South Park Archaeology Project

Goals

The goals of SPArP are as lofty as the mountains that encircle the park—a series of intensive surveys that will piece together a clear picture of the archaeological history of the park since the Late Ice Age.

Those who have worked in or thought about the prehistory of the Platte River Basin have articulated a number of important research questions, and SPArP hopes to contribute useful data and insights for answering these questions. Our research focus is primarily on late Pleistocene/Early Holocene adaptations of the Southern Rockies; we're looking for Paleoindian sites. However, as partners have come into the project they have brought their individual interests. For example, Tigner is interested in the historic era, especially ranching and homesteading. Bender from Skidmore College will bring a student and research grant that will emphasize field survey and chronology building of South Park's Archaic occupations.

Since Paleoindian studies are a major component of the research program, it has been important to ask the question: where are the Paleoindian sites? Our intent is to employ remote sensing and geospatial techniques to identify ancient enough geomorphic areas where Paleoindian sites are most likely to occur.

Actually, the same question and analytical techniques can be applied to Archaic and post-Archaic sites. One of the long-term project goals is to conduct a paleoenvironment research program, to reconstruct past environments, climates and ecologies essential to understanding the adaptive patterns of past hunter-gatherer populations. Paleoenvironmental reconstruction and predictive models will be something that we hope we can report on in depth in the future.

The project will address issues of technology, settlement structure, and adaptive techniques as reflected by lithic (stone tool) assemblages and features. These questions will be specifically aimed at documenting Paleoindian/Archaic transition sites. Do they follow expected site signatures relative to prairie or mountain adaptive models? Because of its immense size and suspected quantity of sites, South Park data should assist greatly in addressing cultural origin and change questions. Is the Mountain Tradition (Black 1991) expressed throughout the Archaic Period in the Southern Rockies region the dominate adaptive strategy in the South Park area? Is there evidence of mountain prairie movement and interaction? To what degree do prairie, Numic (Ute), or locally derived adaptive models dominate post-Archaic occupation? These are all questions that merit serious consideration.

Following up on Black's (1993) work on material sources, SPArP will attempt to locate primary and secondary lithic sources in South Park. Are there specific geologic outcrop quarry sources or was lithic procurement more commonly an expedient activity that took material from the ubiquitous alluvial terrace cobbles and nodules know to be scattered throughout the park? In conjunction with U.S. Geological Survey labs in Denver, we are conducting trace element analyses using Laser ablation ICP (inductively coupled plasma), electron micro-probe wavelength spectroscopy, and energy dispersion x-ray analysis.