DATING THE PREIDSTORIC DAVIS SITE ( 44LA46) IN LANCASTER COUNTY, VIRGINIA (original) (raw)

GEOARCHEOLOGY OF NATIVE AMERICAN POTTERY FROM THE PREHISTORIC DAVIS SITE (44LA46) IN LANCASTER COUNTY, VIRGINIA

Quarterly Bulletin of the Archeological Society of Virginia, 2000

The Davis Site (44LA46) is a multicomponent (colonial and prehistoric) site located on the Eastern Branch of the Corrotoman River in Lancaster County, Virginia. The Native American occupation has been dated with archeological evidence from the Early Archaic to historic periods. Plow zone surface collections included numerous Native American pottery sherds. The pottery wares present included Mackley, Townsend, and Potomac Creek, with Mackley ware being the most common. The goals of the study 'were:. (1) to determine the firing temperatures of the Native American pottery; and (2) to determine if local clay was viable for manufacturing Native American pottery found at this or other Chesapeake sites. To address these questions, the raw clay was fired at various temperatures. The mineralogical composition of the raw clay, the various fired clays, and the three types of pottery were compared using X-ray diffraction. The Sedgefield Member of the Tabb Formation was a viable clay source for Native American pottery in the area. The mineral composition of the pottery indicates a firing temperature around 550 °C. This is supported by X-ray diffraction and color analysis of the fired clays.

Dating the Colonial-Era Davis Site (44LA46) in Lancaster County, Virginia

Quarterly Bulletin of the Archeological Society of Virginia, 2000

This is the first detailed archeological analysis of the Davis Site (44LA46), located on the Eastern Branch of the Corrotoman River in Lancaster County, Virginia. The goal of the study was to date the site' s colonial occupation using historical archeological methods. Plow zone surface collections, which were dominated by clay tobacco pipe fragments, formed the basis of the study. The very complete courthouse records in Lancaster County permitted an integrated historical archeological approach to dating the site. The timing of colonial occupation was determined using five independent approaches. The first three were based on archeological artifacts: (1) pipe stem bore diameters calculated a mean date of 1674, (2) pipe bowl shapes indicated a mean date of 1696, and (3) pipe makers' marks suggested a mean date of 1675. The last two were based on historical documents: (1) courthouse records and (2) tithable rolls which indicated mean dates of 1686 and 1687, respectively. The historical records indicate the site was occupied by the Thomas Buckley family. The archeological data and the historical data closely matched, resulting in a mean date for the colonial occupation of the Davis Site of 1684, with a maximum range of 1650-1718.

Title of Thesis: INVESTIGATION OF MIDDLE TO LATE WOODLAND TRANSITIONAL POTTERY AT THREE SITES (40SQ115/40BS101, 40BS103, AND 40BS107) IN THE SEQUATCHIE VALLEY, TENNESSEE

2021

This thesis investigates three technological attributes of prehistoric pottery production in the Sequatchie Valley of southeastern Tennessee at Sites 40SQ115/40BS101, 40BS103, and 40BS107 as a means to understand the sociopolitical influences on residential populations during the transitional Middle to Late Woodland period between 1400-1250 BP. An assemblage of 282 sherds were analyzed to assess the technofunctional aspects of pottery production based upon Steponaitis's 1982 model of ceramic vessel functions in the southeastern United States. This research uses limestone temper grain size, average temper density, and prevalence of exterior surface treatments to investigate the sociopolitical influences on residential populations. Through this research it appears that the production of utilitarian cooking vessels indicates a cohesion of interaction amongst localized networks across the Sequatchie Valley.

Projectile Point Classification Project: the Classification of Projectile Points in Existing Archaeological Collections from North Carolina

1990

Typological classification of projectile points found on prehistoric archaeological sites has long been recognized and employed by archaeologists as a reliable means of assessing site age and cultural affiliation. The purpose of this study was to classify projectile points from prehistoric sites in North Carolina recorded by early archaeological surveys in order to provide more detailed cultural and chronological information about those sites. Most of the analyzed artifacts were collected prior to about 1960, and are curated at the Research Laboratories of Anthropology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. This study resulted in the classification of 22,244 projectile points and 105 other artifacts, and provides important new information for 1,313 presently-known archaeological sites in 50 separate North Carolina counties. This information should greatly assist efforts directed toward historic preservation planning, archaeological site prediction and evaluation, and research. It is also hoped that this project has demonstrated the cost-effectiveness of enhancing the quality of North Carolina's archaeological site files through the systematic analysis of extant artifact collections.

Prehistoric Pottery from the Fort Lowell-Adkins Steel Locus of the Hardy Site, AZ BB:9:40 (ASM): Dating, Provenance, Typology, and Function

Archaeological Investigations at the Fort Lowell-Adkins Steel Property Locus of Fort Lowell, AZ BB:9:40 (ASM ), Tucson, Pima County, Arizona, 2013

This chapter discusses the prehistoric Native American pottery recovered from the Fort Lowell-Adkins Steel locus of the Hardy Site, AZ BB:9:40 (ASM). A total of 6,783 sherds, representing no fewer than 750 vessels, were recovered from the locus. Ceramic types belonging to the Tucson Basin Hohokam red-on-brown, red, polychrome, and plain, Middle Gila Hohokam red-on-buff, and Mimbres Mogollon black-on-white ware series are reported upon. The decorated ceramics recovered from the Fort Lowell-Adkins Steel locus suggest that this portion of the Hardy Site was occupied from the beginning of the Middle Rincon phase up to sometime early in the Tanque Verde phase. Four research issues are addressed. First, feature and context dating. Second, ceramic production and distribution as reflected in temper provenance and related data. Third, subsistence practices as reflected in vessel function data. Fourth, refinement of the current Tucson Basin ceramic typology.

Investigation of Middle to Late Woodland Transitional Pottery at Three Sites (40SQ115/40BS101, 40BS103, and 40BS107) in the Sequatchie Valley, Tennessee

2021

This thesis investigates three technological attributes of prehistoric pottery production in the Sequatchie Valley of southeastern Tennessee at Sites 40SQ115/40BS101, 40BS103, and 40BS107 as a means to understand the sociopolitical influences on residential populations during the transitional Middle to Late Woodland period between 1400-1250 BP. An assemblage of 282 sherds were analyzed to assess the technofunctional aspects of pottery production based upon Steponaitis's 1982 model of ceramic vessel functions in the southeastern United States. This research uses limestone temper grain size, average temper density, and prevalence of exterior surface treatments to investigate the sociopolitical influences on residential populations. Through this research it appears that the production of utilitarian cooking vessels indicates a cohesion of interaction amongst localized networks across the Sequatchie Valley.

Historic and Prehistoric Native American Pottery from the Plymouth Landing Site and Ponderosa Campground Feature 4

Dilzhe' 'e bii tian: Archaeological Investigations of Apache Sites near Little Green Valley, State Route 260 -- Payson to Heber Archaeological Project, Gila County, Arizona, 2011

This chapter reports the findings of an analysis of the prehistoric and historic Native American pottery recovered from two archaeological sites investigated as a part of the Arizona State Route 260 ─ Payson to Heber Project. Excavations at the Plymouth Landing site, AZ O:12:89/AR-03-12-04-1411 (ASM/TNF), produced a total of 1,110 sherds, representing portions of at least 123 vessels. Analysis of radiocarbon and dendrochronological samples recovered from the Plymouth Landing site indicate that it was utilized from A.D. 1640 through 1700. Excavation of Ponderosa Campground, O:12:19/04-1159, Feature 4 produced a total of 74 sherds, representing portions of at least two vessels. Analysis of radiocarbon samples recovered from Feature 4 indicate that it was utilized during the A.D. 1730 — 1810 time span. Others have noted an association of Apache material culture with non-Apache prehistoric sites, and that association is evident in the pottery collections from these two sites; although both sites yielded Apache pottery, most of the Native American pottery recovered from them is prehistoric. This chapter is organized into three main sections. The first section summarizes the project’s typological, contextual, and ceramic attribute analysis methods. This is followed by a report on the findings of an attribute analysis of the Apachean pottery recovered from the Plymouth Landing site and Ponderosa Campground Feature 4, focusing on attributes that other archaeologists have commented upon. An overview of the prehistoric pottery assemblage is also provided in that section. Since the Apachean pottery is the primary focus of the chapter, the prehistoric ceramics recovered from the Plymouth Landing site and Ponderosa Campground Feature 4 are considered in less detail than their Historic period counterparts. Attribute analyses of both Apache and prehistoric pottery were structured in terms of the operational tasks involved in the production sequence of handmade pottery. Physical correlates of raw material procurement, forming, finishing, and decoration were recorded. Some of those attributes also provide limited information regarding vessel function.

Temporal Variation in Qualla Pottery at Coweeta Creek

North Carolina Archaeology, 2008

The archaeological manifestation of protohistoric and historic Cherokee material culture and settlements in southwestern North Carolina is known as the Qualla phase. This phase, and the Qualla ceramic series, has generally been dated from A.D. 1450 to 1838. This paper reconstructs temporal trends in Qualla pottery based on quantitative analyses of sherd assemblages from several independently dated contexts at the Coweeta Creek site. Results of these analyses enable us to differentiate Middle Qualla (A.D. 1500–1700) and Late Qualla (A.D. 1700–1838) pottery, and they also enable us to propose at least an outline of the major characteristics of Early Qualla pottery, which is provisionally dated from A.D. 1300 to 1500. This proposed Qualla ceramic chronology—which should be tested with data from other sites and revised as necessary—enables us to assign dates to sherd assemblages, and the sites and proveniences from which they are derived, with greater precision than has been possible in the past. The characteristics of and the dates of Early Qualla pottery from Coweeta Creek also encourage us to reconsider our understanding of the relationship between the Pisgah and Qualla phases in southwestern North Carolina.

Understanding Prehistoric Ceramic Technology from the Grand River Valley

Mcnair Scholars Journal, 2003

This research focused on understanding the production process of ceramic construction (technological choices of potters) during the Woodland Period in western Michigan. This ultimately provided information regarding choices not only pertaining to style but also to material choices and firing strategies of early societies. The research involved the replication of pottery sherds, which were then compared to a sample of Early Woodland, Middle Woodland, and Late Woodland sherds from sites in the Grand River valley by using petrographic analysis. These sherds were extracted from the Prison Farm (20IA58), Norton Mounds (20KT1), Spoonville (20OT1), and the Converse Mounds sites (20KT2). Technological changes were recorded and analyzed for a small sample of Woodland sherds from these sites that dated between 700 B.C. and A.D. 1000.