The majority of what is currently known about the Albee Phase comes from mortuary sites, the largest of which is the Commissary site (12-Hn-2), located in Henry County, Indiana. Excavation methods at Commissary left burial context in question and the materials could not be used for research on mortuary patterns. Examination of the skeletal material and supporting documentation led to a determination of the relationship between the two grids utilized during excavation, which clarified burial context and allowed for a more complete description of mortuary patterns at the site. Analysis reaffirmed previous conclusions regarding demography, clarified burial composition, and generated new data on burial orientation. Comparisons of the Commissary site with four other Albee Phase mortuary sites and an Oliver phase site indicate that the sites share a mixture of characteristics and that, due to its immense size, the Commissary site remains a unique example of Albee Phase mortuary patterns. / Department of Anthropology

The purpose of this paper is to describe the Commissary Site mortuary population in terms of mechanical stress and then to assign possible cultural causes to explain this wear. This consisted of discussing basic anatomy in terms of bones and muscles, then in describing the osteological material excavated at the Commissary Site. Each joint was examined for wear and the entire bone for heavy build up of the cortex caused by the action of the muscles. This information was then interpreted with the aid of the associated artifacts and the burials themselves in terms of the grinding of food stuffs, the use of tump lines, hunting, handedness, and the preparation of hides.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the histomorphometric analysis of age could be used to determine the age at death of subadults from the Commissary Archaeological Site. The histomorphometric analysis was used because of the fragmented condition of the bones. Sections from the left femur were obtained and processed for light and electron microscopy. Using the regression formula of Ahlqvist and Damsten and Ubelaker, age was estimated from the percentage of Haversian canals per 1 mm unit of bone. Results show the subadult population ranged in age from 0.9- 16.7 years. The correlation between the thickness of compact bone, the midshaft width, and the marrow cavity width to that of the assigned age supports the validity of the regression formula. The study demonstrates that the histomorphometric analysis can be applied to estimate age in subadult skeletons. This study further provides the first scientific analysis of age for the subadult skeletons of the Commissary site, an Early Late Woodland Native American population. / Department of Anthropology

The study of paleopathology is intrinsic to the study of past human societies. Through analyzing gross bone abnormalities in the individuals of a population group, one can discover occurrences of specific diseases. Diseases are often associated with diet, demography, environment, and culture of a population group. Understanding the types of diseases present can therefore lead to much information about a population group. The intent of this research is to analyze the skeletal remains from three mortuary sites to ascertain the occurrences of particular diseases. The New Castle site (12Hn1) the White site (121-In10), and Windsor Mound (12R1) represent a sample of the Early-Middle Woodland population from east central Indiana. / Department of Anthropology