The Repository @ St. Cloud State

Open Access Knowledge and Scholarship

Date of Award

3-2017

Culminating Project Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Cultural Resources Management Archaeology: M.S.

Department

Anthropology

College

College of Liberal Arts

First Advisor

Mark P. Muniz

Second Advisor

Debra L. Gold

Third Advisor

Katherine S. Pound

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Keywords and Subject Headings

Knife Lake Siltstone, BWCAW, Daughter District, Lithic, Mobility, Technological Organization

Abstract

The thesis herein seeks to test the effects of distance on the use of Knife Lake Siltstone (KLS) within local proximity to its primary outcrops in Northeastern Minnesota. Distance is used as a raw measure across which characteristics of KLS assemblages at distinct distances from the identified outcrops are discussed. It is theorized that the general presence of KLS material will decline over increased distance from the primary outcrops and that likewise technological organization at sites will reflect the increased distance from the primary outcrops. Through examination of site KLS assemblages which included cores, bifaces, unifaces, flake tools, debitage, end-scrapers, and a drill, it was found that distance does play a prominent role in terms of declining of KLS material present over increased distance amongst many assemblage aspects such as weight and dimensions of certain tool classes, what has been referred to as distance decay. It was also found that distance could be associated with technological organization in terms of a gearing-up technological organizational strategy evidenced or an expedient technological organizational strategy identified at distinct distances amongst some but not all artifact classes. It appears that distance while significant in many aspects of technological organization is clearly not the only factor in play affecting the variety and condition of KLS materials left on sites throughout a 40-kilometer radius of Wendt Site.

Comments/Acknowledgements

Much appreciation is owed to my committee for their time and wisdom without which this thesis would not be complete. Dr. Mark Muñiz deserves special thanks as he has been both a leading example and an experienced guide in conducting and presenting quality research. His patience is remarkable and also much appreciated. A thank you is due to the cultural resource staff at the Superior National Forest for their permission and assistance in research and access to their records and collections. The Mannik & Smith Group, Inc. is to be thanked for allowing me access to cultural material to illustrate for this study. Crucial to my development as a lithic analyst was the patience and guidance of both Dr. Mark Muñiz and Matt Mattson, M.S. who answered countless questions and guided my experience identifying and recording lithic attributes. Also, not to be forgotten are Dr. Elliot Abrams, Dr. Michael Hambacher, and Shannon Vihlene, M.A. whose encouragement and enthusiasm for archaeology and learning spurred my interest in attaining a graduate degree specific to cultural resource management archaeology and who’s recommendations helped send me to graduate school. A thank you is due to my fellow graduate students for their scholarly and emotional support. Lastly, my parents, Charles and Edith Bauschard should be recognized for their life-long support of my education. This is by no means an exhaustive list of those that contributed to any success I may share. My hope is that I have produced and will continue to produce quality research in a manner befitting the honor of such support I have received. Thank you, all.

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