Appendix F Cultural Resources APPENDIX F CULTURAL RESOURCES F.1 Culture History/Historic Setting F.1.1 Pre-Contact Era Human prehistory (defined as that time before written records) in the Simi Valley area extends back some 10,000 to 13,000 years (Johnson 1997). The following summary of the project area’s history prior to contact with Euro-Americans is adapted from Glassow et al. 2007 and King 1990, unless otherwise cited. F.1.1.1 Paleo-Coastal Period (11000 to 7000 calibrated B.C.E.) The Paleo-Coastal use or occupation of the project area is unknown, but this period is thought to be coeval with Paleo-Indian manifestations elsewhere in North America. The earliest evidence for human occupation in North America is found on California’s Channel Islands. Radiocarbon dates derived from human bones, as well as rodent bones at the Arlington Springs site (CA-SRI-173)1 on Santa Rosa Island, have yielded dates of approximately 11000 calibrated (cal.) before the common era (B.C.E.). On the coastal mainland opposite Santa Rosa Island, a basal corner of a Clovis-type projectile point was found at an archaeological site, possibly indicating a mainland occupation of comparable age. At Daisy Cave (CA-SMI-261) on San Miguel Island, the earliest deposits appear to date to as early as 9500 cal. B.C.E. The Surf site (CA-SBA-931), located near the mouth of the Santa Ynez River on the mainland, was occupied from circa (ca.) 8000 to 7500 B.C.E. The data indicate that the inhabitants of this site collected shellfish 10,000 years ago and utilized flaked stone tools manufactured from local chert. The Malaga Cave site (CA-LAN-138) near Palos Verdes on the southern edge of the Los Angeles basin was occupied very early, possibly as early as 8000 cal. B.C.E. F.1.1.2 Millingstone Horizon (7000 to 5000 cal. B.C.E.) The Millingstone Horizon is the earliest well-established cultural manifestation in the general area. Sometime between 7000 and 6500 cal. B.C.E., the population of the whole Southern California region began expanding. Most sites of this age are at or near the coast. However, the apparent lack of inland sites dating to this period may be due to their decreased visibility and the lack of easily recoverable organic remains from which radiocarbon dates can be obtained. Sites of this age typically contain abundant grinding stones (manos and metates). In addition to ground stone artifacts, hammerstones that may have originally been cores or core tools are common. In the Santa Monica Mountains, flaked stone tools include abundant fist-sized plano-convex cores and core tools (scraper planes), as well as flake tools of quartzite, basalt, and other volcanic rock. Few or no projectile points are typically found at Millingstone Horizon sites. Little faunal data are available from interior sites prior to 5000 B.C.E., but rabbits and deer are assumed to have been important food resources. The production of olive shell (Olivella biplicata) beads began during this period, and the widespread trade of these beads may signify the start of a regional exchange network. Millingstone Horizon sites often contain substantial deposits and hundreds of artifacts, indicating regular use of the sites and long periods of residence. Social organization may have consisted of up to 50 people occupying a residential base; these individuals may have been members of an extended family. 1 An alphanumerical site number is assigned by the State of California to archaeological sites. F-1 Final Environmental Impact Statement for Remediation of Area IV and the Northern Buffer Zone of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory F.1.1.3 Early Period (5000 to 500 cal. B.C.E.) The Early period in Southern California is defined by a sequence of changes in shell beads and ornaments (King 1990). In central and southern California and the Great Basin, rectangular beads of Olivella biplicata, Haliotis spp., Mytilus californianus, and double-perforated Haliotis spp. (abalone) ornaments have been found in Early period mortuary and midden contexts (King 1990). In the Santa Barbara Channel region, Early period collections are also characterized by the presence of clam shell circular (disc) beads, stone disc and cylinder beads, and whole Olivella biplicata shells with both their spires and bases ground or chipped (King 1990). F.1.1.4 Middle Period (500 cal. B.C.E. to ca. 1100 C.E.) During the Middle period, the use of mortars and pestles became prevalent. These artifacts may have been used to process acorns or, alternatively, to process tuberous roots of plants found in marshland settings (Johnson 1997). Side-notched projectile points appear at this time, suggesting that the hunting of large game, including deer, was important (Glenn 1991). Digging stick weights also occur at this time, suggesting the importance of corms, bulbs, and tubers in the diet. Residential bases in inland valleys, as well as coastal campsites, were occupied. In inland valleys, populations appear to have occupied the large residential bases while making seasonal rounds. Trade with coastal areas may have included toolstone, basketry, bone tools, and pine nuts. The beginning of the Middle period in both central and southern California is characterized by a change from rectangular Olivella biplicata and abalone beads to disc beads and from two-holed abalone pendants to one-holed pendants (King 1990). During the Middle period, more types of ornaments were used than during the Early period (King 1990). In the Santa Barbara Channel region, keyhole limpet ornaments made from or including the enamel area around the shellfish’s orifice were first used at the beginning of the Middle period and were made in large numbers throughout the Middle period (King 1990). Punched beads of Trivia californiana and other small cowries were especially common during the first four phases of the Middle period (King 1990). Small- to medium-sized Olivella biplicata shells with ground spires, many of which were diagonally ground, are common in contexts dated from the early phases of the Middle period. F.1.1.5 Late Period (ca. 1100 to 1840 C.E.) The Late period in southern California is marked by the occurrence of Olivella biplicata callus beads and clam disc and cylinder beads (King 1990). Also during the Late period, abalone ornament types were adapted to be strung together with beads into necklaces. Late period ornaments tend to have most of their perforations near their margins (King 1990). Asphaltum “skirt weights” were possibly used only during the Late period (King 1990). The Late period includes the colonization of the Central Chumash Indians beginning in 1782. The last part of the Late period corresponds to Spanish colonization (King 1990), and is marked by the presence of glass beads, iron tools, and other goods acquired from the Spanish, as well as changes in beads and ornaments of Chumash manufacture. During the transition from the Middle period to the Late period, the plank canoe (tomol) began to be used for fishing and for transportation between the mainland and the Channel Islands (Johnson 1997). A regional exchange network, based on shell bead money produced on the Northern Channel Islands, also was established during this time (Johnson 1997). About 1,500 years before the present, the bow and arrow appear in the archaeological record. Arrow points included leaf-shaped (convex base) and square-stemmed types, which were attached to arrow shafts with asphaltum. F-2 Appendix F – Cultural Resources Beginning ca. 1500 in the common era (C.E.), populations peaked and settlements were integrated into regional sociopolitical organizations based on hereditary ranking, specialization, and exchange (Glassow et al. 2007). At the time of Spanish contact, the Chumash and their neighbors had the most complex political and economic organization in California. F.1.2 Ethnographic Era The ethnographic era in this part of California is generally considered to begin in 1769, when the Spanish first established missions. This marks the beginning of the time when specific cultures were systematically studied and information was recorded by Euro-Americans regarding perceptions of culture and territory. The Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL) is located near the assumed boundaries of the Chumash, Tataviam, and Gabrielino (Tongva) Native American linguistic groups (see the blue dot in Figure F–1). Figure F–1, based on the map prepared by the Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC 2015) (originally from Hinton [1994]), shows conceptual linguistic boundaries and should not be construed literally. Some tribes dispute these historic territorial divisions. Spanish mission settlements disrupted and displaced tribes, making the reconstruction of boundaries a complex task beyond the scope of this environmental impact statement (EIS). The Chumash, Fernandeño Tataviam, and Gabrielino Tongva ethnographic groups are discussed individually in this section. In addition, Chapter 9 of this Final Environmental Impact Statement for Remediation of Area IV and the Northern Buffer Zone of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory (Final SSFL Area IV EIS) was written by the Chumash, Fernandeño Tataviam, and Gabrielino Tongva Tribes and provides Native American perspectives. Figure F–1 Historic Linguistic Boundaries in Relation to the Santa Susana Field Laboratory F-3 Final Environmental Impact Statement for Remediation of Area IV and the Northern Buffer Zone of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory F.1.2.1 Chumash Chumash refers to a group of people who share a language belonging to the Hokan linguistic family (Landberg 1965). There were at least six Chumash languages, including Purismeño, Obispeño, the Island language, as well as Ventureño, Barbareño, Ynezeño, which were spoken by three linguistic/geographic entities with a shared common culture (Grant 1978a, 1978b). The Ventureño group is also referred to as the Eastern Coastal Chumash (Grant 1978b).