COLONIZER GEOARCHAEOLOGY OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION A Dissertation DR. BRETT R. LENZ COLONIZER GEOARCHAEOLOGY OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION, NORTH AMERICA Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Leicester By Brett Reinhold Lenz Department of Archaeology and Ancient History University of Leicester June 2011 1 DEDICATION This work is dedicated to Garreck, Haydn and Carver. And to Hank, for teaching me how rivers form. 2 Abstract This dissertation involves the development of a geologic framework applied to upper Pleistocene and earliest Holocene archaeological site discovery. It is argued that efforts to identify colonizer archaeological sites require knowledge of geologic processes, Quaternary stratigraphic detail and an understanding of basic soil science principles. An overview of Quaternary geologic deposits based on previous work in the region is presented. This is augmented by original research which presents a new, proposed regional pedostratigraphic framework, a new source of lithic raw material, the Beezley chalcedony, and details of a new cache of lithic tools with Paleoindian affinities made from this previously undescribed stone source. 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The list of people who deserve my thanks and appreciation is large. First, to my parents and family, I give the greatest thanks for providing encouragement and support across many years. Without your steady support it would not be possible. Thanks Mom and Dad, Steph, Jen and Mellissa. To Dani and my sons, I appreciate your patience and support and for your love and encouragement that is always there. Due to a variety of factors, but mostly my own foibles, the research leading to this dissertation has taken place over a protracted period of time, and as a result, different stages of my personal development are likely reflected in it. The first archaeological site I worked on was Richey, exactly 20 years ago, today. This was an eye-opening experience and not a bad way to become immersed in the excitement of discovery as well as the political aspects of archaeological research. For the opportunity to participate in this work, and for the support to work on a variety of Paleoindian sites across the country, I am deeply indebted to Dr. Michael Gramly. Drs. James Adovasio and Olga Soffer provided similar experiences with Paleolithic archaeology—though none of them nearly as comfortable—in the central Russian Plain. To them I owe an incredible debt of gratitude for incidents that are seared into my memory in only the way that multiple field seasons in Ukraine can be. Mike Timpson and Stan Ahler provided a job and much fun at the Lake Ilo Folsom sites—Stan Ahler also provided holiday dinners for the two years while Dani and I were away from our home in the Pacific Northwest. While trying to excavate one of the great Folsom site complexes in North America, Matt Root graciously put up with my crazy ideas regarding earthquakes in one of the most seismically-stable regions of the continent. At the Lake Ilo Folsom project and on other projects since, Matt has helped me appreciate the importance of precision and technical excellence in field research. Drs. Larry Agenbroad and Jim Mead provided encouragement and financial support for research at Paleoindian sites through the Northern Arizona University Quaternary Sciences program. To Rex and Angela Buck and the Wanapum Tribe, Thank you. I’ve appreciated the opportunity to work with you and for your friendship for many years. To my other colleagues and friends, I thank Aaron Kuntz who has been incredibly helpful keeping my things organized the past few years of my research, and Andrew Murphy has picked up slack when necessary, both without complaining. Since I met Herman Gentry in the early 1990s, he has openly shared his detailed knowledge of Pacific Northwest soils, and I am grateful for his willingness to spend long hours in the field. My observations and interpretations of the geoarchaeological significance of the Bishop and Badger Mountain geosols would not exist without Herman’s assistance. Herman is among the most dedicated and focused researchers I have met, his research collaboration and friendship over the past twenty years have steered my understanding of the surface geology of the Columbia Plateau. To my advisors, Michael Waters and Terry Hopkinson, thank you so much for your steering and support. Many colleagues and friends, James Chatters, Dave Meltzer, Loren Davis, Stan Gough, Glenn Hartmann, Steve Hackenberger and Gary Huckleberry—for intermittent and sound advice and feedback, thank you all. Through the years David Rice has been a steady source of encouragement. His dedication to 4 Paleoindian studies and willingness to share advice and information is tremendous. Several close friends who contributed to my learning during the long course of research leading to this dissertation are gone now, Russell Congdon, Pete Rice, Catherine Sands, Mark Thompson and Carol Dupuis. Each of their interest in and support of my research helped keep my focus sharp, emboldened the confidence in my interpretations and I miss them. Finally, and most of all, I’d like to thank my great friend and earliest mentor, Dr. Robert D. Bentley. You are a consummate field scientist and researcher with the rare ability to convey a passion for fieldwork. Especially to those people who aren’t afraid to be yelled at and hit by flying objects. I’m one of those students, and I owe you more than I can repay. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 TOWARD AN UNDERSTANDING OF INITIAL HUMAN COLONIZATION OF THE PLEISTOCENE PACIFIC NORTHWEST ...................... 16 Introduction .................................................................................................... 16 Pacific Northwest within the context of the broader North American colonization .................................................................................................... 17 The Project Area ............................................................................................ 17 Colonization ................................................................................................... 18 Introduction to the Colonizer Period Concept ............................................... 19 Errors of Sampling ......................................................................................... 20 Founding Principles of the Research Problem ............................................... 21 Colonizer Visibility: Population, Timing, Toolkits and Route of Entry ............ 21 Route of Entry .................................................................................................... 22 Clovis vs. Pre-Clovis Arguments as they relate to the Colonization Route ....... 23 Material Culture ................................................................................................. 24 Issues of Reproductive Fitness, Mortality and Archaeological Visibility ..... 26 The Purpose of a Landscape Approach? ........................................................ 27 Application of Geoarchaeology ..................................................................... 27 Study Goals .................................................................................................... 28 Structure of the Study..................................................................................... 29 Nature of the dissertation data ....................................................................... 30 Field and Lab Methodologies......................................................................... 30 Procedures for recording soil characteristics in the field ................................... 31 CHAPTER 2 COLONIZER PERIOD ARCHAEOLOGY ............................................ 35 Introduction .................................................................................................... 35 Previous Work ................................................................................................ 35 Overview of Pacific Northwest Paleoindian studies ...................................... 36 Cultural Traditions and Chronology .............................................................. 38 Western Stemmed Tradition (11.3 to 8.4 KBP) ............................................. 39 Fluted Tradition (11.2 to 10.3 KBP) .............................................................. 44 The Archaeological Study Sample ................................................................. 45 Five Mile Rapids ........................................................................................... 48 Kettle Falls .................................................................................................... 52 Lind Coulee ................................................................................................... 52 Richey-Roberts Clovis Site, East Wenatchee, Washington (45GR482) ....... 57 Bishop Spring, Washington (45GR1621) ..................................................... 57 Simon Clovis Cache ...................................................................................... 58 Willow Lake (45GR70)................................................................................. 59 Winchester Wasteway (45GR156) ................................................................ 59 Sentinel Gap .................................................................................................. 60 Horse Heaven Hills, Washington .................................................................. 61 Manis Mastodon (45CA218)........................................................................