Excavations conducted at Indian Sands (35-CU-67C), located along Oregon's
southern coast, during 2002 and 2003 identified two discreet, artifact-bearing stratigraphic
units. The uppermost unit is a deflated surface containing burnt shell and lithic artifacts
associated with early Holocene ¹⁴C dates, while the underlying unit contained only lithic tools
and debitage, some of which were associated with a ¹⁴C date of 10,430 ± 150 RCYBP. The
late Pleistocene lithic assemblage at 35-CU-67C provides the earliest evidence for human
presence on the Oregon coast to date. Analysis performed on the late Pleistocene
assemblage addresses the validity of existing hypotheses regarding the nature of early
Oregon coastal hunter-gatherer technological and subsistence strategies. These
hypotheses are focused on whether early populations on the Oregon coast practiced a
generalist-forager or collector subsistence strategy.
Using theoretical approaches that deal with the organization of hunter-gatherer
technology, analyses were conducted on the lithic tool and debitage assemblages at 35-CU-
67C in order to infer past hunter-gatherer behavior. Through the implementation of multiple
tool and debitage analysis methodologies, issues of hunter-gatherer mobility, raw material
procurement, stages of lithic reduction, tool production, and site function are presented. The data generated by the late Pleistocene lithic assemblage at 35-CU-67C are compared with
the overlying surficial assemblage, additional early sites along the North American Pacific
coast, and to contemporaneous sites located further inland within the Pacific Northwest
region.
Results of the lithic analyses at 35-CU-67C show distinct similarities in debitage trends
between the assemblages of each stratigraphic unit. However, when tool assemblages from
these units are compared, discrepancies in the types and amount of tools are found.
Reasons for intra-site variability and similarity are explained through raw material studies
and site function at 35-CU-67C. Additionally, similarities between the early tool assemblage
at 35-CU-67C and those found in early tool assemblages on the extended Pacific coast and
interior Pacific Northwest regions are discussed.
This thesis demonstrates that early southern Oregon coastal populations had a tendency
towards high mobility and used a generalized toolkit organization. Early lithic technology
used at 35-CU-67C emphasized multidirectional core technology and biface manufacture in
the form of preforms and leaf-shaped projectile-points. This type of technological
organization is to be expected from hunter-gatherers practicing a generalist-forager
subsistence strategy. Based on the 10,430 ± 150 RCYBP date and technological
organization at 35-CU-67C, early Oregon coastal occupation is seen as encompassing a
generalist-forager subsistence strategy most likely adapted to both coastal and terrestrial
environments. / Graduation date: 2005
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/28363 |
| Date | 11 March 2005 |
| Creators | Willis, Samuel C. |
| Contributors | Davis, Loren G. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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