Date of Award
5-2017
Culminating Project Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Cultural Resources Management Archaeology: M.S.
Department
Anthropology
College
College of Liberal Arts
First Advisor
Mark Muñiz
Second Advisor
Debra Gold
Third Advisor
Katherine Stevenson
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Keywords and Subject Headings
Waubesa Contracting Stem, Lithic, Style
Abstract
The overall research goal is to examine the Waubesa Contracting Stem projectile points from three different regions to determine if there are any stylistic changes between three geographically defined concentrations. Identifying any statistical patterning of the blade and shoulder may be related to different social influences from the different geographical regions. The knowledge gained by identifying different styles of Waubesa Contracting Stem points could allow archaeologists to determine which of these three regions a point most likely came from if recovered outside of the core culture area.
The study of patterned variation in Waubesa Contracting Stem points could indicate the presence or absence of social interaction and social boundaries between groups of people of the Early Woodland culture in Wisconsin. The morphological analysis of projectile points related to cultural interaction can be used to provide additional information about prehistoric cultures in Wisconsin. Identifying style variation of projectile points can be more difficult as compared to other types of artifacts due to lack of style added to lithics. The patterned variation in the blade or base might be linked to different styles used by different social groups.
The analyses presented in this thesis uses data sets out of a sample of 256 projectile points from the three regions of Wisconsin to examine style variation. The analyses on the attributes were found to be useful for identifying style variations in Waubesa Contracting Stem point. Understanding stylistic variations in projectile points could indicate the presence or absence of social interaction and social boundaries between groups of people of the Early Woodland cultures in Wisconsin.
Recommended Citation
Straskowski, Michael G., "Patterned Variation of Early Woodland Waubesa Contracting Stem Projectile Points in Wisconsin" (2017). Culminating Projects in Cultural Resource Management. 12.
https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/crm_etds/12
Comments/Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Dr. Mark Muñiz, Dr. Debra Gold and Dr. Katherine Stevenson for their insight and assistance while serving on my committee. I extend my thanks to my colleagues: Louise Pfotenhauer at Neville Public Museum, John D. Richards at Milwaukee Public Museum, Danielle Benden at University of Wisconsin-Madison, James E. Myster at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Dr. Katherine Stevenson at Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center for access to their collections for this thesis. Finally, my greatest thanks to my family; Roger, Arlene, Ken, and Jen for their support.