The Younge Site: An Archaeological Record from Michigan 9781951538576, 9780932206015

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OCCASIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF ANTHROPOLOGY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN No. 6

THE YOUNGE SITE AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD FROM MICHIGAN

BY

EMERSON F. GREENMAN WITH APPENDICES BY FREDERICK R. MATSON, JR., AND BYRON 0. HUGHES

Ann Arbor

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN MUSEUM OF ANTHROPOLOGY Reprinted, 1967

© 1937 by the Regents of the University of Michigan The Museum of Anthropology All rights reserved ISBN (print): 978-0-932206-01-5 ISBN (ebook): 978-1-951538-57-6 Browse all of our books at sites.lsa.umich.edu/archaeology-books. Order our books from the University of Michigan Press at www.press.umich.edu. For permissions, questions, or manuscript queries, contact Museum publications by email at [email protected] or visit the Museum website at lsa.umich.edu/ummaa.

FOREWORD Three days of excavation by Dr. W. B. Hinsdale at the Younge site in September, 1934, resulted in the finding of perforated crania similar to those previously observed at Farmington and at Flat Rock, Michigan. Work was discontinued because of the time of year, but the site was selected for excavation for the season of 19 3 5, in order to extend know ledge of the traits already observed. Although the chief aim of the present report is to present the factual data for this site, some space has been given in the Conclusion to comparative historical information in the attempt to point out the main directions in which final interpretation must proceed after examination of other related sites has yielded additional information. Excavation of one such site near Mount Clemens, Michigan, was begun in 1936. The reader who wishes to obtain the main outlines of the work done at the Younge site without reading the entire report will find a fairly comprehensive statement in the following sections (see Contents): Description of the Site; Enclosure 1, General Description; Enclosure 2, General Description; Summary of Burials; Summary of Pottery; Stone and Bone Implements; Conclusion. I desire to express my appreciation for the assistance without which this report would have been less complete than it is. Dr. W. B. Hinsdale is responsible for recognition of the importance of the problem of perforated crania and long bones from Michigan sites, and the choice of the Younge site for excavation was made by him. His advice and counsel, in the field and in the search for historic parallels to the phenomena brought out by excavation, have been indispensable. Dr. Carl E. Guthe assumed charge of excavations for one week in my absence, during which time he became thoroughly familiar with the work and the problems that were involved. His encouragement and advice in the solution of problems that were new to me are deeply appreciated. v

Vl

FOREWORD

The information in the text and tables concerning the pits was collected from the field notes and organized by Mr. H. Holmes Ellis; the skeletal material was cleaned, repaired, and brought to a suitable condition for the taking of measurements by Mr. George I. Quimby. Conversations with Dr. James B. Griffin of the Ceramic Repository of the Museum of Anthropology have expedited determination of the relationship of the site to other sites. Reports upon the physical character of the pottery by Mr. Frederick R. Matson, Jr., and upon the skeletal material by Mr. Byron 0. Hughes appear in the appendices. The historical references to the Huron burial ceremony and to the details of the Iroquois type of bark lodge were contributed by Mr. Vernon Kinietz, from compilations and translations made by him for a forthcoming publication. I desire to thank the following for their part in identifying faunal and floral remains: Mr. Volney H. Jones of the Ethnobotanical Laboratory of the Museum of Anthropology; from the staff of the Museum of Zoology, Dr. Henry van der Schalie of the Division of Mollusks, Mr. Thomas D. Hinshaw of the Division of Birds, Dr. W. H. Burt of the Division of Mammals, Dr. CarlL. Hubbs of the Division of Fishes; and Dr. George M. Ehlers of the Museum of Palaeontology. The field staff was composed of Mr. Norman D. Humphrey, Mr. Alfred K. Guthe, Mr. George I. Quimby, and Mr. H. Holmes Ellis., I wish to thank them for their ready co-operation, and also Mr. Carman Baggerly of Imlay City, for his discovery of the site and for his assistance throughout the period of excavation. Excavation of the Younge site and the publication of this report have been made possible by a grant from the Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies.

CONTENTS PAGE v

FoREWORD

1

INTRODUCTION

1

Description of the Site Mcthod .

2 7

ENCLOSURES

7

Enclosure 1 General Description Post Molds Fireplaces Pits Enclosure 2 General Description Pits

7 7 12 13

BuRIALs

Summary of Burials ARTIFACTS

Pottery . Rim Shards, Enclosure Shape Cross Section L~s

Decorative Techniques Design Decorated Body Shards Pottery Collected Previous to Excavation Rim Shards and Decorated Body Shards, Enclosure 2 Summary of Pottery Tobacco Pipes Stone and Bone Implements Enclosure 1 Enclosure 2 North of the Younge Site CoNcLUsiON

Trait List Burials Objects with Burials Artifacts . APPENDIX A. PoTTERY APPENDIX

B.

HuMAN

REMAINs Vll

22 22 24 27 55 59 59 59 59 60 63 64 66 71 71 72 73 74 81 81 86 86 87 97 97 98 98 99 125

ILLUSTRATIONS PLATES (Plates I-XXXIII face page 172) PLATE

I.

The Younge site from the east. The light area near the tree at left is Enclosure 2 after excavation. II. The north and south bands of post molds of Enclosure 1, between points 400-450 on Map 2. A peg has been inserted in each post mold. Between the bands the fireplaces and ash pits show as light and dark areas. III. Fig. 1. Burial 6, upper level; Group 1 at left, Group 2 at right. Fig. 2. Burial 6, Group 2, with long bones of secondary burial removed, showing cranium in abdominal position of the flexed skeleton. Fig. 3. Burial 6, Group 4. Torso of a child. IV. Fig. 1. Burial 7. Fig. 2. Burial 9. v. Fig. 1. Burial 11. Fig. 2. Burial 12. Fig. 3. Burial 18. VI. Fig. 1. A, perforated manubrium from Burial 18, B, C, and D, disks cut from posterior portions of crania, from Burials 14, 12, and 11, respectively. Fig. 2. Upper two, perforated humeri, Burial 18; lower, humerus with head cut, Burial 23. VII. Fig. 1. Tibiae, cut and perforated, Burial 18. Fig. 2. Femora, perforated at distal ends, heads cut, Burial 18. Fig. 3. Femora, heads cut down to diameter of the necks for insertion through obturator foramina. Burial 19 (see Pl. IX). VIII. Burial 19. IX. Burial 19, showing heads of the femora through the obturator foramina (see Pl. VII, Fig. 3). X. Burial 23. XI. Realigned femora. Burial 23. XII. Fig. 1. Burial 24. Fig. 2. Burial 25. XIII. Fig. 1. Burial 33. Fig. 2. Burial 38. XIV. Burials 39-5 7. View toward the southwest. IX

X

PLATE

XV. XVI. XVII.

XVIII.

XIX.

XX.

XXI.

XXII.

XXIII.

Burial 53, showing femur-heads through obturator foramma. Burials 41, 4 2, and 53 (see text Fig. 6). Fig. 1. Rim shards, Enclosure 1. A-F, respectively: 4779, 4783, 4781, 4816, 4789, 4778. Fig. 2. Rim shards, Enclosure 1. A-C, respectively: 4798, 4796, 4814. Fig. 1. Rim shards, Enclosure 1. A-E, respectively: 4756, 4765, 4784, 4770, 4801. Fig. 2. Rim shards, Enclosure 1. A-F, respectively: 4797, 4800, 4802, 4809, 4771, 4767. Fig. 1. A, D,F, and H, decorated body shards. Enclosure 1. Respectively: 4928, 4856, 4938, 4931. C, E, and G, rim shards, Enclosure 2. Respectively: 5 316, 5318, 5315. B, body shard, Enclosure 2, 5318. Fig. 2. Rim shards collected previous to excavations. A-E, respectively: 4791, 4785, 4785, 4630, 4676. Fig. 1. Decorated body shards collected previous to excavations. A-E, 4630. F, 4609. G, 4616. Fig. 2. Undecorated body shards showing surface treatment. Fig. 1. Pipes and pipe bowls, Enclosure 1. A-E, respectively: 5104, 5100, 5102,5106,5105. Fig. 2. Pipe bowls and fragments, Enclosure 1. A-E, respectively: 5097,5101, 5114,5110, 5103. Fig. 1. Pipes collected previous to excavations. A-D, respectively: 5460, 4642, 4640, 4641. Fig. 2. A-1, projectile points, Enclosure 1. Respectively: 5029, 5055, 5056, 5029, 5057, 5059, 5060, 8506, 5065. J, a beaked scraper, Enclosure 1, 5045. K, a flint blank, Enclosure 1, 5 028. Fig. 1. Projectile points, drills, and scrapers, general site, surface. A-C, unnotched points, respectively: 5038, 5031, 5034. Notched points, D, F-H, 5033, 5046, 5031, 5063. Scrapers, E, J, K, respectively: 5070, 5032, 5031. I, a drill, 5035. Fig. 2. A, B, D, and E, projectile points found at a site one-fourth mile north of Enclosure 1. Respectively: 5 064, 5066, 5061, 5043. C, projectile point found on surface 200 feet east of Enclosure 1: 5062. F-1, scrapers, Enclosure 2. Respectively: 5072, 5309, 5313, 5310.

Xl

PLATE

XXIV.

XXV.

XXVI. XXVII. XXVIII. XXIX. XXX. XXXI. XXXII. XXXIII.

Fig. 1. Fragments of stone artifacts, and an abrading stone. A, grooved abrading stone, coarse sandstone, 5053. B, possibly a notched net-sinker, slate, 5042. Fig. 2. A, a celt, found with a burial previous to excavations, 5051. B, a gouge, found in the topsoil 1000 feet west of Enclosure 1, 50 52. Fig. 1. Cranium of child, showing hole caused by removal of a disk. Burial 18, 4 9 76. Fig. 2. Cranium of Burial 41, showing scratches at edge of posterior hole, 50 11. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 4984. Sex, male; age, fifty to sixty years. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 4984. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 4997. Sex, male; age, thirty to thirty-five years. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 4997. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 4999. Sex, male; age forty-five to fifty-five years. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 4999. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 5181. Sex, male; age, fifty-five to sixty-five years. Figs. 1-2. Cranium 5 181. FIGURES IN THE TEXT

FIGURE

1.

2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8.

PAGE

Cross sections, pits of Enclosure 1. The number inside each cross section indicates its numerical occurrence Pit 15, Enclosure 1 Pits 24 and 25, Enclosure 1 Pit 4, Enclosure 2 (see Map 10) . Succession of superimposed burials beneath Burials 4 5 and 47 . Burials 41, 42, and 53, and accompanying partial skeletons of children Cross sections of rim shards. Outer surfaces to left Outlines and cross sections of pipes and pipe stems. Top row, left to right: 5106, 5105, 5104, 5112, 5109. Second row: 5098,5117,5125,5086,5099,5095. Third row: 5122, 5121, 5087, 5123, 5090, 5120, 5115. Fourth row: 5119,5125,5113,5108,5126,

5118 9.

15 15 21 25 49 53 60

78

Per cent of linear firing shrinkage plotted against temperatures 112

Xll

MAPS MAP

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

PAGE

Lapeer County, Michigan Contour map of the Younge site. Contour intervals read from the edge of the stream, which is the lowest point Enclosure 1, and Trenches A, B, C, and D East and west ends of Enclosure 1. Shading represents unexcavifted areas Enclosure 2 facing Trench A Trench B. Light shading represents a shallow layer of ashes; heavy shading, ash pits Trench C Trench D Upper level, Burials 40-5 7

3 4 8 10 22 28 29 34 35 4&

INTRODUCTION DEsCRIPTION oF THE SrTE

THE Younge site (Map 1) is an area of about three acres

containing the remains of two pre-Columbian occupations. It is in Lapeer County, Goodland Township, Section 4, near the east bank of the bed of the Imlay channel, a large stream formed by the retreat of the ice of the Wisconsin glaciation for the outlet of the waters of glacial Lake Maumee across southern Michigan into the lower end of what is now Lake Michigan.1 Post-mold outlines of two long, narrow, parallel enclosures, 400 feet apart, lay at the top of the subsoil, intermingled with ash pits of various sizes and roughly circular areas of red sand, which were obvious! y due to fire (Map 2). At the surface of the ground evidences of occupation in the form of potsherds, implements of flint and stone, animal bones, and sand of a darker color than that of the surrounding territory were abundant. The site is on a level plain about a mile wide, running in a northwesterly and southeasterly direction (Pl. I). A small brook and its flood plain are on the east side of the site between two hills which attain a height of 30 feet. Directly between these hills the flood plain widens to become a swamp four or five acres in extent, containing juniper, tamarack, and other characteristic trees. The brook is a tributary of Mill Creek, which runs through the deepest portion of the bed of the Imlay channel, 1500 feet to the west. Mill Creek is a branch of Black River, in the Lake Huron drainage. The Younge site is less than a mile from the divide of the drainage of Lake Huron and that of Saginaw Bay. In physical composition the site is sandy and is adapted to the demands of the conifers, although deciduous forms were 1 Frank Leverett and F. B. Taylor, "The Pleistocene of Indiana and Michigan and the History of the Great Lakes," U. S. Geol. Surv. Monograph, 53

(1915): 254.

1

2

EMERSON F. GREENMAN

represented in the majority of the thirty-two identifiable charcoal samples collected, mainly, from the pits. The number of samples representing a given kind of tree is as follows: oak ( Quercus), 8 ; ash ( F raxinus), 8 ; pine (Pinus), 6 ; maple (Acer ), 4; elm (Ulmus), 5; hickory (Hicoria ), 1. The specimens identified as pine are all apparently Norway pine (Pinus resinosa). Fifty years ago there was much hemlock in the immediate vicinity of the Younge site, and a few trees are still standing. The specimens of deciduous wood found in the pits may have come from trees growing on the neighboring hills. The soil profile, from the top down, is as follows: A. Topsoil, dark brown or black, varying from 7 to 10 inches in thickness. B. A sandy stratum from 17 to 20 inches thick, with stones up to 6 inches in diameter, rarely larger; in a cubic foot approximately fifty stones over 2 inches in diameter. C. Fine, water-laid, stratified sand, varying from light to medium brown, occasionally white. Depth at least 1 0 feet. The line separating the topsoil from the subsoil is sharp and distinct, probably the result of cultivation; that separating strata B and C is less definite. The site has been plowed for many years, and consequently no information of a stratigraphic nature was obtained above the plow line. At the time excavations were begun there were no crops on the Younge farm; the site itself was covered with mullen and other weeds. METHOD

Excavation was begun at the north end of Trench A (Map 3), and after five burials were uncovered Trench B was begun. It was in the northwest corner of this trench that dark spots in the yellow subsoil were first observed, but the burials, and the extensive ash pits in Trench B absorbed all attention, and it was not until the second section (from the east end) of Trench C was reached that the post molds were placed upon the map. In the attempt to discover the meaning of these black vertical

INTRODUCTION

oi 1 11 I

~

I

3

I

4

I

IN MILES

MAP

1

5

I

G

I

3

EMERSON F. GREENMAN

4

strata a number of test trenches 5 feet wide were dug for a distance of 100 feet to the west of Trench C. At the same time, the topsoil over an area 50 by 35 feet between points 400 and 45 0 (Map 3) was cleared off, and the relative positions of the

2. Contour map of the Younge site. Contour intervals read from the edge of the stream, which is the lowest point.

MAP

bands of post molds and of the central line of ash pits and fireplaces were observed. Excavations were then transferred 400 feet to the west, where the debris of occupation on the surface began to diminish, in the search for the western extremity of the occupied area. This was located, and 50 feet of it mapped.

INTRODUCTION

5

Other trenches were then dug at intervals, along the sides to uncover the two bands of post molds, through the center to disclose the ash pits and fireplaces, and transversely to give complete cross sections at irregular intervals from one side to the other. This manner of testing, shown in Map 3, revealed the outline of a structure of poles set in the ground 15 to 3 0 inches, 585 feet long and from 25 to 30 feet wide. For the purpose of mapping all significant features to scale, a tripartite base line (Map 3) with stakes at intervals of 25 feet, was set from one end to the other of the enclosure. Measurements giving locations of post molds and pits were taken with a tapeline from two or more of these stakes. After the completion of a map of 50 feet of the west end, upon which every post mold, fireplace, and ash pit was accurately placed, an examination of other areas cleared of the topsoil revealed the fact that from stake 15 0 to stake 4 50 there was little in the way of significant detail, for throughout the central portion of the enclosure, the ash pits were in such confusion as to present an almost continuous deposit; post molds, while more numerous at the sides, were also scattered about in a manner admitting of no specific interpretation. As a consequence, further excavations on this enclosure were limited to the attempt to locate the east end. The same method was followed with respect to Enclosure 2. In general features this enclosure was identical with the other. It was the site of a structure of poles placed vertically in the ground over an area 252 feet long and 25 to 30 feet wide, and between the lines of resulting post molds were ash pits and fireplaces. These features however were less numerous than in Enclosure 1. The simplicity of pattern made it feasible to remove all the topsoil from Enclosure 2, and to map every detail. Complete accuracy is not claimed for the maps of postmold patterns accompanying this report. It is possible that some of the molds in the detailed maps were caused by other than human agencies, or that a few true post molds were overlooked. The post molds outlining the west end of Enclosure 2 were very indistinct, and while there were possibly more posts

6

EMERSON F. GREENMAN

there than are shown on the map, the line indicated is undoubtedly representative of the original structure. Post molds were also indistinct at various places along the south line and where the north line curves around to form the east end, but the remainder were unmistakable. An occasional post mold was uncovered a foot or more beyond the south line of Enclosure 2, and beyond the north band at the east end of Enclosure 1, but th~se could not be related to the main patterns except as erratics. Post molds could be found in almost any area of 1 0 square feet between the east ends of the two enclosures, and between the east end of Enclosure 1, and the edge of the 6-foot bluff descending to the marsh. These were not mapped, as they bore no apparent relation to one another or to either of the enclosures. Post molds were readily identified as units in a single line or pattern by similarity in size and by the regularity of the intervals between them. Hand trowels were used in exposing the tops of post molds to view, after the topsoil over each successive 5-foot section had been removed by shovels.

ENCLOSURES ENCLOSURE

1

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

A topographical map of the Younge site with a contour interval of 1 foot would show that the eastern 425 feet of Enclosure 1 lay upon a natural ridge of sufficient width to allow the inclusion of a level area between the northern and southern sides at an elevation of 1 to 2 feet above the immediately adjacent ground. Within 20 feet beyond the east end of the enclosure this ridge turns abruptly in a northerly direction and expands to three or four times its normal width. Enclosure 1 presents three main features: constructional post molds, domestic ash pits and fireplaces, and the burials. Of the latter there were fifty-seven, representing eighty-two or more individuals. Twenty-six of these deposits of human bones were in Trenches Band C, beneath the north band of post molds. Ten more were in Trenches A and D, within 50 feet of the northern and southern outer edges of the enclosure. All but two burials were between points 225 and 3 7 5 (Map 3) near the center of the enclosure. One of the two exceptions was just within the line of post molds at the west end, and the other was 425 feet from the west end. POST MOLDS

Enclosure 1 was a long narrow strip of ground upon which in pre-Columbian times hundreds of poles averaging 3.5 inches in diameter were set vertically into the ground in two parallel bands 6 feet wide, coming together at the ends. There were also similar posts between the two lateral bands, at some points in considerable profusion, and lacking any observable pattern. Parallel lines of posts at equal distance apart characterized the two bands for most of their exposed portions, including the part at the west end where they came together. Before the excavation of Enclosure 1 there was no artificial construction of earth or other material on or above the ground. 7

8

EMERSON F. GREENMAN

Z+----

ENCLOSURES

9

The only sign that the site had once been occupied was the usual detritus such as potsherds, small fragments of animal bones, and the color of the sand, which is nearly black whereas that in the immediate vicinity is light brown. Removal of from 8 to 10 inches of topsoil revealed horizontal cross sections of the stains in the yellow subsoil formed by the disintegration of the posts. Fifty feet of the north and south bands of post molds, beginning at stake 400 and extending eastward, are shown in Plate II. Each of the dots in Map 4 represents the cross section of a post mold at the top of the subsoil, from 8 to 1 0 inches below the surface of the ground. The positions shown in Map 4 are accurate, but in Map 3, showing the entire plan of the enclosure, only the outer and inner edges of the bands are accurate. The depth of the post molds, from 15 to 3 0 inches, might be taken as evidence that the posts were of considerable height above the ground. Whether these 6-foot wide bands of post molds represent a stockade 58 5 feet long and 3 0 feet wide, or successive erections of rectangular, roofed lodges of poles and bark, need not be considered here. That the stains were in reality the remains of the underground portions of upright poles is indicated in the following: Their occurrence in great numbers and in a definite pattern was limited to an area exhibiting many other signs of human occupation. Many of them were pointed at the lower ends. Most contained lumps of charcoal, but the topsoil over some contained no charcoal. About one-tenth contained potsherds which had evidently fallen in the space between the posts and the sides of the hole. In a few instances these vertical stains terminated at rocks 4 to 6 inches in diameter. The great majority of the post molds were dark brown, similar in color and consistency to the topsoil. They all contained varying amounts of charcoal, granulated or in small lumps, and in a few the localization of charcoal at the bottom made that portion darker. Post molds situated close to ash pits usually contained ash in isolated lumps or in small particles, evenly distributed and imparting a lighter color than usual. One, about half way between the two sides of the enclosure

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MAP

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SCALE IN FEET

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4. East and west ends of Enclosure 1. Shading represents unexcavated areas.

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·POST MOLD

•FIREPLACE

lASH PIT

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ENCLOSURES

11

and 20 feet from the west end, had at its pointed bottom a small amount of red sand mottled with ash, as if the post had been burnt out. It was 24 inches deep and 4 inches in diameter. In vertical cross section the edges of only a few consisted of a definite line. In the majority the darker color of the post mold merged into the light brown of the sand matrix, resulting in a band about one-half inch wide, which was lighter than the post mold and darker than the sand outside. The average depth of the post molds of Enclosure 1 was 19 inches; the average diameter, 3.5 inches. For a distance of 8 feet, between stakes 2 2 5 and 2 50, the post molds on the inner edge of the southern band were consistently from 6 to 12 inches shorter than those at the outer edge. All post molds were roughly circular in horizontal cross section, showing very plainly at the top of the light brown or yellow sandy subsoil after the darker topsoil had been removed. Over considerable stretches of the bands forming the two sides of the enclosure the post molds were irregularly placed. Elsewhere the average interval between them was approximately 9 inches. Often two molds intersected, indicating successive posts. Where there were definite lines, as along the southwest portion of the west end of the enclosure, post molds were regularly spaced. The interval here, measured from outside to outside, was from 7 to 9 inches. The average interval in another line 10 feet long and 3 0 feet east of the west end (see Map 4) was 8 inches. Reference to the detailed map of the west end of Enclosure 1 (Map 4) will illustrate the concentration of post molds in greater numbers in two wide bands, forming the north and south sides of the enclosure and coming together in a broad curve. Three separate lines of post molds can be made out on the south side and extending around to include the south half of the west end. Farther east, between points 7 5 and 100, three separate lines are again observable on the south side. The appearance of irregularity on the north side of the section is due to the fact that excavations were not carried to the northern limit of the band of post molds. In this 7 5-to-1 00-foot section post molds appear in considerable profusion from one side to the other, across the region of the fireplaces and ash pits. AI-

12

EMERSON F. GREENMAN

though a few post molds extended beyond the inner borders of the two bands at other points in the enclosure, great profusion in this central area was not elsewhere noted. The arrangement of post molds at the east end is shown on M·ap 4. The post molds are fewer than at the west end, but the same arrangement into two side walls or bands, coming together at the end, is observable, although this end is square and the west end is rounded. The plan of the west end, much less difficult to establish, was very definite, and post molds did not exist beyond the limits shown on the map. After the 525-to5 50-foot section had been exposed in the search for the east end, excavations were moved to a point 100 feet east, where a few post molds were found; but these suggest only faintly the arrangement in two bands. Further excavations in this region to the north and south and, extensively, along the edge of the 6-foot bluff 250 feet beyond the east end of the enclosure failed to reveal an end or a sudden curve of the main axis of the enclosure or that it extended beyond the east end of the 525-to-5 50-foot section. Subsequently, the arrangement shown in the 550-to-585-foot section was found. The fireplace and ash pit in the 525-to-550foot section were the last ones in the eastern end of the end osure. The nearest ash pits were 17 feet to the west. The last 45 feet of the east end was the longest area containing neither ash pits nor fireplaces. Elsewhere, beginning at the west end with a small ash pit at the inner edge of the band of post molds, both were found in increasing numbers toward the center of the enclosure, where, as previously mentioned, ash pits merged into an almost solid continuous deposit, and the areas of burnt red sand, which have been taken to be the remains of fireplaces, were larger and less uniform in outline. FIREPLACES

Of the fireplaces little can be said. They were not in themselves artificial constructions, and they contained no artifacts. Showing at the top of the subsoil as rounded areas from 1 to 5 feet in diameter, they were simply places where the iron in the soil had been brought out by the heat of fires at the surface of

ENCLOSURES

13

the ground, from 8 to 12 inches above the level at which they were observed. In thickness, measured from the top of the subsoil downward, these areas of red sand were from 2 to 6 inches. In Enclosure 2 there was a definite association between fireplaces and ash pits, a fireplace being partially surrounded by a cluster of ash pits. In Enclosure 1 there was a slight tendency in this direction over the first 1 0 0 feet of the west end, but thereafter, the red burnt sand and the ashes were so mixed vertically and horizontally that no plan was discernible. Over the first 1 77 feet of the west end of the enclosure fireplaces occurred at the following intervals, in feet from zero (Map 2): 5, 31, 55, 100, 106, 123, 142, 155, 170, 177. The fireplace at 15 5 feet was nearly 10 feet long east and west, and about 6 feet wide. The others, excepting the one at the extreme west, were smaller and more nearly circular. PITS

Sixty-one of the pits of Enclosure 1 were examined in detail. For thirty of these complete information as to the fill, proportions, dimensions, and contents is presented (Table I). The remaining twenty-nine were deposits which were mapped as separate pits before they were dug out, but which upon examination were found to merge with other pits or with larger irregular areas of disturbed earth, or portions of them had been so disarranged by the growth of trees or the burning out of stumps that all details were not obtainable (Table II). Pits were of five types as to the material with which they were filled: gray ash, white ash, brown earth with a high proportion of humus (similar in all respects to the topsoil), black sand, so colored by the presence of a considerable amount of fine charcoal, and black earth with a high humus content. Whatever the shape, dimensions, or contents, the great majority of the pits were filled with finely-packed gray ash. The exact contents of the excavated pits were: gray ash, thirtynine, six of which contained white ash in relatively large amounts; white ash, seven, six of which contained gray ash also; brown earth, nine, one of which contained also gray ash;

14

EMERSON F. GREENMAN

and black earth, six, one of which contained gray ash, and one white ash. If the figures for unexcavated pits were added the proportion of gray-ash pits would be much higher. Most of the gray-ash pits contained unworked pebbles as large as 4 inches in diameter, but usually smaller. Charcoal was invariably present in minute fragments and often in pieces up to one-half inch across. Fire-cracked stones of loosely textured granitic rocks were common. Other objects typical of the grayash pits were bones and fragments of bones of mammals, fish, birds, reptiles (the latter represented only by pieces of turtle shell, and one phalangeal bone), and potsherds. In the great majority of these pits animal bones were both burnt and unburnt. Of the eight pits containing only brown earth, one contained burnt and unburnt bones; five of the eight pits contained no bones. In view of the size and abundance of the pits both artifacts and organic refuse were rare. No pit contained white ash to the exclusion of other materials; of the seven pits containing white ash, there were other strata or deposits of gray ash in six, and the seventh contained black sand in addition (Pit 11 ). In this pit, one of the six stratified pits, the stratum of white ash was 4 inches deep; at the top it appeared in horizontal view as a deep crescent around three-fourths of the edge. Adjoining the outer edge of this crescent of white ashes, the sand of the subsoil was slightly tinged with red for a thickness of 2 inches. This coincidence of red sand and white ash strongly suggests a rather intense fire at the top. The remainder of this pit at the top of the subsoil and to a depth of 4 inches was fine charcoal, with a few lumps of the same material. In it were several fragments of deer bone ( Odocoileus) including part of a humerus, all burnt to a solid black. The lower stratum of this pit, a mixture of sand and charcoal, contained the following objects: a fragment of mussel shell, probably Anodonta grandis (Say); a piece of deer rib ( Odocoileus); and a potsherd. The average depth of the pits was 24.5 inches, average diameter, 18.5 inches. A few pitlike deposits with shape and dimensions suggesting post molds, but filled with gray ash,

15

ENCLOSURES

were noted. One of these, 40 feet east of zero (Map 3) and 19 inches deep and 6 inches in diameter, with a :flat bottom, had at the top of the subsoil, 10 inches beneath the ground surface, the skeleton of a young Canis, either coyote, wolf, or dog, with the skull missing. The majority of these deposits were more nearly circular than oval in horizontal cross section. Vertical cross sections revealed considerable variation in proportion. The numbers inside the pits in Figure 1 indicate the frequency of each cross section among the thirty excavated pits for which

5

7

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8

FIG.

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FIG.

2

FIG. 1. Cross sections, pits of Enclosure 1. The number inside each cross section indicates its numerical occurrence. FIG.

2. Pit 15, Enclosure 1.

complete details were obtained. The only variation from the types shown is the lower of the two pits in Figure 3, which is basically a pit with perpendicular sides and :flat bottom (Pits 24 and 25). Six of the sixty-one pits examined were stratified. One of these, Pit 11, has already been described. Pit 26 had dark brown sand in the upper 7 inches, and gray in the lower stratum. The diameter was 18 inches, the depth 20 inches. An unusual amount of charcoal at the dividing line between the two strata suggests a layer of burnt bark or wood. The upper stratum of brown sand contained the following objects: a piece of charcoal, possibly oak bark; five potsherds; and two animal bones, consisting of portions of deer vertebrae ( Odocoileus). The lower stratum of gray ash held nothing but pieces of charcoal too small for identification.

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