Utah Archaeology 1991

Preliminary Report On Aspen Shelter - An Upland Deer Hunting Camp On The Old Woman Plateau

32 UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY 1991 PRELIMINARY REPORT ON ASPEN SHELTER: AN UPLAND DEER HUNTING CAMP ON THE OLD WOMAN PLATEAU Joel C. Janetski, Brigham Young University, Dep'utment of Anthropology and Museum of Peoples and Cultures, 105 Allen Hall, Provo, Utah 84602 Richard Crosland, Brigham Young University, Department of Anthropology, 900 SWKT, Provo, Utah 84602 James D. Wilde, Brigham Young University, Office of Public Archaeology, 105 Allen Hall, Provo, Utah 84602 INTRODUCTION During the summers of 1989, 1990, and 1991 archaeologists from the Office of Public Archaeology ( OPA) at Brigham Young University in cooperation with the United States Forest Service excavated at Aspen Shelter ( 42Sv1365) in central Utah. Support for the project was also provided by volunteer efforts from members of the Utah Statewide Archaeological Society from several chapters. This work wq, done under the direction of OPA archaeologists Joel C. Janetski and James D. Wilde. Crews worked for six weeks in 1989, three weeks in 1990 and two weeks in 1991. The site contained evidence of sporadic use as a hunting camp from about 4,000 years ago well into the Fremont era. The lowest cultural level contained two basin- shaped house floors- the earliest remains of domestic structures yet found in Utah. SITE DESCRIPTION AND SETTING Aspen Shelter is a small to medium sized ( ca. 17 m x 7 m) south- facing rock shelter located on the upper reaches of Saleratus Creek on the Old Woman Plateau at about 8,200 feet elevation ( Figure 1). The shelter lies at the base of a low, ( 10- 15 m high) sandstone cliff and was formed by a process of erosion as water seeping from the base of the sandstone layer caused the gradual exfoliation its roof and walls ( Figure 2). The sandy deposits in the shelter are primarily a consequence of these natural processes. A small drainage channels runoff from spring snow melt and summer thundershowers over the cliff and onto the eastern portion of the site. As a consequence, the deposits in the shelter have been alternately wet and dry and preservation is limited to stone, ceramics, and bone. The site is in an aspen- spruce context and the front of the shelter is screened from view by a fairly dense stand of aspen, serviceberry, and chokecherry bushes. The region around the site is moderately to densely wooded with aspen, ponderosa pine, spruce, serviceberry, and manzanita bushes. Deer and rabbits ( white- tailed and black- tailed jacks, cottontails, and snowshoes) were seen daily during our trips to the site. Elk and grouse were also occasionally encountered. PREVIOUS WORK AND CURRENT RESEARCH INTERESTS Aspen Shelter was first recorded and investigated by Forest Service archaeologists in 1979 ( DeBloois 1983). They placed two 1 m x 2 m test pits in the shelter and documented over a meter of deposits containing both Archaic and Fremont style diagnostics. Dates from the site were in the 4000 B. P. range. The artifactual and faunal collections from these tests were analyzed and those results made available to OPA staff. Additional relevant research in the region includes the work by the University of Utah at Sudden Shelter on Ivie Creek only about five miles south of Aspen ( Jemings et al. 1980). Sudden Shelter contained evidence of Archaic use from 7,500 to 3,500 years ago. To the east in Castle Valley on the lower reaches of Ivy Creek and other small drainages emanating from the Old Woman Plateau are numerous Fremont rancherias with pithouses and storage units ( e. g., Aikens 1967). The Forest Service work suggested to OPA staff that information about the transition from hunting and gathering to the farming period might be profitably pursued at the site. The transition period ( ca. 2500 to 1500 B. P.) was absent at nearby Sudden Shelter ( Jennings et al. 1980). Specifically, the research design set up a series of archaeological expectations for residential use of the site by Archaic hunter-gatherers and more logistical use by Fremont farmers. Simply stated, we expected the Archaic use of the site REPORTS Figure 1. Location of Aspen Shelter in Central Utah. 34 UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY 1991 Figure 2. View of Aspen Shelter in Saleratus Canyon. The shelter lies behind the aspen trees at the base of the sandstone cliffs on the far side of the canyon. would have been by families pursuing a relatively been mostly short term by groups of hunters who wide range of activities and who would have transported much of the captured prey or other consumed much of their foodstuffs at the site. In consummables to families at residences in the contrast, we expected that Fremont use would have lowlands to the east. The research done to date tends REPORTS Table 1. Radiocarbon Dates from Aspen Shelter. Calibrated Range Range with Highest Sample Number Raw Date Probability Beta- 33804 1070f 60 B. P. A. D. 780- 1149 A. D. 791- 1042 100% 2 0 Beta- 33476 1720f 60 B. P. A. D. 130- 430 A. D. 247- 385 100% 1 0 Beta- 33474 2130k100 B. P. 400 B. C.- A. D. 70 B. C. 390-~.~ 30. 99% 2 0 Beta- 41927 3560f90 B. P. 2199- 1662 B. C. B. C. 2142- 1685 99% 2 a Beta41929 3620f100 B. P. 2307- 1695 B. C. B. C. 2140- 1880 97% 1 o Beta41928 3770f 70 B. P. 2460- 1985 B. C. B. C. 2409- 2033 94% 2 o Beta41930 3790f60 B. P. 2460- 2039 B. C. B. C. 2457- 2124 95% 2 o Beta- 33477 3890f60 B. P. 2570- 2149 B. C. B. C. 2502- 2199 96% 2 o Beta- 33806 4140f80 B. P. 2920- 2490 B. C. B. C. 2910- 2567 95% 2 o Beta- 33805 4570f110 B. P. 3627- 2924 B. C. B. C. 3530- 3020 92% 2 a to support these predictions; however, much of the analysis of the bone and lithics from the site has yet to be . done. The impetus for our excavations at Aspen, however, was ongoing destruction of the site by looters. A large pothole had been intruded into the central portion of the site and various other smaller pits were present in the site as well. Consequently, the Forest Service felt it necessary to pursue excavations to recover the data from the site before it was lost to the looters. which contain some charcoal probably due to natural burn episodes in Saleratus Canyon. These lower levels were tested but no cultural debris was recovered. The systematic removal of the cultural sediments found that immediately below the massive, dark basal layer was a rather compacted sandy surface. The presence of artifacts lying on this compacted level and the fact that numerous features originated from this surface suggests it was a living floor. DATING FINDINGS Excavations at the site began by cleaning one of the existing Forest Service test areas to reveal the stratigraphic sequence. Once cleaned it was clear that the sediments in the shelter are quite sandy with alternating bands of ash and culturally stained deposits. The sediment profile is dominated by a massive basal layer that is particularly dark and rich in bone and cultural debris. Below the cultural deposits are alternating bands of sterile sand some of We found evidence at Aspen Shelter of an intensive use by Archaic peoples dating to around 4000 B. P. and continuing through the Fremont period, although post- Archaic use was clearly considerably lighter and probably more sporadic. Radiocarbon dates ladder up h m 4000 B. P. to 1300 B. P. ( Table 1) and diagnostics such as Fremont painted ware and Bull Creek projectile points in the upper levels are evidence of prehistoric use until about A. D. 1200 or so ( Holmer and Weder 1980). Associated with the 4000 36 UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY 1991 B. P. dates are numerous Gypsum style projectile points that date to about the same time period at nearby Sudden Shelter ( Jennings et al. 1980) and Cowboy Cave ( Jennings 1980). Twelve radiocarbon samples have been run from the Aspen Shelter deposits ( Table 1). The results of these analyses have yielded dates ranging from about 4500 B. P. to 1000 B. P. The 4500 B. P. date is from a charcoal- bearing stratum located below the earliest cultural occupation. It is likely that the charcoal in this and in other similar non- cultural strata noted in test pits is derived from forest FE events in the area. The earliest date from unequivocal cultural deposits is Beta- 33806 at 4140+ 80 B. P. Calibrations in Table 1 are from Stuiver and Reimer ( 1987). Temporal diagnostics from the site are consistent with the dates in Table 1. Gypsum or Gatecliff Contracting Stem points, which are associated with the basal cultural features and massive midden deposits at Aspen, are dated to between 2500 B. C. and A. D. 500 throughout much of the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau ( Holmer 1986: 105). Two probable Sudden Side- notched points ( see Jennings et al. 1980: 70 and Figure 5, n- o this report) were found at Aspen: one from unprovenienced fill and another from the basal levels. Large side- notched points such as these tend to date a bit earlier than the Gypsum style but clearly overlap in time ( see Holmer 1986: 96). Other temporally diagnostic artifacts such as Rosegate and Bull Creek style arrow points and ceramics occur at higher levels and are consistent with the dates obtained. FEATURES Features discovered at Aspen include numerous pits, hearths and two basin- shaped house floors. The pit features found tend to cluster on the compacted surface to the east of Basin 1 ( Figure 3), although pits are also present on the surface to the south of the structures toward the fiont of the shelter. The pits were essentially of two types: ( 1) fairly small, jug-shaped pits probably used for storage, and ( 2) larger bowl- shaped pits containing fire cracked rocks and dense, charcoal- laden midden probably resulting from roasting activities. A number of pits at this level were superimposed. As noted, the majority of the pits originated from the compacted surface, although bowl- shaped pits and several hearths were found in the upper strata. Toward the rear of the central portion of the shelter and at the basal cultural level were two shallow, basin- shaped house floors sitting essentially side by side ( Figures 4 and 5). Basin 1 was fairly small ( about 2 m in diameter) and lightly used as evidenced by the paucity of debris and lightly stained and compacted use surface contained within it. A small, oval- shaped hearth was present toward the southern edge of the basin. An upright sandstone slab was located about 75 cm south of the hearth and likely served as a reflector stone. Four probable post sockets were found along the eastern edge of Basin 1 and argue rather strongly for some kind of superstructure roofing the feature. Basin 1 was well-defined only along its eastern edge. Other edges were either blmed by subsequent cultural activity in the prehistoric past ( such as the construction of a large pit that cut through the north edge; see Figure 4) or were destroyed by looting activity. In addition, the 1979 test may have cut through the western edge of Basin 1 as well as the eastern edge of Basin 2, which, along with the extensive looting activity in the central part of the site, made relative dating of the two house features very difficult. Basin 2 lay immediately to the west of Basin 1 and was somewhat larger ( ca. 3.5 m in dieter). It was heavily used as evidenced by the presence of a more compacted, more heavily stained use surface, and numerous tools. The floor contact tools included two complete Gypsum points, two bone awls, several modified and utilized flakes, fragments of grinding stones, and numerous bone fragments. These were found on a shelffstorage area along the back edge of the feature. A small, well- defined, and well- used circular hearth and an irregular hearth were both present a bit south of center in Basin 2. As with Basin 1, reflector stones were present, this time in the form of two rather blocky stones located about one meter south of the hearths. One of these stones was upright; the other was lying flat. A slab metate was found leaning against the western edge of the upright stone. A compacted sandy surface nearly identical in elevation to the surface east of Basin 1 lay immediately south of these stones. The northern and western edges of Basin 2 were well marked by sandstone boulders or bedrock just behind which was relatively clean sand. A single, shallow post socket REPORTS 37 Figure 3. View of the compacted surface and associated pit features to the east of Basin 1. Figure 4. View of Basin 1 and Basin 2 in Aspen Shelter. ASPEN SHELTER ( 42Sv 1365) Excavations 1989 - 1991 Figure 5. Plan view of features associated with the basal cultural level in the shelter. REPORTS 39 adjacent to a medium sized boulder was found just outside the westem edge of the basin and another possible post hole was found just inside the western edge adjacent to a small pit. Basin 2 also contained a second use surface about 15 to 20 cm above its lower floor zone. This upper use surface was also present along the western edge where a compacted burned area overlay the floor by about 15 cm. Two hearths were present on this upper use surface and a single awl was found near one of them. The upper use surface was in fact more discrete than the lower surface as it consisted of fine, light- colored silts while the lower floor is best described as a zone of accumulated sand and cultural debris. flakes were literally piled up either as a result of tool making or perhaps as a result of an individual actually picking up and saving flakes for future use or cleaning up detritus from the living areas. Utilized flakes are also present, although no information on distribution is yet available. Numerous worked antler tips presumably for tool working and occasional bone awls and beads were found. Provenienced groundstone consists of numerous one- handed manos from the Archaic levels, two complete slab metates ( both of which were leaning against the reflector stone in Basin 2) and various fragments that appear to be most abundant in the Archaic levels. Ceramics were present in the upper levels where no disturbance had occwed. All sherds were either Fremont gray ware or black on gray styles. ANIMAL AND PLANT REMAINS DISCUSSION Animal bones were abundant at Aspen Shelter in all levels, but especially in the massive, dense, midden just above the compacted surface and the house floor. The jumbled nature of this midden suggests a fairly rapid deposition. Thus far a 50% sample ( about 47,000 individual elements) of the bone assemblage recovered during 1989 and 1990 has been analyzed by Crosland ( n. d.). Only 3,924 of these elements could be identified to the Genus or species level ( see Table 2). Deer make up over 85% of all bones. Other species present in decreasing order of importance include squirrel ( 7%), rabbits ( 5%), porcupine ( 2%), and woodrat ( 1%). Mountain sheep and possibly elk were also present but in very small numbers. Of the fragments not identified to species, between 80% and 90% are from large mammals, most likely deer. Numerous deer cranial fragments with antlers attached were found in the faunal assemblage. Analysis of plant remains has only begun. Pollen was not well preserved in the lower levels of the site. Numerous flotation samples were collected but have not yet been analyzed. CULTURAL MATERIAL Portable artifacts from the excavations include abundant chipped stone tools, particularly projectile points, bifaces, and detritus from tool retouching ( Figures 6 and 7). In one area just outside Basin 1 The presence of the two house floors and associated pits, superpositioning of several features, and the massive and dense midden all point to a heavy use of the shelter during the middle to late Archaic period. The presence of numerous deer cranial fragments with antlers attached in the Archaic deposits suggest fall occupations. Grinding implements, both manos and metates, are evidence of plant gathering and processing, although & i t evidence in the form of carbonized seeds has yet to be found as soil samples have not been processed. The modem presence of stands of servicebenies, manzanita, and some chokecherries, all of which begin ripening in mid- August, suggest that use of the shelter may have begun as early as late summer to exploit these resources and perhaps to escape the hot season in the valley east of the Old Woman Plateau. Particularly interesting at Aspen are the two house basins. These are the earliest houses found to date in Utah. Other Utah Archaic houses have been found at North Richfield ( Talbot and Richens n. d.) and Moab ( Louthan 1990) dating to about 2600 B. P. and 2200 B. P. respectively. Late Archaic houses have been found at the Icicle Bench site south of Richfield and at Muddy Creek located just a few miles to the east of the Old Woman Plateau ( Gundy et al. 1990). All the houses documented to date have been basin-shaped, although they are variable in size ( see Janetski n. d. for a summary). The house floors in UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY 1991 . Figure 6. Projectile points from Aspen Shelter: ( a- b) Bull Creek; ( c- e) Rosegate; ( f- g) Elko Series; ( h- m) Gypsum or Gatecliff Contracting Stem; ( n- o) Sudden Side- notched ( actual size). REPORTS Figure 7. Miscellaneous chipped stone tools from Aspen Shelter: ( a+ snub- nosed scrapers; ( e) drill; Cf- g) hafted bifaces; ( h) prismatic utilized flake ( actual size). 42 UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY 1991 Table 2. Preliminary Results of Animal Bone Analysis from all Levels at Aspen Shelter. Taxon * NISP Percentage of NISP Mule Deer ( Odocoileus Hemionus) 3,319 85.0% Squirrels ( Spermophilus spp.) 290 7.0% Cottontail ( Sylvilagus sp.) 167 4.0% Jack Rabbit ( Lepus sp.) 17 0.4% Porcupine ( Erethizon dorsatum) 60 2.0% Wwd rat ( Neotoma sp.) 37 1.0% Vole ( Microtus sp.) 20 0.4% Canine 4 - Elk ( cf. Cervus elaphus) 4 - Mountain sheep ( Ovis canadensis) 3 - Bobcat ( Lynx rufus) 1 - Marmot ( Marmota sp.) 1 - Gopher ( Thomomys sp.) 1 - Totals for Identifiable Bone 3,924 99.8% * NISP stands for the number of bone elements identified to a genus or species. Aspen Shelter are unique in that they both contain small, slightly off- center hearths and what appear to be reflector stones. Although the Aspen houses are the earliest known to date for Utah, numerous Archaic smctures have been found in the Intermountain area ( see Metcalf and Black 1991 for a review). These include structures within shelters ( such as that at Sysyphus Shelter in western Colorado [ Gooding and Shields 19851) and open sites such as Yarmony House ( Metcalf and Black 1988, 1991). The data gathered from the heavily used Gypsum level provides support for our initial predictions about site use by hunter- gatherers: that is, it was used by groups of Archaic families who hunted, gathered, and lived at Aspen Shelter. Probably they lived there when the weather was cool in the fall necessitating the construction of the houses. However, during the later Archaic no houses were built ( that we found anyway), although a very dense midden was rapidly deposited in the two existing houses. This midden was deposited after the abandonment of the houses, although it appears to date to about the same time period and contains similar kinds of artifacts. Very little midden was found that could clearly be associated with the use of the houses. When compared to the data available from nearby Sudden Shelter, Aspen appears to have been occupied later in the Archaic and was used well into the Fremont period, while Sudden was apparently abandoned by the onset of the Formative. The most recent date from the upper most layer at Sudden Shelter was 3360f 85 B. P. ( Jennings et al. 1980), while Aspen dates obtained are as recent as 1070f60 B. P. ( see Table I), which is consistent with the presence of Fremont artifacts such as Bull Creek points and painted grayware ceramics. It also appears that Aspen was more of a specialized camp for hunting deer than was Sudden Shelter, although this is a preliminary interpretation, as none of the REPORTS macrobotanical analysis has been completed for Aspen. Hunting activities at Sudden Shelter during the period Aspen Shelter was being used were split between deer ( 55%) and mountain sheep ( 37%) while at Aspen fewer than 1% of the identifiable bone could be attributed to mountain sheep. This difference could be best explained by the somewhat lower elevation of Sudden ( 6,900 feet) ' and the differences in local habitat. Tools and pit features, on the other h'and, are similar between the two sites. For example, the features referred to as fuebasins at Sudden were identical to features found in the Archaic deposits at Aspen. Interestingly, the slab- lined pits so abundant at Sudden were not found at Aspen. CONCLUSIONS Aspen Shelter was an upland sheltered location used heavily during the Archaic period about 4,000 years ago and more sporadically during the Fremont period until at least 1,000 years ago. The primary use of the site appears to have been the hunting of deer during the fall. The research at Aspen has produced the earliest information to date on Archaic houses in Utah. Analysis on the stone tools, botanical samples, worked and unworked bone, etc., continues and should provide more detailed insights into the kinds of activities carried out here. REFERENCES CITED Aikens, C. Melvin 1967 Excavations at S d e Rock Village and the Bear River No. 2 Site. Anthropological Papers No. 87. University of Utah, Salt Lake City. Crosland, Richard n. d. An Analysis of the Faunal Remains from Aspen Shelter. Unpublished Master's thesis, Department of Anthropology, Brigham Young University. Provo, in preparation. DeBloois, Evan I. 1983 High Altitude Sites in Utah. In High Altitude Adaptaions in the Southwest, edited by Joseph C. Winter, pp. 53- 68. United States Forest Service Cultural Resource Management Report No. 2. Gooding, John, and William Lane Shields 1985 Sysyphus Shelter. Bureau of Land Management Cultural Resource Series No. 18. Denver. Gundy, Barbara J., Jonathan Glenn, and Allen G. Quinn 1990 Phase III Data Recovery in the Interstate 70 Project Study Area, Emery and Sevier Counties, Utah. Paper presented at the 22nd Great Basin Anthropological Conference, Reno. Holrner, Richard N. 1986 Common Projectile Points of the Intermountain West. In Anthropology of the Desert West: Essays in Honor of Jesse D. Jennings, edited by Carol J. Condie and Don D. Fowler. m. 87- 115. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City. Holrner, Richard N., and Dennis G. Weder 1980 Common Post- Archaic Projectile Points of the Fremont Area. In Fremont Perspectives, edited by David B. Madsen, pp. 55- 68. Utah State Historical Society, Antiquities Section Selected Papers vol. 7, No. 16. Salt Lake City. Janetski, Joel C. n. d. The Archaic to Formative Transition North of the Anasazi: A Basketmaker Perspective. In Proceedings of the Anasazi Basketmaker Symposium, edited by Victoria Atkin. Bureau of Land Management Cultural Resource Series, in press. Jennings, Jesse D. 1980 Cowboy Cave. Anthropological Papers No. 104. University of Utah, Salt Lake City. Jennings, Jesse D., Alan R. Schroedl, and Richard N. Holmer 1980 Sudden Sheher. Anthropological Papers No. 103. University of Utah, Salt Lake City. Louthan, Bruce D. 1990 Orchard Pithouse. Canyon Legacy 724- 27. Metcalf, Michael D., and Kevin D. Black 1988 The Yarmony Site, Eagle County, Colorado: A Preliminary Report. Southwestern Lore 54( 1): 10- 28. 1991 Archaeological Excavations at the Ywmny Pit House Site, Eagle County, Colorado. Report prepared by Metcalf Archaeological Consultants, Inc. for Eagle County Road and Bridge Department and the Bureau of Land Management, Craig District. Stuiver, M., and P. J. Reimer 1987 CALIB and DISPLAY Version 2.0. University of Washington Quaternary Isotope Laboratory. Seattle. Talbot, & chard K., and Lane D. Richens n. d. Archaeological Investigations at Richfield and Vicinity. Museum of Peoples and Cultures Technical Series. Brigham Young University, Provo, in preparation.