives: one is educational; the other is Archaeological Survey of Canada and the Archaeological developmental. The primary educational objective is to Survey of Alberta for their support of this project. Dr. David compile an oral history of the Kainai through interviews with Burley, Head of the Research Section, Archaeological Survey tribal elders. In addition, information was gathered regard­ of Alberta, deserves special thanks for his efforts to provide ing historical patterns of land use (especially concerning the funding for the archaeological aspect of this study and for northeastern part of the Reserve) and traditional methods his continued interest and concern. of butchering and of manufacturing tools. As this informa­ tion is accumulated, it will provide future generations with a We wish also to thank the Kainai elders who spared the record of their heritage. time to share their knowledge of the tribal history and culture. In addition, this project would have been much less successful without the interest and dedication of our field A second educational objective concerned the instruc­ assistants. tion of project members in archaeological field methods and in aspects of the regional prehistory. Although the Blood Reserve lies within a segment of Alberta that has a rich and INTRODUCTION varied archaeological record, very little archaeological re­ search has been conducted within the Reserve boundaries. In the autumn of 1983, Alberta Transportation under­ It is hoped that a programme of educating tribal members took the construction of a secondary road (SR 509) across regarding the importance of archaeological data, and the the northeast section of the Blood Reserve. As a part of the need to properly record these data, will lead to fewer of first stage of development, an Historical Resources Impact these sites being destroyed before they can be investigated. Assessment (H.R.I.A.) was undertaken by Lifeways of Can­ ada, Limited. The results of this H.R.I.A. indicated that the The archaeological aspect of this project also provides a area to be affected by the proposed development contains significant time depth to the heritage of the Kainai. The significant historical resources. exposure of project members, and eventually of other Kainai, Among these is Conrad's Post, a late nineteenth cen­ to this archaeological data will increase the awareness of the tury whiskey trading establishment. The remains of this culture history. The availability of the ethnographic and structure are located adjacent to the secondary road right- archaeological information to people beyond the Reserve of-way in Get-Woods-Bottom. In the course of further will increase awareness of the Kainai culture. archaeological investigations in these bottoms, a number of stone circles and stone cairns were recorded and exca­ The developmental aspect is concerned with determin­ vated. In addition, a shallow depression-feature within the ing appropriate and effective means of disseminating the right-of-way was excavated. This feature was found to con­ ethnographic and archaeological information gathered tain human remains, which were removed and re-interred through the course of the project. A proposal has been beyond the bounds of the highway. In light of the discovery made to initiate an extensive commercial and recreational of these historical resources, the tribal administration development in areas adjacent to the proposed new townsite. initiated the Blood Tribe Historic Sites Development Pro­ Such a proposed development includes areas which contain ject. a variety of historical resources. This programme of cultural resosurces inventory and assessment includes both ethnographic and archaeological While such a development will pose some negative aspects, as both the ancient and the more recent heritage of impacts to these resources, it will also provide a forum the Kainai were to be examined. Support was forthcoming within which the results of ethnographic and archaeological from the Archaeological Survey of Alberta, the Archaeolog­ studies can be presented in an interpretive framework. An ical Survey of Canada, the Environment 2000 Programme of important consideration of such developments is the selec­ Environment Canada, and the Blood Tribe. The coopera­ tion of sites which will provide a suitable focus for recrea­ tion of federal, provincial and tribal governments within the tional and educational development. In addition, approp­ framework of a multi-disciplinary study underscores the riate methods for presenting these interpretations must be uniqueness and importance of this project. examined. To meet these ends, the developmental aspect of the project includes an assessment of the historical resour­ ces which have been identified. The criteria for such 1 Blood Tribe assessment include (for the archaeological resources) the 2 Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University, state of preservation, accessibility, and the ability to inte­ Burnaby, B.C., V5A 1S6 grate the resources within a broader system of interpretation. FIGURE 1 Study area on the Blood Reserve. FIGURE 2 Areas defined within the study region. This paper summarizes the archaeological aspect of the The mammals present include a number of species of Blood Tribe Historic Sites Development Project. We begin rodents, lagomorphs, carnivores and ungulates. Deer mice, by discussing the ecological setting of the study area and by meadow vole, shrews and Richardson's ground squirrel are summarizing the previous archaeological research under­ the most common rodents and white-tailed jackrabbit is the taken on the Blood Reserve. We then outline the objectives most abundant lagomorph. The most active carnivores are of the current study and discuss the methods employed to coyotes and red fox, although weasels and badgers may be realize these goals. Finally, we summarize the results of the common in the coulees. Cougars and racoons, although project and outline the nature and distribution of the histori­ occasionally observed, are rare. cal resources discovered in the course of this project.

The area is classified as posing moderately severe lim­ itations for ungulates due to adverse topography and aridity (Canadian Land Inventory, Capability for Ungulates, Map ENVIRONMENTAL BACKGROUND Sheet 82H). The Oldman, St. Mary's and Belly river valleys do provide important habitat for mule deer, white-tailed The Blood Reserve is located in the extreme southw­ deer and pronghorn antelope. estern portion of Alberta (figure 1), within the western plains physiographic region (Beaty 1972). The surficial geology is predominantly silt and clay lake deposits overlying glacial till. Dark brown and black chernozems are the major soil types, although some regosols and solonetzic soils occur in the south and western areas of the Reserve. PREVIOUS RESEARCH The Reserve is characterized by generally low relief and a surface which is "monotonous, a monotony accentuated by a general lack of trees". (Stalker 1963: 1). Some relief is evident, with elevations from 847 m in the Oldman River There has been little archaeological research under­ valley bottom to 1,158 m at the peak of the Mokawan Ridge. taken on the Blood Reserve. The initial sites were recorded The many coulees in the area are characterized by steep in the late 1950s by R.G. Forbis as a part of the more slopes and wide bottoms. They often contain a meandering extensive Glenbow Archaeological Survey of portions of underfit stream course, which may be permanently or sea­ southern Alberta. Although other sites were intermittently sonally wet. The remainder of the area is generally rolling, reported throughout the 1960s, no extensive inventories with feature ranging from 8 to 23 m in height. were undertaken until the 1970s. In 1972 an archaeological survey of the southern portion of the Belly River was directed by B.O.K. Reeves (Quigg 1974: 1). This survey The study area lies within the mixed grassland ecozone included only a small portion of the southeast corner of the (Sharp 1972: map 1). Speargrass is the dominant native Reserve and is outside of the area examined in the present grass while blue gramma grass, crested wheat grass, west­ study. ern wheat grass and June grass comprise common subdom- inant grasses. Common forbs include thistle, goldenrod, milk vetch, purple prairie clover, fleabane, sagewort and aster. Pussy toes, wild licorice, Solomon's seal, cone-flower A more extensive survey of the archaeological resources and Indian breadfruit have also been noted. These plant on the Reserve was undertaken by J.M. Quigg in 1975 as a associations exist in a relatively undisturbed state through­ part of the Oldman River Basin Reservoir Study (Quigg 1975). out many large portions of the study area. This project focused on specific areas potentially threatened by the proposed construction of dams and reservoirs in the Oldman River basin. Within the Reserve, these included an Woody vegetation is rare in the area, being confined to area along the Belly River, immediately upstream from its coulees and river valleys. In the coulees, low growing roses confluence with the Oldman River and an area along the and buckbrush are the dominant shrubs, while wolf willow, Oldman River, upstream from its confluence with the St. saskatoon, chokecherry and willow occur less frequently. Mary's River. As a result of this project, 31 sites were While trees are rare in the coulees, copses of aspen and relic discovered, including tipi ring camps, cairns, surface sites, stands of balsam poplar dominate the river valley vegetation. buried sites, and bison kills. While the limited nature of the project precluded intensive examination of these sites, The faunal resources of the study area include a variety Quigg (1975: 4) observed that the areas examined contain of fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Fish considerable amounts of significant archaeological data. present include brook stickleback, flathead chub, falthead minnow and suckers. The amphibians and reptiles which occur include the tiger salamander, boreal chorus frog, More recently, developments such as highway con­ leopard frog, wandering garter snake, bull shake, rattle­ struction and the erection of power transmission lines have snake, plains spadefoot toad, western painted turtle, and resulted in more research on the Reserve. These projects, plains hognosed snake. Birds are common in the area, with which have all been restricted in their areal extent, confirm 142 species (19 of which are seasonal migrants) having been that a large number of archaeological sites occur within the identified. northeastern portion of the Blood Reserve. THE PRESENT STUDY The sites which were encountered have been classified into 10 categories. These include stone circles, cairns, circles and cairns, surface scatters, buried sites, drive lanes, boiling pits, historic sites, historic grave sites, and complex sites. Objectives Stone circles consist of rings of cobbles and vary from two The present study was initiated to provide an inventory to four metres in diameter. While these are frequently of the historical resources along the west side of the Oldman referred to as tipi rings, their function is not always easily River, between its confluence with the Belly River and its discernible (but see Finnigan 1982). Cairns are piles of confluence with the St. Mary's River. This inventory pro­ stones and may vary in size from two or three to as many as vides information regarding the kinds of sites present, the twenty or more cobbles. The presence of lichen growth and nature of these sites, and the relative abundance of different the burial of the stones served to identify ancient cairns from types of sites. those constructed during more recent land clearing activities. Circle and cairn sites contain both stone circles and cairns.

Methodology Surface scatters include sites where artifacts were observed and collected from the surface, but no buried This inventory was accomplished through a judgemental material was noted. These sites vary in size from a few to pedestrian survey of the study area. That is, we drove to over a hundred metres in extent. In contrast, buried sites areas which were expected to contain archaeological sites. are those where cultural or faunal material was observed We then inspected these areas by traversing them on foot. below the ground surface. Exposures of these sites were Surface features, such as stone circles, cairns, drive lanes, most notable along river banks, coulee edges, and in badger etc., were noted. When artifacts were exposed, a small and gopher burrows. sample was collected. These items include 'formed' artifacts such as scrapers and projectile points, as well as manufac­ turing debris. An attempt was made to recover items which Drive lanes consist of extensive, parallel lines of cairns reflect the range of lithic material types present at a site. or single rocks. These extend for variable distances and These collections are not assumed to be representative of often terminate at a steep precipice along the edge of the the items at any one site and more systematic collections prairie level. will, undoubtedly, alter the results of this study. The size of the crew varied from two individuals to six Boiling pits are identified as small, circular depressions individuals. Accordingly, the intensity with which sites were (c. 1 m in diameter) ringed by medium-sized stones (c. 60 cm examined also varied. In all instances the sites were system­ in diameter). The assumed function of these features is, at atically walked, with personnel maintaining specific distances present, speculative. from each other. With larger numbers of people, the distan­ ces between individuals was smaller and, consequently, the area was more thoroughly examined. This variability in site Historic sites are those sites where material of European, examination limits the extent to which the recovered material Euro-American, and/or Euro-Canadian origin was found. can be compared. However, the differences in crew size has Most often these were the remains of wooden buildings and probably not affected the discovery of sites. their associated features. Historic grave sites include depres­ sions measuring c. 1 m x 2 m and are frequently accompanied by piles of stones. In many instances these features were Although the major focus was on areas where there is a covered by thick vegetative growth. high probability of finding sites (e.g., prairie edges above river bottoms and coulees), other areas were also examined. These include places where the local topographic relief The final site type, complex sites, includes those loca­ indicated that sites might be present, such as the heads of tions where a combination of other site types occur coulees and the borders of intermittent sloughs. Cultural together. For example, in some cases rings, cairns, and material (especially fire broken rock) was occasionally drive lanes were all found within close proximity to one observed along car tracks between gravel roads and the another. Rather than designating three separate sites, all prairie edge. When this occurred, the area surrounding the were combined within a single complex site. initially observed scatter was examined to determine the nature and extent of the site. River bottoms and coulees were also examined. However, crops in the former and dense vegetation and a preponderance of rattlesnakes in Results the latter prohibited extensive survey of these areas. The study area can be divided into seven smaller areas (figure 2), each separated by distinctive geographic features. Each of these divisions is accessible by different routes and Each site was plotted on a 1:50,000 National Topographic may be considered as individual management units for the Series map and an Archaeological Site Data form was com­ purpose of historic sites development. The following pro­ pleted. These forms were then submitted to the Archaeolog­ vides a summary of the historical resources within each ical Survey of Alberta and Borden site numbers were area. In addition, some of the more important sites are assigned. discussed in detail. FIGURE 3 Site DkPg-24.

Discussion of Areas Area A includes Weasel Fat Bottom and the area northward to the confluence of the Belly and Oldman rivers. The topography consists of generally flat prairie which ter­ minates in steep edges above the river bottoms. These bottom areas are, generally, extensive and contain a number of important sites (Conrad's Post; Many-Spotted- Horses Medicine Wheel). The vegetation in this area con­ sists of over-grazed mixed-grass prairie, with low shrubs restricted to the coulees. No ploughing has occurred and the sites are all relatively undisturbed.

Area B includes the teritory south of Weasel Fat Bottom and north of Snake Coulee. As the northern edge of Snake Coulee includes a very large and extensive site, the southern boundary of Area B was placed at a small coulee c. 2 km north of the larger coulee. At the time of the present survey, • «, ' ' ' V~ '• • -' • no land had been broken for agricultural purposes and the

"•'">" 1• 3 ' --: recorded sites are all relatively undisturbed.

Area C incorporates the sites adjacent to Snake Coulee and the sites in the same general latitude further west. The topography and vegetation is similar to the other areas. However, much of the land has been cultivated and many of the sites have been greatly disturbed. Cultivation also re­ stricted access to much of this area and more sites may be present than are reported here.

F/GURE4 Area D includes the land south of DkPg-40 at Snake Coulee, to the northern edge of a large coulee which con­ Close-up of bone bed at DkPg-24. tains an old railway grade. The topography and vegetation is similar to the other areas. While the portions of this area The number and variety of archaeological sites discover­ adjacent to the edge of the prairie level are unploughed, ed in each area are presented in Table 1. This table does not much of the remaining sections have been cultivated. include sites which were recorded before the present study. Access was, therefore, restricted. A number of considerations must be borne in mind when examining these data. First, the areas are not all of equal Area E extends from the southern side of the coulee size. The number and variety of sites occurring in each area containing an old railway grade, southward to the next may be a function of its size; the larger territories may be major coulee. It also extends from the prairie edge above the expected to contain more sites as well as a wider variety of river bottom, westward to the Lease Road. Once again, the site types (assuming an even distribution of resources topography and vegetation is similar to the other areas. throughout the study area). Second, the amount of culti­ Much of the area away from the prairie and coulee edges has vated land in each area will affect the number and types of been cultivated and, as the current project progressed, sites recorded. As access to cultivated fields was restricted, more land had been broken. areas with a large percentage of land in crop were examined less intensively. On the other hand, surface scatters were Area F extends from the first major coulee south of the most often discovered in ploughed fields. Other site types 'railway' coulee to the Lease Road leading to Lethbridge are likely to have been disturbed by the cultivators and may, across the St. Mary's River. Most of the area has been therefore, not be visible. cultivated and much of the present survey was restricted to the unploughed sections adjacent to the prairie edge. Some sites were observed along access routes to the unploughed areas and in cultivated fields. The time constraints of the present study prohibited a more intensive examination of Discussion of Sites the cultivated fields after the crops had been removed. Site DkPg-24, located at the extreme northern end of Area G includes the small section of Prairie Blood Coulee the Reserve, consists of four depositional layers of bison that was examined during the present study. In addition, bone eroding from the riverbank (figures 3 and 4). The site, one site on the north side and one site on the south side of first reported by Quigg in 1975, extends for c. 10 m along the this coulee have been included. A large buried bone bed, site riverbank and up to 2 m below the ground surface. A large DjPf-7, initially attracted our attention to this area. Subse­ coulee, known as Yellow Bone Coulee, terminates imme­ quent examinations revealed a large number of sites. As this diately south of the bone deposit and may have served as a area is largely confined to the coulee bottom, it contains natural drive channel (figure 5). Several hammerstones and more shrubbery than the other areas. cobble core/choppers were surface collected and a single

FIGURE 5 View north down Yellow Bone Coulee to DkPg-24. potsherd was found eroding from the deposits. This pottery medicine wheel was first reported by archaeologists in the conforms to the Thick Plain type defined by Byrne (1973: late 1950s and has been restored by tribal elders. An exten­ 65). sive survey of the entire bottoms revealed the presence of many other stone circles, cairns, and the remains of more Another site, DkPg-46, consists of material which is recent structures. deeply buried (c. 60-70 cm below the surface), but which had been exposed by badgers (figures 6). A surface collection Site DkPg-40 consists of at least 200 stone circles and and the excavation of a single test unit failed to yield any cairns distributed along both sides of Snake Coulee and lithic or bone tools. Some fire broken rock and bison bone westward for several kilometres. Although most of the site with evidence of butchering were recovered. The site, which has been ploughed, the circles and cairns retain some integ­ is situated in a river bottom below a high precipice, may be a rity. One of the rings (figure 9) has been identified as having processing area. A careful examination of the cliff face failed been the site of Far-Looking's tipi (Morris Crow, pers. to reveal any bone or cultural material. A small lithic scatter comm. 1984). Investigations are currently underway to re­ (site DkPg-1) was found on the prairie level, overlooking the cover more of the oral history pertaining to this site. river bottom site. A large, complex site was discovered on the north side Perhaps the two most spectacular sites in this part of of a large coulee south of Snake Coulee. This site includes c. the Reserve are Conrad's Post and Many-Spotted-Horses 100 stone circles, 50 cairns, possible drive lanes, features Medicine Wheel. Conrad's Post (figure 7) was a whiskey believed to be historic graves, and a medicine wheel. The trading establishment which operated in the early 1870s. It medicine wheel (figure 10) consists of a central cairn c. 2 m has been relatively undisturbed and therefore may provide a in diameter and four radiating spokes, each of which is c. 3-4 unique opportunity to study this type of cultural pheno­ m in length. The central cairn arrangement is significant as it menon. A large number of stone circles and cairns were also indicates that this is the burial place or site of death of the observed in the vicinity of this post, indicating that these person for whom the memorial was constructed. Tribal flats were extensively utilized in the past. elders have told us that his medicine wheel was constructed in honour of Nitapinaw, a great warrior. Hopefully, con­ Many-Spotted-Horses Medicine Wheel (figure 8) is tinued research regarding tribal history will reveal more located in Weasel Fat Bottom, south of Conrad's Post. This about the importance of this site.

FIGURE 6 Site DkPg-46, view from prairie level.

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FIGURE 7 Conrad's Post.

FIGURE 8 Many-Spotted-Horses Medicine Wheel.

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FIGURE 9 Far-Looking's tipi ring at Snake Coulee.

TABLE 1 Site Types Discovered in Each Area

Area A Area B Area C Area D Area E Area F Area G Total Stone circles 4 4 2 - 2 - 2 14 Cairns 2 2 1 - - - 1 6 Circles and cairns 3 4 2 - - 1 3 13 Surface scatters 4 1 1 1 3 4 2 16 Buried sites 2 ------2 Drive lanes 1 ------1 Boiling pits ------1 1 Historic sites 1 ------1 Historic graves 2 ------2 Complex sites 2 2 - l 1 2 1 9 Total 21 13 6 2 6 7 10 65

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FIGURE 10 Medicine Wheel constructed for Nitpinaw. FIGURE 12 Drive lane near "railway" coulee (eastern line).

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FIGURE 13 Drive lane near "railway" coulee (western line).

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F/GU/?EI4 Depression feature in Prairie Blood Coulee.

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FIGURE 15 Stone circle in Prairie Blood Coulee.

15 Another large, complex site is located on the south side REFERENCES of this same coulee. Over 100 stone circles were reported in association with many cairns, cairn lines, and a possible Beaty, C.B. drive lane. The cairn lines consist of a series of small (c. 1 m 1972. Geomorphology, geology and non-agricultural re­ in diameter) cairns aligned along the prairie edge at irregular sources. In Southern Alberta: a regional perspec­ intervals (figure 11). The possible drive lane is formed by one tive, edited by F. Jankunis. University of Lethbridge line of very large cairns and a parallel line of large boulders Press. Lethbridge. (figures 12 and 13). While these lines do appear to form a lane which terminates at a small spur of the main coulee, no Byrne, W.J. bone deposits could be located. 1973. The archaeology and prehistory of southern Alberta as reflected by ceramics. National Museum A large concentration of sites is located in Prairie Blood of Man Mercury Series, Archaeological Survey of Coulee. At site DjPf-4, extensive deposits of bone are erod­ Canada Paper 14. Ottawa. ing from the slumped face on the north side of the coulee. This site is unusual as a jump or trap, for the animals would Finnigan, J.T. have had to be driven into the wind before they reached the 1982. Tipi rings and plains prehistory: a reassess­ prairie edge. A search of the prairie level above the bone ment of their archaeological potential. National deposit did not provide us with any evidence of drive lanes. Museum of Man Mercury Series, Archaeological Sur­ However, as these fields had been ploughed, the absence of vey of Canada Paper 108. Ottawa. such features is not surprising. Quigg, J.M. Other features were found in the coulee bottom, within 1974. The Belly River: prehistoric population the immediate vicinity of the bone deposit. Among these are dynamics in a northwestern plains transitional a number of circular depressions, c. 1 m in diameter and 30 zone. National Museum of Man Mercury Series, cm deep (figure 14). These are ringed by cobbles. In addi­ Archaeological Survey of Canada Paper 23. Ottawa. tion, a number of stone circle sites were recorded. Interest­ ingly, many of these stone circles contained small depres­ 1975. Archaeological assessment of the Oldman River sions (figure 15). We have not determined the significance of Basin reservoir Study. Restricted report on file with these depression-features, although it is possible that they the Archaeological Survey of Alberta. Edmonton. are related to the processing of bone from the jumpsite. Sharp, W.H. 1972. Flora and fauna of southern Alberta. In Southern Alberta: a regional perspective, edited by F. Jankunis, pp. 35-47. University of Lethbridge Press, Lethbridge. DISCUSSION •Stalker, A. MacS. 1963. Surficial geology of Blood Indian Reserve No. 148, We believe that we have successfully met the objectives Alberta (part of 82H). Geological Survey of Can­ identified at the outset of this project. The inventory of ada Paper 63-25. historic resources indicates that the northeastern part of the Reserve contains a wealth of archaeological sites. The collection of the oral history related to these and to other sites has greatly enhanced our understanding of the archaeological features. Together, these sets of data have provided the Kainai with a greater understanding of how this NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING area was utilized in the past. We have also discovered that a number of significant sites have been destroyed over the The 1985 Annual Meeting of the Archaeological Society years as more area is brought under cultivation. It is clear of Alberta is to be held April 12,13, and 14 at the El Rancho that site inventories, such as the one provided by this pro­ Motor Hotel, 526 Mayor Magrath Drive, Lethbridge. A no- ject, are important if the historical resources are to be host reception will be held Friday evening, April 12. Saturday, preserved. April 13 will feature the presentation of papers followed by the business meeting and the evening banquet. The guest The participation of Kainai in this project will enable the speaker at the banquet will be Stuart W. Connor. Dr. W.J. continued monitoring of the historical resources on the Byrne will lead a field trip on Sunday, April 14. Reserve. With the increased knowledge of archaeological techniques and the awareness of the resources, it is hoped The presentation of papers will begin at 8:30 a.m. Sat­ that fewer sites will be destroyed before they can be prop­ urday under the chairmanship of President Dormaar. Sche­ erly recorded and evaluated. duled speakers include: Dr. Rene Barendregt, Physical Setting; Dr. Len Hills, Palaeoflora; Dr. Michael Wilson, The results presented here illustrate that a vast quantity Palaeofauna; Mr. Jack Brink, Native Man; Dr. Barney and a wide variety of historical resources are present on the Reeves, Seasonal Movement of Native Man; Ms. Margaret Blood Reserve. This project has, however, been concerned Kennedy, Trade Network of Native Man; Mr. Ian Getty, with only a small segment of the Reserve. It is hoped that Historical context of Indian-White Relations; Dr. James continued support may be found to enlarge the area investi­ Tagg, Present Population; and Dr. Terry Moore, Summary. gated, and to examine some sites in detail and to continue with the compilation of the oral history of the Kainai people. All interested persons are invited to attend.

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