LAKE ONTARIO MARITIME CULTURAL LANDSCAPE A Dissertation by BENJAMIN LOUIS FORD Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY August 2009 Major Subject: Anthropology LAKE ONTARIO MARITIME CULTURAL LANDSCAPE A Dissertation by BENJAMIN LOUIS FORD Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved by: Chair of Committee, Kevin Crisman Committee Members, Michael Alvard Donny Hamilton Jonathan Smith Head of Department, Donny Hamilton August 2009 Major Subject: Anthropology iii ABSTRACT Lake Ontario Maritime Cultural Landscape. (August 2009) Benjamin Louis Ford, B.A., University of Cincinnati; M.A., College of William and Mary Chair of Advisory Committee: Dr. Kevin Crisman The goal of the Lake Ontario Maritime Cultural Landscape project was to investigate the nature and distribution of archaeological sites along the northeast shoreline of Lake Ontario while examining the environmental, political, and cultural factors that influenced the position of these sites. The primary method of investigation was a combined archaeological and historical survey of the shoreline within seven 1-km square areas. The archaeological component of the survey covered both the terrestrial and submerged portions of the shore through marine remote sensing (side-scan sonar and magnetometer), diving surveys, pedestrian surveys, and informant interviews. A total of 39 sites and 51 isolated finds were identified or further analyzed as a result of this project. These sites ranged from the Middle Archaic period (ca. 5500–2500 B.C.) through the 19th century and included habitation, military, transportation, and recreational sites. Analysis of these findings was conducted at two scales: the individual survey area and Lake Ontario as a whole. By treating each survey area as a distinct landscape, it was possible to discuss how various cultures and groups used each space and to identify instances of both dynamism and continuity in the landscapes. Results of these analyses included the continuous occupation of several locations from pre-Contact times to the present, varying uses of the same environment in response to political and economic shifts, the formation of communities around transportation nodes, and recurring settlement patterns. The survey data was also combined to explore regional- scale trends that manifest themselves in the historical Lake Ontario littoral landscape iv including ephemeral landscapes, permeable boundaries, danger in the lake, and factors of change. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee chair, Dr. Kevin Crisman, and my committee members, Dr. Donny Hamilton, Dr. Michael Alvard, and Dr. Jonathan Smith, for their guidance and support throughout the course of this research. I also want to acknowledge that this research could not have been completed without the help and support of several individuals and organizations. Jessi Halligan and Terry Baker gave up substantial parts of two summers to help with the fieldwork. Jessica Berry, William Burdick, John Ford, Bradley Krueger, Joshua Levin, Christopher Morris, Taras Pevny, Michael Quennoz, Carrie Sowden, and Vincent Valenti also volunteered time during the fieldwork. Several outside scholars, including Timothy Abel, Susan Bazely, Robert Brennan, Paul De Minco, Gary Gibson, Troy Holcombe, Erika Laanela, Kathi and Dennis McCarthy, Gordon McRae, Jonathan Moore, Doug Pippen, Christina Rieth, Laurie Rush, and Christopher Sabick, freely shared their ideas and expertise to the great benefit of this research. Financial support and donated, or reduced-cost, materials for the project came from the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, Independence Seaport Museum, L.T. Jordan Institute for International Awareness, Melbern G. Glascock Center for Humanities Research, Ohio Council of Skin and Scuba Divers, Inc., Dave and Annette Soule, SeaSpace, Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research, John DeLapa, Garrett Metal Detectors, Tom Pertierra, HYPACK, Inc., Marine Sonic Technology, Ltd., and Mike’s Dive Shop (Watertown). I also benefited from interactions with several organizations, including Jefferson County Historical Society, Maritime Museum of the Great Lakes, 1000 Islands Land Trust, New York Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, Ontario Ministry of Culture, New York State Museum, and Center for Maritime Archaeology and Conservation. The residents of Wilson Bay, Sherwins Bay, Wolf Island, Parrotts Bay, Storrs Point, Carleton Island, and Long Carrying Place were wonderful hosts during the survey work. Residents gave freely of their time and opened their homes and docks to the vi survey crew. Several individuals and families deserve special mention because of the help and support that they gave to the project: James Ellinger, Richard Guga, Doris and Lorne Hart, Bruce Horne, John Keegan, Ken Keyes, the MacDonald Family, Charles Millar, the McRae Family, John O’Shea, the OYong Family, the Pullus Family, Bruce Rippeteau, the Rose Family, Linda Thomas, John Weatherall, the Whelpleys, Vincent Williams, and the Wolfe Island Tourism and Business Association. Thanks also go to my friends and colleagues and the department faculty and staff for making my time at Texas A&M University a rewarding experience, in particular Juliet Brophy, Andrew Roberts, Michelle Chmelar, Claudia Le Doux, Chasity Hedlund, Cindy Hurt, Rebekah Luza, James Jobling, and William Charleton. Finally, thanks to my mother, father, and grandmother for their encouragement, love, and support. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................... v TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................... vii LIST OF FIGURES................................................................................................... x LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................... xvii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 1 Why Here?...................................................................................... 2 Is It a Maritime Landscape if It Is on a Lake?................................ 5 How Is the Study Organized .......................................................... 5 II UNDERLYING DEFINITIONS, ASSUMPTIONS, AND QUESTIONS .............................................................................. 8 Landscape Archaeology ................................................................. 9 Archaeology and Boundaries ......................................................... 17 Shore Archaeology......................................................................... 20 Maritime People and the Shore ...................................................... 22 Issues of Scale and Change ............................................................ 25 Cognitive Landscape ...................................................................... 28 The Shore and the Environment..................................................... 31 III SURVEY METHODS.......................................................................... 34 Historic Research ........................................................................... 35 Survey Areas .................................................................................. 37 Informant Interviews ...................................................................... 39 Terrestrial Survey........................................................................... 41 Submerged Survey ......................................................................... 43 Variations in Survey Methodology ................................................ 46 Data Analysis ................................................................................. 56 viii CHAPTER Page IV ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING.......................................................... 57 Formation of Lake Ontario............................................................. 58 Lake Level and Currents ................................................................ 62 Erosion ........................................................................................... 64 Ice ................................................................................................... 66 Storms............................................................................................. 67 Lake Fauna and Ecology................................................................ 69 Geology and Soils .......................................................................... 70 Flora ............................................................................................... 71 V EARLY HISTORY OF LAKE ONTARIO: NATIVE AMERICAN AND FRENCH DOMINION............................................................... 74 Native American ............................................................................ 75 The French on Lake Ontario .......................................................... 93 VI THE EUROPEAN FLUESOR CENCE ON LAKE ONTARIO: BRITISH OCCUPATION THROUGH THE MODERN AREA ........ 104 Settling the Lake Ontario Shore....................................................