Papers by Jonathan Lothrop
Foreword: Early Paleoindian Occupation in the Rice Lake, Otonabee River, and South Kawartha Lakes Watersheds, South-Central Ontario – Research Since 1976, by Lawrence J. Jackson., 2019
PaleoAmerica, 2019
Most researchers argue that archaeological evidence for the Clovis technological complex, althoug... more Most researchers argue that archaeological evidence for the Clovis technological complex, although documented across most of unglaciated North America, is absent in the glaciated Northeast, suggesting that early Paleoindian populations in the latter region were descendent from early Native American peoples associated with Clovis technology. If so, what are the earliest fluted-biface forms in glaciated northeastern North America? To refine developmental and relative chronological relationships of early Paleoindian fluted bifaces in the region, we (1) examine fluted-biface-reduction sequences at the Rogers (Ontario) and West Athens Hill (WAH) (New York) sites, and (2) compare fluted-point samples from early Paleoindian sites in the Northeast and vicinity. For Rogers and WAH, our results document variable frequencies of overshot and overface flaking during fluted-point manufacture – features linked elsewhere to Clovis biface reduction. In addition, analyses identify several early Paleoindian fluted-point samples in the Northeast that bear similarities to Clovis points but differ from, and therefore likely predate Gainey and Gainey-related early Paleoindian point forms in the glaciated Northeast.
American Antiquity, 2018
Projections of Paleoindian range mobility in the late Pleistocene are typically inferred from str... more Projections of Paleoindian range mobility in the late Pleistocene are typically inferred from straight-line distances between toolstone sources and sites where artifacts of these raw materials have been found. Often, however, these sourcing assessments are not based on geologic analysis, raising the issue of correct source ascription. If sites of similar age can be linked to a toolstone source through geologic study, and direct procurement of toolstone can be inferred, geographic information systems (GIS) modeling of travel routes between the source and those sites can reveal route segments of annual rounds and aspects of landscape use. In the Hudson Valley of eastern New York, Paleoindian peoples exploited Normanskill chert outcrops for toolstone during the late Pleistocene. Here, we combine X-ray fluorescence sourcing results that link Normanskill chert artifacts at Paleoindian sites to the West Athens Hill source outcrop in the Hudson Valley with GIS least cost path analysis to model seasonal pathways of late Pleistocene peoples in northeastern North America.
Les hypothèses sur l'étendue de la mobilité des Paléoindiens à la fin du Pléistocène sont généralement inférées à partir de la distance à vol d'oiseau de la source d'une matière première au site archéologique où cette matière a été retrouvée. Cependant, l'identification d'une matière lithique n'est que rarement basée sur une étude géologique, ce qui soulève la question de l'attribution exacte de la source. Si des sites d'un âge comparable peuvent être reliés à une source de matière première lithique à l'aide d'une étude géologique et que l'acquisition directe de la matière peut être inférée, une modélisation SIG des voies de déplacement entre la source et les sites peut révéler des segments de routes reliées à des cycles annuels et à des aspects particuliers de l'utilisation du paysage. Dans la vallée de la rivière Hudson dans l'est de l'État de New York, les Paléoindiens ont exploité les affleurements de chert Normanskill pour fabriquer des outils durant le Pléistocène tardif. Dans cette étude, nous combinons l'analyse par fluorescence aux rayons X qui relie les artéfacts en chert Normanskill trouvés sur les sites paléoindiens à la carrière de West Athens Hill dans la vallée de la Rivière Hudson avec une analyse du trajet de moindre coût qui modélise les trajets saisonniers des groupes du Pléistocène tardif dans le Nord-Est de l'Amérique du Nord.
American Antiquity, Jul 2018
Paper title: Coupling Lithic Sourcing with Least Cost Path Analysis to
Model Paleoindian Pathwa... more Paper title: Coupling Lithic Sourcing with Least Cost Path Analysis to
Model Paleoindian Pathways in Northeastern North America
(American Antiquity 83(3), 2018, pp. 462–484)
Authors: Jonathan C. Lothrop, Adrian L. Burke, Susan Winchell-Sweeney and Gilles Gauthier
ABSTRACTS:
Projections of Paleoindian range mobility in the late Pleistocene are typically inferred from straight-line distances between toolstone sources and sites where artifacts of these raw materials have been found. Often, however, these sourcing assessments
are not based on geologic analysis, raising the issue of correct source ascription. If sites of similar age can be linked to a toolstone source through geologic study, and direct procurement of toolstone can be inferred, geographic information systems
(GIS) modeling of travel routes between the source and those sites can reveal route segments of annual rounds and aspects of landscape use. In the Hudson Valley of eastern New York, Paleoindian peoples exploited Normanskill chert outcrops for toolstone during the late Pleistocene. Here, we combine X-ray fluorescence sourcing results that link Normanskill chert artifacts at Paleoindian sites to the West Athens Hill source outcrop in the Hudson Valley with GIS least cost path analysis to model seasonal pathways of late Pleistocene peoples in northeastern North America.
Les hypothèses sur l’étendue de la mobilité des Paléoindiens à la fin du Pléistocène sont généralement inférées à partir de la distance à vol d’oiseau de la source d’une matière première au site archéologique où cette matière a été retrouvée. Cependant, l’identification d’une matière lithique n’est que rarement basée sur une étude géologique, ce qui soulève la question de l’attribution exacte de la source. Si des sites d’un âge comparable peuvent être reliés à une source de matière première lithique à l’aide d’une étude géologique et que l’acquisition directe de la matière peut être inférée, une modélisation SIG des voies de déplacement entre la source et les sites peut révéler des segments de routes reliées à des cycles annuels et à des aspects particuliers de l’utilisation du paysage. Dans la vallée de la rivière Hudson dans l’est de l’État de New York, les Paléoindiens ont exploité les affleurements de chert Normanskill pour fabriquer des outils durant le Pléistocène tardif. Dans cette étude, nous combinons l’analyse par fluorescence aux rayons X qui relie les artéfacts en chert Normanskill trouvés sur les sites paléoindiens à la carrière de West Athens Hill dans la vallée de la Rivière Hudson avec une analyse du trajet de moindre coût qui modélise les trajets saisonniers des groupes du Pléistocène tardif dans le Nord-Est de l’Amérique du Nord.
PaleoAmerica, 2016
Open-Access Link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2016.1212178
Early Human S... more Open-Access Link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2016.1212178
Early Human Settlement of Northeastern North America
Abstract: This paper summarizes current evidence for earliest human occupation of northeastern North America during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. We review evolution of the region’s landscapes and evidence of archaeological chronologies as context for understanding human settlement of the region. Current data support limited evidence for pre-Clovis occupation south of the Laurentide glacial margin, followed by a significant temporal gap prior to early Paleoindian settlement of the region. Despite differences in subregional data sets, mapping of site distributions and assemblage data do support the notion of variation in lifeways between Paleoindian populations occupying formerly glaciated parts of the Northeast in the late Pleistocene, versus contemporary groups in lands south of the Laurentide glacial margin. Through time, the greatest differences in Paleoindian land use and technology occur between the Younger Dryas and early Holocene.
To cite this article: Jonathan C. Lothrop, Darrin L. Lowery, Arthur E. Spiess & Christopher J. Ellis (2016) Early Human Settlement of Northeastern North America. PaleoAmerica 2(3): 192-251.
PaleoAmerica, 2017
Paleoindian Landscapes in Southeastern and Central New York
To link to this article: http://d... more Paleoindian Landscapes in Southeastern and Central New York
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1383086
Abstract:
In 1957 and 1969, William A. Ritchie published data on geographic distributions of Paleoindian sites and points in the New York region. Discrete clusters of fluted bifaces and Paleoindian sites were apparent, variously associated with proglacial lake plains, bedrock lithic sources and other late Pleistocene landscapes. Since 2009, as part of the New York Paleoindian Database Project (NYPID), New York State Museum (NYSM) researchers and colleagues have been working with individuals and institutions to augment these early data sets on Paleoindian points and sites across the state. Our current research, focused on southeastern and central New York, substantiates the Paleoindian point/site clusters recorded by Ritchie in these two areas. Documenting settlement during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene, these point/site clusters are associated with former proglacial lake footprints in the Wallkill Valley and the Ontario Lowlands, respectively. These expanding data sets on the distribution, chronology, and lithic raw materials of these Paleoindian point and site clusters shed new light on the distinctive histories of early human occupation in these two sub-regions of New York.
PaleoAmerica, 2017
Introductory essay for PaleoAmerica 3(4) -- Thematic issue, "Paleoindian Peoples and Landscapes o... more Introductory essay for PaleoAmerica 3(4) -- Thematic issue, "Paleoindian Peoples and Landscapes of Northeastern North America"
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1384232
Abstract:
In recent decades, with new site discoveries and expanding data sets, archaeologists have increasingly embraced landscape perspectives in researching Paleoindian peoples of northeastern North America. Reflecting this trend, the collected papers in this thematic issue report new analyses that alternately focus on (1) landscapes and settlement, or (2) toolstone sourcing and seasonal range mobility. These landscape approaches permit the authors to move from traditional site-centered studies to broader explorations of the lives of Paleoindians in northeastern North America.
PaleoAmerica, 2017
Introductory essay for PaleoAmerica 3(4) -- Thematic issue, "Paleoindian Peoples and Landscapes o... more Introductory essay for PaleoAmerica 3(4) -- Thematic issue, "Paleoindian Peoples and Landscapes of Northeastern North America"
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1384232
Abstract:
In recent decades, with new site discoveries and expanding data sets, archaeologists have increasingly embraced landscape perspectives in researching Paleoindian peoples of northeastern North America. Reflecting this trend, the collected papers in this thematic issue report new analyses that alternately focus on (1) landscapes and settlement, or (2) toolstone sourcing and seasonal range mobility. These landscape approaches permit the authors to move from traditional site-centered studies to broader explorations of the lives of Paleoindians in northeastern North America.
This paper summarizes current evidence for earliest human occupation of northeastern North Americ... more This paper summarizes current evidence for earliest human occupation of northeastern North America during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. We review evolution of the region's landscapes and evidence of archaeological chronologies as context for understanding human settlement of the region. Current data support limited evidence for pre-Clovis occupation south of the Laurentide glacial margin, followed by a significant temporal gap prior to early Paleoindian settlement of the region. Despite differences in sub-regional data sets, mapping of site distributions and assemblage data do support the notion of variation in lifeways between Paleoindian populations occupying formerly glaciated parts of the Northeast in the late Pleistocene, versus contemporary groups in lands south of the Laurentide glacial margin. Through time, the greatest differences in Paleoindian land use and technology occur between the Younger Dryas and early Holocene.
Current Archaeological Research on Paleoindian Sites in Central New York
Jonathan C. Lothrop, Ne... more Current Archaeological Research on Paleoindian Sites in Central New York
Jonathan C. Lothrop, New York State Museum
Michael Beardsley, Beauchamp chapter, NYSAA
Mark Clymer, Beauchamp chapter, NYSAA
Susan Winchell-Sweeney, New York State Museum
Meredith H. Younge, New York State Museum
In: Oneida Basin, Glacial Lake Iroquois and Archaeological Contexts, edited and compiled by Eugene Domack, pp. 1-33. Guidebook for 79th Annual Reunion of the Northeastern Friends of the Pleistocene Field Conference, June 3-5, 2016, Verona, New York (http://www2.newpaltz.edu/fop/).
Quaternary International, 2011
This paper examines environmental and archaeological data for the Younger Dryas (YD) (12,900–11,6... more This paper examines environmental and archaeological data for the Younger Dryas (YD) (12,900–11,600 calibrated years before present) (cal BP) and early Holocene (11,600–10,000 cal BP) in the New England-Maritimes (NEM) to model environmental changes and possible human responses. For some other regions of North America, researchers argue for negligible environmental changes and human responses, while others suggest that ecological changes associated with cold conditions at the YD onset disrupted regional biota, causing subsistence stress for Paleoindian populations and the end of the Clovis cultural adaptation (circa 13,200–12,900 cal BP). The NEM shows abrupt cooling at the YD onset, which fostered more open habitats favorable to both long-distance migrating and local herds of caribou, and may have encouraged early Paleoindian colonization and settlement of this unoccupied deglacial region. Comparison of the Paleoindian point sequence with calibrated radiocarbon dates indicates fluted point groups probably occupied the NEM during, but not after, the YD. Abrupt warming at the YD terminus (circa 11,600 cal BP) caused a rapid reorganization of the region’s vegetation and prey species populations, coinciding in the archaeological record with a decline in Paleoindian biface fluting technology and altered regional site distributions. In the closed forests of the succeeding early Holocene NEM, late Paleoindian groups (11,600–10,000 cal BP) used unfluted, lanceolate points that may signal post-YD immigration to the NEM.
Counts of dispersed spores of the pyrenomycete dung-fungus Sporormiella have recently gained prom... more Counts of dispersed spores of the pyrenomycete dung-fungus Sporormiella have recently gained prominence as a technique to examine the end-Pleistocene mass extinction. Early investigations were able to identify Sporormiella occurrence on the dung of extinct species, including squirrel and mammoth. These early studies also noted an important trend in Sporormiella abundance over time in North America, such that spore abundances were high during the late Pleistocene, low for most of the Holocene, and again prominent with the introduction of large grazing animals by early explorers. In more recent studies, changes in the abundance of spores of this fungus in sediments have been used as a proxy to define megafaunal population presence, decline, and extinction during the late Pleistocene, and a number of sites in the northeastern USA show a similar pattern of Sporormiella abundance over time. It is our opinion that some critical taxonomic and taphonomic investigations have not been completed for Sporormiella, and because of this, there are complications in interpreting the Sporormiella spore abundance data. We constructively evaluate this analytical technique and propose supporting studies that could enhance its potential as an indicator of megaherbivore extinction and its use as a proxy for the end-Pleistocene extinction.
Quaternary International, 2011
Counts of dispersed spores of the pyrenomycete dung-fungus Sporormiella have recently gained prom... more Counts of dispersed spores of the pyrenomycete dung-fungus Sporormiella have recently gained prominence as a technique to examine the end-Pleistocene mass extinction. Early investigations were able to identify Sporormiella occurrence on the dung of extinct species, including squirrel and mammoth. These early studies also noted an important trend in Sporormiella abundance over time in North America, such that spore abundances were high during the late Pleistocene, low for most of the Holocene, and again prominent with the introduction of large grazing animals by early explorers. In more recent studies, changes in the abundance of spores of this fungus in sediments have been used as a proxy to define megafaunal population presence, decline, and extinction during the late Pleistocene, and a number of sites in the northeastern USA show a similar pattern of Sporormiella abundance over time. It is our opinion that some critical taxonomic and taphonomic investigations have not been completed for Sporormiella, and because of this, there are complications in interpreting the Sporormiella spore abundance data. We constructively evaluate this analytical technique and propose supporting studies that could enhance its potential as an indicator of megaherbivore extinction and its use as a proxy for the end-Pleistocene extinction.
Current Research in the Pleistocene, 2010
A 2006 CRM study explored Paleoindian Site 33Ms391, located in Meigs County, southeastern Ohio, i... more A 2006 CRM study explored Paleoindian Site 33Ms391, located in Meigs County, southeastern Ohio, in the unglaciated Appalachian Plateaus province (GAI , 2006b). The site lies on a late-Pleistocene dune field that mantles a T3 terrace above the Ohio River.
New York State Archaeological Association Newsletter, 2009
Archaeology of Eastern North America, 1984
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
Archaeology of Eastern …, 2006
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
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Papers by Jonathan Lothrop
Les hypothèses sur l'étendue de la mobilité des Paléoindiens à la fin du Pléistocène sont généralement inférées à partir de la distance à vol d'oiseau de la source d'une matière première au site archéologique où cette matière a été retrouvée. Cependant, l'identification d'une matière lithique n'est que rarement basée sur une étude géologique, ce qui soulève la question de l'attribution exacte de la source. Si des sites d'un âge comparable peuvent être reliés à une source de matière première lithique à l'aide d'une étude géologique et que l'acquisition directe de la matière peut être inférée, une modélisation SIG des voies de déplacement entre la source et les sites peut révéler des segments de routes reliées à des cycles annuels et à des aspects particuliers de l'utilisation du paysage. Dans la vallée de la rivière Hudson dans l'est de l'État de New York, les Paléoindiens ont exploité les affleurements de chert Normanskill pour fabriquer des outils durant le Pléistocène tardif. Dans cette étude, nous combinons l'analyse par fluorescence aux rayons X qui relie les artéfacts en chert Normanskill trouvés sur les sites paléoindiens à la carrière de West Athens Hill dans la vallée de la Rivière Hudson avec une analyse du trajet de moindre coût qui modélise les trajets saisonniers des groupes du Pléistocène tardif dans le Nord-Est de l'Amérique du Nord.
Model Paleoindian Pathways in Northeastern North America
(American Antiquity 83(3), 2018, pp. 462–484)
Authors: Jonathan C. Lothrop, Adrian L. Burke, Susan Winchell-Sweeney and Gilles Gauthier
ABSTRACTS:
Projections of Paleoindian range mobility in the late Pleistocene are typically inferred from straight-line distances between toolstone sources and sites where artifacts of these raw materials have been found. Often, however, these sourcing assessments
are not based on geologic analysis, raising the issue of correct source ascription. If sites of similar age can be linked to a toolstone source through geologic study, and direct procurement of toolstone can be inferred, geographic information systems
(GIS) modeling of travel routes between the source and those sites can reveal route segments of annual rounds and aspects of landscape use. In the Hudson Valley of eastern New York, Paleoindian peoples exploited Normanskill chert outcrops for toolstone during the late Pleistocene. Here, we combine X-ray fluorescence sourcing results that link Normanskill chert artifacts at Paleoindian sites to the West Athens Hill source outcrop in the Hudson Valley with GIS least cost path analysis to model seasonal pathways of late Pleistocene peoples in northeastern North America.
Les hypothèses sur l’étendue de la mobilité des Paléoindiens à la fin du Pléistocène sont généralement inférées à partir de la distance à vol d’oiseau de la source d’une matière première au site archéologique où cette matière a été retrouvée. Cependant, l’identification d’une matière lithique n’est que rarement basée sur une étude géologique, ce qui soulève la question de l’attribution exacte de la source. Si des sites d’un âge comparable peuvent être reliés à une source de matière première lithique à l’aide d’une étude géologique et que l’acquisition directe de la matière peut être inférée, une modélisation SIG des voies de déplacement entre la source et les sites peut révéler des segments de routes reliées à des cycles annuels et à des aspects particuliers de l’utilisation du paysage. Dans la vallée de la rivière Hudson dans l’est de l’État de New York, les Paléoindiens ont exploité les affleurements de chert Normanskill pour fabriquer des outils durant le Pléistocène tardif. Dans cette étude, nous combinons l’analyse par fluorescence aux rayons X qui relie les artéfacts en chert Normanskill trouvés sur les sites paléoindiens à la carrière de West Athens Hill dans la vallée de la Rivière Hudson avec une analyse du trajet de moindre coût qui modélise les trajets saisonniers des groupes du Pléistocène tardif dans le Nord-Est de l’Amérique du Nord.
Early Human Settlement of Northeastern North America
Abstract: This paper summarizes current evidence for earliest human occupation of northeastern North America during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. We review evolution of the region’s landscapes and evidence of archaeological chronologies as context for understanding human settlement of the region. Current data support limited evidence for pre-Clovis occupation south of the Laurentide glacial margin, followed by a significant temporal gap prior to early Paleoindian settlement of the region. Despite differences in subregional data sets, mapping of site distributions and assemblage data do support the notion of variation in lifeways between Paleoindian populations occupying formerly glaciated parts of the Northeast in the late Pleistocene, versus contemporary groups in lands south of the Laurentide glacial margin. Through time, the greatest differences in Paleoindian land use and technology occur between the Younger Dryas and early Holocene.
To cite this article: Jonathan C. Lothrop, Darrin L. Lowery, Arthur E. Spiess & Christopher J. Ellis (2016) Early Human Settlement of Northeastern North America. PaleoAmerica 2(3): 192-251.
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1383086
Abstract:
In 1957 and 1969, William A. Ritchie published data on geographic distributions of Paleoindian sites and points in the New York region. Discrete clusters of fluted bifaces and Paleoindian sites were apparent, variously associated with proglacial lake plains, bedrock lithic sources and other late Pleistocene landscapes. Since 2009, as part of the New York Paleoindian Database Project (NYPID), New York State Museum (NYSM) researchers and colleagues have been working with individuals and institutions to augment these early data sets on Paleoindian points and sites across the state. Our current research, focused on southeastern and central New York, substantiates the Paleoindian point/site clusters recorded by Ritchie in these two areas. Documenting settlement during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene, these point/site clusters are associated with former proglacial lake footprints in the Wallkill Valley and the Ontario Lowlands, respectively. These expanding data sets on the distribution, chronology, and lithic raw materials of these Paleoindian point and site clusters shed new light on the distinctive histories of early human occupation in these two sub-regions of New York.
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1384232
Abstract:
In recent decades, with new site discoveries and expanding data sets, archaeologists have increasingly embraced landscape perspectives in researching Paleoindian peoples of northeastern North America. Reflecting this trend, the collected papers in this thematic issue report new analyses that alternately focus on (1) landscapes and settlement, or (2) toolstone sourcing and seasonal range mobility. These landscape approaches permit the authors to move from traditional site-centered studies to broader explorations of the lives of Paleoindians in northeastern North America.
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1384232
Abstract:
In recent decades, with new site discoveries and expanding data sets, archaeologists have increasingly embraced landscape perspectives in researching Paleoindian peoples of northeastern North America. Reflecting this trend, the collected papers in this thematic issue report new analyses that alternately focus on (1) landscapes and settlement, or (2) toolstone sourcing and seasonal range mobility. These landscape approaches permit the authors to move from traditional site-centered studies to broader explorations of the lives of Paleoindians in northeastern North America.
Jonathan C. Lothrop, New York State Museum
Michael Beardsley, Beauchamp chapter, NYSAA
Mark Clymer, Beauchamp chapter, NYSAA
Susan Winchell-Sweeney, New York State Museum
Meredith H. Younge, New York State Museum
In: Oneida Basin, Glacial Lake Iroquois and Archaeological Contexts, edited and compiled by Eugene Domack, pp. 1-33. Guidebook for 79th Annual Reunion of the Northeastern Friends of the Pleistocene Field Conference, June 3-5, 2016, Verona, New York (http://www2.newpaltz.edu/fop/).
Les hypothèses sur l'étendue de la mobilité des Paléoindiens à la fin du Pléistocène sont généralement inférées à partir de la distance à vol d'oiseau de la source d'une matière première au site archéologique où cette matière a été retrouvée. Cependant, l'identification d'une matière lithique n'est que rarement basée sur une étude géologique, ce qui soulève la question de l'attribution exacte de la source. Si des sites d'un âge comparable peuvent être reliés à une source de matière première lithique à l'aide d'une étude géologique et que l'acquisition directe de la matière peut être inférée, une modélisation SIG des voies de déplacement entre la source et les sites peut révéler des segments de routes reliées à des cycles annuels et à des aspects particuliers de l'utilisation du paysage. Dans la vallée de la rivière Hudson dans l'est de l'État de New York, les Paléoindiens ont exploité les affleurements de chert Normanskill pour fabriquer des outils durant le Pléistocène tardif. Dans cette étude, nous combinons l'analyse par fluorescence aux rayons X qui relie les artéfacts en chert Normanskill trouvés sur les sites paléoindiens à la carrière de West Athens Hill dans la vallée de la Rivière Hudson avec une analyse du trajet de moindre coût qui modélise les trajets saisonniers des groupes du Pléistocène tardif dans le Nord-Est de l'Amérique du Nord.
Model Paleoindian Pathways in Northeastern North America
(American Antiquity 83(3), 2018, pp. 462–484)
Authors: Jonathan C. Lothrop, Adrian L. Burke, Susan Winchell-Sweeney and Gilles Gauthier
ABSTRACTS:
Projections of Paleoindian range mobility in the late Pleistocene are typically inferred from straight-line distances between toolstone sources and sites where artifacts of these raw materials have been found. Often, however, these sourcing assessments
are not based on geologic analysis, raising the issue of correct source ascription. If sites of similar age can be linked to a toolstone source through geologic study, and direct procurement of toolstone can be inferred, geographic information systems
(GIS) modeling of travel routes between the source and those sites can reveal route segments of annual rounds and aspects of landscape use. In the Hudson Valley of eastern New York, Paleoindian peoples exploited Normanskill chert outcrops for toolstone during the late Pleistocene. Here, we combine X-ray fluorescence sourcing results that link Normanskill chert artifacts at Paleoindian sites to the West Athens Hill source outcrop in the Hudson Valley with GIS least cost path analysis to model seasonal pathways of late Pleistocene peoples in northeastern North America.
Les hypothèses sur l’étendue de la mobilité des Paléoindiens à la fin du Pléistocène sont généralement inférées à partir de la distance à vol d’oiseau de la source d’une matière première au site archéologique où cette matière a été retrouvée. Cependant, l’identification d’une matière lithique n’est que rarement basée sur une étude géologique, ce qui soulève la question de l’attribution exacte de la source. Si des sites d’un âge comparable peuvent être reliés à une source de matière première lithique à l’aide d’une étude géologique et que l’acquisition directe de la matière peut être inférée, une modélisation SIG des voies de déplacement entre la source et les sites peut révéler des segments de routes reliées à des cycles annuels et à des aspects particuliers de l’utilisation du paysage. Dans la vallée de la rivière Hudson dans l’est de l’État de New York, les Paléoindiens ont exploité les affleurements de chert Normanskill pour fabriquer des outils durant le Pléistocène tardif. Dans cette étude, nous combinons l’analyse par fluorescence aux rayons X qui relie les artéfacts en chert Normanskill trouvés sur les sites paléoindiens à la carrière de West Athens Hill dans la vallée de la Rivière Hudson avec une analyse du trajet de moindre coût qui modélise les trajets saisonniers des groupes du Pléistocène tardif dans le Nord-Est de l’Amérique du Nord.
Early Human Settlement of Northeastern North America
Abstract: This paper summarizes current evidence for earliest human occupation of northeastern North America during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. We review evolution of the region’s landscapes and evidence of archaeological chronologies as context for understanding human settlement of the region. Current data support limited evidence for pre-Clovis occupation south of the Laurentide glacial margin, followed by a significant temporal gap prior to early Paleoindian settlement of the region. Despite differences in subregional data sets, mapping of site distributions and assemblage data do support the notion of variation in lifeways between Paleoindian populations occupying formerly glaciated parts of the Northeast in the late Pleistocene, versus contemporary groups in lands south of the Laurentide glacial margin. Through time, the greatest differences in Paleoindian land use and technology occur between the Younger Dryas and early Holocene.
To cite this article: Jonathan C. Lothrop, Darrin L. Lowery, Arthur E. Spiess & Christopher J. Ellis (2016) Early Human Settlement of Northeastern North America. PaleoAmerica 2(3): 192-251.
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1383086
Abstract:
In 1957 and 1969, William A. Ritchie published data on geographic distributions of Paleoindian sites and points in the New York region. Discrete clusters of fluted bifaces and Paleoindian sites were apparent, variously associated with proglacial lake plains, bedrock lithic sources and other late Pleistocene landscapes. Since 2009, as part of the New York Paleoindian Database Project (NYPID), New York State Museum (NYSM) researchers and colleagues have been working with individuals and institutions to augment these early data sets on Paleoindian points and sites across the state. Our current research, focused on southeastern and central New York, substantiates the Paleoindian point/site clusters recorded by Ritchie in these two areas. Documenting settlement during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene, these point/site clusters are associated with former proglacial lake footprints in the Wallkill Valley and the Ontario Lowlands, respectively. These expanding data sets on the distribution, chronology, and lithic raw materials of these Paleoindian point and site clusters shed new light on the distinctive histories of early human occupation in these two sub-regions of New York.
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1384232
Abstract:
In recent decades, with new site discoveries and expanding data sets, archaeologists have increasingly embraced landscape perspectives in researching Paleoindian peoples of northeastern North America. Reflecting this trend, the collected papers in this thematic issue report new analyses that alternately focus on (1) landscapes and settlement, or (2) toolstone sourcing and seasonal range mobility. These landscape approaches permit the authors to move from traditional site-centered studies to broader explorations of the lives of Paleoindians in northeastern North America.
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2017.1384232
Abstract:
In recent decades, with new site discoveries and expanding data sets, archaeologists have increasingly embraced landscape perspectives in researching Paleoindian peoples of northeastern North America. Reflecting this trend, the collected papers in this thematic issue report new analyses that alternately focus on (1) landscapes and settlement, or (2) toolstone sourcing and seasonal range mobility. These landscape approaches permit the authors to move from traditional site-centered studies to broader explorations of the lives of Paleoindians in northeastern North America.
Jonathan C. Lothrop, New York State Museum
Michael Beardsley, Beauchamp chapter, NYSAA
Mark Clymer, Beauchamp chapter, NYSAA
Susan Winchell-Sweeney, New York State Museum
Meredith H. Younge, New York State Museum
In: Oneida Basin, Glacial Lake Iroquois and Archaeological Contexts, edited and compiled by Eugene Domack, pp. 1-33. Guidebook for 79th Annual Reunion of the Northeastern Friends of the Pleistocene Field Conference, June 3-5, 2016, Verona, New York (http://www2.newpaltz.edu/fop/).
Note: For a PDF copy of this publication, contact us by email at: [email protected]
Abstract:
Focusing on the procurement, transport, and processing of lithic resources by Paleoindian groups in North America (circa 11,000 to 9500 RCYBP), the contributors use lithics as a key to other aspects of Paleoindian culture, including settlement mobility, exchange networks, subsistence strategies, the role of lithic procurement strategies and settlement systems, and the social context of lithic procurement and use. Based on new data, the authors have laid the groundwork for a more detailed and sophisticated understanding of the complexities of Paleoindian adaptations.
toolstone for northeastern Paleoindians. And, by revealing possible pathways that these Paleoindian peoples may have used, the GIS analysis may provide a more realistic perspective on how these early peoples traversed the Ice Age landscapes of New York.