The prehistory of Central Oregon is explored through the examination of six
archaeological sites and two isolated finds from the Upper Deschutes River Basin.
Inquiry focuses on the land use, mobility, technological organization, and raw
material procurement of the aboriginal inhabitants of the area. Archaeological data
presented here are augmented with ethnographic accounts to inform interpretations.
Eight stone tool assemblages and three debitage assemblages are analyzed in order
to characterize technological organization. Diagnostic projectile points recovered
from the study sites indicate the area was seasonally utilized prior to the eruption of
ancient Mt. Mazama (>6,845 BP), and continuing until the Historic period (c.
1850). While there is evidence of human occupation at the study sites dating to
between >7,000-150 B.P., the range of activities and intensity of occupation
varied. Source characterization analysis indicates that eight different Central
Oregon obsidian sources are represented at the sites. Results of the lithic analysis
are presented in light of past environmental and social phenomena including
volcanic eruptions, climate change, and human population movements.
Chapter One introduces the key questions that directed the inquiry and defines the
theoretical perspective used. Chapter Two describes the modem and ancient
environmental context of study area. Topics of discussion include physiography,
fauna, vegetation, geology, and climate. Chapter Three introduces the aboriginal
inhabitants of the Upper Deschutes River Basin and summarizes past archeological
investigations in the area. Hunter-gatherer land use and lithic technology are
discussed in Chapter Four. The methods used to collect and analyze the data used
in this study are presented in Chapter Five. Chapter Six summarizes the results of
the technological lithic analysis and geochemical sourcing. The final chapter,
Discussion and Conclusions, interprets the results with respect to cultural
chronology, site function and distribution, land use and mobility, lithic technology,
and raw material procurement. / Graduation date: 2003
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/32070 |
| Date | 19 April 2002 |
| Creators | Taggart, Michael W. |
| Contributors | Roth, Barbara J. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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