Shawnee Minisink. A Stratified Paleoindian–Archaic Site in the Upper Delaware Valley of Pennsylvania

319 Pages·1985·19.41 MB·English

by  Charles McNett

STUDIES IN ARCHAEOLOGY
Consulting Editor: Stuart Struever
Department of Anthropology
Northwestern University
Evanston, Illinois
A complete list of titles in this series is available from the publisher.
SHAWNEE MINISINK
A Stratified Paleoindian—Archaic Site
in the Upper Delaware Valley of Pennsylvania
Edited by
Charles W. McNett, Jr.
Department of Anthropology
The American University
Washington, D.C.
1985
ACADEMIC PRESS, INC.
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Main entry under title:
Shawnee Minisink.
(Studies in archaeology)
1. Shawnee Miniâink Site (Pa.) 2. Paleo-Indians—
Delaware River Valley (N.Y.-Del. and N.J.) —
Antiquities. 3. Munsee Indians—Antiquities.
4. Shawnee Indians—Antiquities. 5. Excavations
(Archaeology) —Delaware River Valley (N.Y.-Del. and
N.J.) 6. Delaware River Valley (N.Y.-Del. and NJ.)-
Antiquities. 7. Pennsylvania—Antiquities. I. McNett,
Charles W. II. Series: Studies in archaeology
(Academic Press).
E78.D5S42 1986 974.8'25 85-9158
ISBN 0-12-485970-4 (alk. paper)
ISBN 0-12-485971-2 (paperback)
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
85 86 87 88 987654321
Contributors
Numbers in parentheses indicate the pages on which the authors' contributions begin.
Richard J. Dent (3, 35, 55, 123), Department of Anthropology, University of
Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742
June Evans (3, 211, 221), Department of Anthropology, The American Univer­
sity, Washington, D.C. 20016
Barbara E. Kauffman (55), Department of Sociology and Anthropology, New
Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico 88003
Donald Kline (15), Society for Pennsylvania Archaeology, Mt. Bethel, Pennsyl­
vania 18343
Barbara A. McMillan (3, 261), School of Library Science, University of Michi­
gan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
Charles WMcNettJr. (3,21,83,321), Department of Anthropology, The Ameri­
can University, Washington, D.C. 20016
Sydne B. Marshall (3,165), Envirosphere Company, Two World Trade Center,
New York, New York 10048
Pamela Rule (211), Department of Anthropology, The American University,
Washington, D.C. 20016
Preface
The Shawnee Minisink site was, and remains today, the only deeply stratified,
sealed Paleoindian-Early Archaic site ever excavated in the northeastern United
States. It has produced evidence of several early cultures. This book details the
results of four years of painstaking excavation and is written for the profes­
sional and avocational archaeologist as well as the layperson interested in the
study of the lifestyles of the earliest inhabitants of North America.
Many specialists had assumed that the earliest North American cultures,
dated to about 11,000 years ago, were specialized hunters. However, the evi­
dence recovered by innovative excavation and analytic techniques, including a
massive computerized data storage and retrieval file, indicates that wild plants
and fish were also important sources of subsistence for these earliest people.
Some 55,000 artifacts were recovered; their analysis and placement into a chro­
nological series related to reconstructed environments was a collaborative ef­
fort, with each author in this volume working on a piece of the puzzle and all
contributing to the understanding of the whole.
The Shawnee Minisink site was named after its location in the Minisink Flats
near the tip of Shawnee Island near East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. It thus
appropriately bears the name of the two last groups of Native Americans to live
in the Upper Delaware Valley. Minisink is derived from a word in the Minsi
dialect of Lenape which was pronounced approximately Minsing. It consists of
the root Minsi, plus the locative ending ng, "in the place of the Minsi." After
the Minsi were driven from their homeland in the Poconos and traveled to the
west, the equally homeless Shawnee came into the area; they, too, left for the
western territories after a time.
Credit for discovering the Shawnee Minisink site, recognizing its impor­
tance, and insuring its proper excavation must go to Donald Kline. His perse­
verance, good sense, and careful excavation techniques have added greatly to
our understanding of the prehistory of early man in the eastern United States.
xi
Xll Preface
The Upper Delaware Valley Early Man Project would have been impossible
without the cooperation of the late Karl Hope, who owned the land where the
Shawnee Minisink site is located at the time the site was discovered. He not
only graciously gave permission to excavate the site but also allowed us to use a
summer camp he owned during the first season of excavation. His wife, Hilda
Hope, has donated the artifacts from the site to the American University archae­
ology collections, where they will be available for further study
We are also eternally in the debt of the hundreds of students, volunteers,
townspeople, spouses, and experts in many disciplines who cooperated on the
project. We have tried, in the text, to single out some of these for recognition.
To the many others for whom space limitations precluded mention, our thanks.
Finally, we acknowledge the financial support of both the National Geo­
graphic Society and the National Science Foundation.
Our whole aim in carrying out the Upper Delaware Valley Early Man Project
was to understand better the history and prehistory of the area and its inhabi­
tants. It thus seems appropriate to dedicate this book to the Lenape, who were
the culmination of nearly 11,000 years of history in the valley. May their tribe
increase!
CHAPTER
The Upper Delaware Valley
Early Man Project
Charles W. McNett, Jr., Richard J. Dent, June Evans,
Sydne B. Marshall, and Barbara A McMillan
Background
In 1973 the remarkable discoveries of Donald Kline of East Stroudsburg,
Pennsylvania, were brought to the attention of Charles W. McNett, Jr. of The
American University, Department of Anthropology. Kline, in two seasons of
excavations, had penetrated deep alluvial and loess deposits at the confluence
of the Delaware River and Brodhead Creek within the Upper Delaware Valley.
His excavations revealed large amounts of chippage, distinctive endscrapers,
and a hearth, all at an astounding stratigraphie depth. Charcoal from the
hearth was later radiocarbon assayed to 10,590 ± 300 radiocarbon years
(W-2994). Floral and faunal remains were also recovered from this hearth.
The consensus was that Kline had discovered a major Paleoindian component
within the Upper Delaware Valley. Evidence also suggested that substantial
Early Archaic and minor Woodland components were present.
This site (36 MR 43) was originally designated the DeRocco site by Kline in
honor of the landowner at the time of Kline's excavations. The name was later
changed to Shawnee Minisink after the two small Pennsylvania villages that
are in close proximity to the site. Based on Kline's discoveries, McNett and his
students set out to obtain funding and support for long-term research at the
site. The Upper Delaware Valley Early Man Project was thus conceived with
Shawnee Minisink: A Stratified Paleoindian-Archaic 3 Copyright © 1985 by Academic Press, Inc.
Site in the Upper Delaware Valley of Pennsylvania All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.
4 Charles W. McNett, Jr., et al
the goal of conducting multidisciplinary research aimed at understanding
aboriginal lifeways in a riverine ecosystem of eastern North America. Active
field research was undertaken between 1974 and 1977 and analysis of data
produced by the project continues today. Funding for the fieldwork phase
was generously provided by the National Geographic Society (1974-1976)
and the National Science Foundation (1975 and 1977).
McNett served as principal investigator and director of the Upper Delaware
Valley Early Man Project. Each year a different student was chosen to super­
vise excavations under McNett's direction. Russell Handsman with the as­
sistance of Chris Borstel was a driving force in helping to mount the first
season of excavations and did much to articulate the research design and
methods. Barbara A. McMillan was the 1974 site supervisor and was followed
by Sydne B. Marshall in 1975, June Evans in 1976, and Richard J. Dent in 1977.
Each field season many other students were also trained through field
schools and volunteer programs. Kline, the site founder, kept a watchful eye
on the excavations and continued to lend his expertise to the project.
In this introductory chapter, a brief description of the Shawnee Minisink
site, the focus of field research, is presented. Because many different indi­
viduals participated in the excavations, the context of their specific interests
are also explained. If there was an overall philosophy that all held, it was that
the archaeological record of northeastern North America offered a rich labo­
ratory for testing the recent theoretic and methodological advances of archae­
ology. In many ways, perhaps, the ferment of contemporary archaeology
made the transfer to actual field research and analysis more easily in the
Northeast then it did in other regions. Those who associated themselves with
the Upper Delaware Valley Early Man Project believe that these data reported
through this volume, along with those recently reported by their colleagues
working at other sites in the Northeast, is justification for this optimism.
The Shawnee Minisink Site
The Shawnee Minisink site is located at 41 degrees north latitude by 75
degrees 15 minutes west longitude within the ridge and valley province of
northeastern Pennsylvania. This area of Pennsylvania, known as the Upper
Delaware Valley, is defined by the Delaware River as it flows between the
flanking Pocono Mountains to the west and the Kittatinny Ridge to the east.
The Shawnee Minisink site itself is located on a second terrace at the con­
fluence of the Delaware River and Brodhead Creek (see Figure 1.1).
Topographically, the site is elevated some 6.5 m above the Delaware River
and Brodhead Creek (site elevation 114 m above mean sea level). This parcel
of land has a southern exposure and is protected by elevated land to the
1. The Upper Delaware Valley Early Man Project 5
STROUDSBURG,
PENNSYLVANIA
BRODHEAD
CREEK
DELAWARE
RIVER
0 1500m
Figure 1.1 Map of Shawnee Minisink site environs.
north. It is just north of the terminal moraine of the last Wisconsin, Woodfor-
dian, glacial advance. The lower first terrace formation consists primarily of
outwash gravel deposited during the retreat of this glacial intrusion. A kame
terrace from the same period is also located a short distance north of the site.
The second terrace, containing the site, consists of alluvium deposited by the
two nearby streams as well as some loess deposits. This second terrace has
also been incised behind the site by a meander channel of the Brodhead
Creek.
Kline, the archaeologist who discovered the site, excavated five test units
during the course of his research. When large-scale excavations were initiated
in 1974, a block of his excavation units were incorporated in the south­
western corner of a 70- x 50-foot grid (see Figure 1.2). Eventually all units
within this grid were excavated at least through Early Archaic zones, and
most, with the exception of five units (10,14,15,19, and 20), were excavated
past the Paleoindian layers. Four outlying test units (see Figure 1.2) were also
excavated through the Paleoindian layers. Based on additional soil testing and
augering, it is estimated that slightly less than 25% of the total site has been
excavated.
Charles W. McNett, Jr., et al
32 I
70'
1 5 4 3 2
107' |
33 10 9 8 7 6
107'
15 14 13 12 II
34
20 19 18 17 16
25 24 23 22 21
N KLINE'S 28 27 26
1
UNIT
31 30 29
Figure 1.2 Excavation grid (10 x 10-ft units).
During these excavations over 55,000 individual artifacts were recovered.
All were plotted in their exaa horizontal and vertical provenience relative to
the site datum. A computer system was utilized to store the large amounts of
information collected on these artifacts and the associated features. In addi­
tion to artifact recovery, the project also utilized a systematic sampling pro­
cedure and water-separation technique to recover small-scale floral and
faunal remains. Detailed studies of the site soil systems were also undertaken.
In vertical profile, four major cultural zones were isolated within 13 major
soil horizons. These soil horizons run for approximately 5 m from the
ground surface down to the outwash gravel that forms the first terrace. Cul­
tural zones are restricted to the top approximately 3 m of this soil profile (see
Figure 1.3). In all, artifacts assignable to the Paleoindian, Early Archaic, Late
Archaic, Transitional, as well as Early, Middle, and Late Woodland periods
were recovered. A brief synopsis of these cultural periods is offered below.
The Paleoindian zone is buried beneath approximately 3 m of soil. It is
completely sealed from the Archaic occupations by a large sterile sand depos­
it. Because these Paleoindian artifacts are found within a loess deposit, it
appears as if they were particularly immune to any postdepositional distur­
bance. Two radiocarbon dates were run on charcoal collected from hearths
in direct association with artifacts. The first sample, as reported previously,
was assayed to 10,590 ± 300 radiocarbon years (W-2994) and the second
sample was assayed to 10,750 ± 600 radiocarbon years (W-3134). Two other