Read Ebook: Excavations at the LoDaisKa Site in the Denver Colorado area by Irwin H T Henry Thomas Johnson Irwin Williams Cynthia Galinat Walton C Contributor Hunt Charles B Charles Butler Contributor Lewis G Edward George Edward Contributor Rodden Robert J Contributor Whitehead Donald R Donald Reed Contributor Wormington H M Hann

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TABLES

Investigations At The LoDaisKa Site

Introduction

HISTORY OF INVESTIGATION

The foothills of the Rocky Mountains, although readily accessible, are archaeologically almost unknown. Geographically they lie between two culture areas--the Desert Culture of the Great Basin to the west and the Plains cultures to the east. Environmentally the region preserves a special character unlike either the Basin or the Plains. The area around the town of Morrison, Colorado, some fifteen miles west of Denver, seemed to offer unusual potentialities for archaeological investigation because of the prominent rock formations and the possibilities of overhangs. Very little previous work had been done in the vicinity.

Dr. E. B. Renaud undertook the first archaeological reconnaissance of the area in 1931 and 1932. His survey was brief, but indicated the presence of several sites. However, the Morrison area is not ideal for the location of archaeological remains, principally because its mesophytic environment gives rise to little erosion. Since 1931 the only investigation was carried out by amateurs of the region. The most extensive survey was done by LoDaisKa Bethel, to whom we owe the discovery of the present site. The authors became aware of the importance of the area after a surface survey, and after the excavation of two rockshelters containing the remains of the Plains Woodland Culture . Subsequent contact with Mrs. Bethel led to the excavation of the LoDaisKa Site.

Physiography

The LoDaisKa Site is located beneath an outcrop of Fountain Sandstone, about a mile south of Morrison, on the ranch of Otto Sanger. Physiographically the Morrison area is part of the Southern Rocky Mountain Province. Broad elevated strips of granite, running north and south, are flanked by dipping sedimentary rocks. The latter are generally lower and form foothills. Both once formed continuous anticlinal structures, now deeply eroded . The granite masses are usually mountainous, but occasionally form vast plateaus such as South Park. Locally they are capped by remnant sedimentaries.

For over half the mountain frontage of this Province, a very resistant formation, the Dakota Sandstone, creates a "hogback". A valley of weaker sedimentaries lies between it and the foothills, beginning about two miles to the west. The Fountain Sandstone, locally known as the "Red Rocks" formation, outcrops in this depression.

Mountain streams collecting in the inter-ridge valley form a trellis drainage pattern. Master streams cut through the Dakota Formation creating watergaps. The LoDaisKa Site lies in the shelter of an outcrop of the Fountain Sandstone which rises some 60 feet above the valley. The site lies at an elevation of about 6200 feet.

CLIMATE

Precipitation Temperature Mean Mean Av. Ann. Max. Min. Mean Ann. Ann. Max. Ann. Min. Morrison 14.20? 22.96? 7.51? Denver 15.70?? 23.10? 7.84? 50.3? 63.2? 37.3? Av. Ann. Snowfall 55.6?

No available temperature or snowfall records for Morrison. Morrison lies about 18 miles west of the Denver Record station and is slightly higher. Temperatures do not differ appreciably from Denver. Data was collected in 1941-1956 for Morrison, 1905-1957 for Denver.

Fauna and Flora of the Region

The Morrison area as a floral biome is characterized by its transitional nature, from the plains to the east and the mountains to the west. Harrington has designated the environment as the Mountain Shrub Subdivision of the Mountain and Plateau Area.

Especially characteristic of the zone are the following plants:

From the Ponderosa Pine-Douglas Fir Subdivision the following characteristic plants overlap:

These distinctive plants have invaded from the prairie fringe:

Mammals common to the Transition and Upper Sonoran Zones include:

The following are common to the Transition and Canadian Zones:

Common to the Transition, Canadian and Upper Sonoran Zones are:

Description of the Site

The rockshelter itself is now a moderately large overhang, measuring some 40 feet in width and 15 feet in depth. As Fig. 6 indicates, the ceiling slopes upward rapidly and only the inner yard or so is completely protected from rain or drizzle. When first inhabited, the floor of sand and gravel sloped up to the mouth , and presumably continued into the flat valley outside. At the time of excavation, however, the surface sloped to the north. This difference appears to have been due to the collapse of a considerable portion of the adjacent cliff face, creating an enormous mound of dirt and sandstone, which washed in from the north during the latest stages of occupation.

The small intermittent stream, Strain Gulch, flows in front of the shelter on a southwest-northeast axis. It has cut down its bed to a gravelly-bouldery layer corresponding to the lowest level at LoDaisKa. The fill between the stream and the site is of a wet limey nature. Excavation was extended in this direction as far as was feasible. Beyond the stream lies a valley about one-half mile wide, bounded on the west by the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

Method of Excavation

In preparation for excavation, a vertical rod was driven in the southern sector and the datum point established twenty inches above the ground surface at this spot. A second stake was located on a north-south line from the first at the opposite end of the shelter. A horizontal line connecting these stakes at the level of the datum point was considered the baseline. The area of the rock shelter to be excavated was then laid out in one yard squares. Letters were assigned to the grid lines running east-west, and numbers to those running north-south. Each square was designated by the grid lines intersecting at its northeast corner. To facilitate exact measurement, a series of stakes was set up along the baseline at intervals of two yards. From locations on the stakes on the same horizontal plane as the datum point, lines were extended to corresponding pitons driven into the rear wall of the overhang. A second series of connecting lines formed a suspended grid of two yard squares.

A preliminary test trench one yard wide and four yards long, was dug in squares M6-9 to determine whether complete excavation was warranted. Subsequent yard square test pits were sunk at P 7-8 and K 8. It was hoped that these would indicate the nature of the geologic stratigraphy and at least suggest the range of cultural materials which might be expected. Since excavation seemed warranted, the entire area to be worked was cleared of the surface layer of manure.

As set forth in the description of the site, the recent floor sloped up toward the northwest . Test excavations indicated that the basal layer was approximately horizontal in a north-south direction, but sloped gently up toward the west. There seemed to be no significant correlation between geologic stratigraphy and typology in any except the lowest layer, which had not yet been extensively investigated. Because the evidence was as yet so scanty, it was decided to excavate with reference to both the surface and the datum point. Each square was treated as a separate unit and, except where natural levels were apparent, excavation proceeded in four inch levels measured from the surface at the northeast corner. Each level was also correlated with the datum point.

Both typological provenience and the position of the basal layer indicated that the major portion of the deposit had been laid down horizontally. To test this hypothesis a careful watch was kept for fragmentary specimens, in the hope of finding corresponding pieces from separate locations. The relative positions of these would suggest the nature of the surface on which they were deposited. Ten such fragments found comprised five artifacts: three potsherds, one handstone and one fragmentary grinding slab. Though some occurred as much as twelve yards apart, each pair fell within the same vertical level. From this analysis it appeared that the occupation levels were in fact approximately horizontal.

Stepped excavation seemed advisable in view of the unconsolidated nature of the deposit . Vertical exposures more than two feet high collapsed as soon as the lower portions became thoroughly dry. These conditions made stratigraphic columns or balks impractical in most instances. However, by the use of rip-rapping, it was possible to leave a reference balk one foot wide on the north side of line N 5-11.

Artifacts were sacked and later marked by level and square. Floral remains were similarly treated. Faunal material was rather sparse, and was therefore segregated by twelve inch levels measured from the datum point. All features were recorded and located on the map by means of a transit, and located vertically by measurements from the baseline.

Preliminary Discussion of the Stratigraphy

The method and objectives of this monograph can best be understood in relation to the nature of the stratigraphic situation. Therefore, it appears desirable to present first a basic and unelaborated view of the stratigraphy which will be discussed more fully later. As shown in Figs. 9, 10, 11 and 12, there were four levels of natural stratigraphy. When excavation of the test trench and adjoining pits was finished, it appeared that only the lowest could be correlated with any single culture. However, the others were useful in intra-site correlation. This lowest level was a bed of indefinite depth, composed of gravel and boulders of Late Wisconsin age . Above it lay a homogeneous deposit consisting of sand and silt mixed with cultural debris, from 54 to 63 inches thick. About three-fourths of the way up there was a scatter of rather large rocks and gravel, which appears to represent some kind of maximum inwash or roof-fall into the site. The next natural level is of reddish sand, a maximum of one foot thick, with very sparse cultural materials. This red sand layer is considerably thicker in the southern end of the site than elsewhere, tapering off gradually to the north till it disappears about on line H. The same is true of the top layer , a bed of dusty brown fill about four inches thick in the main part of the site, showing a slightly greater intensity of occupation. Together these produce a floor sloping down toward the north. The whole unit finally was overlain by a layer of cow dung.

The authors recognize several occupations or cultural units at the site. The first is confined to the lowest geological layer, and appears to represent remnants of an Early Lithic stage on the Plains. The second has roots in the Great Basin and is confined to the third geological layer. It is represented in its purest form from the beginning of the third natural level to about 72 inches below the baseline. However, some types characteristic of this occupation continue upwards, tapering off slowly and disappearing at about 53 inches below baseline. The third unit represents a Plains oriented culture, beginning at about 72 inches below the baseline and extending to about 53 inches. The fourth occupation is a variant of Plains Woodland Culture extending from about 53-30 inches below baseline. The final occupation begins at about 48 inches and extends to the surface. The authors feel that it represents a variant of the Fremont Culture of Utah and western Colorado.

These divisions are arbitrary and based on typology. There is some degree of overlap. Since the fill is shallow compared to the time range represented, there was undoubtedly a considerable amount of mixing, plus the ever present chance of re-use. Characteristically, as Jennings found at Danger Cave, the beginning of any cultural type is more apt to be a synchronic affair than its end.

Objectives of the Monograph

The bulk of the present monograph will be devoted to a description of the cultural remains uncovered at the LoDaisKa Site, and delineation of the circumstances of their discovery. However, an accumulation of facts loses much of its significance if no attempt at organization and interpretation is made. "The archaeologist must make some effort to integrate as well as observe his material, or he becomes a technician rather than a scientist." . It is realized that cultural units must be defined primarily on the basis of typology, because of the general lack of corresponding geological units. In this connection, the present state of flux in Great Basin taxonomy renders the results less absolute than might be desired. For this reason considerable emphasis has been placed on making as much as possible of the raw data available.

The object of the interpretive study will be twofold: 1) to make a comparative analysis of the typology of the LoDaisKa artifacts in relation to both the Plains and Great Basin Culture areas ; 2) to make some attempt, on the basis of the archaeological remains and analogies with ethnologically observable data, to provide some insight into the total culture of the inhabitants as it existed at the time of occupancy. Of course, as one progresses further from the empirical evidence, to higher levels of interpretation the reliability of the conclusions decreases proportionately .

The primary difficulty, as indicated, is the absence of stratigraphically isolated culture units. Because of this a certain amount of overlap is to be expected: a small geologic unit represents a long and apparently uninterrupted occupational continuum. The resultant telescoping would increase the effects of trampling and other disturbance. However, it became increasingly apparent during excavation that, on the basis of typology and overall stratigraphic relationships, at least four complexes should be recognized; a broken point and a few flakes found in the lowest geologic stratum suggest a fifth. Two of these cultures appear to be affiliated with the Great Basin, three with the Plains.

THE LODAISKA SITE

FEATURES

Hearths

Eleven hearths were found; they may be characterized briefly as follows:

In addition to these hearths the whole shelter had minor concentrations of charcoal and ash in every level. Such debris was, in fact, found throughout the soil in varying quantities.

Cists

Three features encountered were termed cists. All were located in the rear of the shelter in the center section. All were flat-bottomed basins dug into the sand underlying the Piney Creek alluvium . Around the sides of these were set small rocks with more or less flat surfaces. Within Cists A and C were found remains of seeds.

TYPOLOGY

Method

One often notices an emphasis on projectile points in archaeological reports, especially in studies of non-ceramic or pre-ceramic cultures. Archaeology as a historical science must integrate all the data with their own context and with events which preceded and followed. In searching for data that provide such chronological and geographical correlation , there are certain basic needs. Though any cultural element could be used in correlations of this kind, some are less useful because their forms are governed by function, and others are fundamentally common and form traditions rather than horizon styles . A horizon marker must have some kind of stylistic development which allows variation outside of function. In cultures without pottery, as Willey and Phillips have pointed out , projectile points become the most important artifacts in classification and integration because, 1) the usual economic mode of subsistence of people at this level renders a plentiful supply of such artifacts, and 2) as artistic representations they are sensitive to styles yet remain stable for adequate periods of time.

Projectile points from the LoDaisKa Site are therefore treated differently from certain other artifacts. We have illustrated all of the projectile points from pre-ceramic levels. Where these make up a type all of the artifacts of this type, even though it may extend into ceramic times, are so treated. This has been done for two reasons: 1) A major portion of the material is apparently affiliated with the Great Basin. Great Basin types are extremely variable and difficult to classify. 2) Cultures of that area have been, until recently, little investigated and cultural patterns which are not now recognized may some day be distinguished; the authors hope to create a record which will be useful even when new data come to light. For ceramic periods we forgo such detail for two reasons: 1) Pottery is present as a more sensitive marker. 2) The points found are usually uniform enough to fit into a few internally consistent categories.

We have divided projectile points into 16 categories, 8 major ones. This is primarily for convenience; secondly because some categories probably do represent cultural types; and thirdly because there are morphological ranges which may be described briefly in terms of a basic pattern. We believe with Cressman that some form existed in the minds of their makers and that a certain amount of variation is consistent within a type. It is worth noting the testimony of certain Ute informants who claimed that each tribe made its own recognizable form of point.

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