High-Elevation Prehistoric Land Use in the Central Sierra Nevada,
Yosemite National Park, California
Suzanna Theresa Montague
B.A., Colorado College, Colorado Springs, 1982
THESIS
Submitted in partial satisfaction of
the requirements for the degree of
MASTER OF ARTS
in
ANTHROPOLOGY
at
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SACRAMENTO
SPRING
2010
High-Elevation Prehistoric Land Use in the Central Sierra Nevada,
Yosemite National Park, California
A Thesis
by
Suzanna Theresa Montague
Approved by:
__________________________________, Committee Chair
Mark E. Basgall, Ph.D.
__________________________________, Second Reader
David W. Zeanah, Ph.D.
____________________________
Date
ii
Student: Suzanna Theresa Montague
I certify that this student has met the requirements for format contained in the University
format manual, and that this thesis is suitable for shelving in the Library and credit is to
be awarded for the thesis.
__________________________,
Michael Delacorte, Ph.D, Graduate Coordinator
Department of Anthropology
iii
___________________
Date
Abstract
of
High-Elevation Prehistoric Land Use in the Central Sierra Nevada,
Yosemite National Park, California
by
Suzanna Theresa Montague
The study investigated pre-contact land use on the western slope of California’s
central Sierra Nevada, within the subalpine and alpine zones of the Tuolumne River
watershed, Yosemite National Park. Relying on existing data for 373 archaeological sites
and minimal surface materials collected for this project, examination of site constituents
and their presumed functions in light of geography and chronology indicated two
distinctive archaeological patterns. First, limited-use sites—lithic scatters thought to
represent hunting, travel, or obsidian procurement activities—were most prevalent in pre1500 B.P. contexts. Second, intensive-use sites, containing features and artifacts believed
to represent a broader range of activities, were most prevalent in post-1500 B.P. contexts
and were confined to two of the trans-Sierra corridors. These findings are consistent with
high-elevation archaeological patterns previously identified in the region, and with lowerelevation cultural developments of increased population, territorial circumscription, and
subsistence intensification in the late period.
_______________________, Committee Chair
Mark E. Basgall, Ph.D.
_______________________
Date
iv
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I count myself lucky to have been a student of Yosemite and California State
University, Sacramento, at the same time, a happy circumstance where the intellectual
and emotional support of many people broadened my understanding of California
archaeology and deepened my sense of place. At Sacramento, professors Mark Basgall,
David Zeanah, and Michael Delacorte provided critical guidance on this project and
reviewed various versions of the draft. Basgall, in particular, took the time on numerous
occasions to discuss the project, comment on early stages of the draft, and generally
encourage a broader consideration of regional archaeological issues.
At Yosemite, the project could not have been undertaken without the support of
National Park Service managers, notably Laura Kirn, Branch Chief of Anthropology and
Archeology, and Dr. Niki Nicholas, Chief of Resources Management and Science. I am
most grateful for Laura’s involvement and her continuing patience with this project,
which certainly went longer than anticipated. The larger part of the project involved
compilation of data from previous investigations, and as such, it relied on the hard work
of many current and former Yosemite archaeologists, to name a few: Scott R. Jackson,
Paul DePascale, Laura Kirn, Kathleen Hull, Joe Mundy, Peter Gavette, David Curtis, and
Bruce Kahl. Tony Brochini, chairman of the American Indian Council of Mariposa
County, also discussed his view of Native American use of the Yosemite high country
with me.
Several other people engaged in this endeavor in various important ways. Craig
Skinner, of the Northwest Research Obsidian Studies Laboratory, generously carried out
v
obsidian studies at a student price. Dr. Kathleen Hull, professor of anthropology at
University of California, Merced, and James B. Snyder, former Yosemite
Historian/Archivist, provided much appreciated input on the project. At school, fellow
student Jennifer Thomas kept me clued in to the thesis process, a thing that is sometimes
difficult to track, much less accomplish, from afar.
Finally, my husband Peter Devine was, as he always is, the most important person
involved in this project. He waited up for me on too many occasions to count, he let me
work weekends without guilt, and he carried the heavy stuff.
Although many people helped me with this effort, the mistakes are all mine.
vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... v
List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... xi
List of Figures .................................................................................................................. xiii
Chapter
1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1
Thesis Organization ....................................................................................................... 4
2. NATURAL AND CULTURAL SETTING ................................................................... 5
Natural Setting ............................................................................................................... 5
Geology and Topography .......................................................................................... 5
Vegetation and Fauna ................................................................................................ 8
Climate and Hydrology ........................................................................................... 11
Ethnography ................................................................................................................. 14
Prehistory ..................................................................................................................... 21
Eastern Sierra Nevada ............................................................................................. 23
Western Sierra Nevada ............................................................................................ 26
Summary ...................................................................................................................... 31
3. ELABORATION OF THE PROBLEM ...................................................................... 34
Regional High-Elevation Studies ................................................................................. 34
Great Basin .............................................................................................................. 34
Southern Sierra Nevada ........................................................................................... 40
Yosemite Studies ..................................................................................................... 43
vii
Summary ................................................................................................................. 45
Study Problem and Theory........................................................................................... 47
4. METHODS .................................................................................................................. 51
Description of Existing Data Sets ................................................................................ 51
Surveyed Areas ....................................................................................................... 52
Site and Isolate Data ................................................................................................ 55
Excavations ............................................................................................................. 56
Chronological Data ................................................................................................. 56
Sampling and Field Methods ....................................................................................... 58
Laboratory Methods ..................................................................................................... 61
Analytical Studies ........................................................................................................ 63
Conversion of Obsidian Hydration Data ................................................................. 69
Limitations and Assumptions....................................................................................... 74
5. DESCRIPTION OF CULTURAL MATERIAL ......................................................... 76
Thesis Collections ........................................................................................................ 76
Projectile Points....................................................................................................... 76
Desert Series ......................................................................................................... 78
Rosegate Series ..................................................................................................... 79
Elko Series ............................................................................................................ 80
Contracting Stem Series ........................................................................................ 80
Concave Base Series ............................................................................................. 81
Pinto Series ........................................................................................................... 82
viii
Unclassifiable Fragments ...................................................................................... 85
Edge-modified Pieces .............................................................................................. 85
Debitage .................................................................................................................. 86
Thesis Observations ..................................................................................................... 86
Summary and Distribution of Study Area Materials ................................................... 88
Flaked Stone ............................................................................................................ 88
Flaked Stone Tool Caches ....................................................................................... 93
Bedrock Mortars and Pestles ................................................................................... 95
Portable Ground Stone and Battered Stone ........................................................... 103
Structural Remains ................................................................................................ 103
Uncommon Features ............................................................................................. 109
Uncommon Artifacts ............................................................................................. 110
Faunal Remains ..................................................................................................... 110
Summary ............................................................................................................... 110
6. INTENSIVE- AND LIMITED-USE SITES ANALYSIS ......................................... 112
Chronology and Function........................................................................................... 112
Spatial Patterns ........................................................................................................... 120
Summary .................................................................................................................... 130
7. SITE VARIABILITY AND CRITICAL ASSESSMENT ......................................... 131
Variability and Model Assessment ............................................................................ 131
Chronological Assessment of Bedrock Mortars ........................................................ 137
Summary .................................................................................................................... 139
ix
8. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ........................................................................ 141
Project Summary ........................................................................................................ 141
Conclusions ................................................................................................................ 146
Directions for Further Research ................................................................................. 150
Appendix A: Data Sources.............................................................................................. 152
A-1. Major Archaeological Projects within the Study Area. ................................ 153
A-2. Summary of Site Attributes........................................................................... 155
A-3. Summary of Chronological Data by Site. ..................................................... 168
A-4. Calibrated Dates for Obsidian Hydration Data. ............................................ 182
A-5. Summary of Bedrock Mortar Data................................................................ 191
Appendix B: Obsidian Studies Report ............................................................................ 193
Appendix C: Artifact Catalog ......................................................................................... 220
References Cited ............................................................................................................. 226
x
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1. Attributes of Passes Leading into the Study Area. ............................................... 8
Table 2. Prehistoric Cultural Chronology and Temporal Markers. .................................. 22
Table 3. Survey Data by Geographic Area. ...................................................................... 54
Table 4. Survey and Site Data by Elevation Zone. ........................................................... 54
Table 5. Summary of Fieldwork and Collected Material. ................................................ 59
Table 6. Summary of Obsidian Studies by Site. ............................................................... 64
Table 7. Results of Obsidian Visual Reliability Assessment. ........................................... 67
Table 8. Chronological Data Sample by Geographic Area and Use Type. ...................... 68
Table 9. Effective Hydration Temperature Data for
Study Area Sites (after Mundy 1993). ...................................................................... 70
Table 10. Selected Projectile Point Obsidian Hydration Ranges by Obsidian Source. .... 73
Table 11. Metric Attributes and Obsidian Studies Data for
Classifiable Projectile Points. ................................................................................... 77
Table 12. Previously Unrecorded Cultural Material Observed at Thesis Sites. ............... 87
Table 13. Frequency of Sites by Cultural Material Class, Geography, and Elevation. .... 89
Table 14. Frequency of Sites by Debitage Density, Geography, and Elevation. .............. 91
Table 15. Flaked Stone Tool Cache Data (after Montague 2008). ................................... 94
Table 16. Bedrock Mortar and Pestle Data by Geography and Elevation. ....................... 96
Table 17. Mortar Data for Selected Yosemite Areas within
the Western Mono Model. ...................................................................................... 100
xi
Table 18. Temporal Data for Structural Features and Proximal
Surface Collection Units. ........................................................................................ 107
Table 19. Obsidian Hydration Results Converted to Calendrical
Dates for Thesis Sites.............................................................................................. 114
Table 20. Frequency of Pre- and Post-1500 B.P. Dates for
Intensive- and Limited-Use Sites ............................................................................ 115
Table 21. Chronological Data for Study Area Sites. ...................................................... 117
Table 22. Frequencies of Limited-and Intensive-Use Sites for
Pre- and Post-1500 B.P. Materials .......................................................................... 118
Table 23. Selected Temporally Sensitive Projectile Points
at Intensive- and Limited-Use Sites within the Study Area .................................... 119
Table 24. Survey, Site Density, and Isolate Data by Geographic Location.................... 122
Table 25. Site and Isolate Frequencies by Geographic Location and Time Period. ....... 126
Table 26. Co-occurrence of Site Attributes and Chronological Data. ............................ 132
Table 27. Site Types by Debitage Density, Bifacial Tool
Occurrence, and Chronology. ................................................................................. 136
xii
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. Location of study area within Yosemite National Park....................................... 3
Figure 2. Elevation zones and surveyed areas within the study area. ................................. 6
Figure 3. Effective hydration temperature plotted against elevation ................................ 71
Figure 4. Scanned images of projectile points: a-c, Cottonwood Triangular; d-k, Desert
Side-notched; l, small arrow point, Desert Side-notched or Rose Spring. ............... 83
Figure 5. Scanned images of projectile points: a, Rose Spring; b, Rose Spring Cornernotched; c-e, Elko Corner-notched; f, Elko Eared; g, Sierra Contracting Stem; h,
Pinto series. ............................................................................................................... 84
Figure 6. Scanned images of projectile points: a, Humboldt Concave Base; b, Sierra
Concave Base; c-d, small, unidentifiable arrow point fragments. ............................ 85
Figure 7. Map showing bedrock milling surface distributions by site. ............................. 97
Figure 8. Histogram of number of milling surfaces per site. ............................................ 98
Figure 9. Histogram of mortar depths. ............................................................................ 100
Figure 10. Sketch map of Feature 6, rock ring, CA-TUO-3783. ................................... 105
Figure 11. Converted obsidian hydration values for sampled rock ring features. .......... 107
Figure 12. Photograph of talus pit at P-55-5164, Virginia Canyon (DC-07M-68). ....... 109
Figure 13. Frequency of calendrical dates for intensive- and limited-use sites. ............. 115
Figure 14. Map showing distribution of intensive- and limited-use sites. ...................... 123
Figure 15. Distribution of sites with post-1500 B.P. and pre-1500 B.P. materials. ....... 127
xiii
1
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
The Sierra Nevada mountain range comprises a relatively unbroken, 400-milelong physiographic feature, attaining elevations over 14,000 ft and dominating the
landscape of east-central California. The north-south trending range forms a distinct
climatic and biological boundary between the Great Basin and California. It is also
considered a boundary, albeit a porous and dynamic one, between two culture areas. In
the central Sierra Nevada, Paiute groups occupied lowland areas to the east at the time of
Euroamerican contact, while Miwok people lived in lowlands to the west.
The higher elevations of the central Sierra—the subalpine and alpine zones—have
traditionally received little attention in past ethnographic and archaeological studies.
Ethnographic records (e.g., Barrett and Gifford 1933; Steward 1933, 1938) for eastern
and western groups rarely mention high-elevation land use. Archaeological conceptions
have been rather synchronic in nature, viewing higher elevations through time as
marginal use zones, traversed seasonally by prehistoric peoples for the purposes of
hunting, travel, and trade, which may, in fact, be the case, but it remains to be adequately
demonstrated with empirical data.
In the past few decades, hunter-gatherer archaeological studies in the
Intermountain West have increasingly focused on prehistoric land use in upland
environments and how it relates to conditions in adjacent lowland contexts. In the
western Great Basin and southern Sierra Nevada, substantial changes in land use through
time are apparent. Research in the White Mountains (Bettinger 1991) of eastern
California has revealed striking changes in alpine land use strategies at about 1350 B.P.,
2
reflecting the large-scale changes thought to characterize the late prehistoric western
Great Basin (Bettinger 1999a). Bettinger (1991) observed that high-altitude villages,
indications of longer-term residential occupation and subsistence intensification, replaced
a less intensive previllage pattern primarily related to hunting. These changes, he argued,
likely reflect responses to population growth and may be linked with the spread of
Numic-speaking peoples. Thomas (1982, 1994) documented a similar shift in
subsistence-settlement in the Toquima Range of central Nevada, but he argued that the
transition occurred earlier than in the White Mountains and that it is not a consequence of
the Numic migration. The archaeological record of Taboose Pass in the southern Sierra
Nevada demonstrates this same pattern (Stevens 2002), although the shifts are not as
profound as in the other mountain ranges.
Given the emerging picture of land use changes in the larger region, the current
study investigated high-elevation land use on the western slope of the central Sierra
Nevada, in the high country of Yosemite National Park (Figure 1). Data generated
primarily through surface surveys conducted over the past 50 years, supplemented by
surface collections and chronological studies undertaken as part of the thesis, allowed for
a preliminary, broad assessment of subalpine and alpine land use and possible changes
through time. The study area comprised approximately 105,000 acres of the upper
watershed of the Tuolumne River, in which 9800 acres had been surveyed and 373
prehistoric archaeological sites had been documented. Since the current study relied
mainly on data gathered within the historic preservation compliance framework, a second
objective was to assess whether further study along these lines is warranted and to
provide recommendations for how that would be accomplished at Yosemite.
3
Figure 1. Location of study area within Yosemite National Park.
4
THESIS ORGANIZATION
The body of the thesis includes eight chapters, following a general framework of
context, methods, results, discussion, and recommendations. Chapter 2 describes the
study background, summarizing the natural setting of the study area, ethnography, and
prehistory. Chapter 3 presents additional detail on regional high-elevation archaeological
studies and elaborates the problem. The study methodology, including the field,
laboratory, and analytical methods used to address the problem, is outlined in Chapter 4.
Chapter 5 describes the artifacts recovered as part of the current study and summarizes
the nature and distributions of cultural material documented for the project area as a
whole. The results of data analysis are presented in Chapter 6, while Chapter 7 provides a
critical assessment of the study model and a key chronological assumption of the project.
Finally, Chapter 8 entails a discussion of the findings and recommendations for further
work. The appendices contain data tables providing the bases for analysis (Appendix A),
the results of specialized obsidian studies conducted by a consulting laboratory
(Appendix B), and the catalog of collected artifacts (Appendix C).
5
Chapter 2
NATURAL AND CULTURAL SETTING
This chapter provides a framework for the present study, summarizing relevant
information about the natural setting, ethnography, and prehistory. The study area
encompasses about 42,500 ha (105,000 acres) of land, between approximately 8500 ft
elevation on the west and 12,000 ft near the crest of the Sierra (Figure 2). Nearly all of
the study area is located within the upper Tuolumne River watershed. The general area
was selected because it is the most comprehensively studied location within Yosemite’s
higher elevations. It also represents an east-west cultural transition zone between Sierra
Miwok and Paiute groups in the contact era, a north-south transition between Southern
and Central Sierra Miwok, and a north-south boundary between predominant
distributions of Casa Diablo and Bodie Hill obsidians in the archaeological record. By
virtue of its location in the central Sierra, it is a distinctive biological, geological, and
climatic border between the well-watered, obsidian-poor west and the relatively arid,
obsidian-rich east.
NATURAL SETTING
Geology and Topography
Granitic formations of the Sierra batholith dominate the regional geology,
although metamorphic rocks are present in the western foothills and along the crest
(Huber 1987). Volcanic rocks of late Cenozoic age occur near the project area (e.g., Little
Devil’s Postpile), but these were apparently not utilized prehistorically. Instead, obsidian
from the eastern Sierra comprised the primary source material for flaked stone tools. In
contrast to the absence of flaked stone source material, granitic outcrops, boulders, and
6
Figure 2. Elevation zones and surveyed areas within the study area.
7
cobbles for the manufacture of milling equipment are locally abundant throughout the
study area.
The modern landscape is one of rugged and steep mountain peaks, characterized
in some areas by deep, forested river canyons and in others by low gradient streams and
expansive, open meadow systems. Unlike climatic and biotic factors, the topography of
the high country is an unchanging variable, one that has always influenced human
activity. The overall structure of the landscape reflects the uplift and tilting of the Sierran
batholith to the southwest; a long and gradual incline to the crest characterizes the
western slope, while the eastern escarpment is short and steep. To the east, a distance of
about 15 km in a straight line separates Tioga Pass at 10,000 ft and Mono Lake at 6400 ft
elevation. To the west, a distance of about 50 km is required to reach the same elevation.
Stream erosion and at least three episodes of glaciation, the last receding from the crest
by 12,500 B.P., have further sculpted the terrain, creating the linear, U-shaped canyons,
lake basins, and glacial till deposits of the study area.
The major drainage in the study area is the Tuolumne River, formed by its main
tributaries, the Lyell and Dana forks, and many perennial streams and lakes. Several of
these streams arise at the crest, creating natural corridors for travel in both prehistoric and
modern times. From north to south, and ranging in elevation from 10,000 to just over
11,000 ft, the passes in the study area lead from the canyons of the western slope into
Bridgeport Valley, Mono Basin, and Long Valley on the eastern slope (Table 1). This
portion of the eastern Sierra escarpment lies between 6500 and 7500 ft in elevation.
Donohue Pass to the south also affords relatively easy access to the Middle Fork of the
San Joaquin River, a major drainage of the western slope. With the exception of
8
Matterhorn Canyon, all of the routes provide direct access to the east side. Rafferty
Creek, as well as several smaller drainages and most of the lakes in the study area, do not
provide direct access to trans-Sierra passes.
Table 1. Attributes of Passes Leading into the Study Area.
Pass
Western Approach
Eastern Approach
E/W
N/S
Slide Canyon
Slide Canyon
10,650
N/S
Matterhorn
Canyon
Unnamed
pass
Virginia
10,700
N/S
Spiller Canyon
Robinson Creek
Little Slide
Canyon
upper end of Slide
Canyon (west
side)
Horse Creek
10,500
N/S
Virginia Canyon
Summit
10,200
E/W
Virginia Canyon
Tioga
9,950
N/S
Dana Fork
Mono
Parker
Donohue
10,600
11,100
11,050
E/W
E/W
E/W
Parker Pass Creek
Parker Pass Creek
Lyell Canyon
Mule*
Unnamed
pass*
Burro
Elev
(ft)
10,450
10,000
Orientation
Glines Canyon to
W. Fork Green
Creek
W. Fork Green
Creek or Virginia
Creek
Lee Vining Creek
or Lundy Canyon
Bloody Canyon
Parker Creek
Rush Creek or
Middle Fork San
Joaquin River
Eastern Geographic
Area
Bridgeport Valley
Bridgeport Valley
Bridgeport Valley
Bridgeport Valley
Bridgeport Valley
Bridgeport Valley or
Mono Basin
Mono Basin
Mono Basin
Mono Basin
Mono Basin or Long
Valley or San
Joaquin River
*Provide routes into Matterhorn Canyon via Slide Canyon.
Vegetation and Fauna
Subalpine forests, montane meadows, alpine vegetation communities, and vast
amounts of bare rock characterize the study area. Between 8000 and 10,600 ft, the
subalpine zone commonly includes lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta), whitebark pine
(Pinus albicaulis), and mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana), with locally important
associations of western white pine (Pinus monticola) and Sierra juniper (Juniperus
occidentalis) (Whitney 1979). Extensive meadows of grasses and sedges (Carex sp.)
occur in glacially scoured canyons and basins in the subalpine zone. Tuolumne Meadows
9
is the largest of these, while Dana Meadows and Lyell Canyon contain extensive meadow
systems as well. In these meadows ringed by subalpine forests, low glacial moraines or
bedrock outcrops on slightly higher and drier ground are often the locations of
archaeological sites. Above timberline at about 10,600 ft, sod-forming sedges and grasses
in meadows, along with bunchgrasses and cushions plants in alpine rock communities,
characterize the alpine vegetation (Whitney 1979:442).
Animals in these zones most often mentioned of economic importance to precontact peoples are mule deer and bighorn sheep, although black bear, marmot, and a
variety of small rodents reside there. Though not known as a mammal of economic
importance, it is worth mentioning that grizzly bears roamed the High Sierra as well.
Grinnell and Storer (1924:70) recounted anecdotes of grizzlies ranging up to 8500 ft in
the southern part of the park, while Bridgeport Tom told the story of Chief Towa, a Mono
Lake Paiute Indian killed by a grizzly bear en route to Yosemite Valley, in the vicinity of
Tuolumne Meadows and Tenaya Lake (Hulse 1935a).
In general, subsistence and resource procurement are not well understood in the
subalpine and alpine zones due to poor preservation of floral and faunal remains in
archaeological contexts and lack of detail in ethnographic accounts. Some researchers
(Rosenthal 2008; Todt and Hannon 1998) have addressed subsistence on the scale of
settlement systems through the integration of current biogeographic data sets and
ethnographic information. These approaches identify the most highly ranked resources in
the ethnographic record that may have influenced food procurement strategies, and look
to environmental data to define abundance and seasonality. An underlying premise is
based in optimal foraging theory; that is, people make decisions about food procurement
10
with the objective of maximizing their caloric energetic return (Rosenthal 2008:112).
Most relevant to this work is the model created by Rosenthal (2008) for the western slope
of the Sierra between the Tuolumne River on the south and the Mokelumne River on the
north. The author considers the different subsistence pursuits of men and women, in
terms of animal and plant resources, respectively, relying on Barrett and Gifford (1933)
for the identification of plant foods.
In Rosenthal’s analysis, the pattern of plant food productivity suggests that the
Lower Montane forest (3000-7000 ft) may have been the preferred place to live in the
summer because it is the most productive for fruits and seeds at that time. The Upper
Montane Forest and Alpine areas would have been most productive for animal foods
from late spring to autumn because of the presence of deer, bighorn sheep, jackrabbits,
and marmots. On the western slope, resident deer herds remain in the western foothills,
while migratory herds move to the higher elevations each summer. Migratory deer reach
elevations above about 6000 ft by mid to late May and return to lower elevations by midOctober (Woolfenden 1988). At the same time, bighorn sheep migrate from their winter
range along the eastern escarpment to the crest. The migratory patterns of these two
large-bodied mammals suggest the high country was an exceptional draw for hunting
compared to the animal resources available in the lower elevations during that season.
The two species prefer different summer habitats; meadows are important deer forage and
fawning territories (Woolfenden 1988), while the open, steep, craggy areas provide
important escape routes for bighorn sheep.
The Subalpine Forest contains the fewest plant foods (Rosenthal 2008:114), an
area also thought to be little used for plant gathering ethnographically (Anderson
11
1988:77–78). The abundance of limited-use sites in the study area supports these
assertions, but the presence of late-period bedrock mortars and domestic dwellings with
milling stones in the study area suggests that plant resource use should be further
considered in archaeological studies.
Climate and Hydrology
Climate varies substantially between the eastern and western slopes due to the
orographic precipitation pattern caused by the Sierra Nevada. A moist Mediterranean
climate characterizes the lower elevations of the western slope, while a more xeric
Continental climate prevails in the eastern Sierra. The subalpine zone has a boreal climate
of short, cool, and moist summers and long, cold, wet winters. Snowfall is abundant in
winter months, accumulating 1–3 m on the ground between November and June (Botti
and Sydoriak 2001:xx). Annual precipitation varies between 75 and 120 cm. The average
minimum and maximum temperatures for Tuolumne Meadows at 8600 ft elevation in
July are 2.6° and 21.7°C, while those in January are -13° and 5.2°C.
These snowfall and temperature data, along with ethnographic accounts,
emphasize the seasonal availability of the higher elevations. Seasonality imposes a
distinct limitation on settlement in the Sierra, constraining winter occupation to below
about 4000 ft in elevation in the west due to heavy winter snows and to the basins along
the eastern escarpment. The higher elevations would have been accessible for about four
to six months of the year, generally between June and October, depending on weather.
Past climate and vegetation regimes in Yosemite and the surrounding region have
been documented through various pollen-stratigraphic and tree-ring studies, summarized
most recently by Spaulding (1999). The early Holocene witnessed drier and colder
12
conditions than present, with aridity persisting into the middle Holocene. At Tioga Pass
Pond in the study area, the pollen of sagebrush, grasses, sedges, and other herbaceous
plants are most abundant at this time. The onset of cooler and wetter conditions at higher
elevations began after 6000 B.P., resulting in an increase in conifers and rising lake levels
and water tables. Between ca. 4500 and 2500 B.P., forest stands failed and meadows
developed at many locations in valley bottoms. Modern subalpine forests developed after
2500 B.P. with the onset of cooler conditions.
Although the overall trend in the past 5000 years has been toward cooler and
wetter conditions, studies indicate a few relatively recent and notable fluctuations in the
paleoenvironmental record. First, two periods of persistent drought, known as the
Medieval Climatic Anomaly (MCA), prevailed from A.D. 892–1112 and from A.D.
1209–1350 (Stine 1994). Remnant tree stumps well below the present water level in
Tenaya Lake, just east of the project area, are a testament to these episodes of drought in
Yosemite (Stine 1994). A second important fluctuation is the Little Ice Age, between
A.D. 1450 and 1850, when temperatures were ca. 0.5°C below present levels and modern
glaciers reached their maxima. Finally, volcanic activity in the eastern Sierra during the
middle and late Holocene has resulted in the deposition of several tephras along the
western slope.
Researchers have examined the effects of environmental conditions on human
settlement in the region (e.g., Hall 1983; Jones et al. 1999; Moratto 1999; Spaulding
1999), but what the key subsistence resources were and how they may have been affected
by environmental change remains uncertain. It is clear that treelines rose and fell in
elevation during these periods, but determining the composition and extent of past biotic
13
communities, and the distribution of culturally important resources, is difficult (Morgan
2006:42). In a synthesis of Sierran paleoenvironmental and modeling data mainly focused
on the low and middle elevations of the southern Sierra, Morgan (2006) proposed that
water would have been a limiting resource during the MCA, but the expansion of
culturally important resources such as black oak and sugar pine would have favored
human exploitation. In contrast, the Little Ice Age would have seen a contraction of black
oak range and density, an expansion of subalpine and alpine vegetation communities, and
an increase in water availability that no longer limited human settlement.
Hydrology would almost certainly have been a limiting factor in human
settlement of the high elevations during the MCA, just as Morgan (2006) indicated for
the lower elevations. Even under present conditions, thought to be relatively warm and
wet (Stine 2006), seasonal changes in stream flow are evident within the study area.
During the thesis fieldwork in September 2007, some of the tributary streams, including
Gaylor, Delaney, Rafferty, and Cold Canyon, were dry, although stagnant pools persisted
in some locations. In September 2006, both Budd Creek and Unicorn Creek were dry
(Cooper et al. 2006:33). The major drainages associated with high archaeological site
density— Return Creek (Virginia Canyon), Tuolumne River, Dana Fork, Lyell Fork, and
Parker Pass Creek—were still flowing. In addition, the lakes in the study area, as well as
the drainages in Spiller and Matterhorn canyons contained water, but the low site
densities in these areas indicate they were not a focus of intensive prehistoric activity.
Interestingly, Cooper et al. (2006:39) noted that about 30 to 40 percent of the Dana Fork
is underlain by metamorphic rock, which has led to the formation of thicker soils than
those of granitic origin since the last glaciation. Metamorphic soils retain water in
14
subsurface reservoirs that drain slowly and provide flow throughout the late summer and
fall. The Dana Fork also contains several rock glaciers, which may provide late-season
discharge (Millar and Westfall, cited in Cooper et al. [2006]). Thus, the Dana Fork
discharge in the late season is greater than that of any other subbasin feeding into
Tuolumne Meadows (Cooper et al. 2006). Metamorphic rocks also underlie the head of
Virginia Canyon, suggesting late season discharge for that drainage as well.
If procurement of pinyon and acorn became increasingly important after about
1500 years ago during the fall season, and surface water was even less available during
the MCA, it may not be surprising that the Mono Trail, the route over Mono Pass via the
Dana Fork and its tributaries, became a major travel corridor. It is unclear how prolonged
drought would have affected stream flows in the other major tributaries. In general, drier
climates would result in earlier snowmelt, which would cause earlier declines in
tributaries and meadow ground water tables (Cooper et al. 2006:3). Declines in lake
levels during the MCA would also be expected given the substantially lowered level of
Tenaya Lake (see Stine 1994), one of the largest lakes in the park.
ETHNOGRAPHY
The ethnographic records for the eastern and western Sierra are briefly reviewed
here as important considerations of how the higher elevations were used at the time of
sustained Euroamerican contact, ca. 1850 in Yosemite, and during the historical period.
People inhabiting the larger region in the contact era were the Penutian-speaking Central
Sierra Miwok and Southern Sierra Miwok; the Bridgeport Valley Paiute and Mono Lake
Paiute, speakers of the Northern Paiute language; and the Mono-speaking Owens Valley
Paiute. Detailed ethnographic information about these groups can be found in numerous
15
primary documents (Barrett and Gifford 1933; Clark 1904; Davis 1965; Kroeber 1925;
Powers 1976; Steward 1933, 1938), ethnographic syntheses (Fowler and Liljeblad 1986;
Levy 1978) and various historical accounts (e.g., Bunnell 1990; Colby 1949; Whitney
1868). Two recent studies, an ethnohistory of the Yosemite high country in the vicinity of
the Tuolumne River (Bates and Lee 1994) and an ethnogeography of Yosemite National
Park (Bibby 2002), have particular relevance for this thesis.
The ethnographic record must be considered in light of data collection
methodologies and the dramatic changes in native lifeways, populations, and territorial
ranges brought about by Euroamerican contact. Most documentation of Sierra Miwok
lifeways was conducted between 1900 and 1920, well after the Miwok people’s culture
had already changed dramatically due to introduced diseases, an estimated population
reduction of 90 percent by the 1910 census, relocated populations from elsewhere in the
state, and the great influx of miners into the foothills during the Gold Rush (Bates 1993;
Bates and Lee 1990). Thus, the existing record may represent a fragmentary view of an
already disrupted system (Bibby 2002:59). Furthermore, the primary published works on
Miwok life may hold some biases. For example, Edward Gifford focused mainly on
ceremonial life, while Samuel Barrett’s fieldwork was limited to a short time period
between August and October of 1906 (Bates 1993:11–12). Barrett also remained in close
proximity to stage lines that ran along today’s Highway 49 (Bates 1993:12), well away
from the higher elevations of interest in this study. Similarly, fieldwork conducted by
Julian Steward and Emma Lou Davis among Paiute groups did not take place until the
1920s and late 1950s, respectively. In contrast to the population status of the Miwok,
Steward (1933:237) reported relatively little decrease in population levels for the Owens
16
Valley Paiute between the 1850s and 1930, around 1000 persons. Some potential biases
in Steward’s ethnographic work include an overemphasis on the Western Shoshone and
Owens Valley Paiute, to the near exclusion of the Northern Paiute (Thomas 1979). Given
these factors, it seems prudent to consider the ethnographic record as a starting point, or
as a model, for the investigation of high-elevation land use.
A few important points emerge from the body of ethnographic, historical, and
ethnohistoric literature, primarily in terms of how the high country was incorporated into
regional settlement patterns and by whom. First, fixed tribal territories may not have been
well defined, particularly in the high-elevation, seasonal use areas, and they potentially
shifted through time, depending on social relationships (Bibby 2002:59; Kroeber
1925:443). Early ethnographers (Barrett 1908; Kroeber 1925) documented Central and
Southern Sierra Miwok lands on the western slope of the Sierra in the vicinity of
Yosemite, ranging from the crest in the east to the lower foothills on the west. The
“boundary” between these groups was the watershed divide between the Tuolumne and
Merced rivers. Merriam (1907), however, indicated that the higher elevations above
Yosemite Valley on the Merced River and Hetch Hetchy on the Tuolumne River were
unclaimed by the Miwok, and that the Tuolumne River itself rather than the watershed
divide formed the boundary between the Central and Southern Sierra Miwok. In
explaining the distinctions made by Barrett and Merriam regarding the eastern extent of
Miwok territory, Kroeber (1908: 376) noted that Merriam included only the permanently
inhabited areas, while Barrett included both permanent and summer use areas in his
consideration of Miwok territory. Galen Clark (1904:21–22), an early Euroamerican
settler and long-time resident of Yosemite, described distinctions between upper and
17
lower elevations in terms of Miwok territories, supporting the notion of the high country
as a joint use area:
In their original tribal settlements, at the time the first pioneer whites came
among them, the Indians had well defined or understood boundary lines,
between the territories claimed by each tribe for their exclusive use in
hunting game and gathering means of support; and any trespassing on the
domain of others was likely to cause trouble. This arrangement, however,
did not apply to the higher ranges of the Sierra, which were considered
common hunting ground.
The Paiute occupied lands to the east of the crest, the Northern Paiute to the north
of the watershed divide between Mono Lake and the Owens River, and the Owens Valley
Paiute to the south (Steward 1933). Historical and ethnographic accounts of Paiute people
in Yosemite are abundant, most frequently in regard to acorn gathering (see Bibby
2002:31−34). Whether this situation also applied to earlier times remains to be resolved.
Bennyhoff (1956a:13), in particular, questioned whether Paiute exploitation of the middle
elevations (e.g., Yosemite Valley, Hetch Hetchy) could have occurred prior to
Euroamerican colonization. A suggestion of spatial distinctions in high country use,
however, is indicated by John Muir, writing in 1879. Muir (1879:644) stated that what is
now called Summit Pass, at the head of Virginia Canyon, was “used chiefly by roaming
bands of the Pah Ute Indians and ‘sheepmen.’” This single reference aside, it seems clear
that, in general, the higher elevations of Yosemite were not solely the province of one
ethnic group and that archaeological sites in the study area may represent use by western
and/or eastern groups.
Second, there is little detailed information in ethnographic and historical accounts
of high country use, and the few references rarely indicate the specific reason for that use.
Nonetheless, Bates and Lee (1994) were able to ascertain that hunting, traveling to attend
18
festivals, traveling for warfare, and escaping enemies or drought were activities that took
place in the high country. In addition, trade between eastern and western groups was
known to be a significant pursuit (Barrett and Gifford 1933; Davis 1961; Davis 1965;
Sample 1950; Steward 1933).
An important factor influencing high country use was its seasonal availability;
heavy winter snows generally limited use above 4000 ft elevation on the western slope to
summer and early fall. Barrett and Gifford (1933:134) envisioned the structure of Sierra
Miwok settlement in terms of three north-south parallel bands, cross-cutting the dialectic
areas. Groups of people lived in the Lower Sonoran (below 1000 ft), Upper Sonoran
(1000−3000 ft), and Transition (3000−6000 ft) zones, but they made excursions into
adjacent areas or traded to obtain products available elsewhere. The people residing in the
Transition zone might visit the Canadian and Hudsonian zones (6000−10,000 ft) now and
then, but only summer camps were established there. Presumably, people never used the
Arctic-Alpine zone above 10,500 ft (Barrett and Gifford 1933:134), though current
archaeological evidence contradicts this statement.
The tribelet, containing between 100 and 300 residents and controlling a definite
territory, was the foremost political unit (Levy 1978:398, 410). Lineages within the
tribelet included approximately 25 people in a specific geographic locality, usually the
permanent settlements. Bennyhoff (1956a:6) noted that hunting and gathering forays by
the Miwok into the higher elevations were frequent, and that women accompanied men
on large trips. The “food quest” was the most important factor connecting people to their
environment, with shifts in altitude increasing the availability of foods (Barrett and
Gifford 1933:136). The most highly regarded foods were the acorn and deer, followed by
19
the Western Gray Squirrel (Sciurus griseus) and the seeds of Clarkia sp., although a wide
range of animals and plants were included in the diet.
To the east, Steward (1938) echoed the importance of the food quest in the lives
of the Paiute people. A seasonal pattern of summer fission and winter fusion, organized
around subsistence needs, characterized the annual cycle. Egalitarian family-bands were
mobile during the summer months, coalescing into loose, larger settlements, with little or
no suprafamilial organization, during the winter months. Plant foods gathered by women,
particularly pinyon pine nuts and a variety of hard seeds, were of utmost importance,
while men hunted to supplement the diet. In the Mono Lake area, the larvae of the brine
fly (Ephydra hians) was a local staple, as well as a trade item, and the people there were
thus known as the Kuzedika, or Fly-Larva-Eaters (Davis 1965:5). Here, summer base
camps along the meadows at the western edges of Mono Lake were established. TransSierra trade and travel commenced from these sites, and deer and sheep were pursued in
their summer high country ranges (Davis 1965:29−30). Steward (1933:Map 1) reported a
Mono Lake Paiute summer encampment as far west as Little Yosemite Valley, located at
about 6000 ft elevation on the Merced River and just a few kilometers east of Yosemite
Valley. In alternate summers, families moved to the Jeffrey pine forests about 30 km
south of the lake to gather and store the caterpillar larvae of the Pandora moth (Coloradia
pandora). In the fall of good pinyon nut years, people moved to the areas east of the lake
to the pinyon groves and spent the winter near their nut caches. When the pinyon nut crop
was poor, Paiute people migrated to other areas, often wintering in Yosemite and
frequently marrying Miwok (Steward 1933:257). In the spring, people traveled from their
winter camps back to the eastern foot of the Sierra.
20
To the south, more stable social groups living at semi-permanent settlements
characterized the Owens Valley Paiute, who specialized in lowland plants in close
proximity to the settlements. Population levels were higher, among the highest in the
Great Basin, and the sociopolitical structure was more complex. The nuclear family was
an important social unit in the village system, but it was to some degree superseded by
district organizations of a single village or multiple, politically allied villages with
hereditary chieftains. Recent research, however, suggests this district level organization
may be a historic-era phenomenon, related to families consolidating around ranches
where wage labor was available (Basgall et al. 2003; Delacorte 1999). Although the
territory of the Owens Valley Paiute generally lies mainly to the south of the study area,
Steward (1933:235) reported that they traded and intermarried with their Miwok
neighbors.
Subsistence pursuits in the high country are poorly defined, but hunting is
mentioned most frequently in ethnographic and historical accounts. John Muir
(1916:205) encountered Paiutes hunting deer in the Tuolumne Meadows area, while
bighorn sheep, bear, and marmots were also pursued in the high country (Bates and Lee
1994; Davis 1965:26). Davis (1965:25) stated that the subalpine and alpine areas were
apparently used very little by the Mono Lake Paiute, except by travelers, hunters, and
women collecting a medicinal herb of the parsley family. Men hunted in the high Sierra,
drying the meat and carrying it home in the hide (Davis 1965:32−33).
Trade and travel through the high country were important pursuits, with accounts
of easterners and westerners traveling both ways. Based on his observations at Yosemite
in the second half of the nineteenth century, Muir (1977:80) wrote that,
21
The Indians of the western slope venture cautiously over the passes in
settled weather to attend dances, and obtain loads of pine-nuts and the
larvae of a small fly that breeds in Mono and Owen’s lakes, which, when
dried, forms an important article of food; while the Pah Utes cross over
from the east to hunt the deer and obtain supplies of acorns…
The locations of archaeological sites in the study area (see Chapter 6) also support
historical records of travel across trans-Sierra passes for the purposes of exchange.
Mentioned most frequently in the Yosemite literature, the Mono Trail followed Bloody
Canyon from Walker Lake to Sardine Lakes, reaching the summit at Mono Pass. The trail
led down the gradual western slope to Tuolumne Meadows, splitting there into two
branches, one heading to the west and the other to the south. Items traded to the west
included salt, finished points, sinew backed bows, pinyon nuts, brine fly larvae, Pandora
moth caterpillars, rabbitskin blankets, buffalo robes, red and white pigments, obsidian,
baskets, and basketry materials (Davis 1961:20). Goods traded to the east included
acorns, baskets, arrows, manzanita berries, sour berries, elderberries, paint fungus, and
shell beads (Davis 1961:17, 38). Muir (1977:80) mentioned that Indian women carried
supplies in immense loads on their backs over the mountain passes, often for a distance of
up to 60−70 miles.
PREHISTORY
Archaeological investigations in the region have revealed at least 10,000 years of
human occupation (Table 2), a broad span of time encompassing changing environments,
technologies, mobility patterns, population dynamics, and exchange relationships. The
foothills of the western Sierra, below the snow line at 4000 ft elevation, and the eastern
Sierra escarpment formed the core lowland areas of regional settlement systems. Any
changes or perturbations within these areas likely influenced use of the uplands as well.
22
Table 2. Prehistoric Cultural Chronology and Temporal Markers.
Years
B.P.
650–
contact
Eastern Sierra
Period
Temporal Markers
Western Sierra
Temporal Markers
Years
B.P.
600–
contact
Period
Late Prehistoric 3
and Protohistoric
(Mariposa
Complex)
Desert Side-notched,
Cottonwood
Triangular, bedrock
mortar
Marana
Desert Side-notched;
Cottonwood
Triangular, ceramics
1350–
650
Haiwee
Rose Spring, Eastgate
1300–
600
Late Prehistoric 2
(Tamarack
Complex)
Rose Spring,
Eastgate, bedrock
mortar?
3500–
1350
Newberry
Elko, Humboldt,
Gypsum
3200–
1300
Late Prehistoric 1
(Crane Flat
Complex)
Elko, Concave Base,
Contracting Stem
7500–
3500
Little
Lake
Pinto, Gatecliff Splitstem; thick Elko; Fish
Slough Side-notched
8000–
3200
Intermediate
Prehistoric
Pinto, Humboldt?
10,000–
7500
Lake
Mohave
Great Basin Concave
and Stemmed
11,500–
8000
Early Prehistoric
Largely undefined
Binford’s (1980) continuum between foragers and collectors has consistently
provided a model for subsistence-settlement mobility in western and eastern Sierra
regional studies and, as such, is referenced in the summary below. In brief, Binford
(1980) characterized foragers as small, mobile populations, who move residentially to
resolve variation in the distribution of food resources over time and space. In this
strategy, consumers move to resources and “map on” to the key resources of a locale. By
contrast, the collector strategy moves resources to people. Collector populations are
greater in density, more sedentary, and socially stratified, moving to key locations and
acquiring critical resources by logistical forays. Group mobility strategies are linked to
the distributions of resources in the environment; homogeneous environments favor a
23
residentially mobile strategy, while patchy and seasonal resource distributions contribute
to logistical work organization.
Eastern Sierra Nevada
In the eastern Sierra Nevada, researchers have identified broad changes in
subsistence and settlement through the Holocene. Despite a great deal of archaeological
work in that region, few and scattered sites are known from the early and middle
Holocene and the lifeways of early peoples remain poorly understood. Diverse raw
material profiles indicate that groups covered enormous distances in the annual round,
and an apparent absence of milling equipment suggests little reliance on seed resources in
the early Holocene (Basgall 1989; Basgall et al. 2003; Basgall and McGuire 1988).
Western Stemmed (Lake Mohave and Silver Lake) and Great Basin Concave Base
projectile points are temporal markers of this time period.
Limited data for middle Holocene sites indicate that a highly mobile settlement
system remained in place, though the presence of ground stone artifacts point to
increasing intensity of plant exploitation (Basgall et al. 2003). A diverse set of dart points
dating to this period—Pinto, Gatecliff Split-stem, Fish Slough Side-notched, and “thick
Elko” forms— suggest a complex culture history, one that has yet to be fully explored
(Basgall and Giambastiani 1995; Basgall and Hall 2000; Gilreath and Hildebrandt 1997;
Thomas 1981).
Logistically organized settlement systems, allowing for the simultaneous
exploitation of resources in diverse settings and featuring larger population aggregates,
arose after 3500 B.P., in the late Holocene during the Newberry period. A more
regularized and spatially limited annual round, thought to occur along a north-south axis
24
in valley corridors, characterizes the later portion (ca post-2200 B.P.) of this period
(Basgall 1989; Delacorte 1999), while the early Newberry period remains poorly
understood. Highly varied and functionally distinct sites point to a continued emphasis on
hunting but increased exploitation of plant resources and logistical exploitation of
resources from seasonally occupied base camps. Dart points of the Elko, Humboldt, and
Gypsum series characterize this period.
A point of contention revolves around the nature of the settlement system during
this period, with some researchers (e.g., Basgall 1989; Bettinger and Baumhoff 1982)
proposing the continuation of high residential mobility but more regularized and spatially
limited annual rounds, and others (McGuire and Hildebrandt 2005) suggesting at least
semi-sedentary occupation. The latter conception posits gender differentiation in
subsistence and settlement organization, the logistical mobility related to wide-ranging
male prestige hunters and residential stability to women, children, and older males
(McGuire and Hildebrandt 2005:705−706; Hildebrandt and McGuire 2002). Recent
studies incorporating obsidian source diversity and flake technological studies, however,
support the notion of a highly mobile system for the Newberry period and its replacement
by a more sedentary strategy later in time (Basgall et al. 2003; Eerkens et al. 2008).
The two arguments have divergent implications for the issue of obsidian
procurement, a topic of some importance in both western and eastern Sierra research. If
Newberry populations were highly mobile and therefore did not control access to the
quarries, then people living along the western slope may have accessed obsidian sources
directly (Bouey and Basgall 1984; Stevens 2002). The alternative, in which east-side
populations were residentially stable enough to control quarry access, sees exchange and
25
long-distance toolstone re-supply by hunters as key modes of procurement and
distribution rather than direct access by people from the west. Rosenthal (2008:208)
argued that the exchange of obsidian to the west was linked to a high-altitude settlement
system geared toward the hunting of bighorn sheep, where obsidian exchange is seen as a
“value-added” activity to hunting. Further building on this argument, he proposed that
east-side hunters in pursuit of bighorn sheep regularly made their way to the upper
elevations of the western slope of the central Sierra (to roughly between 7000 and 9000 ft
elevation), based on the predominance of obsidian over cryptocrystalline flaked stone
materials at higher-elevation western slope sites and, vice versa, the higher frequencies of
cryptocrystalline materials at middle and lower elevation sites. This pattern has yet to be
substantiated at Yosemite, where obsidian material is predominant in flaked stone
collections at most excavated sites regardless of elevation. Although researchers disagree
about the mechanisms of obsidian procurement and distribution for that time period, and
research on both sides of the crest is hampered by the difficulty in distinguishing direct
access vs. exchange in the archaeological record, there is consensus that eastern Sierra
obsidian production increased at the inception of the Newberry period (3500 B.P.) and
sharply declined at the end of that period, ca. 1350 B.P. (Bouey and Basgall 1984;
Gilreath and Hildebrandt 1997; Ramos 2000; Singer and Ericson 1977).
Late prehistoric subsistence-settlement, particularly after 1350 B.P. (Haiwee and
Marana periods), is characterized by a widening of diet breadth to include greater
exploitation of high-cost resources such as seeds and small game, a rise in technological
complexity, ever-increasing residential tethering brought about by greater reliance on
stored resources, and greater population densities (Basgall et al. 2003; Basgall and
26
McGuire 1988; Bettinger 1999a). The intensive procurement of pinyon nuts, small seeds,
and wetland resources, along with the development of alpine villages after ca. 1350 B.P.,
best exemplifies late period subsistence intensification in the eastern Sierra by (Basgall
and Giambastiani 1995; Bettinger 1976, 1991, 1999a; Delacorte 1990, 1999). At about
the same time, the bow and arrow replaced the atlatl and dart in the region, a
technological innovation thought to represent greater hunting efficiency and one that
required less toolstone for the smaller arrow projectiles. Rose Spring and Eastgate
projectile points are markers of the Haiwee period, while the Desert Side-notched and
Cottonwood Triangular forms characterize the Marana period. The use of Owens Valley
Brown Ware pottery also became widespread after 500 B.P. (Delacorte 1999).
Although still a highly contested hypothesis, some researchers have proposed a
population replacement during late prehistoric times to account for linguistic patterns (cf.
Lamb 1958). Bettinger and Baumhoff (1982; see also Bettinger 1999a) proposed that
Numic speakers replaced Prenumic peoples in the Great Basin at about 1000 B.P. based
on changes in basketry and rock art styles (Bettinger and Baumhoff 1982). The
diminutive Desert Side-notched projectile point may also be a marker of Numic ethnicity
in the eastern Sierra (Delacorte 2008).
Western Sierra Nevada
Bennyhoff (1956a) developed the region’s first culture historical sequence, based
on intuitive surveys from a variety of Yosemite locales and minimal excavation data from
four sites. In the past 50 years, large-scale studies in the nearby foothills and continuing
work in Yosemite have allowed for further elaboration of the region’s culture history
(Hull and Moratto 1999; Moratto 1972; Moratto et al. 1988; Rosenthal 2008). Following
27
a synthesis of Yosemite studies and considering data from the surrounding region,
Moratto (1999) proposed revisions to the original sequence, while emphasizing the need
for further testing of the model. The discussion to follow relies largely on Moratto’s
(1999) revised construct for Yosemite, but it also incorporates data from important
foothill studies.
Evidence of human activity in the early Holocene is scant and limited to the El
Portal area, situated at 2000 ft elevation on the lower Merced River. No early Holocene
components have been documented, although Moratto (1999) pointed out some
compelling pieces of evidence, including a handful of thick obsidian hydration rims (8.0–
14.3 microns) on artifacts derived from several sites, sediment strata resembling
anthrosols from early-period sites in the lower Sierra foothills, and large, broad-stemmed
projectile point forms found elsewhere in the region in early contexts. Numerous
stemmed projectile points resembling Lake Mojave points have been recovered from
early Holocene sites at Clarks Flat on the Stanislaus River (Peak and Crew 1990) and the
Skyrocket site near Copperopolis (see Moratto 1999). Based on data from these sites in
the surrounding regions, Moratto (1999) posited an early settlement pattern of highly
mobile and sparse populations.
In the middle Holocene, ca. 8000 to 3200 B.P., a few sites in the lower elevations
may have sustained resident populations based on the presence of obsidian hydration
values larger than those of Elko points, several radiocarbon dates, and numerous dart
points, particularly of the Pinto and Humboldt series. According to Moratto (1999:185),
two sites with middle Holocene assemblages, not originally recognized as such, occur in
Yosemite. Among the recognized attributes are Pinto series points, an array of cores,
28
choppers, and flake tools, bifaces, abundant handstones and grinding slabs, and a
preference for non-obsidian toolstone. Moratto (1999:184) posited a pattern of “extensive
rather than intensive land use” during this period, but the archaeological manifestations
continue to be very poorly understood.
The Late Prehistoric 1 period (Crane Flat Complex; ca. 3200–1300 B.P.) shares
strong similarities with the Chowchilla Phase at Buchanan Reservoir and the Sierra Phase
at New Melones Reservoir on the Stanislaus River (Moratto 1972; Moratto et al. 1988).
Projectile point forms of Elko, Sierra Concave Base, and Triangular Contracting Stem are
characteristic of this period, indicating hunting with the atlatl and dart, while abundant
obsidian in flaked stone collections shows a strong affinity with the eastern Sierra.
Handstones, milling slabs, and portable mortars for processing seeds are evident at
Buchanan Reservoir and New Melones, while the latter are rare at Yosemite. Cemeteries
with tightly- to loosely-flexed burials, some beneath stone cairns, are accompanied by a
range of artifacts, including shell beads and ornaments, bone artifacts, red ochre, quartz
crystals, steatite objects, and obsidian points and bifaces (cf. Fitzwater 1962). The nonrandom distribution of artifacts with burials at El Portal and along the Chowchilla River
implies non-egalitarian social organization (Moratto 1999:187). More sedentary and
intensive land use by larger populations generally characterizes this period. Residential
bases were adjacent to permanent streams, with seasonal use of the uplands, probably
within a logistically organized subsistence-settlement system. Moratto (1999:188) opined
that the similar cultural inventories at El Portal, Buchanan Reservoir, and New Melones
show a stronger affinity with peoples of the San Joaquin Valley during this period
compared to a later shift in focus in Yosemite to the east.
29
The Late Prehistoric 2 period (1300–600 B.P.; Tamarack Complex) at Yosemite
is poorly understood archaeologically, and one researcher (Fitzwater 1962, 1968) rejected
it as a distinct cultural entity. Rose Spring and Eastgate projectile points are thought to be
temporal markers of this period, reflecting the emergence of the bow and arrow as the
preferred weapon system over the atlatl and dart combination. The bedrock mortar may
have first appeared in Yosemite at this time (Bennyhoff 1956a), although the initial use
and spread of that technology remains to be substantiated. In general, researchers believe
the transition from portable milling equipment to the bedrock mortar occurred sometime
between 1400–450 B.P. in the foothills (Moratto 1999:166, 2002) and ca. 1000 B.P. in
the southern Sierra Nevada (Jackson 1991; Jackson and Dietz 1984). Large-scale studies
in the foothills at New Melones and around the town of Sonora indicate that bedrock
mortars were in use in the foothills by about 600 years ago (Moratto 2002; Rosenthal
2008). Looking at obsidian hydration data from 40 bedrock mortar sites in the southern
Sierra Nevada, Stevens (2003) found that sites above 5000 ft elevation depict an increase
in occupational intensity after ca. 1000 B.P. In contrast, sites below 5000 ft elevation
show an increase in the percentage of dates at 2500 B.P., with a peak between 1500 and
1000 B.P. Though it is tempting, as Stevens (2003) noted, to assume that these dates
reflect the appearance and spread of bedrock mortars, caution is warranted for numerous
reasons, particularly if sites were occupied long before the bedrock mortars were used.
Components of this interval have been difficult to distinguish archaeologically,
possibly due to shifting settlement patterns; that is, sites tend to be ephemeral and located
away from well-watered areas (Hull 1989a). Comparing data from various environmental
settings, Hull et al. (1995:147–148) proposed that ephemeral use of mid-elevation
30
settings may be related to western-slope peoples practicing a forager subsistencesettlement strategy, while the Tamarack assemblages in high-elevation settings may
reflect special-use sites related to east-side collectors. Moratto (1999:119) further
suggested that Tamarack assemblages in Yosemite’s high country, marked by Rose
Spring and Eastgate projectile points, may represent the expansion of the Numic due, in
part, to unfavorable environmental conditions in the Great Basin. Also during this period,
the Sierra Miwok may have first entered the region from the north (Hull 1990).
The Raymond Phase (1400–450 B.P.) at Buchanan Reservoir and the Redbud
Phase (1450–650 B.P.) at New Melones Reservoir reflect a similar period of apparent
cultural change. Villages were abandoned, trade from the eastern Sierra and coast was
minimal, and populations were small and dispersed (Moratto 1972; Moratto et al. 1988).
An absence of substantial material dating to about this period in the Sonora foothills
locality also suggests a change in settlement and land use (Rosenthal 2008:74). Moratto
(1999:119, 190) attributed this time of change to environmental stress induced by the
shift to a more xeric climate, suggesting that populations may have moved upslope to
higher-elevation zones such as Yosemite Valley and Wawona. A demographic study
specific to Yosemite Valley, however, showed a substantial decrease in population during
the 1500–600 B.P. interval (Hull 2002a), arguing against this scenario.
The Late Prehistoric 3 period (Mariposa Complex), dating from ca. 600 B.P. to
Euroamerican contact in Yosemite, shares similarities with the Madera Phase on the
Chowchilla River and the Horseshoe Bend Phase in the New Melones Reservoir area. A
hunting, gathering, and fishing economy featured an intensive reliance on the staple food
acorn. Hallmarks of this period include the bedrock mortar and pestle, in widespread use
31
for processing acorns and other foods, and Desert Side-notched and Cottonwood
Triangular projectile points, used for hunting with the bow and arrow. Large, dense
populations occupied villages in streamside settings at lower elevations, while special-use
sites facilitated resource procurement in higher-elevation settings, suggesting a collector
strategy of subsistence-settlement. At the Sonora locality, late prehistoric deposits are
more spatially confined compared to earlier deposits, possibly due to the use of bedrock
mortars, which tend to focus activity (Rosenthal 2008:75). It is widely accepted that the
late prehistoric period reflects occupation by the ancestors of the Central and Southern
Sierra Miwok populations along the western slope, with contributions by neighboring
peoples such as the Paiute and Western Mono (Moratto 1999, 2002).
SUMMARY
The archaeological records of the eastern and western Sierra show some broad
parallels and a few key differences. Though the early and middle Holocene records are
not well known, researchers believe the general trend over time in both regions to be one
of high mobility and pursuit of high-return resources early in time and reduced mobility,
increasing territoriality, and subsistence intensification later in time. One key difference
between eastern and western cultural sequences lies in the earlier development of large
settlements in the Sierra foothills between ca. 3000 and 1500 B.P. In Yosemite, the Crane
Flat Complex is said to evince substantial populations and sedentism, while a mobile but
regularized annual round characterized the Newberry period in the eastern Sierra. Both of
these subsistence-settlement systems, however, were likely logistically organized. In
addition, groups in both regions utilized the dart and atlatl combination, a toolstoneintensive technology focusing on procurement of obsidian from eastern Sierra sources.
32
A subsequent period of cultural change in both regions occurred after about 1500
B.P. The bow and arrow replaced the atlatl and dart, while the florescence and
subsequent decline in use of obsidian at the eastern Sierra quarries is mirrored by changes
in obsidian debitage densities in the west. Intensive exploitation of acorn to the west and
pinyon to the east transpired ca. 1500−1000 B.P., although it is clear that these resources
were also used by people earlier in time (Basgall et al. 2003; Rosenthal 2008). A period
of hypothesized settlement shift, low population density, violence, and reduced trade,
possibly a result of the two extreme periods of drought of the Medieval Climatic
Anomaly, is thought to characterize the western Sierra foothills between ca. 1500 and
650 B.P (Moratto 1972, 1999). The impacts of drought on human settlement have yet to
be clarified in the western Sierra, but data from the eastern Sierra show no evident
disruptions in human occupation during this period (Basgall 2008).
In the contact and post-contact era, Miwok-speaking people occupied the lowland
areas of the western Sierra, while Paiute-speaking people lived in the eastern Sierra. The
high country is believed to have been a joint use area, traversed seasonally for hunting,
travel and trade, escaping drought and enemies, and attending festivals. Very little is
known of plant resource exploitation in the subalpine and alpine zones, while reference to
hunting is made mainly in regard to deer or bighorn sheep. Based on a few anecdotes in
the historical record, groups of men apparently hunted using a logistical strategy. In the
project area, easterners and westerners traversed the Mono Trail (via Mono Pass, Dana
Meadows, and Tuolumne Meadows), mentioned most often in the literature as an
important corridor facilitating the extensive trade network and social contacts between
groups of people.
33
Although gaps are evident in the regional culture history sequences, this summary
provides an interpretive framework for the current study, in which the higher elevations
are viewed as an articulating part of the larger subsistence-settlement systems on the east
and west. Similar to what is known in the regional records, the signature of early and
middle Holocene use is expected to be minimal or difficult to detect. Logistical use of the
uplands should be prevalent during the 3500–1500 B.P. interval, with hunting and
obsidian procurement related to the toolstone-consumptive biface industry in evidence.
Late prehistoric subsistence intensification, decreased group mobility, and increased
territorial circumscription in the lowlands should be reflected by increased, and perhaps
spatially constricted, residential use in the uplands. While trade between eastern and
western groups apparently has great time depth, it may be that the emphasis shifted from
obsidian prior to 1350 B.P. to other materials, such as foods, after that time.
34
Chapter 3
ELABORATION OF THE PROBLEM
This chapter begins with an exploration of how researchers view subsistencesettlement in mountain environments in the western Great Basin and southern Sierra
Nevada. Building on this work and what is known about regional prehistory, the second
part of the chapter outlines the current study problem, its theoretical underpinnings, and
study expectations.
REGIONAL HIGH-ELEVATION STUDIES
In the past few decades, hunter-gatherer archaeological studies in the Great Basin
and Sierra Nevada have increasingly focused on prehistoric land use in upland
environments and how it relates to conditions in the adjacent lowlands, taking a regional
perspective in settlement patterning. Alpine environments have drawn the most attention
because they have been considered resource-poor areas where patterns of land use might
be more evident in the archaeological record. Areas with high resource potential were
likely occupied repeatedly throughout prehistory, making shifts in subsistence-settlement
difficult to recognize archaeologically. In contrast, environments considered to be lower
in resource potential might have been less intensively used or used for specialized
purposes, suggesting that shifts in exploitation might be more clearly visible
archaeologically (Basgall and Giambastiani 1995:5).
Great Basin
The most prominent high-elevation studies have been conducted in the Toquima
Range of central Nevada and the White Mountains of eastern California. Surveys in the
alpine zones (above 10,000 ft) and excavations at selected sites indicate a significant shift
35
in the way high elevations were used by pre-contact peoples (Bettinger 1991; Thomas
1982). Although only preliminary reports have been published to date, the studies are of
particular interest because of the substantial nature of the fieldwork, including both
extensive surveys and intensive excavations, and the documentation of similar shifts in
land use at two different mountain ranges in the Great Basin. Researchers generally agree
on the nature of the land use, but the explanation and timing of the change in land use is
the subject of dispute.
In central Nevada, Thomas (1982) defined two major settlement strategies, based
on the results of excavation of 18 of the 31 rock structures at Alta Toquima Village
(11,000 ft elevation) and a 3500-acre survey of Mount Jefferson. The early period, dating
to pre-950 B.P., included a spatially extensive pattern characterized by logistical hunting
of bighorn sheep by groups of men. Over 50 hunting blinds were recorded during the
survey, in association with projectile points almost exclusively of Rosegate series and
older forms. After 950 B.P., settlement was restricted to the Alta Toquima Village, which
shifted in function from a logistical hunting camp to a residential base camp used by
family-based social units for hunting and extensive plant processing. Most of the
structures, along with over 200 projectile points of Desert Side-notched and Cottonwood
Triangular forms, ceramics, over 50 grinding stones, and a variety of beads, drill, and
shaft straighteners were attributed to this post-950 B.P. occupation. Radiocarbon dates for
the village features range from 1840 ± 80 B.P. to 220 ± 70 B.P., with a median date of
940 B.P. (Thomas 1994:59–60).
Surveys and excavation samples from 12 alpine villages in the White Mountains
revealed a similar shift in land use. The early component is defined by sparse lithic
36
scatters and hunting blinds, with diagnostic projectile points of the Elko and Gatecliff
series. Designated the “previllage” pattern, sites are thought to represent a logistical
hunting strategy where groups of men occupied areas for short periods of time, primarily
in pursuit of bighorn sheep (Bettinger 1991). The later pattern includes sites composed of
multiple-course, circular stone footings (house foundations), storage facilities, midden
accumulation, ground and battered stone, ceramics, and a variety of flaked stone tools
and manufacturing debris (Bettinger 1991). This “village” pattern is temporally and
functionally distinct from the earlier one, representing an intensive and longer-term
residential occupation, perhaps of one to two months, by nuclear families or multiple
family social units. Use centered on a broader array of resources, both plants and animals,
compared to the singular hunting focus of the earlier occupation. Bettinger (1991) placed
use of the White Mountains villages at post-1350 B.P. based on lichen measurements,
radiocarbon dates, and temporally diagnostic projectile points of Rose Spring,
Cottonwood, and Desert Side-notched types. These late prehistoric arrow points are more
common in village contexts, while dart points, such as the Elko, Gatecliff, and Humboldt
series, predominate in hunting contexts.
Prompted by the work of Bettinger and Thomas, Canaday (1997) carried out
surface investigations in five mountain ranges in central and western Nevada, including
the Toiyabe Range, Ruby Mountains, Snake Range, Jarbridge Mountains, and Deep
Creek Mountains. Within the 7,500 acres of land inspected above 10,000 ft elevation,
Canaday (1997) documented 31 sites, the majority of which clustered in a small area of
the Toiyabe Range. Most of these sites contained stacked rock features associated with
hunting, although three isolated rock ring dwellings were also recorded. Similar to the
37
Toquima sites, the rock rings are associated with late-period projectile points. Canaday
(1997:239) suggested that longer-term residential use occurred at least occasionally, but
probably as a base for hunting parties rather than family-based groups. The artifact
assemblage—the lack of ceramic artifacts, fewer artifacts in general, and the presence of
only one minimally worked piece of ground stone utilized as part of the wall—contrasts
sharply with the far richer assemblage at Alta Toquima.
A point of contention is not that a change in land use occurred, but the
explanation for it. Bettinger asserted that the village pattern represents Numic occupation,
part and parcel of the traveler-processor model first proposed by Bettinger and Baumhoff
(1982; see also Bettinger 1994, 1999b) to explain the fan-like distribution of the Numic
languages across the Great Basin about 1000 years ago (cf. Lamb 1958). The model
articulates a link between adaptations and population distributions and density, and
centers on how groups use time, space, and energy. Briefly, travelers (i.e., the Prenumic)
are residentially mobile foragers relying on high-quality resources for their subsistence
needs. These groups spend relatively more time traveling between resource patches than
in handling these resources (e.g., procurement and processing). Population levels and
thus competition must be fairly low to accommodate the needs of travelers. As
competition for resources increases, however, distant patches may already be occupied
and they become less attractive. In this scenario, the processor strategy displaces that of
the traveler. Processors (i.e., the Numic) spend less time traveling between resource
patches and more time acquiring resources within them. They are logistically oriented,
use a wider range of resources, including lower-quality resources, and spend more time in
handling than searching.
38
In contrast to this replacement model, Grayson (1991) proposed that the
development of alpine villages represents intensification of the previllage pattern as a
result of in situ population growth. Thomas (1994) rebutted the replacement model, as
well, based on the unclear timing of the Numic spread and the earlier median radiocarbon
date for the Alta Toquima rock constructs compared to those for the White Mountains.
Canaday’s findings of rock ring dwellings overlying previllage components in the
Toiyabe Range, combined with a dearth of alpine sites in the other four ranges he
examined, can be taken as support for Grayson’s argument. Zeanah and Simms
(1999:129) pointed out, however, that population pressure fails as a prime mover because
alpine villages do not consistently occur in mountain ranges adjacent to heavily populated
valleys. For example, Canaday did not find alpine villages in the Ruby Mountains,
bordered by the densely populated Lamoille, Huntington, and Ruby valleys. Emphasizing
the variability in alpine exploitation between ranges, Zeanah and Simms (1999:130)
noted that understanding the previllage-village transition will require a theoretical
perspective that takes this variability into account.
While the development of alpine villages remains a source of debate, the nature of
the previllage pattern is also arguable. The previllage pattern could represent a logistical
hunting strategy, related solely to large game procurement by men, or residential
encampment. Basgall and Giambastiani (1995:266) argued that the occurrence of
abundant milling tools and battered cobbles in pre-1350 B.P. contexts indicates at least
some level of plant exploitation and thus the presence of inclusive social groups
composed of men, women, and children. In this interpretation, the previllage component
39
resembles that of other residential encampments found throughout the region for that time
period.
Toward further elucidation of previllage land use, Zeanah (2000) developed an
economic model incorporating diet breadth, transport costs, and central-place foraging
theory. Although the model specifically addresses the previllage components of the
White Mountains and resource distributions in the Owens Valley region, its principles are
useful for consideration in other alpine environments across the western United States.
The model assumes a link between subsistence and mobility, specifically that diet breadth
and local resource distributions impose transport costs, which in turn, determine the
mobility strategy that hunter-gatherers choose to exploit alpine environments (Zeanah
2000:2). The model suggests that logistical use of the White Mountains would relate to
broad diets and the need to exploit simultaneously lowland seeds and upland large game.
The storage of seeds also implies more intensive seed procurement, likely in the
lowlands, thereby increasing the probability of the lowland residential and highland
logistical use pattern (Bettinger 2000:122). In contrast, the residentially mobile strategy
would be employed when return rates are high and groups could move to the most
productive resource patches. The White Mountain alpine villages, however, represent a
distinctive pattern from both of these strategies, primarily because of the longer duration
of residential occupation. The alpine village pattern is interpreted as a consequence of
regional population growth and the selection of a poor central-place location because
more profitable areas were unavailable (Zeanah 2000:13).
40
Southern Sierra Nevada
Studies of prehistoric land use in the alpine zone of the southern Sierra Nevada
are perhaps most relevant to the current study. Conducting surface inventory and limited
collections in selected locations between the San Joaquin and Kern River drainages in
Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks, Roper Wickstrom (1992, 1993) identified longterm, extensive use of the higher elevations and geographical distinctions in the
distributions of Casa Diablo, Fish Springs, and Coso obsidians. Finding more intensive
use of restricted localities during the late period, her conclusions also supported the highelevation settlement pattern noted by Thomas and Bettinger. That is, the few village
localities represented late period deposits, and Desert series projectile points were rarely
seen in contexts outside of those villages.
Also in Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks, Stevens (2002, 2005) first
investigated six sites in the alpine environment of Taboose Pass, and subsequently
compiled data for sites above 8000 ft elevation, between the San Joaquin River to the
north and the East Fork of the Kaweah River to the south. Sites were classed as having
limited or intensive use based on artifact diversity, debitage density, and the presence of
features such as midden soil, rock rings, and bedrock mortars that point to longer-term
habitation. Limited use, most evident during the ca. 3500–1350 B.P. interval, was
characterized by dense lithic scatters related to obsidian procurement and logistical
hunting, presumably by small groups of men. Obsidian procurement was indicated in the
vicinity of Taboose Pass, a major east-west travel route, while logistical hunting camps
were represented in areas away from the pass. The intensive-use pattern, indicated by a
41
wider range of artifacts and features, generally occurred after ca. 1350 B.P. This later
pattern reflected extended periods of occupation, possibly by family-based social units.
The transition from limited to intensive use is consistent with regional cultural
developments. First, the timing of the shift away from obsidian procurement at Taboose
Pass sites parallels the decline in obsidian use documented at several eastern Sierra
Nevada quarries (Gilreath and Hildebrandt 1997; Hall and Basgall 1994; Ramos 2000;
Singer and Ericson 1977). Second, Stevens’ (2002, 2005) findings are broadly similar to
the previllage and village patterns in the White Mountains and Toquima Range (Bettinger
1991; Thomas 1982) and to developments in western Great Basin prehistory in general
(Bettinger 1999a; McGuire and Hildebrandt 2005). While Stevens interpreted the
southern Sierra data in support of late prehistoric resource intensification (cf. Basgall and
Giambastiani 1995; Bettinger 1991, 1999a), he highlighted some important distinctions
between the archaeological records of the Sierra and western Great Basin. The artifact
and feature inventories at intensive-use sites (Mundy 1988; Roper Wickstrom 1992;
Stevens 2002) are clearly less rich than those retrieved from village deposits in the Great
Basin, which Stevens (2002) attributed to geography and differences in eastern and
western slope subsistence-settlement systems. Bettinger (1991) tied the rise of alpine
villages to regional population growth and intensification of pinyon procurement, the
latter at least partially allowing for the longer-duration occupation of alpine villages. The
major pinyon procurement areas, however, are in the White-Inyo Range, suggesting that
Sierra alpine zones would be less important if pinyon stores were needed to support their
use. Stevens (2005:200–201) emphasized the need to consider travel and trade in the
residential occupation of high-elevation Sierra passes, and how that might have
42
influenced prolonged stays. Since intensive-use sites of the alpine southern Sierra appear
to be concentrated along major travel corridors, it may be that such use was only
worthwhile under conditions of relatively easy access and if interactions between eastern
and western groups could result in economic or social gains (Stevens 2002:174).
As a borderland between Great Basin and California cultures at the time of
Euroamerican contact, identifying the cultural affiliation of groups using the higher
elevations of the Sierra is an important one. The Taboose Pass data, though preliminary
in nature, suggest that cultural affiliation may have varied through time (Stevens
2002:162–163). Based on the higher debitage densities, greater amounts of cortical
debitage, and frequencies of obsidian hydration readings, the limited-use sites at Taboose
Pass are thought to be related to obsidian procurement. Taking into account patterns at
the Fish Springs obsidian source and settlement systems for easterners and westerners,
early use of sites at the crest may be related to direct access of the Fish Springs source by
western groups. The other limited-use sites away from the pass, however, may indicate
logistical hunting forays by both west- and east-side people. The later intensive-use
pattern suggests an eastern cultural affinity based on shared ground stone characteristics
and obsidian source diversity for tools.
While Stevens examined change over time in a spatially limited area, Morgan’s
(2006, 2009) study of hunter-gatherer mobility and climate change encompassed a broad
elevational swath of the western slope in the San Joaquin River watershed over a limited
temporal period. Morgan focused on the settlement system of the Western Mono,
believed to have arrived in the area from the eastern Sierra Nevada around 600 B.P. The
study synthesized survey data from a large area of the Sierra National Forest, totaling 551
43
km2 of the 1626 km2 study area. The relatively even distribution of survey coverage
across ecotones was thought to accurately reflect bedrock mortar distribution, the primary
object of analysis.
Morgan recognized different site types and mobility strategies (following Binford
[1980]) based on bedrock mortar counts, where sites containing ≥14 mortars are
residential indicators and sites with <14 mortars are logistical stations. The data analysis
demonstrated a mixed mobility strategy, with logistical exploitation of lower montane
settings (<1000–1400 m) by larger population aggregates during the winter and
residential mobility in the montane forest (1400–2100 m) by dispersed populations
during the spring, summer, and fall (Morgan 2009:391). The clustering of sites in the
narrow corridors of the subalpine zone (>2100 m) was considered a function of transSierran travel, and the greater distances between processing sites relative to the lower
elevations points out the high degree of residential mobility also associated with travel.
Morgan interpreted this mixed mobility pattern as an effective means of coping with
mountain environments and the uncertainty engendered by the climatic conditions of the
Little Ice Age. Here, climate change and its effects on resource distributions are key
factors in conditioning hunter-gatherer mobility.
Yosemite Studies
Two general classes of Yosemite studies are germane to the thesis: park-wide
settlement studies, which include the high country as an aspect of the settlement system,
and specific projects conducted in the high country itself, generally following the
mandates of historic preservation law. Settlement studies in the Park initially focused on
correlating site location and attributes with various environmental variables. The results
44
of early investigations recognized some important distinctions in site distribution,
including the prevalence of sites with bedrock mortars below about 5000–6000 ft
elevation and the higher frequency of lithic scatters above that elevation (Bennyhoff
1956a; Moratto 1981). Others have identified patterns in site location with respect to
geographic features or vegetation communities (Carpenter 2004; Hull and Mundy 1985;
Mundy 1992). For example, sites are more prevalent in the Yellow Pine Forest and highelevation meadow/Lodgepole Pine Forest ecotone than in Red Fir Forest or Giant
Sequoia vegetation communities. Slope and distance to water are important settlement
determinants, with most sites present on slopes measuring less than 20–30 percent and
within about 200 m of water. A common element of all of these studies is their
synchronic approach, leaving potential changes in settlement patterning over time to be
explored in the future.
Following Hull et al. (1995), more recent excavations in the study area have
addressed site function and settlement patterns within Binford’s forager-collector
continuum, based on assemblage diversity and abundance, and technological features of
artifacts. However, the focus at a relatively small number of sites, some with very small
sample sizes and mixed components, made settlement patterns a difficult issue to address.
In the nine sites tested at Dana Meadows, Montague (1996a) noted a pattern where earlyperiod components, characterized by higher debitage densities and little or no milling
equipment, were more prevalent within the site sample. In contrast, fewer late-period
components were evident and these tended to contain milling features and lower
quantities of debitage. Montague speculated that the intensification of acorn exploitation
in the lower elevations may have contributed to shifting high-elevation land use patterns.
45
In a more detailed assessment of three Tuolumne Meadows sites, Hull et al. (1995:147)
detected a more ephemeral use pattern related to Tamarack phase components, distinct
from those of the Crane Flat and Mariposa phases, which were viewed as forager
residential bases. Specifically, low tool diversity and abundance, coupled with abundant
debitage, suggested a task-specific function related to lithic reduction; that is, a specialuse site within a collector strategy. Comparing this finding to patterns observed in the
Owens Valley and the western lowlands, Hull et al. (1995:147–148) suggested that
Tamarack phase use of the uplands might be related to eastern logistical collectors, while
Tamarack use of the lowlands might be related to western groups.
While settlement patterns have been addressed to a point, studies have focused on
issues of chronology and obsidian procurement. In general, sites tend to be multicomponent deposits, containing higher frequencies of debitage, low tool diversity and
abundance, and lower frequencies of milling equipment in comparison to lowland sites
(Hull et al. 1995; Montague 1996a). Based on obsidian hydration measurements, earliest
use of the high country may have transpired at around 6000 B.P., with widespread use by
3000–4000 B.P. Casa Diablo obsidian predominates in Tuolumne and Dana meadows
during all time periods, while Bodie Hills is prevalent to the north and in the lower
portion of the canyon. Obsidians of minor occurrence include Mt. Hicks, Mono Craters,
Mono Glass Mountain, and Truman/Queen, with a few specimens of Fish Springs and
Sutro Springs.
Summary
Studies in the western Great Basin and southern Sierra Nevada demonstrate a
pattern of change in alpine land use ca. 1350 B.P. across a relatively large geographic
46
area. Researchers propose that a spatially limited occupation related to longer-term
residential use for hunting and plant processing replaced a spatially extensive occupation
related to logistical hunting. While this pattern appears to be relatively consistent in the
White Mountains, Alta Toquima, and the southern Sierra Nevada, some variability is
present in the archaeological records, explanations for the change differ, and support for
the arguments varies.
The archaeological evidence for a shift in land use seems strongly supported by
studies in the White Mountains and Toquima Range (Bettinger 1991; Thomas 1982);
however, the detailed reports that would allow for independent assessment of the data
remain to be completed. Nonetheless, the combination of extensive surveys and intensive
excavations at both locales, followed by a suite of analytical studies, allows for the
examination of broad spatial patterns and, at the same time, the more comprehensive
inventory of cultural material and secure definition of components derived through
excavation. In contrast, minimal excavations and patchy survey coverage in the southern
Sierra Nevada provide for less rigorous archaeological evidence. Still, researchers in that
region (Roper Wickstrom 1992; Stevens 2002) have demonstrated reasonable support for
a similar trend in land use, one that is influenced by local environmental and cultural
factors.
In a larger regional context, alpine studies in the western Great Basin are also
more strongly supported by studies in the lower elevations, which have provided
subsistence-settlement models against which the high-elevation data can be compared.
Although some aspects of the model are debated, and the early prehistory remains to be
clarified (see Chapter 2), settlement models hinge on substantial studies by a group of
47
researchers with a continuing interest in the region. In the western Sierra and in Yosemite
in particular, regional research designs point out multiple avenues for research, but the
understanding of prehistory has been hampered by various factors, including an
overabundance of compliance- as opposed to research-driven projects, mixed components
in subsurface deposits, and what is understood to be generally poor preservation of
organic remains.
Despite the similarities in the archaeological records, there are some discrepancies
that should be highlighted. First, Canaday (1997) found few archaeological sites in the
alpine zones of four of the five mountain ranges he investigated in Nevada, even in those
ranges adjacent to densely populated valleys where the population pressure model would
predict archaeological sites. In the Toiyabe Range, the single mountain range with
abundant archaeological sites, including a few sites with rock ring dwellings, hunting was
thought to have persisted over time as the primary function. In the southern Sierra, the
less rich artifact inventories at Taboose Pass and concentrations of sites along travel
corridors suggested that residential use in the marginal alpine zone was only worthwhile
if access was relatively easy and economic or social gains could be made (Stevens 2002).
In Yosemite, studies have not yet been undertaken in which change over time is
examined across a broad geographic spectrum. The present work aimed to at least
partially address this gap and thereby contribute to the understanding of high-elevation
land use in the Sierra Nevada.
STUDY PROBLEM AND THEORY
The underlying theoretical orientation of this study leans toward evolutionary
ecology, as opposed to approaches that view power, agency, and history as the primary
48
means of culture change, although it is recognized that the latter can influence cultural
change. Evolutionary ecology applies the framework of evolutionary biology to the study
of adaptive design in behavior, life history, and morphology (Bird and O’Connell 2006;
Winterhalder and Smith 2000). Behavioral ecology—a subset of evolutionary ecology—
examines behavior in terms of Darwinian fitness, looking to the socio-ecological context
to explain observed patterns. The approach was originally developed in the 1960s and
1970s in the biological sciences and later applied in anthropological inquiry as human
behavioral ecology. Archaeological research carried out under the umbrella of human
behavioral ecology commonly focuses on such topics as changes in diet breadth and
resource intensification, the links between technology and foraging, the relationships
between central place foraging and resource transport, competition and colonization
among foragers, and the origins of agriculture (Bird and O’Connell 2006). These studies
typically employ the diet breadth and patch choice models of optimal foraging theory,
which assume that maximizing the rate of caloric intake, or reaching some threshold
more quickly, enhances fitness (Bird and O’Connell 2006). In essence, the models are
cost-benefit analyses, entailing a consideration of goals, decision-making variables, tradeoffs, currencies, and constraints.
Within this perspective, prehistoric use of the study area is viewed as a
consequence of economic decisions associated with the resource potential of the area, the
productivity of the core lowland areas, scheduling conflicts with other subsistence
activities, and the cost of traveling to the upper elevations (cf. Stevens 2002). The study
also assumes that prehistoric use of the uplands was influenced by cultural developments
in the lowlands on either side of the crest, largely in terms of mobility strategies, resource
49
acquisition, and population dynamics. Finally, changes in the demand for obsidian from
eastern Sierra Nevada sources and exchange between eastern and western groups, in
general, are assumed to have influenced use of the high elevations.
The current study first examines Yosemite’s high-elevation archaeological record
for subsistence-settlement change over time, and second explores any observed changes
as a consequence of intensification in the core lowlands to the east and west. Evidence of
a shift in subsistence-settlement might include changes in site locations or site
constituents after about 1350 B.P. (Roper Wickstrom 1993; Stevens 2002). Given the
similarities in natural environment, cultural background, and cultural material between
the central and southern Sierra Nevada, this study follows Stevens’ (2002:125, 128)
broad grouping of archaeological sites as indicative of either limited or intensive use to
investigate potential changes in land use over time. Archaeological expectations for sites
exhibiting limited use are low tool diversity, high frequencies of obsidian debitage,
limited diversity in raw material, and an absence of ground stone and structural features.
Sites with these attributes are thought to represent short-term occupation, perhaps related
to travel, hunting, or obsidian procurement activities. Residential sites or more intensiveuse sites may exhibit rock rings, structural depressions, bedrock mortars, ground stone
artifacts, midden, rock art, and higher diversity in artifact forms. These sites are thought
to represent extended habitation by social groups including men, women, and children,
exploitation of a variety of plant and animal resources, tool manufacture and
maintenance, and perhaps exchange with other groups.
Changes in site constituents over time would be indicated by two possible
outcomes. First, a higher frequency of sites indicating a residential focus or intensive
50
use—those with dwellings and milling equipment—should be late period sites (post-1350
B.P.), as indicated by arrow points and thin hydration rims. Second, a higher frequency of
sites indicating limited use—those with a less diverse array of lithic material and a lack
of plant processing implements—should be early period sites (pre-1350 B.P.), as
indicated by dart points and thicker hydration rims. If such temporal patterns are present,
and trade and travel were primary determinants in structuring residential use, the density
of sites should be higher along drainage corridors leading from trans-Sierra passes, and
residential sites should occur more commonly in those locations. In addition, early period
sites indicating a logistical hunting focus should occur in higher frequencies over a more
extensive area.
51
Chapter 4
METHODS
This chapter describes the existing Yosemite data sets, methods used in field,
laboratory, and analytical work, and limitations and assumptions of the study. To address
the research issues, the study consolidated a sample of Yosemite’s previously collected
high-elevation data to identify the range of site constituents and their implied functions
through time, and conducted minimal surface collections from selected sites to increase
chronological information for sites and features within the study area. The study area
encompasses about 42,500 ha (105,000 acres) of land, between approximately 8500 ft
elevation on the west and 12,000 ft near the crest of the Sierra (see Figure 2 in Chapter
2), nearly all of which is located in the upper Tuolumne River watershed. The primary
advantage of the investigation lies in its regional approach, in which a large number of
sites and isolates representing diverse spatial, temporal, and functional conditions are
compared and contrasted. This geographically expansive approach serves to mediate the
drawbacks inherent in a surface study somewhat and, as noted above, such studies have
not been recently undertaken in Yosemite’s higher elevations.
DESCRIPTION OF EXISTING DATA SETS
A major component of the study entailed examination and compilation of
Yosemite project, site, isolate, and artifact data sets to address the research issues. The
Park’s Geographic Information System (GIS) provided the framework for the project,
with its numerous natural and cultural resource data layers. Three of the archaeological
data layers—surveyed areas, site locations, and isolate locations—provided spatial data
52
and the requisite information for linking to the more detailed site records, project reports,
artifact catalogs, and analytical data.
Surveyed Areas
Archaeological work in the study area dates to the early 1950s, when James
Bennyhoff of the University of California Archaeological Survey conducted the first
systematic investigation in the park. Through a park-wide survey sample and limited test
excavations at four sites, Bennyhoff (1956a) prepared the region’s first archaeological
synthesis, in addition to very brief site records. It wasn’t until the 1970s that the next
major archaeological investigation, a survey of the park’s developed areas, took place
(Napton and Greathouse 1976). Beginning in the early 1980s, archaeological work has
been undertaken in a fairly consistent manner, guided by the park-wide research designs
(Hull and Moratto 1999; Moratto 1981) and driven largely by compliance with historic
preservation law.
Much of the recent archaeological work in Yosemite’s high country has entailed
small- to medium-scale surveys of areas sustaining heavy visitor use, focusing on canyon
bottoms, lake basins, trail corridors, and developed zones. Table A-1 (Appendix A) lists
the specific projects of interest to the thesis and their respective references. Site records
and short, descriptive reports summarize each project. In general, this work has also
attempted to resolve data gaps in the earlier archaeological surveys through re-survey, rerecording sites, or updating site records to current standards. Diagnostic or at-risk
artifacts were collected during most survey efforts, but only two of the larger projects
within the study area—the Tioga Road and Virginia Canyon surveys—involved further
53
geochemical and obsidian hydration analyses of the recovered material (Laird 1988;
Mundy 1992).
The GIS layer depicts the boundaries of surveys conducted since the mid-1970s,
those projects considered of sufficient reliability for identification and documentation of
prehistoric sites. Taken together, this body of work encompasses approximately 9800
acres, providing a nonrandom sample of the high-elevation zone between 8500 and
nearly 12,000 ft west of the crest of the Sierra. The survey sample is biased
geographically and by elevation zone. In terms of geography, approximately 71 percent
of the sample (n=6988 acres) is represented by locations leading to trans-Sierra passes
(Table 3). Virginia Canyon, Tuolumne Meadows, and Lyell Canyon have received the
most extensive survey coverage within this group, totaling about 5360 acres or 55 percent
of the overall surveyed area. Conversely, locations outside of direct trans-Sierra routes,
though numerous, include only about 2816 surveyed acres, or 29 percent of the sample.
In regard to elevation, the subalpine zone, encompassing the lower elevations of
the study area, is over-represented in the survey sample (Table 4). Over 8100 acres of
surveyed terrain, or 83 percent of the sample, is below 10,000 ft in elevation. In contrast,
only 1700 acres (17%) have been surveyed in areas over 10,000 ft in elevation. This
uneven survey coverage implies that site distributions by geographic and elevational
zones should be examined as a percentage of survey acreage (e.g., site density) rather
than as simple frequency measures. Accordingly, patterns of site distribution are
considered in Chapter 6 as number of sites per 100 acres surveyed.
54
Table 3. Survey Data by Geographic Area.
Geographic Location
(North to South)
Elevation Range of
Surveyed Area (ft)
Acres
Surveyed
Percent
of Total
390
4%
Expected Trans-Sierra Corridors
Matterhorn Canyon
8400-9600
Spiller Canyon
8800-9500
279
3%
Virginia Canyon, Summit and Virginia passes
8300-10300
1728
18%
Tuolumne Meadows
8400-8900
2635
27%
Dana Fork, Dana Meadows, Tioga Pass
8800-9950
456
5%
Parker Pass, Mono Pass, Parker Pass Creek
9600-11,100
500
5%
Lyell Canyon
8700-11,100
1000
10%
6988
71%
Subtotal
Expected Non-Corridor Contexts
Northern Lakes*
9300-10,700
379
4%
Cold Canyon, Conness Creek
8000-9100
470
5%
Tuolumne to Young Lakes trail corridors
8700-9900
200
2%
Dog Lake
9200
30
<0.5%
Gaylor Lake, Granite Lake, Gaylor Creek
9300-10,400
400
4%
Mt. Dana slope
9600-11,900
613
6%
Elizabeth Lake and trails
8800-9500
110
4%
Rafferty Creek
8800-10,000
314
3%
Vogelsang and Ireland Lake area
9800-10,700
300
3%
Subtotal
2816
29%
Study Area Total
*Miller, Spiller, Soldier, Return, Onion, McCabe, and Young lakes.
9804
100%
Table 4. Survey and Site Data by Elevation Zone.
Elevation
Range (ft)
8000-9000
9000-10,000
10,000-11,000
11,000-12,000
>12,000
Total
Acres Surveyed
Within Study Area
5,172
2,957
1,509
192
-
Percent of Total
Surveyed Area
53%
30%
15%
2%
-
9830
100%
# Sites
188
135
49
1
373
# Sites per
100 Acres
3.64
4.57
3.25
0.52
-
55
Site and Isolate Data
Two GIS layers contain the site and isolate data. The isolate layer includes a brief
description of the cultural material and accession information for collected artifacts. In
total, 172 prehistoric isolates have been documented in the study area, including debitage
scatters of less than five pieces and isolated flaked stone tools. A review of the GIS layer
and accompanying project reports confirmed that 29 projectile points were temporally
diagnostic, and these were included within the overall chronological data set for the
current study.
The archaeological sites GIS layer depicts site boundaries and designation
(trinomial, primary number, or temporary number) for each of the 373 prehistoric sites
within the study area. The paper site records at the Yosemite Archeology Office, along
with the individual project reports and notes, provided detailed site information. Site
attributes were compiled in Excel spreadsheets, as follows: site designation, elevation,
feature types and counts, artifact types and counts, estimated amount of debitage for the
site as a whole (when available), maximum flake density per square meter (when
available), and flaked stone material types. Bedrock mortar features were further detailed
by numbers of features, mortars, and slicks, and measurements of individual milling
surfaces. Appendix A provides summary tables for site and bedrock mortar attributes.
The Yosemite data sets have been generated through relatively consistent survey
and site documentation procedures over the past three decades. For example, survey
transects have measured 15–20 m in width, while sites have been defined as five or more
items within a 500-m2 area or a cultural feature such as a bedrock mortar or rock
construct. Materials not meeting the criteria for sites have been documented as isolates. A
56
gap of 30 m between materials has been considered sufficient for the identification of site
boundaries. However, some of the records, particularly those created in the 1950s,
contain very little information by today’s standards. Twenty-eight sites within the study
area have not been re-documented since that era. As such, their utility relates mainly to
their presence within a particular geographic area or elevational zone.
Excavations
Limited excavations have been previously conducted at seven sites in Tuolumne
Meadows and nine sites at Dana Meadows (Table A-1; Bennyhoff 1956b; Hull et al.
1995; Montague 1996a, 1996b; Vittands 1994), mainly in support of various construction
undertakings. At a minimum, all of these projects included obsidian hydration and
geochemical and/or visual sourcing studies, while radiocarbon dates are relatively few in
number. In addition to the excavations, obsidian studies data are available for five flaked
stone tool caches in the study vicinity, three recovered from Tuolumne Meadows, one
from Parker Pass Creek, and one near Glen Aulin. The latter is located several miles
downstream of Tuolumne Meadows and just outside of the study area. Final reports
remain to be completed for several of these projects, although the analytical data are
incorporated into the present study.
Chronological Data
Chronological information was derived from temporally diagnostic materials,
obsidian hydration measurements, and radiocarbon dates reported in site records, project
reports, artifact catalog databases, and the park’s obsidian studies database (Appendix A).
Obsidian hydration and source data are limited to survey collections from Virginia
Canyon, Tuolumne Meadows, and Dana Meadows, a few flaked stone tool caches, and
57
the excavated sites in Tuolumne and Dana meadows. Thus, the primary chronological
information for the study area as a whole relied on temporally diagnostic projectile points
and the obsidian studies conducted as part of the thesis.
Classification of Yosemite’s projectile points has been most comprehensively
outlined by Hull (1989b, 1991), following work in the Great Basin (e.g., Baumhoff and
Byrne 1959; Bettinger and Taylor 1974; Lanning 1963; Thomas 1981) and the lower
Sierran foothills (Moratto 1972). Projectile points of the Desert, Rose Spring, and Elko
series are most abundant, with fewer specimens of Concave Base (Humboldt and Sierra),
Contracting Stem (Sierra and Triangular), Pinto, and Western Great Basin Stemmed.
Untypable, fragmented, or reworked pieces were classified as arrow or dart forms in the
interest of obtaining a general period of use, dating before or after ca. 1500 B.P.
A timeframe for the introduction and spread of the bedrock mortar has been
suggested for the foothills and the southern Sierra Nevada, but dates have not yet been
derived independently for Yosemite. It remains possible that bedrock mortar production
in the higher elevations could be distinct from the pattern observed in the lower
elevations (cf. Stevens 2002, 2003). Recent work at a site in Yosemite Valley, where
numerous pestles, handstones, and millingstones were documented in subsurface context,
suggests an earlier inception for the bedrock mortar, but the analysis is still preliminary in
nature and has not yet been fully reported (Jackson and Buettner 2009). The present study
relies on data from the larger region, where researchers posit a transition from portable
groundstone to the bedrock mortar within the past 1500 years and widespread use by
about 650 B.P. (Jackson 1991; Jackson and Dietz 1984; Moratto 1999, 2002; Rosenthal
2008).
58
SAMPLING AND FIELD METHODS
The thesis fieldwork, designated Yosemite project YOSE 2007 M, was carried out
between July 28 and September 30, 2007. A small sample of obsidian debitage and
artifacts from surface contexts of 45 sites, representing 12 percent of the sites in the study
area, was recovered to supplement the existing chronological data. Site selection was
based on geographic setting and site constituents, the goal to achieve a 10 percent sample
of intensive and limited use sites in diverse geographic locations. New findings in the
field, however, resulted in reclassification of several sites and, thus, changes in the
sample. Several sites originally documented as lithic scatters were found to contain
materials such as bedrock mortars and pestles, portable groundstone, or a rock ring,
thereby increasing the intensive-use sample. Two features previously recorded as
pictographs in Lyell Canyon were identified as natural phenomena. CA-TUO-3846,
documented as a single pictograph panel, was removed from the study, reducing the total
number of sites to 373.
As an objective of the study was to increase the number of sites with
chronological data, locations with diagnostic materials or obsidian data were generally
not included. In addition, sites containing less than approximately 20 flakes were avoided
during sampling in order to preserve surface manifestations of these resources. Table 5
summarizes the fieldwork conducted and the materials collected; in all, surface
collections were made at 36 limited-use and nine intensive-use sites.
As key indicators of longer-term or residential use in high country settings, rock
ring features and depressions interpreted as dwellings were one focus of sampling among
the intensive-use sites. Sites with depressions, rock rings, or unidentified rock alignments
59
Table 5. Summary of Fieldwork and Collected Material.
Site
Location
Type
#
SCUs
TUO-0046/H
TUO-0113
TUO-0128/
129/130/504
TUO-0131
TUO-0159
TUO--164
TUO-0172
TUO-0187
TUO-0245
TUO-0494
TUO-0751
TUO-0755
TUO-3765
TUO-3769
TUO-3777
TUO-3783
TUO-3789
TUO-3793
TUO-3803
TUO-3805
TUO-3811
TUO-3834
TUO-3841
TUO-3850
TUO-3943
TUO-4230
TUO-4440
TUO-4490
TUO-4635
TUO-4637
TUO-4639
TUO-4641
TUO-4660
TUO-4665
TUO-4851
TUO-4857
TUO-4859
TUO-4907
TUO-4972
P-55-6558
P-55-6561
P-55-6564
P-55-6775
# FEA
Sampled
# DEB
Collected
# EMPs
Collected
# PP
Collected
Lyell Canyon
Tuolumne
Tuolumne
L
L
I
3
3
6
-
15
15
29
1
-
Tuolumne
Upper Evelyn
Elizabeth
Delaney Ck
Parker Pass
Ireland Lake
Tuolumne
Virginia
Gaylor Lakes
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Virginia
Lyell Canyon
Lyell Canyon
Lyell Canyon
Tuolumne
Evelyn Lake
Tuolumne
Lyell Canyon
Spiller
Lyell Canyon
Lyell Canyon
Cold Canyon
Rafferty Ck
Lyell Canyon
Lyell Canyon
Lyell Canyon
Lyell Canyon
Tuolumne
Virginia
Parker Pass
Parker Pass
Parker Pass
Spiller
L
L
L
L
I
L
L
I
L
I
L
L
I
L
L
L
L
I
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
I
L
I
L
L
I
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
3
3
2
3
3
2
2
2
2
1
1
3
1
3
2
3
2
2
1
5
3
3
3
1
3
3
2
5
2
1
1
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
1
3
1
2
3
1
2
-
16
15
14
15
15
15
14
19
15
24
10
14
30
15
8
15
13
20
15
13
15
15
15
8
15
13
14
13
15
10
14
14
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
1
1
1
2
1
1
-
1
2
1
3
1
3
4
1
3
3
1
1
1
60
Site
Location
P-55-6776
P-55-6782
Spiller
Gaylor Lakes
Type
#
SCUs
L
L
1
3
# FEA
Sampled
-
# DEB
Collected
7
14
# EMPs
Collected
1
# PP
Collected
-
Total
112
9
676
9
25
Key: SCU=surface collection unit; FEA=feature; DEB=debitage; EMP=edge-modified piece; PP=projectile
point; I=intensive-use site; L=limited-use site.
were visited to confirm the identification of the features and determine whether sufficient
material was available in surface contexts for dating. At Yosemite sites, rock rings may
have functioned variously as hunting blinds, dwellings, storage caches, or in ceremonial
contexts, and these are differentiated mainly by size, association with other cultural
material, and environmental context. Five sites were selected for sampling.
Surface collections included temporally diagnostic artifacts judged to be at risk of
illegal collection and a sample of debitage from the 45 sites. A maximum of between 15
and 30 pieces of debitage was recovered from sites, depending on whether rock ring
features were present or not. At the five sites containing rock rings, samples were
recovered from areas within or immediately adjacent to the features in order to increase
the probability of association. An additional sample of flakes was recovered from surface
collection units (SCUs) established in other areas of these sites to identify whether
multiple occupations were present.
At sites lacking rock rings, SCUs measuring 5-x-5-m in size were established
according to the debitage distributions at each site. Due to the tendency of materials to
move upward in sediment columns (Jackson 1990), debitage concentrations were
assumed to represent the greatest temporal span at any given site and were thus the focus
of collection. The size of SCUs was increased from the original proposal to account for
61
generally sparse distributions of debitage and the relatively high frequencies of materials
with patina, the latter thought to adversely affect hydration rims. In the southern study
area, where Casa Diablo obsidian predominates, efforts were made to select pieces with
the visual characteristics of that source. Similarly, Bodie Hills obsidian was selected from
sites in the northern study area. Depending on the surface distributions of material and
the size of the site, between one and six SCUs were established per location. These were
oriented to true north, and plotted on the existing site maps by distance and bearing from
the site datum to the southwestern unit corner.
A project-specific site record update, detailing sampling procedures, collected
material, museum accession and catalog numbers, and photographic information, was
completed for each site. Materials observed but not collected in the field were recorded in
the site record update and subsequently added to the tallies of artifacts and features
present at individual locations. The locations of SCUs, collected projectile points, and
additional observed artifacts and features were plotted on existing site or feature maps,
and all collected materials were assigned temporary field specimen numbers in the field.
Digital photographs, designated “roll” DC-07M, were taken of previously unrecorded
features and diagnostic artifacts left in place, and tracked on a photographic log. The
update form, maps, and photographs are filed in the site record forms at the Yosemite
Archeology Office and included in the archive for the project.
LABORATORY METHODS
All recovered artifacts were processed following the laboratory standards outlined
in the Yosemite Survey Manual for cataloging and analysis. Debitage and artifacts were
generally cleaned by dry brushing and, in some cases, washing. Debitage was also
62
examined to determine if tools were inadvertently included in debitage collections in the
field. Nine flakes with edge modification and one very small projectile point midsection,
were removed and cataloged separately. The Yosemite Museum Registrar issued a
permanent catalog number for each lot (e.g., debitage from an SCU) and individual
artifact, and a single accession number (YOSE-6945) for the project archive. These
numbers track the artifacts upon arrival from the field through reporting and transfer of
materials to the Yosemite Museum. All materials were cataloged using the Yosemite
catalog, an Excel spreadsheet documenting catalog and accession numbers, artifact type,
description, material, dimensions, site, provenience, recorder, and date. Artifact tags with
a subset of these data fields were printed on archival paper and placed in plastic bags with
the artifacts for museum storage.
As depicted in Table 5 above, a total of 676 pieces of debitage, nine edgemodified pieces and 25 projectile points were collected. All pieces of debitage were
counted and weighed by SCU lot. Pieces submitted for obsidian hydration analysis were
further described by size class (3-6 mm, 6-12 mm, 12-20 mm, and >20 mm), general
reduction technique (biface or core), presence of cortex (primary, secondary, or absent),
and presence of platform (denoted as flake or flake fragment). Flakes submitted for
obsidian studies are indicated by a letter designation following the catalog number. These
pieces are maintained separately within their SCU lots so that sourcing and hydration
results can be linked to individual pieces.
Edge-modified pieces were measured and cataloged individually, and described
morphologically following Yosemite standards. For each artifact, the number of modified
edges was identified macroscopically, and each edge was characterized in terms of flake
63
surface (ventral or dorsal), location of modification (proximal end, lateral edges, distal
end, or a combination thereof), extent of modification along the edge (partial [<50
percent, or continuous [>50%]), extent of modification from the edge (marginal,
subinvasive, or invasive), and outline (straight, irregular, cusped, concave, or a
combination thereof).
Projectile points were classified following Yosemite, Sierra Nevada foothill, and
Great Basin classifications (Baumhoff and Byrne 1959; Bettinger and Taylor 1974; Hull
1989b, 1991; Lanning 1963; Moratto 1972; Thomas 1981). Each piece was measured and
weighed, and described in terms of type, condition, and flaking patterns. Diagnostic
artifacts were scanned to scale on both faces, and metric attributes following Thomas
(1981) were recorded and added to the park’s projectile point database, along with the
obsidian studies results.
All written documentation, artifacts, photographs, and selected digital data were
transferred to the Yosemite Collections under Accession No. YOSE-6945. Copies of site
record updates, digital files, and the final thesis document are maintained at the Yosemite
Archeology Office.
ANALYTICAL STUDIES
Of the 45 sites sampled in the field, 38 sites were selected for further obsidian
studies based on confidence level in visual sourcing, sample size, and condition of the
debitage (i.e., relative absence of patina). Table 6 summarizes the obsidian studies for the
present study by site and context of collection. The goal was to maximize the obsidian
hydration sample to add to the pool of chronological information. Written approval for
the partially destructive analysis (e.g., obsidian hydration) was obtained prior to the
64
Table 6. Summary of Obsidian Studies by Site.
Site
Feature Debitage
Points
SCU Debitage*
Total
XRF, OH
OH
XRF, OH
OH
CA-TUO-0046/H
10
10
CA-TUO-0113
10
10
CA-TUO-0128/129/130/504
20
20
CA-TUO-0131
10
10
CA-TUO-0159
1
10
11
CA-TUO-0172
10
10
CA-TUO-0187
2
10
12
CA-TUO-0245
1
10
11
CA-TUO-0494
10
10
CA-TUO-0751
3
2
10
15
CA-TUO-0755
1
10
11
CA-TUO-3765
5
6
5
16
CA-TUO-3769
10
10
CA-TUO-3777
10
10
CA-TUO-3783
4
7
1
5
17
CA-TUO-3789
10
10
CA-TUO-3803
9
9
CA-TUO-3805
10
10
CA-TUO-3811
3
1
4
8
16
CA-TUO-3841
10
10
CA-TUO-4230
10
10
CA-TUO-4490
10
10
CA-TUO-4635
1
10
11
CA-TUO-4637
10
10
CA-TUO-4639
3
10
13
CA-TUO-4641
10
10
CA-TUO-4660
10
10
CA-TUO-4665
4
3
3
3
13
CA-TUO-4851
10
10
CA-TUO-4857
10
10
CA-TUO-4859
10
10
CA-TUO-4907
10
10
CA-TUO-4972
10
10
P-55-006561
1
10
11
P-55-006564
1
10
11
P-55-006775
10
10
P-55-006776
7
7
P-55-006782
10
10
Total
19
17
21
367
424
Key: SCU=surface collection unit; XRF=x-ray fluorescence; OH=obsidian hydration. *See Table 7 for
random sample debitage submitted for XRF.
65
analysis from the Yosemite Superintendent, through the Supervisory Archeologist and
Chief of Resources Management and Science. The Northwest Research Obsidian Studies
Laboratory conducted the obsidian studies, included here as Appendix B.
To control for the possible effects of obsidian source on the rate of hydration,
debitage visually identified as Casa Diablo or Bodie Hills obsidian was selected for
obsidian hydration analysis. Based on previous studies in this area of the park, obsidian
from these two sources was expected to predominate in the surface collections, with
fewer specimens of Mt. Hicks, Mono Craters, Mono Glass Mountain, and
Truman/Queen. Although it was considered ideal to source each specimen by
geochemical means, x-ray fluorescence analysis is quite costly and funding was limited
for this work. Visual sourcing of materials followed standards previously established in
the region (Bettinger et al. 1984; Hull and Mundy 1985). To increase the reliability of
visual sourcing, park collections previously sourced by geochemical means were
reviewed, along with a small type collection of obsidian previously collected from Casa
Diablo and Bodie Hills.
Obsidian studies were conducted in two stages, beginning with three subsamples
for x-ray fluorescence analysis. All specimens were larger than about 1 cm in diameter,
the standard minimum size necessary for reliable results. The first subsample included 21
projectile points, subjected to both geochemical sourcing and hydration analysis,
following previous Yosemite studies. The results contributed to assessments of individual
feature and site chronologies and to the development of high-elevation, source-specific
projectile point hydration ranges.
66
The second subsample included random samples of visually sourced Bodie Hills
and Casa Diablo debitage recovered from the SCUs to assess the reliability of visual
sourcing (Table 7). Twenty pieces visually ascribed to Bodie Hills and 25 pieces
identified as Casa Diablo obsidian, comprising about 15 and 10 percent of each sample,
respectively, were subjected to geochemical analysis. Results of the sourcing study
indicated that all of the Casa Diablo flakes were correctly identified, while 18 (90%) of
the Bodie Hills sample were correctly identified. The two pieces misidentified were both
Mt. Hicks obsidian. All in all, the results suggested a high level of confidence in the
visual selection of Bodie Hills and Casa Diablo debitage for the project.
The third x-ray fluorescence subsample included 19 flakes recovered from the
rock ring features. An initial visual assessment indicated greater source diversity in this
group than anticipated, while Hull (2002b) has also suggested that use of Mono Craters
obsidian increased in the late prehistoric period, the time frame thought to represent at
least some of the features.
The obsidian hydration sample consisted of the 21 projectile points noted above
and 403 pieces of debitage (Table 6). Most of the debitage (n=367) was collected from
the SCUs, a sample that included the 45 geochemically sourced pieces. Nineteen
geochemically sourced flakes collected from the rock rings, in addition to 17 visually
sourced flakes too small for x-ray fluorescence analysis, made up the remainder of the
debitage sample. The sample included a maximum of 20 pieces per site, although most
sites were represented by only 10 pieces of debitage.
The overall sample of sites with relatively substantial chronological data, either
obtained through previous investigations or the present study, is listed in Table 8 by
67
Table 7. Results of Obsidian Visual Reliability Assessment.
Sample Type
Random BH
Catalog No.
Site
Unit
Source (XRF)
YOSE 218641a
CA-TUO-0751
SCU 2
MH
YOSE 218647c
CA-TUO-3765
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218650c
CA-TUO-3769
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218652a
CA-TUO-3777
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218657b
CA-TUO-3783
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218661b
CA-TUO-3789
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218661d
CA-TUO-3789
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218666a
CA-TUO-3803
SCU 1
MH
YOSE 218667a
CA-TUO-3803
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218668b
CA-TUO-3803
SCU 3
BH
YOSE 218669b
CA-TUO-3805
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218670c
CA-TUO-3805
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218672a
CA-TUO-3811
SCU 1
BH
YOSE 218673a
CA-TUO-3811
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218699a
CA-TUO-4635
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218716b
CA-TUO-4641
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218739d
CA-TUO-4972
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218750b
P-55-6775
SCU 2
BH
YOSE 218751c
P-55-6775
SCU 3
BH
YOSE 218753a
P-55-6776
SCU 1
BH
Random CD
YOSE 218604a
CA-TUO-0046/H
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218607b
CA-TUO-0113
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218612b
CA-TUO-0128/129/130/504
SCU 3
CD-LM
YOSE 218614b
CA-TUO-0128/129/130/504
SCU 5
CD-LM
YOSE 218619b
CA-TUO-0131
SCU 3
CD-LM
YOSE 218621a
CA-TUO-0159
SCU 2
CD-LM
YOSE 218626a
CA-TUO-0172
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218629a
CA-TUO-0187
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218630a
CA-TUO-0187
SCU 2
CD-LM
YOSE 218635c
CA-TUO-0245
SCU 2
CD-LM
YOSE 218637c
CA-TUO-0494
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218644b
CA-TUO-0755
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218683a
CA-TUO-3841
SCU 5
CD-LM
YOSE 218691c
CA-TUO-4230
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218695a
CA-TUO-4490
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218707b
CA-TUO-4639
SCU 3
CD-LM
YOSE 218717a
CA-TUO-4660
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218727a
CA-TUO-4851
SCU 2
CD-SR
YOSE 218729b
CA-TUO-4857
SCU 2
CD-LM
YOSE 218730b
CA-TUO-4857
SCU 3
CD-SR
YOSE 218733b
CA-TUO-4859
SCU 3
CD-LM
YOSE 218736a
CA-TUO-4907
SCU 2
CD-LM
YOSE 218745f
P-55-6561
SCU 2
CD-LM
YOSE 218747e
P-55-6564
SCU 1
CD-LM
YOSE 218755a
P-55-6782
SCU 2
CD-LM
Key: BH=Bodie Hills; CD=Casa Diabo; LM=Lookout Mountain; SR=Sawmill Ridge; MH=Mt. Hicks.
68
geographic area and site type. In all, temporal information is available for 17 (28%) of
intensive-use sites and 39 (13%) of limited-use sites, for a total of 56 sites or 15 percent
of the total sites in the study area. The unevenness of the sample indicates that the
limited- and intensive-use data aren’t comparable to one another, and that patterns of use
over time should be examined within rather than between data sets.
Table 8. Chronological Data Sample by Geographic Area and Use Type.
Location
Expected Trans-Sierra Corridor
Matterhorn Canyon
Spiller Canyon
Virginia Canyon/Summit
&Virginia
Tuolumne Meadows/lower river
Dana Fork/Tioga
Parker Pass Creek/Mono & Parker
Lyell Canyon/Donohue
Total
Expected Non-Corridor Contexts
Northern lakes*
Cold Canyon, Conness Creek
Tuolumne to Young Lakes trail
corridors
Dog Lake
Delaney Creek
Gaylor Lake, Granite Lake, Gaylor
Creek
Mt. Dana slope
Elizabeth Lake and trails
Rafferty Creek
Vogelsang area to Ireland Lake
Total
Study Area Total
Total
Sites
I-U
Sites
4
6
65
2
17
85
47
29
67
303
I-U
Sample
L-U
Sites
L-U
Sample
1
4
4
4
48
2
6
16
17
2
4
58
5
4
1
2
17
(29%)
69
30
27
63
245
8
5
3
7
31
(13%)
9
9
1
2
-
-
9
7
1
1
-
3
8
4
-
-
3
8
4
1
2
2
3
13
18
70
2
-
2
3
13
18
68
1
3
8
(12%)
373
60
17
313
39
(28%)
(13%)
Key: I-U=intensive-use sites; L-U=limited-use sites. Sample includes sites sampled for the thesis and
previously excavated sites. *Miller, Spiller, Soldier, Return, Onion, McCabe, and Young lakes.
69
Conversion of Obsidian Hydration Data
An important consideration was the conversion of the raw obsidian hydration data
to estimated calendrical dates so that comparisons could be made between sites across the
study area. The rate of obsidian hydration may be influenced by several variables,
including temperature, relative humidity, obsidian source variability, intrinsic water of
individual specimens, and soil chemistry. With the time depth of regional archaeological
sites, paleoenvironmental change must also be regarded as a potential variable, although
the range of temperature variability is presently unclear. Given the complexity of the
hydration process, obsidian hydration measurements were considered as a coarse-grained
measure of time in this study.
Hull’s (2001) rate equation for Casa Diablo obsidian in Yosemite contexts
constitutes the primary means of converting relative hydration rim measurements to
calendrical dates:
t=x2/[2.9822.1016e−10356.9(1/T]
In this equation, t=time in thousands of years, x=hydration in microns, e=base of natural
logarithm (2.718), T=temperature in °K (effective hydration temperature [EHT] in °C
+273.16). The formula is based on the diffusion model, calibrated radiocarbon dates from
feature contexts and associated obsidian hydration rim measurements, and proveniencespecific temperature estimates. The equation does not distinguish between the Casa
Diablo subsources, but most Yosemite artifacts geochemically sourced since Hughes’
(1994) intra-source study have been identified as Lookout Mountain obsidian, a pattern
confirmed by the thesis x-ray fluorescence data. Preliminary results from induced
70
hydration studies also suggest that the Lookout Mountain and Sawmill Ridge subsources
hydrate at similar rates (Loyd et al. 1998).
With a widely used and reasonably effective rate equation for Casa Diablo
obsidian already in place, Mundy’s (1993) diffusion cell study provided estimates for
effective hydration temperature. Mundy emplaced Ambrose diffusion cells in surface and
subsurface contexts for one year at 35 archaeological sites throughout Yosemite’s
elevational range. Six of the sites are within the study area and represent its elevational
extent, though none were specifically sampled for the thesis (Table 9). Given the surface
context of the artifacts and the substantial difference in surface and subsurface
temperatures, Mundy’s surface data were employed to estimate effective hydration
temperature. Five of the six temperature readings vary between 9.14 and 12.55˚C,
depending on elevation, while the remaining value, 7.31˚C at Tioga Pass, is anomalous.
Whether this low temperature reading represents a data error or a microclimatic
difference remains unclear. Plotted against elevation, the five readings yield a R2 of 0.88,
showing a high degree of correlation (Figure 3).
Table 9. Effective Hydration Temperature Data for Study Area Sites (after Mundy 1993).
Location
Site
CA-TUOHanging Basket
Unrecorded
Mono Pass
759
Tioga Pass
927
Dana Meadows
2835
Gaylor Creek
754
Tuolumne Meadows 166
Key: --- = data not collected.
Elev. (ft)
10800
10635
9920
9440
9290
8580
Annual Mean Temperature by Depth (˚C)
0 cm
25 cm
50 cm
75 cm
9.39
6.51
----9.14
8.02
----7.31
5.23
4.89
--10.95
7.88
----10.36
8.52
8.04
--12.55
7.47
6.78
6.60
71
14
y = -0.0014x + 23.731
R2 = 0.8774
12
EHT (degrees C)
10
8
6
4
2
0
8,000
8,500
9,000
9,500
10,000
10,500
11,000
Elevation (ft)
Figure 3. Effective hydration temperature plotted against elevation (after Mundy 1993).
The regression equation, rounded to the nearest whole number, was used to estimate
effective hydration temperature for the thesis sites. Sites were grouped into elevation
ranges and assigned effective hydration temperature values, as follows: 8400-8800 ft,
12˚C; 8800-9500 ft, 11˚C; 9500-10,200, 10˚C; and 10,200-10,600 ft, 9˚C. Table A-4 in
Appendix A presents calibrated dates for the raw obsidian hydration readings.
Researchers have criticized the diffusion cell method, in general, due to the shortterm nature of cell emplacement and the disparate activation energies of the temperature
cells compared with those of obsidian (e.g., Ridings 1996; Rogers 2007). There are also
specific problems related to the Yosemite formula. First, obsidian hydration dating
should be considered with caution in dating early deposits since paired obsidian hydration
and radiocarbon dates are not yet available for older material (Hull 2001). Second,
similar paired data are not yet available or abundant for the higher elevations of the Park,
particularly above 9500 ft, suggesting additional caution in interpreting the thesis results.
72
Third, while Hull’s formula controls for temperature and obsidian source, variation in
obsidian hydration seems to increase over time, even in contexts where those variables
are held constant. For example, obsidian artifact caches, which presumably represent very
short-term manufacturing and depositional events, tend to demonstrate increased
variability in obsidian hydration measurements over time. Two biface caches in Yosemite
with relatively thin rims, the Pate Valley and Glen Aulin caches, varied only slightly
from 1.7 to 1.8 microns (Humphreys 1994). In contrast, two biface caches with thicker
rims, one in the eastern Sierra and one at Yosemite, varied from 3.1−3.7 microns and
3.4−3.9 microns, respectively (Goldberg et al. 1990:176; Hull and Mundy 1985).
With these concerns in mind, the present study employed Hull’s rate equation and
Mundy’s temperature data to estimate calendrical dates. These dates were subsequently
grouped into 500-year intervals for analysis. This approach helps to overcome some of
the concerns about the hydration and data conversion processes, while also allowing for
assessment of broad trends in settlement over time.
A final issue of concern revolved around the Bodie Hills materials prevalent in
the northern part of the study area, and whether or not Hull’s formula could be applied to
hydration measurements for this source. Accelerated hydration experiments indicate that
Casa Diablo and Bodie Hills obsidians hydrate at similar rates (Tremaine 1991), but more
recent results of induced hydration studies, though preliminary in nature, have suggested
that various Bodie Hills subsources hydrate at different rates (Loyd et al. 1998). These
subsources, however, cannot yet be distinguished by geochemical sourcing studies. To
address this issue, temporally diagnostic projectile point hydration ranges for the study
73
area were considered as a coarse-grained means of comparing the rates of hydration for
Casa Diablo and Bodie Hills obsidians.
In general, data for common projectile point forms in the study area show the
expected increase in mean obsidian hydration values (Table 10), supporting the regional
chronology and the use of obsidian hydration for ordering materials in time. Mean
obsidian hydration values for all sources are comparable within the Desert series, while
values tend to diverge as rims increase in thickness. Thus, it may be more important to
Table 10. Selected Projectile Point Obsidian Hydration Ranges by Obsidian Source.
Point series
Desert
Source
BH
CD
MC
MH
All sources
Rosegate
BH
CD
MC/MGM
MH
Q
All sources
BH
CD
MH
All sources
Elko/Contracting
stem
Concave base
Count
8
11
2
2
23
Range
1.0-2.3
0.6-2.9
1.2-1.6
1.1-1.1
0.6-2.9
Mean
1.4
1.6
1.4
1.1
1.4
SD
0.4
0.67
0.28
0
0.5
9
7
5
2
1
24
1.2-3.7
1.0-2.5
0.9-4.4
1.4-3.8
4.2
0.9-4.4
2.2
1.8
2.8
2.6
4.2
2.3
0.71
0.60
1.38
1.71
na
1.01
17
11
6
34
1.9-5.8
1.3-5.5
2.0-3.2
1.3-5.8
3.1
3.1
2.7
3.0
1.1
1.4
0.4
1.1
BH
5
1.4-4.3
2.5
1.3
CD
6
2.6-5.9
4.2
1.4
MGM
1
1.9
1.9
na
MH
3
2.5-4.2
3.1
0.9
Q
3
2.2-5.0
3.2
1.5
All sources
18
1.4-5.9
3.3
1.3
Key: BH=Bodie Hills; CD=Casa Diablo; MC=Mono Craters; MGM=Mono Glass Mountain; MH=Mt.
Hicks; Q=Queen; SD=standard deviation. *Does not include six specimens with NVH readings.
74
consider obsidian source as a factor in hydration rate variability in regard to older
materials. Bodie Hills and Casa Diablo obsidians, however, appear to be relatively
consistent, at least in regard to the Desert, Rosegate, and the combined Contracting
Stem/Elko series, suggesting it may be appropriate to employ Hull’s formula for
converting obsidian hydration measurements to estimated calendrical dates. The obsidian
hydration means for the Concave Base points do not compare well, possibly because of
small sample size. Alternatively, people may have used them for a longer period of time
than previously thought.
In the ensuing chapters, descriptive artifact data are presented as raw hydration
measurements, while data summaries and analyses utilize estimated dates derived by
Hull’s (2001) rate equation. The appendices provide further detail per specimen,
Appendix B the raw obsidian hydration data and Appendix A the converted dates.
LIMITATIONS AND ASSUMPTIONS
A few limitations and assumptions are inherent in this study. As noted above, the
data have been generated mainly through compliance-related investigations and the
surveyed areas were not randomly selected. It is, therefore, conceivable that aspects of
the high-elevation settlement system have not yet been documented. This potential bias
may be addressed through reference to archaeological investigations in adjacent highelevation areas (cf. Jackson and Morgan 1999; Reynolds and Kerwin 2006; Roper
Wickstrom 1992; Stevens 2002; Van Bueren 1988), which do not differ substantially
from Yosemite in terms of documented cultural material. An exception is a recently
discovered complex of rock walls, blinds, and projectile points thought to represent a
bighorn sheep drive (Scott 2007). This site is of particular interest because of its location
75
on Monument Ridge, to the east of Virginia Canyon above Green Creek. Although
hunting blinds have been recorded in Yosemite, a complex similar to that of the
Monument Ridge site is currently unknown. In general, however, the high-elevation data
from the central and southern Sierra Nevada demonstrate a similar range of
archaeological phenomena, indicating the non-random nature of the survey data is
unlikely to constitute a problem in this study.
With respect to chronology, temporal information is absent from a large
proportion of the sites. While the surface collections made as part of the thesis help to
address this issue to a limited extent, small hydration samples and time-diagnostic
materials are likely not effective in measuring very incidental use episodes. Broad
occupational trends, however, are almost certainly captured by this approach.
Assessments of both chronology and function for almost all sites are based solely
on surface materials, while functions may have changed through time and even within the
boundaries of a given site. This problem is at least partially mitigated through the
generally slow rates of deposition in the higher elevations and the tendency of materials
to be moved upward in sediment columns by various disturbance processes. Thus,
materials from multi-component sites may be evident in surface contexts. At the same
time, this movement of materials may obfuscate associations between obsidian artifacts
and objects to be dated. It is difficult, for example, to date rock rings based on surface
evidence alone if multiple components are evident. Confining collections to feature
contexts alleviates that problem to some extent, but confidently ascertaining associations
may require excavation samples, a level of work not proposed for this thesis.
76
Chapter 5
DESCRIPTION OF CULTURAL MATERIAL
This chapter first describes the cultural material collected or left in place during
the thesis fieldwork, and subsequently summarizes classes of material and their
distributions by geography and elevation in the study area as a whole. Detailed
discussions of previously recorded collections and surface materials are provided in the
individual project notes, site records, reports, and databases, on file at the Yosemite
Archeology Office. All thesis materials are archived under Accession YOSE-6945 in the
Yosemite Museum, with copies of documentation on file at the Yosemite Archeology
Office.
THESIS COLLECTIONS
In all, 676 pieces of debitage, 25 projectile points, and nine edge-modified pieces
were collected. The artifact catalog, attached as Appendix C, presents catalog number,
provenience information, descriptions, and relevant measurements for each lot or
individual artifact. Detailed metric measurements and summary obsidian studies data for
the temporally diagnostic projectile points are presented in Table 11, with scanned
images of these artifacts provided in Figures 4 through 6. The obsidian studies data for
selected time-sensitive point series are summarized along with those for the study area as
a whole in Table 10 (Chapter 4).
Projectile Points
Twenty-one of the 25 projectile points were classified as follows: eight Desert
Side-notched, three Cottonwood Triangular, two Rose Spring, four Elko, one Contracting
Stem, two Concave Base, and one Pinto. One arrow point that may be a Rose Spring or
77
Table 11. Metric Attributes and Obsidian Studies Data for Classifiable Projectile Points.
Cat.
Site
Artifact
LT
LA
LM
WM
WB
WN
Th
Wt
DSA
PSA
NO
BIR WB/ Material/
No.
(mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (mm) (g)
°
°
°
WM OH rim
218674 TUO-3811 CT
23.45 23.45
0 12.36 12.36
na
3.55 0.83
na
na
na 1.00 1.00 BH/0
218724 TUO-4665 CT
23.80 22.68
0 13.66 13.70
na
4.09 0.97
na
na
na 0.95 1.00 BH/2.3
218660 TUO-3783 CT
----0 19.96 19.96
na
3.90 1.16
na
na
na 1.00 1.00 chert
218746 P-55-6561 DSN
----------6.15
3.39 0.55
205
--------- LM/1.6
218623 TUO-0159 DSN-G
----------7.16
3.10 0.52
203
160
43
----- LM/2.2
218658 TUO-3783 DSN-G
----0 12.50 12.50
7.21
2.64 0.39
223
177
46
--- 1.00 BH/1.5/4.9
218675 TUO-3811 DSN-G
18.17 17.44
0 11.91 11.91
9.6
2.14 0.40
205
180
25 0.96 1.00 BH/1.3
218676 TUO-3811 DSN-G
21.71 20.72
3.56 10.89 10.74
9.11
3.16 0.59
213
135
78 0.95 0.99 BH/1.3
218642 TUO-0751 DSN-S
29.50 25.87
------6.96
3.27 0.83
204
193
11 0.88
--- MC/1.6
218643 TUO-0751 DSN-S
22.72 18.20
0 11.26 11.26
6.88
3.50 0.52
218
148
70 0.80 1.00 BH/1.5
218712 TUO-4639 DSN-S
24.73 19.64
8.48 12.43 12.38
6.51
2.55 0.59
190
180
10 0.79 1.00 LM/2.9
218725 TUO-4665 RS/DSN
18.33 18.33
3.90 10.15
--6.03
2.33 0.34
187
----- 1.00
--- LM/UNR
218633 TUO-0187 RSCN
----5.66
--- 11.00
8.01
3.44 1.21
163
120
43 1.00
--- LM/1.1
218632 TUO-0187 RS
------- 13.98
--9.49
3.56 1.20
175
--------- LM/2.3
218713 TUO-4639 ECN
----7.76
--- 19.96 13.96
5.48 3.33
175
143
32 1.00
--- SR/3.8
218714 TUO-4639 ECN
----- 12.65 32.79 24.07 20.68
5.76 4.33
195
113
82 1.00 0.73 BH/2.3
218752 P-55-6775 ECN
34.82 34.49
--- 21.43
--- 15.64
7.02 4.72
205
116
89 0.99
--- chert
218701 TUO-4635 EE
----- 12.74 22.74 18.61 13.86
7.45 4.72
233
126
107
--- 0.82 SR/UNR
218748 P-55-6564 SCS
----9.84
--8.01 11.97
7.00 4.39
152
60
92 1.00
--- BH/4.5
218636 TUO-0245 HCB
--------- 13.45
na
8.37 2.73
na
na
na
----- LM/5.1
218646 TUO-0755 SCB
----------na
5.14 1.96
na
na
na
----- Q/2.5
218677 TUO-3811 Pinto
----- 13.84 24.44 15.81 15.15
5.57 4.60
200
95
105
--- 0.65 LM/UNR
218723 TUO-4665 small cb
------- 17.05 13.70
na
2.34 0.55
na
na
na
na
--- SR/2.2
Key: LT =total length; LA=axial length; LM=length to maximum; WM=maximum width; WB=basal width; WN=neck width; Th=thick; Wt=weight; DSA=distal
shoulder angle; PSA=proximal shoulder angle; NO=notch opening; BIR=basal indentation ratio; CT=Cottonwood Triangular; DSN=Desert Side-notched (G,
S: General or Sierra subtype); RS=Rose Spring; RSCN=Rose Spring Corner-notched; ECN=Elko Corner-notched; EE=Elko Eared; HCB=Humboldt Concave
Base; SCB=Sierra Concave Base; SCS=Sierra Contracting Stem; CB=concave base; PPF=projectile point fragment; na=not applicable; ---not measurable;
BH=Bodie Hills; LM, SR=Casa Diablo, Lookout Mountain or Sawmill Ridge; MC=Mono Craters; Q=Queen; UNR=unreadable rim.
78
Desert Side-notched point and three indeterminate specimens were also recovered. All of
the points are made of obsidian with two exceptions fashioned of chert.
Desert Series
Both Cottonwood and Desert Side-notched points were originally defined in the
Great Basin (Baumhoff and Byrne 1959; Lanning 1963; Riddell 1951), where they are
late prehistoric temporal markers, thought to post-date 650 B.P. (Thomas 1981). Both
types are small, thin, and triangular in outline, reflecting use with the bow and arrow.
Cottonwood Triangular points are unnotched, while Desert Side-notched projectile points
are notched high on the lateral edges. Two subtypes of the latter, based on distinctive
basal configurations, are prevalent in Park collections: the General subtype has a straight
to slightly concave base, while a basal notch characterizes the Sierra subtype.
Three Cottonwood Triangular and eight Desert Side-notched points were
collected during the thesis fieldwork, the latter including four of the General subtype,
three Sierra subtype, and one unclassifiable as to subtype (Figure 4). One Cottonwood
point is made of chert, while the other 10 Cottonwood and Desert Side-notched
specimens are obsidian: Bodie Hills (n=6) is the most commonly occurring obsidian
source, followed by Casa Diablo-Lookout Mountain (n=3), and Mono Craters (n=1).
Obsidian hydration measurements vary between no visible hydration and 2.9 microns,
although most rims (n=8) measure between 1.3 and 2.3 microns, consistent with regional
hydration ranges. The 2.9-micron rim measured on Cat. No. 218712, however, is
anomalous, and cannot be accounted for by technological factors.
Cat. No. 218725 (Figure 4l) is missing most of its proximal end and may be a
Desert Side notched or Rose Spring series point, although the small size suggests the
79
former. Made of Casa Diablo-Lookout Mountain obsidian, the hydration rim is
unreadable and therefore does not aid in projectile point classification.
Rosegate Series
Thomas (1981) combined Rose Spring and Eastgate types into the Rosegate series
due to their temporal and morphological similarities. These points mark the introduction
of the bow and arrow in the region ca. 1500 B.P. and are believed to have been in
common use though 650 B.P. and possibly into the historic period (Yohe 1992). Rose
Spring Corner-notched, Rose Spring Contracting Stem, Eastgate Split Stem, and Eastgate
Expandng Stem are recognized within the study area collections. The principal distinction
between Rose Spring and Eastgate points is the triangular outline of the latter, long barbs,
and notches that extend upwards from the base. Following Thomas (1981), basal widths
of ≤1.0 cm generally distinguish Rosegate from Elko series points, although some
Rosegate points in Yosemite and eastern California exceed that measurement (Bettinger
and Eerkens 1999; Hull 1989b).
The two Rose Spring points recovered during the thesis fieldwork, one a cornernotched piece (Cat. No. 218633; Figure 5b) and the other difficult to identify beyond the
general Rose Spring group (Cat. No. 218632; Figure 5a), are manufactured of Casa
Diablo-Lookout Mountain obsidian. Hydration rims measure 1.1 and 2.3 microns,
respectively. The thin rim comports with measurements for Desert series points,
suggesting a later period of use for this specimen, while the thicker measurement is
consistent with the hydration range for Rose Spring points.
80
Elko Series
Elko Corner-notched and Elko Eared points are large, thick dart points,
conventionally dated between 3500 and 1350 B.P. in the western Great Basin (Bettinger
and Taylor 1974; Heizer and Hester 1978; Thomas 1981). Bevill et al. (2005:228)
suggested an age range of 5100 to 2200 B.P. in Yosemite based on obsidian hydration
readings for Casa Diablo specimens from a wide variety of settings. This initial use in
Yosemite is substantially earlier than that of Great Basin specimens, and remains to be
confirmed by radiocarbon dates.
A basal concavity or notch, resulting in the appearance of ears, separates the two
Elko types (Hull 1989b), while a basal width greater than 1.0 cm distinguishes the Elko
and Rosegate series. Four specimens within the Elko series, three Elko Corner-notched
and one Elko Eared, were recovered during the thesis fieldwork. The Elko Eared point
(Figure 5f), fashioned of Casa Diablo-Sawmill Ridge obsidian, yielded an unreadable
hydration band. One of the corner-notched specimens is made of a yellowish-brown chert
(Figure 5e). A second Elko Corner-notched specimen (Figure 5c) made of Casa DiabloSawmill Ridge obsidian retains a hydration rim of 3.8, consistent with the regional
hydration range. The third Elko Corner-notched point (Figure 5d) yielded a relatively thin
rim of 2.3 microns on Bodie Hills obsidian.
Contracting Stem Series
In the western Great Basin, an additional Elko variant, Elko Contracting-stem, is
thought to be coeval with the Eared and Corner-notched forms (Basgall and Giambastiani
1995). In the western Sierra, these are morphologically similar to the Sierra Contracting
Stem and Triangular Contracting Stem points originally defined by Moratto (1972). The
81
western Sierra terminology is maintained here, but these specimens are considered to be
dart points temporally congruent with the Elko series. The single Sierra Contracting Stem
point (Figure 5g) recovered was made of Bodie Hills obsidian. The hydration rim of 4.5
microns is consistent with the regional hydration range for this series.
Concave Base Series
Concave Base points in the western Sierra constitute a confusing array of types of
uncertain temporal affinity. Heizer and Clewlow (1968) originally identified three
Humboldt Concave-base types through work in Nevada, two of which are recognized in
the western Sierra. Humboldt Basal-notched forms are long, triangular points with a
broad basal notch, termed Sierra Concave Base in the western Sierra. Humboldt
Concave-base A and B points are leaf shaped and of variable size, with a basal width less
than the maximum width and a relatively small basal indentation. These have been
designated as Humboldt Concave Base forms in Yosemite. Finally, an additional form,
termed Eared Concave Base in the western Sierra, is a long heavy point with a notched
base and basal ears projecting on each side of the basal concavity. This point is similar in
form to the Sierra Concave Base, and may represent reworked specimens of that type
(Hull 1989b).
The utility of these points as time markers remains an open question. Thomas
(1981) lumped them into one group in Monitor Valley, spanning a long period of time
from 4950 to 1250 B.P. Research in the eastern Sierra indicates they are generally coeval
with Elko points, or markers of the Newberry period (Basgall and Giambastiani 1995;
Jackson 1985), though the basal-notched form may persist into the early portion of the
Haiwee period and the concave base form initially appeared well before the Elko series
82
(Basgall et al. 2003). In the western Sierra, Moratto (1972) originally assigned the Sierra
Concave Base to the Chowchilla phase (ca. 800 B.C.–A.D. 550). Obsidian hydration data
for Yosemite points support this time frame, but also suggest a somewhat longer span of
use, overlapping with Rose Spring points (Bevill et al. 2005:231).
Two concave base points were collected during the current fieldwork. The
Humboldt Concave Base specimen (Figure 6a), made of Casa Diablo-Lookout Mountain
obsidian, retains a hydration rim of 5.1 microns, commensurate with early Elko readings.
The Sierra Concave Base fragment (Figure 6b) is fashioned of Queen obsidian, with a
comparatively thin rim of 2.5 microns.
Pinto Series
Large, bifurcate-stemmed dart points in the Great Basin have been most recently
distinguished temporally and morphologically as the younger (ca. 5,000 to 3,000 B.P.),
gracile Gatecliff series and the earlier (ca. 7,500 to 4,000 B.P.), more robust Pinto series
(Basgall and Hall 2000). In Yosemite, these point forms have been classified variously
as Pinto, Gatecliff, and Indented-base Stemmed (cf. Hull 1989b; Hull et al. 1995). Few
specimens have been documented to date, but obsidian hydration data for those pieces are
similar to ranges for Elko points (Hull 1989b).
The single specimen recovered (Figure 5h) has an unreadable hydration band, and
is manufactured of Casa Diablo-Lookout Mountain obsidian. The metric measurements
for this piece (Table 11) fall between those proposed by Basgall and Hall (2000) to
distinguish Gatecliff and Pinto points. However, the overall morphology of the
specimen—the relatively long stem and the distal shoulder angle of 200°—suggests it is
most appropriately classified as a Pinto series point.
83
a. 218660, TUO-3783
b. 218674, TUO-3811, BHNVH
c. 218724, TUO-4665, BH-2.3
d. 218623, TUO-159, LM-2.2
e. 218642, TUO-751, MC-1.6
f. 218643, TUO-751, BH-1.5
g. 218658, TUO-3783, BH-1.5/4.9
h. 218675, TUO-3811, BH-1.3
i. 218676, TUO-3811, BH-1.3
j. 218712, TUO-4639, LM-2.9
k. 218746, P-55-6561, LM-1.6
l. 218725, TUO-4665, LMUNR
cm
Figure 4. Scanned images of projectile points: a-c, Cottonwood Triangular; d-k, Desert
Side-notched; l, small arrow point, Desert Side-notched or Rose Spring.
84
a. 218632, TUO-187, LM-2.3
b. 218633, TUO-187, LM-1.1
c. 218713, TUO-4639, SR-3.8
d. 218714, TUO-4639, BH-2.3
e. 218752, P-55-6775
f. 218701, TUO-4635, SR-UNR
g. 218748, P-55-6564, BH-4.5
h. 218677, TUO-3811, LM-UNR
cm
Figure 5. Scanned images of projectile points: a, Rose Spring; b, Rose Spring Cornernotched; c-e, Elko Corner-notched; f, Elko Eared; g, Sierra Contracting Stem; h, Pinto
series.
85
a. 218636, TUO-245, LM-5.1
b. 218646, TUO-755, Q-2.5
c. 218659, TUO-3783
d. 218723, TUO-4665, SR-2.2
cm
Figure 6. Scanned images of projectile points: a, Humboldt Concave Base; b, Sierra
Concave Base; c-d, small, unidentifiable arrow point fragments.
Unclassifiable Fragments
Three projectile point fragments, all fashioned of obsidian, were too small for
reliable identification. Catalog No. 218723 (Figure 6d), a small, thin fragment with a
slightly concave base, was the only specimen of the three submitted for obsidian studies.
The obsidian source was identified as Lookout Mountain-Sawmill Ridge, and the
hydration rim measured 2.2 microns. Catalog No. 218659 (Figure 6c) is a basal fragment,
while Cat. No. 218828 (not pictured) is a very small midsection, likely of an arrow point.
Edge-modified Pieces
Nine edge-modified pieces, all of obsidian, were originally collected as debitage
from the SCUs. Edge modification was observed upon closer examination in the
laboratory, and these pieces were cataloged accordingly as tools. The pieces exhibit
86
between one and three modified edges, most of which show marginal flaking, meaning
very little of the modification penetrates to the interior of the piece. Presumably, this
marginal modification is due to utilization but it is also possible that it represents noncultural edge damage. A few pieces with invasive flaking likely represent intentional
retouch. None of these informal tools were selected for obsidian studies.
Debitage
Of the 676 pieces of debitage, 403 were submitted for obsidian hydration analysis.
Prior to hydration analysis, debitage was either visually or geochemically sourced as
follows: Bodie Hills visually sourced (n=113), Bodie Hills geochemically sourced
(n=28); Casa Diablo visually sourced (n=223); Casa Diablo geochemically sourced
(n=27); Mono Craters geochemically sourced (n=7); Mt. Hicks geochemically sourced
(n=2); and non-Casa Diablo visually sourced (n=3). Because hydration analysis is a
partially destructive process, all of the pieces were further described by size class,
technology, presence/absence of cortex, and presence/absence of platforms. Briefly, 218
retain at least a portion of their platforms, while 185 are fragmentary, or lack platforms.
Size class distribution varies as follow: 3-6 mm (n=10); 6-12 mm (n=164); 12-20 mm
(n=176); and >20 (n=53). Most pieces (n=369) are interior flakes lacking cortex, but 32
are secondary and two are primary cortical flakes. Of the pieces retaining attributes that
allowed for technological classification, 257 are biface thinning or pressure flakes, and 16
are core reduction debris.
THESIS OBSERVATIONS
In addition to the recovered objects described above, previously unrecorded
cultural materials at the thesis sites were documented and left in place. These materials
87
are further described in the field forms, which are filed in the archaeological site records
at the Yosemite Archeology Office, and the data are included in the overall inventory of
cultural material within the study area. As summarized in Table 12, additional artifacts
and features were noted at 16 of the sites visited during the thesis fieldwork. The classes
of material are consistent with those previously documented in the area, including various
flaked stone tools, bedrock mortars and pestles, a single rock ring, and portable ground
stone artifacts. Conversely, two features previously documented as pictographs in Lyell
Canyon were identified as natural phenomena as part of the thesis fieldwork. As such,
CA-TUO-3846, recorded as a single pictograph lacking other cultural materials, was
removed from consideration in the study, and CA-TUO-3840, was retained in the study
as a lithic scatter.
Table 12. Previously Unrecorded Cultural Material Observed at Thesis Sites.
Site
PP
BF DR EMP RR
BRM PE HS
MS
CA-TUO1
1(2)
4
0128/129/130/504
CA-TUO-0159
1 (DSN/RS)
CA-TUO-0172
1
CA-TUO-0187
1
CA-TUO-0751
1
1
1
CA-TUO-0755
1
CA-TUO-3765
1
1
CA-TUO-3783
1
CA-TUO-3789
1
CA-TUO-3811
1
2
CA-TUO-3850
1
CA-TUO-4635
1(1)
1
CA-TUO-4639
3
1(2)
2
2
1
CA-TUO-4665
2 (DSN, SCB)
1
1
CA-TUO-4907
1
P-55-006775
2
Key: PP=projectile point; BF=biface; DR=drill; EMP=edge-modified piece; RR=rock ring; BRM=bedrock
mortar: #features(#mortars); PE=pestle; HS=handstone; MS=millingstone; DSN=Desert Side-notched;
RS=Rose Spring; SCB=Sierra Concave Base.
88
SUMMARY AND DISTRIBUTION OF STUDY AREA MATERIALS
The discussion to follow briefly describes the classes of material present in the
study area, identifies their relative abundance, and details their distribution by geographic
location and elevation. The thesis collections and observations, as well as previously
documented material, comprise the data herein. Table 13 shows the frequency of sites
containing a given cultural constituent by geographic location and elevation range.
Comparison of the various collections is acknowledged as a problem here because
assemblage diversity tends to increase with repeated site visits and excavations. Although
a detailed historical overview of site investigations was not conducted as part of this
thesis, the most intensively studied sites are in Dana Meadows and Tuolumne Meadows,
where limited excavations have been carried out, and the least studied areas are Parker
Pass Creek and Delaney Creek, where numerous sites have not been visited since the
1950s.
Flaked Stone
Debitage is by far the most common site constituent, occurring at 365 (98%) of
the 373 sites across the study area and at all elevation intervals in which sites have been
recorded. Debitage density varies substantially between sites, however, with estimates
ranging from five to several thousand flakes per site. This variability could reflect
differential use over time, where certain places were occupied repeatedly or for longer
periods of time; distinctions in function, where some sites were related to acquisition of
obsidian; or site formation processes, where deposits may be substantially buried and few
materials are evident on the surface. While the precise meaning of variable-density
deposits is unclear at the level of this study, in a general sense higher-density
89
Table 13. Frequency of Sites by Cultural Material Class, Geography, and Elevation.
Location
BRM/ AF MID HS/ BST/ RA P RS HB H
C
MISC FAU DEB PP BF DR FT Total
PE
MS
CH
Sites
GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION
Trans-Sierra Corridors
Matterhorn Canyon
- 4
1
1
4
Spiller Canyon
2
- 1
5
3
1
6
Virginia Canyon
15
6
3
6
3
2 1
2
2
1
1
63
29
22
2
29
65
Tuolumne Meadows
14
1
3
2
- 2
4
3
3
3
3
85
37
18
1
21
85
Dana Fork
14
2
1
7
3
- 1
3
2
4
45
24
17
1
29
47
Parker Pass/Mono
2
- 1
28
6
5
2
3
29
Lyell Canyon
2
1
2
2
1
4 1
2
67
21
18
4
20
67
Non-Corridor Contexts
Northern lakes
- 9
4
2
1
9
Cold Canyon
2
- 1
9
3
1
9
Young Lakes trail
- 1
1
1
Dog Lake
- 3
1
3
Delaney Creek
- 8
3
3
8
Gaylor Basin
- 4
1
2
4
Mt. Dana slope
- 2
1
1
2
Elizabeth Lake
- 3
2
1
3
Rafferty Creek
- 1
13
4
3
2
13
Vogelsang-Ireland
- 1
1
17
8
8
5
18
ELEVATION RANGE (ft)
< 9000
31
3
5
8
5
5 1
6
6
3
3
5
3
185
75
45
4
49
188
9000-10,000
19
5
2
9
4
1
1
1
3
1
5
5
131
54
40
5
54
135
10,000-11,000
1
1
1
- 1
1
48
16
15
2
12
49
11,000-12,000
- 1
1
1
Total
51
9
7
18
9
6 1
7
7
6
4
11
9
365
146 100 11 115
373
Key: BRM/PE=bedrock mortar/pestle; AF=architectural feature; MID=midden; HS/MS=handstone/millingstone; BST/CH=battered stone/chopper; RA=rock
alignment; P=petroglyph; RS=rockshelter; HB=hunting blind; H=hearth; C=flaked stone tool cache; MISC=miscellaneous; FAU=faunal remains;
DEB=debitage; PP=projectile point; BF=biface; DR=drill; FT=flake tool.
90
concentrations signal an increased level of activity related to flaked stone tool production,
either temporally or functionally, compared to low-density deposits. The substantial
variation in debitage densities and the prevalence of this material class throughout the
study area suggest that further examination is warranted.
Characterization of debitage density for this study as low, moderate, or high relied
on the maximum debitage density per square meter and the overall estimated count per
site. While both attributes have not been consistently documented for all sites, most site
records retain data for at least one. Sites not visited since the 1950s are excluded from
consideration due to difficulties in reconciling the earlier notes with the later, more
detailed data collection procedures. Low density scatters contain ≤9/m2 or ≤100 flakes on
the surface; moderate scatters have 10−19/m2 or 100−200 flakes; and high-density
scatters are defined by ≥20/m2 or more than 200 flakes on the surface. When the two
attributes for a given site did not both fall within these categories (e.g., a maximum flake
density of 25 and an estimated site count of 150), the site count was used for
classification purposes.
Most of the sites with density information (n=333) are light lithic scatters (71%),
fewer are of moderate density (18%), and high-density scatters (11%) are relatively
uncommon (Table 14). Low- and moderate-density debitage scatters are most common in
all geographic locations and within all elevation intervals. High-density scatters,
however, are more common in the trans-Sierra corridors, while low-density scatters are
more common in non-corridor contexts. The spatial distribution of high-density scatters
parallels that for the general distribution of materials noted above—32 of the 35 sites
with high-density debitage scatters are in the trans-Sierra corridors of Virginia Canyon,
91
Table 14. Frequency of Sites by Debitage Density, Geography, and Elevation.
Low
Estimated Debitage Density
%
Moderate
%
High
Total
%
GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION
Trans-Sierra Corridor
Matterhorn Canyon
Spiller Canyon
Virginia Canyon
Tuolumne Meadows
Dana Fork
Parker Pass Creek/Mono Pass
Lyell Canyon
Subtotal
4
4
53
61
29
6
37
194
100%
80%
84%
72%
69%
46%
58%
70%
1
7
11
5
4
22
50
20%
11%
13%
12%
31%
34%
18%
3
13
8
3
5
32
5%
15%
19%
23%
8%
12%
4
5
63
85
42
13
64
276
Non-Corridor Context
Northern lakes*
Cold Canyon, Conness Creek
Dog Lake
Delaney Creek
Gaylor Basin
Mt. Dana slope
Elizabeth Lake
Rafferty Creek
Vogelsang - Ireland Lake
Subtotal
9
6
3
2
3
1
2
7
11
44
100%
67%
100%
100%
75%
50%
67%
64%
79%
77%
3
1
1
2
3
10
33%
50%
33%
18%
21%
18%
1
2
3
25%
18%
5%
9
9
3
2
4
2
3
11
14
57
ELEVATION RANGE (ft)
< 9000
129
70%
34
19%
20
11%
183
9000-10,000
83
76%
15
14%
11
10%
109
10,000-11,000
26
65%
10
25%
4
10%
40
11,000-12,000
1
100%
1
Total
238
71%
59
18%
35
11%
333
*Many sites in this area have not been recorded to current standards and are excluded from analysis.
Lyell Canyon, Dana Fork, Parker Pass, Tuolumne Meadows, and Lyell Canyon. In
contrast, none of the sites in Spiller and Matterhorn canyons can be characterized as high
density. Of the former, Virginia and Lyell canyons have the lowest proportions of highdensity scatters (5% and 8%, respectively), while the three other areas have the highest
proportions (15%, 19%, and 23%, respectively). The figure for Parker Pass Creek,
however, is misleading because of the lack of information for many of the sites in that
92
area, and should be considered as preliminary until further work is carried out. The
highest debitage densities in the study area, with maximum flake densities per square
meter ranging from 180 to 500 pieces, occur at several sites in Dana Meadows, Tuolumne
Meadows, and the lower portion of Lyell Canyon, suggesting these areas were important
places, occupied repeatedly or related to obsidian procurement.
Sites with flaked stone tools, including projectile points, bifaces, and flake tools
are relatively common, occurring throughout the study area (Table 13). In contrast, sites
with drills are rare and limited to the trans-Sierra corridors, suggesting additional
assemblage diversity in those locations. Beyond their presence at many sites, not much
can be said about flake tools and bifaces, while the temporal parameters of some
projectile points allows for further discussion in Chapter 6. It should be mentioned,
however, that flake tools are likely an underrepresented class since surface
documentation has typically focused on projectile points and identification of flake tools
is more difficult in survey contexts.
It is worth noting that flaked stone material is composed almost entirely of
obsidian, with few examples of chert, basalt, quartz, or metamorphic materials.
Excavation data show that, in general, obsidian comprises about 98 percent of highelevation debitage collections (Hull et al. 1995; Montague 1996a), and all site records
document obsidian as the primary surface constituent. Concentrations of non-obsidian
flaked stone, however, have been noted at a few sites; CA-TUO-754/H in Dana Meadows
and TUO-3841 in lower Lyell Canyon exhibit concentrations of metamorphic toolstone,
while the site record for TUO-3829, also in lower Lyell Canyon, indicates that basalt
makes up a substantial portion of the surface materials at that site.
93
Flaked Stone Tool Caches
Of the eight flaked stone tool caches documented in the Park, four were located
within the study area and one just outside of its boundaries (Table 15). These obsidian
caches, composed of flake blanks, bifaces, cobbles/cores, and in one case a combination
of flakes and bifaces, are thought to represent material for local use or transport farther to
the west. All of the caches except the Tamarack Flat bifaces were located in the
Tuolumne River watershed, underscoring the importance of that drainage and its
tributaries as a travel corridor and a place that people returned to on a regular basis as
part of the annual subsistence-settlement round. The highest density debitage scatters in
the study area are also located in Tuolumne and Dana meadows, perhaps an additional
indicator that the Mono Trail was a key route for obsidian transport.
The caches vary in age, technological composition, and obsidian source, allowing
for some comparisons over time. Although the sample is very small, a pattern of
increasing source diversity through time is apparent. Casa Diablo obsidian occurs
throughout the temporal sequence, while the Bodie Hills, Mono Craters, and Mono Glass
Mountain sources are more recent, dating to within the past 500 years or so. To some
extent, this pattern reflects the underlying geographic distribution of obsidian sources, but
the presence of two caches of Mono Craters and Mono Glass Mountain obsidians in late
period contexts in an area otherwise dominated by Casa Diablo glass suggests the
possibility of changing obsidian use patterns late in prehistory (Montague 2008). In this
case, shifting obsidian procurement patterns might reflect reduced group mobility in the
eastern Sierra.
94
Table 15. Flaked Stone Tool Cache Data (after Montague 2008).
Site No.
Location
Elev
(ft)
Description of Cache
WITHIN AND NEAR STUDY AREA
TUOTuolumne
8570
136 fragmentary
134
Meadows
bifaces, flake blanks,
and debitage in
distinctive rock crevice
on dome
TUO4973
OH
Sample
(n=)
OH Range
(microns)
Source
Est.
Years
B.P.
44
mainly
2.5-2.8
mainly
CD-LM &
3 MGM(x)
1700
7900
88 bifaces at base of
tree, on and below
surface
15
1.7-1.8
CD(x)
700
TUO4436
Glen
Aulin,
Tuolumne
River
Tuolumne
Meadows
8550
28 large cobbles and
flakes; <60 cm below
surface
15
4.2-4.5
CD-LM(x)
7500
TUO500
Tuolumne
Meadows
8650
9 modified flakes
between two cobbles on
low granite knoll
9
multiple
rims:
1.3-1.6;
3.7-4.0,
6.8
MGM(x)
<650
TUO4509
Parker
Pass Creek
9990
58 modified flakes on
downed log
21
1.1-1.4
MC(x)
<650
7 bifaces in crevice of
large granite outcrop
7
3.4-3.9
CD(v)
2600
6 bifaces (original est.
total 30-50) on and
below surface near two
large projecting rocks
3
1.7-1.8
BH(x)
350
OUTSIDE OF STUDY AREA
MRP-94 Tamarack
6360
Flat
none
Pate
Valley,
Tuolumne
River
4800
TUO4647
unnamed
7050
5 large flake blanks on
5
4.0-4.8
CD-LM(x) 3200
tributary,
surface in cluster of
Tuolumne
large boulders
River
Key: CD = Casa Diablo; LM = Lookout Mountain; BH = Bodie Hills; MGM = Mono Glass Mountain; MC
= Mono Craters; x = sourced by x-ray fluorescence; v = visually sourced; OH = obsidian hydration
measurement (microns).
In comparing technology against time, a clear correspondence between age and
artifact form is not apparent at this point, arguing against the presence of a formal trans-
95
Sierra exchange system, at least early in time, if such a system entailed consistency in the
production of artifact forms. However, caches of pre-1500 B.P. age exhibit greater
diversity in artifact form—large flake blanks, cobbles and cores, and bifaces—than
caches post-dating 1500 B.P., which are either flake blanks or bifaces, suggesting the
latter period may have seen more regularized production of artifact forms, possibly for
exchange. The mean weight of artifacts decreased over time, indicating larger pieces
were the preferred means of transport prior to 1500 B.P., whether they were flakes,
bifaces, or cobbles/cores (Montague 2008). This decrease in artifact mass likely speaks to
the shift in technology from dart to arrow projectiles about 1500 B.P., and the resulting
reduction in the need for large pieces of toolstone after that time.
Bedrock Mortars and Pestles
Bedrock mortars, sometimes with associated pestles, are by far the most common
feature in the study area. In all, 60 milling features have been documented at 50 sites,
comprising 14 percent of the study area sites (Table 16). One site in Virginia Canyon also
contains a pestle, but no apparent mortar. Milling implements include a total of 202
mortars, 18 milling slicks, and 94 pestles. The vast majority of sites with milling surfaces
occur in the geographic areas of Tuolumne Meadows, Dana Meadows, and Virginia
Canyon (Table 16, Figure 7). Two sites each in Cold Canyon, Parker Pass Creek and
Mono Pass, lower Spiller Canyon, and lower Lyell Canyon also contain bedrock mortars
and pestles.
Similar to other classes of material in the study area, most bedrock mortars and
pestles occur below 10,000 ft elevation. Curiously, only eight pestles have been
documented in Tuolumne Meadows, a low number compared to frequencies in Virginia
96
Table 16. Bedrock Mortar and Pestle Data by Geography and Elevation.
GEOGRAPHIC
LOCATION
Spiller Canyon
Virginia Canyon
Cold Canyon
Tuolumne Meadows
Dana Meadows
Parker Pass/Mono
Lyell Canyon
# Sites
with
BRM
% of
Total
Total
Sites
2
15
2
14
14
2
2
33%
23%
22%
16%
30%
7%
3%
6
65
9
85
47
29
67
2
17
2
16
19
2
2
4
48
7
70
55
16
2
7
1
7
2
1
4
55
7
71
62
18
3
1
29
8
43
10
3
16%
14%
2%
188
135
49
1
373
33
26
1
60
121
78
3
202
3
15
18
124
93
3
220
33
60
1
94
ELEVATION
RANGE (ft)
<9000
31
9000-10,000
19
10,000-11,000
1
11,000-12,000
Total
51
Key: BRM=bedrock mortar.
14%
#
Features
#
Mortars
#
Slicks
Total
Milling
Surfaces
#
Pestles
Canyon and Dana Meadows (Table 16). Since Tuolumne Meadows is situated at 8600 ft
elevation, the low pestle count is also reflected in the elevation data, where far fewer
pestles have been recorded below 9000 ft than in the 9000−10,000 ft elevation range.
Given the contradictory pattern evinced by milling surface distribution, the pestle data
may be a result of post-depositional processes, as opposed to a cultural pattern. Tuolumne
Meadows has been the location of intensive Euroamerican use and development in the
post-contact era, and it may be that many pestles have been removed from their original
locations.
The number of milling features varies between one and three per site, with only
one example observed at 42 of the 50 sites. Two features have been documented at six
sites and three features have been recorded at two sites. The number of milling surfaces
per site ranges from one to 25 (Figure 8), with a mean of 4.4, a median of 3.0, and a
97
mode of 1.0. Most sites (n=33) exhibit between one and four milling surfaces, 14 sites
contain between five and 13, two sites have 15, and one site has 25 milling surfaces.
Figure 7. Map showing bedrock milling surface distributions by site.
Milling feature data have not been examined recently by elevation and biotic
community in a comprehensive park-wide study, but it is clear that high-elevation sites
include far fewer mortars than low- and middle-elevation sites. For example, 76 sites
98
(77%) of the prehistoric sites in Yosemite Valley at 4000 ft in elevation contain milling
features (Hull and Kelly 1995). In total, 1423 milling surfaces, with a mean of 18.7 per
site, have been documented at those features.
16
14
12
Frequency
10
8
6
4
2
0
5
10
15
20
25
No. Milling Surfaces Per Site
Figure 8. Histogram of number of milling surfaces per site.
Identifying the specific functions of milling equipment will be an important step
in elucidating land use in the higher elevations, particularly concerning whether
subsistence focused on local plants, transported resources from the lower and middle
elevations such as acorn, or both. The issue of resource processing in bedrock mortars has
been considered in Yosemite and regional studies through various functional
ethnographic models, most commonly the Western Mono model (Haney 1992; Hull and
Moratto 1999; Morgan 2006; Mundy 1992). Western Sierra ethnographic studies indicate
99
that the mortar and pestle were used for processing the staple food acorn by women, but
this technology was also used for preparing seeds, fish, berries, meat, and medicines
(Barrett and Gifford 1933). Similarly, acorns and a variety of other resources were
processed in bedrock mortars in the eastern Sierra (see Haney 1992:95). The Western
Mono model, developed in a study with contemporary Western Mono people south of
Yosemite, states that milling surfaces were created for specific functional purposes
(McCarthy et al. 1985). According to the model, mortars less than or equal to 5.5 cm in
depth reflect initial acorn processing, those between 5.51 and 9.5 cm were used for final
processing of acorns, and mortars greater than 9.5 cm, as well as slicks, were used to
crush seeds and berries (McCarthy et al. 1985).
For the 47 sites in the study area with detailed milling surface data (n= 212), 194
(92%) are mortars and 18 (8%) are slicks. Most of the mortars (n=179, 92%) are ≤5.5 cm
in depth, 10 mortars (5%) measure between 6 and 9.5 cm, and only five (3%) attain
depths between 10 and 13 cm (Figure 9). Mortars >5.5 cm in depth also tend to occur at
sites which have greater total numbers of milling surfaces, including three sites in
Tuolumne Meadows (CA-TUO-111, -166, and -125/126/H) and three sites in Virginia
Canyon (CA-TUO-3783, -3786, and -3811). Slicks number between one and five per site,
and are present at 10 sites, with all specimens except one at CA-TUO-3838 in lower
Lyell Canyon co-occurring with mortars.
Comparing mortar depths by elevation range provides a frame of reference for
interpreting the study area data. In the absence of a comprehensive park-wide study for
comparison, accessible project-specific mortar data are provided in Table 17 by
elevation, representing a small sample of mortar attributes collected for the Park as a
100
80
70
Frequency
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10 11 12 13
Mortar depth (cm)
Figure 9. Histogram of mortar depths.
Table 17. Mortar Data for Selected Yosemite Areas within the Western Mono Model.
Location
Elevation (ft)
Mortar type
Finishing
5.51-9.5 cm
10 (05%)
Total
Study area
8500-10,600
Starter
≤5.5 cm
179 (92%)
Seed
>9.5 cm
5 (03%)
194
Tioga Road &
Harden Lake1
7000-8500
245 (85%)
36 (13%)
7 (02%)
288
Ackerson Fire
area2
4000-7000
735 (71%)
171 (17%)
122 (12%)
1028
Yosemite Valley3
4000
1061 (80%)
144 (11%)
116 (09%)
1321
El Portal4
2000
464 (70%)
100 (15%)
101 (15%)
665
1
Keefe et al. (1999) and Mundy (1992)
2
Keefe et al. (1999), The Ackerson Fire area is in the northwestern area of the Park in the Tuolumne River
watershed.
3
Hull and Kelly (1995)
4
Data compiled from site records on file at the Yosemite Archeology Office.
101
whole. Features in all elevation ranges demonstrate a high prevalence of starter mortars,
but sites above 7000 ft, where oaks are absent, have a higher percentage of shallow
mortars, 85–92 percent compared to 70–80 percent below that elevation. Seed mortars
above 7000 ft are also few in number and shallower in depth than those in the lower
elevations. The deepest mortars above 7000 ft do not exceed 13 cm in depth, while those
in the lower elevations attain depths between 20 and 23 cm.
Within the Western Mono functional framework, the mortar depth distribution in
the study area suggests acorn was the primary, but not the only, plant resource processed
in the bedrock mortars, and the absence of oaks implies acorns were transported from
lower elevations to the west. Acorn is viewed as a staple food item in western Sierra
subsistence, while the role of acorn in eastern Sierra Nevada subsistence systems has
been proposed as an augmentation to the pinyon nut as a winter staple, a factor in the
maintenance of social relations between eastern and western groups, and a reflection of
intensification processes operating at the regional level (Haney 1992; see also Basgall
1987). Pinyon nut crops are only abundant three out of seven years (Lanner 1981); thus,
acorn may have provided a winter supplement in years of poor crops. Given the diversity
and abundance of oaks in the middle and lower elevations of the western Sierra, acorn
was almost certainly a more reliable food source than the pinyon nut.
The prevalence of shallow mortars across disparate vegetation communities,
however, suggests that a model based on contemporary Western Mono practices may not
be germane to Yosemite (Hull and Kelly 1995). Instead, some researchers (Hull and
Moratto 1999) advocate a return to earlier perspectives (e.g., Barrett and Gifford 1933),
where mortar depth equates to duration of use, in addition to continuing examination of
102
the geographic distribution of milling surface attributes. The study area data comport well
with the duration of use hypothesis; that is, the high proportion of shallow mortars and
comparatively low frequencies appear to be consistent measures of minimal use. In this
view, the shallow mortars prevalent in the study area are multifunctional tools used for
processing a variety of resources. The co-occurrence of mortars and slicks, and the
presence of portable groundstone at some sites, however, suggests that some functional
distinctions in milling surfaces may yet be evident.
The spatial distribution of bedrock mortars in the study area, primarily within two
of the trans-Sierra corridors, could be taken as support for the acorn transport hypothesis.
Although ethnographic accounts indicate that acorn was transported to the eastern Sierra
(Bibby 2002), it is difficult to envision the fall-ripening acorn as the primary plant
resource sustaining people during the summer months in the high country. In this
scenario, stored acorn would have been the primary resource transported to the high
country for most of the summer, a less likely proposition compared to local resource
exploitation. Otherwise, acorn would not have been available until September or October,
a time when the higher elevations became less desirable for longer stays because of
weather conditions and a time when people focused their activities on procurement of
staple foods in the lower elevations, acorn to the west and pinyon to the east.
If ethnographic models are not germane to Yosemite, the function of bedrock
mortars in the high country remains problematic and may not be resolved without
specialized residue and macrofloral analyses at specific sites. Based on the current data, it
seems likely that the prevalence of shallow mortars and their relatively low overall
frequencies suggest they were multifunctional tools in an area used only during the
103
warmer months by small groups of people. Plant resource processing was apparently
geared toward daily or short-term subsistence needs, in comparison to the lower
elevations of the western slope where acorn gathering and processing for storage played
an important role in sustaining larger population aggregates in winter villages.
At first glance, the minimal use implied by the comparison of upper and lower
elevation data does not appear to support the hypothesis of regional subsistence
intensification. However, if a change in land use within the high elevation areas
transpired over time, as hypothesized in this thesis, then subsistence intensification is
supported. To the extent that high-elevation milling features are linked with plant
processing and date to the late prehistoric period, their geographic distribution in the
study area—almost entirely within two of the trans-Sierra travel corridors—provides
support for the importance and intensification of plant resources in the larger region.
Portable Ground Stone and Battered Stone
In comparison to bedrock mortars and pestles, portable ground stone tools are
uncommon in the study area. In total, seven minimally used millingstones and 21
handstones have been documented at 18 sites in Virginia Canyon, Tuolumne Meadows,
Dana Meadows, and lower Lyell Canyon. Most of these sites (n=14) also contain other
cultural constituents indicative of intensive use, such as rock rings and bedrock mortars.
In addition, eight battered stone tools and two choppers have been documented at nine
sites, all in trans-Sierra corridor contexts.
Structural Remains
Thirty-five structural features thought to represent prehistoric dwellings, hunting
blinds, storage, and unknown functions have been recorded at 20 of the study area sites,
104
all located in Dana Meadows, Tuolumne Meadows, Virginia Canyon, and lower Lyell
Canyon (Table 13). Fourteen of these, documented at eight sites, are domestic structures,
identified by rock rings or partial rock rings encircling slight depressions, or circular
features with their centers cleared of rocks (Figure 10). An additional depression,
recorded in 1988 at CA-TUO-3778/H, could not be relocated in 2007 due to stock
trampling. All of the structures exhibit soil substrates, and they often encompass naturally
occurring boulders in their alignments. Measuring between 2.8 and 4.5 m in maximum
diameter, dwellings are generally larger than rock constructs interpreted as hunting
blinds. Most dwellings contain some combination of debitage, flaked stone tools,
millingstones, small unidentifiable bone fragments, and midden, while artifactual
materials are less common in association with hunting blinds. Three minimally used
millingstones occur in the walls of three individual rock rings, and one is in the center of
a feature. Between one and three structures occur at each site, suggesting small groups of
people, perhaps a few families, lived together in these locations if they were occupied
contemporaneously. Dwellings tend to be clustered in close proximity to one another, and
at CA-TUO-749 and -3783 in Virginia Canyon, two rock rings share cobble alignments
along one edge.
The prevalence of multi-component sites indicates the importance of associating
temporally diagnostic materials with features representing intensive use. Structural
features were deemed of particular importance in this regard and, as such, were a focus of
sampling within the intensive-use group. Minimal surface collections were made from
nine features, seven at Virginia Canyon/Summit Pass and two at Lyell Canyon (Table
17). All are rock rings except one linear alignment at CA-TUO-4665 in Lyell Canyon,
105
which may have functioned as a shelter or blind. When possible, SCUs were also
established in close proximity to the features in an attempt to further define periods of use
for those locations.
Figure 10. Sketch map of Feature 6, rock ring, CA-TUO-3783.
106
In all, 39 obsidian artifacts from nine feature contexts and 14 from three proximal
SCUs yielded readable hydration rims. The combined temporal information—obsidian
hydration results, estimated calendrical dates, and projectile points of the Desert or
indeterminate Desert/Rose Spring series (Table 18, Figure 11)—provides evidence of use
for all features after ca. 1500 B.P. The presence of thicker obsidian hydration values
converted to pre-1500 B.P. dates at several features, however, suggests the possibility of
earlier initial use of the features, an underlying older component unrelated to the
construction of the features, or recycling of obsidian materials by later inhabitants. The
pre-1500 B.P. dates are most clearly associated with the two features at CA-TUO-3765,
the structures that are also the most difficult to discern on the surface. It may be that they
are, indeed, older structures and difficult to identify because of depositional processes,
but it is possible that they are not structures at all and the thick rims may simply represent
the older component clearly present at that site.
Two structural features have been partially sampled through small-scale test
excavations, both at Dana Meadows (Montague 1996a). At CA-TUO-2833, a surface
rock alignment incorporates several granite boulders to form a circular enclosure.
Multiple components are present at the site, but the structure is thought to represent late
prehistoric use based on radiocarbon and obsidian hydration analyses. High densities of
obsidian debitage—mainly small pressure flakes—few flaked stone tools, and a couple of
unidentifiable faunal remains characterize the deposit within the feature. A central hearth,
containing an unmodified granite slab at its center, yielded two radiocarbon dates, cal
1300–1060 B.P. (Beta-73050) above the slab and cal 1990–1610 B.P. (Beta-67238)
below the slab. Obsidian hydration measurements, varying between 0.8 and 3.2 microns,
107
Table 18. Temporal Data for Structural Features and Proximal Surface Collection Units.
Site, Feature
Designation
Source: OH Values
Associated Diagnostic Artifacts
TUO-0751, F1
BH: 1.5, 2.9
DSN*
CD: 2.8
MC: 1.1
TUO-3765, RR1
BH: 1.8, 2.5, 3.6, 3.8, 4.0, 5.4
TUO-3765, RR2
BH: 2.5
MC: 3.3, 3.8, 4.4
TUO-3783, F3
BH: 0, 1.7, 2.4, 5.1
TUO-3783, F4
BH: 1.5, 2.2
TUO-3783, F6
BH: 1.4, 1.4, 2.1, 2.7, 2.7
TUO-3783, SCU1
BH: 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.9, 2.0, 2.1
DSN*
TUO-3811, F3
BH: 0, 0, 0, 1.3, 1.3, 2.8
2 DSN*, 1 CT*
MC: 2.3
TUO-3811, SCU1
BH: 1.4, 1.8, 2.5, 2.9
TUO-4665, F1
Non-CD: 2.2, 2.8, 2.9
DSN
TUO-4665, F2
BH: 2.3, 2.4
CT*, CT, DSN, DSN/RS
MC: 3.1
CD: 6.0
TUO-4665, SCU1
CD: 2.2, 2.5, 2.5, 2.9
arrow point*, DSN, DSN/RS
Key: BH=Bodie Hills; CD=Casa Diablo; MC=Mono Craters; DSN=Desert Side-notched; CT=Cottonwood
Triangular; RS=Rose Spring; F=feature; RR=rock ring; SCU=surface collection unit; OH=obsidian
hydration. *Also reflected in obsidian hydration values.
Estimated Years B.P.
0
1500
3000
4500
6000
7500
751, F1
3765, RR1
Feature
3765, RR2
3783, F4
3783, F3
3783, F6
3811, F3
4665, F1
4665, F2
Figure 11. Converted obsidian hydration values for sampled rock ring features.
108
show multiple periods of use, as well. Temporal data for the upper excavation levels, a
suite of thin hydration rims (no visible hydration and 0.8 to 1.3 microns) and a Desert
series point, indicate most recent use of the feature during the late prehistoric period.
A subsurface feature at nearby CA-TUO-2834, also only partially exposed, was
composed of a rock alignment and charcoal-rich soils, along with a more varied inventory
of cultural material. Flaked stone material included very high debitage densities and
abundant flaked stone tools, mainly projectile points and biface fragments, though edgemodified pieces were present as well. One handstone, two pieces of pigment, a quartz
crystal, and a fragmentary steatite ornament complete the collection. Abundant and
highly fragmented, burned faunal remains were identified mainly as large mammal, likely
deer or bighorn sheep. Although multiple components are present at the site, a suite of
radiocarbon dates and several Elko series points indicate the feature dates to cal 2430–
1900 B.P.
Ten features documented at seven sites are identified as hunting blinds. These are
composed of small (generally less than 3 m diameter), circular, semi-circular, or stacked
rock features, with little or no associated cultural material. While most sites contain only
one such feature, four are present at CA-TUO-2813. Two talus pit features on a glacial
knoll in lower Virginia Canyon may also represent hunting blinds, but it is possible that
they functioned as storage pits (Figure 12).
A single feature at CA-TUO-3845 in lower Lyell Canyon, thought to have
functioned for storage, consists of stacked rock at the edge of a granite outcrop, forming a
50-cm-deep enclosure. Two arrow-sized projectile point fragments were documented
within the enclosure. The remaining seven features are various linear cobble alignments
109
of unknown function. It is of interest, however, that five of these occur with other
structural features at sites in Lyell and Virginia canyons.
Figure 12. Photograph of talus pit at P-55-5164, Virginia Canyon (DC-07M-68).
Uncommon Features
Rockshelters, midden sediments, hearths, and rock art are relatively uncommon in
the study area, occurring at only a handful of sites in the trans-Sierra corridor contexts.
Rockshelters, generally slight overhangs on the faces of large granite boulders, have been
recorded at seven sites, while hearths have been recorded in subsurface contexts at six
sites. Similarly, midden sediments, generally taken as an indicator of long-term use, have
been observed at just seven sites. A single petroglyph panel, composed of 16 small,
shallow cupules in a semi-circular arc, is present in the southern portion of Virginia
Canyon.
110
Uncommon Artifacts
Ornamental artifacts are rare, including seven quartz crystals, one steatite object,
and two pieces of pigment. Glass beads were documented at two sites, 10 opaque blue
beads at a prehistoric and historical component site in Tuolumne Meadows, and a single
large, black/amethyst bead at a lithic scatter at Vogelsang Lake. Bates (1998) surmised
that the black bead represents use of that area by Mono Lake Paiute people between 1875
and 1930 based on comparisons with objects in the Yosemite Museum and similarities
with eastern Sierra archaeological and ethnographic collections. Finally, one object made
of pumice is likely a fragment of a shaft straightener.
Faunal Remains
Faunal remains are present at nine sites, each containing few, very small pieces of
unidentifiable bone. As noted above, an exception is CA-TUO-2834, where abundant
burned large mammal fragments were excavated in a feature context. A second exception
is a piece of culturally unmodified mussel collected from CA-MRP-1438 at Vogelsang
Lake.
Summary
Despite the disproportionate geographic focus of the previous archaeological
work, some similarities and differences in the distributions of classes of material are
apparent across the study area. First, sites with debitage and flaked stone tools occur
throughout the study area, and these are the most common site constituents. Low- to
moderate-density debitage deposits are prevalent in all areas, but high-density debitage
deposits occur most frequently in the trans-Sierra corridors. Second, features, midden
sediments, and other types of tools are uncommon at study area sites and are, for the most
111
part, confined to the drainages leading to the trans-Sierra passes and below 10,000 ft in
elevation, where site density is highest. Within the feature classes, sites with bedrock
mortars are most abundant, while rock rings taken as hunting blinds or dwellings, rock
alignments, rockshelters, rock art, flaked stone tool caches, midden sediments, and
subsurface hearths are uncommon constituents. Likewise, sites with portable ground
stone, choppers, ornaments, and faunal remains are relatively rare.
Previous and current studies relating to bedrock mortars, rock rings, and flaked
stone caches, allowed for more detailed assessment of some temporal and functional
parameters. Rock rings and bedrock mortars are thought to be prevalent after ca. 1500
B.P., and the low frequencies of both types of features per site suggests occupation by
small groups of people. In comparison with a sample of low- and middle-elevation
Yosemite data, the low frequencies and shallow depths of bedrock mortars in the study
area indicate that plant resource processing was a less important activity in the high
elevations. The shallow mortars prevalent in the study area may also reflect
multifunctional use, rather than acorn processing implied by the Western Mono
functional model (McCarthy et al. 1985). The obsidian cache data emphasize the
importance of the study area in the acquisition and transport of obsidian and as places
people intended to return to as part of the annual settlement round. Beyond this general
level of description and recognizing that the sample is very small, patterns of source
diversity and artifact form over time may support notions of territorial circumscription in
the eastern Sierra and exchange as a medium of obsidian procurement after 1500 B.P.
112
Chapter 6
INTENSIVE- AND LIMITED-USE SITES ANALYSIS
This chapter examines the data in terms of space, time, and function to determine
whether a spatially limited, residential-related land use strategy followed an earlier,
widespread hunting pattern. As outlined in Chapter 3, archaeological expectations include
a higher frequency of intensive-use sites with thin hydration rims and arrow points and a
higher frequency of limited-use sites with thicker hydration rims and dart points. The
density of sites should be higher along drainage corridors leading from trans-Sierra
passes if trade and travel structured the archaeological record, and residential sites should
occur more commonly in those locations. In addition, early period sites and isolates
indicating a logistical hunting focus should occur in higher frequencies over a more
extensive area. The discussion to follow addresses chronology and function, first to
determine if the hypothesized patterns are evident, and second to identify relevant spatial
distributions.
CHRONOLOGY AND FUNCTION
This section integrates the chronological and functional data, initially through
examination of the surface materials recovered as part of the thesis, and subsequently
through incorporation of results from previous investigations. Finally, temporally
sensitive projectile point data are compiled and analyzed against site type as an
independent means of assessing change over time.
The thesis analysis included 424 specimens submitted for obsidian hydration
analysis, of which 31 returned unreadable rims and six had no visible hydration. The
latter are retained in the analysis since they may represent relatively recent use. Virtually
113
all of the remaining pieces (n=385) yielded hydration bands measuring between 1.1 and
6.6 microns, with two additional rims of 7.2 and 8.2 microns. Table 19 displays the
frequency of hydration measurements converted to estimated dates in 500-year
increments by site, while Figure 13 consolidates the same data for all of the thesis sites.
In each case, the data are sorted by functional designation. These data demonstrate a long
span of Native American occupation in the study area, beginning in the early Holocene
and continuing through the late prehistoric period. Based on historical records, it is also
clear that Native people continued to frequent the high country for various purposes in
the historic period. Given the caveats noted above for converting obsidian hydration
values to calendrical dates, initial occupation should be considered with caution until
radiocarbon dates are available for early-period materials. It would not be inconsistent
with the regional archaeological record, however, to find evidence of the early Holocene
at high elevations in the Park.
In terms of functional patterns, the chronologies for both limited- and intensiveuse sites span the range of occupation. Limited-use sites, however, demonstrate a greater
abundance of early dates during the middle Holocene epoch. Relatively greater
frequencies of late Holocene materials are apparent at intensive-use sites, more or less
coincident with a decrease in the frequency of limited-use dates. Distinguishing between
the pre- and post-1500 B.P. temporal periods (Table 20) shows a clear change in the
frequency of dates through time, where 66 percent occur at intensive-use sites later in
time and only 25 percent earlier in time. In contrast, limited-use sites display 34 percent
of the post-1500 B.P. dates and 75 percent of the pre-1500 B.P. dates. In a broad sense,
this pattern supports the temporal expectations of the thesis, in which intensive-use sites
114
Table 19. Obsidian Hydration Results Converted to Calendrical Dates for Thesis Sites.
1
2
1
7
1
1
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
-
1001
–
1500
2
2
2
2
2
6
1
4
2
2
1
1
-
1501
–
2000
2
1
1
2
2
2
3
2
1
1
3
2
1
2
1
-
2001
–
2500
3
5
3
1
1
1
1
2
3
1
1
1
1
1
3
-
13
13
16
13
14
2
9
11
13
15
22
27
26
Site*
0–
500
501–
1000
128/
187
751
3765
3783
3811
4635
4639
4665
46/H
113
131
159
172
245
494
755
3769
3777
3789
3803
3805
3841
4230
4490
4637
4641
4660
4851
4857
4859
4907
4972
6561
6564
6775
6776
6782
1
1
5
6
1
1
-
Total
I-U
Total
L-U
Total
2501
–
3000
2
1
1
3
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
3
1
2
1
2
2
1
1
1
2
1
3001
–
3500
2
1
6
1
2
2
2
1
2
4
1
2
4
1
1
2
2
-
3501
–
4000
1
2
2
1
2
1
1
1
2
2
1
1
1
2
1
1
2
-
9
14
5
14
24
22
28
33
36
4001
–
4500
1
1
1
1
2
2
4
4
1
2
1
1
1
1
2
1
1
2
2
1
4501
–
5000
2
1
1
1
4
1
2
1
2
1
2
2
1
2
1
2
1
1
1
4
5001
–
5500
1
4
1
1
2
1
2
1
1
1
1
3
1
3
-
5501
–
6000
1
1
1
1
3
1
1
2
2
2
1
1
3
3
1
1
1
-
1
3
1
3
18
19
31
30
22
23
50
24
32
33
23
26
68
>6000
6
5
5
1
1
1
2
3
1
3
1
1
4
4
1
1
1
2
6
2
8
1
3
2
3
*Sites highlighted in bold text are intensive-use sites (I-U); unbolded text denotes limited-use sites (L-U).
115
35
Intensive use
30
Limited use
Frequency
25
20
15
10
5
0
500
1500
2500
3500
4500
5500
6500
7500
8500
9500
Estimated Years B.P.
Figure 13. Frequency of calendrical dates for intensive- and limited-use sites.
Table 20. Frequency of Pre- and Post-1500 B.P. Dates for
Intensive- and Limited-Use Sites.
Intensive use
Limited use
Total
Post-1500 B.P.
42
22
64
%
66
34
100
Pre-1500 B.P.
81
248
329
%
25
75
100
tend to reflect late-period occupation and, conversely, limited-use sites tend to reflect
early-period use. Evidence of intensive-use across both temporal categories is not an
anticipated outcome, however, and may be explained by the presence of multi-component
deposits in which later intensive-use cannot be distinguished from earlier limited-use
based on the limited surface collections, or the initiation of at least some level of
intensive-use prior to 1500 B.P. The presence of late-period materials at both intensive
and limited-use sites, by contrast, suggests greater diversity in site types later in time.
116
Combining the chronological data from previous investigations with the thesis
results encompasses a greater sample of sites within the study area, allowing for a
broader consideration of change through time. Fifty-six sites, representing 15 percent of
the study area sites, have some level of chronological data beyond a few surface tools, 18
through previous test, data recovery, or tool cache investigations and 38 through the
thesis surface collections (Table 21). Since this analysis combines the results of surface
and subsurface investigations, diagnostic chronological attributes are simply tabulated as
present or absent by prehistoric period.
Seventeen sites are designated as intensive-use sites, while 39 are classified as
limited-use sites. In this analysis, the chronological indicators include obsidian hydration
values converted to calendrical dates, time-sensitive projectile points, bedrock mortars,
and in a few cases, radiocarbon dates. Given the relatively wide span of use for some
materials (e.g., bedrock mortars), chronology was considered broadly as either pre- or
post-1500 years B.P. As illustrated in Table 21, the most apparent pattern is the presence
of early-period material at all of the sites except CA-TUO-4509, a late prehistoric tool
cache. Within the intensive-use sample, all 17 sites contain material spanning the entire
chronological range. Within the limited-use sample, 18 sites evince late-period use, while
38 exhibit evidence of pre-1500 B.P. use. A chi-square value of 2.84 (df=1, p=0.09)
demonstrates some support for a pattern of changing land use through time (Table 22). In
particular, the late period is characterized by increased residential use demonstrated by
milling features and rock rings, although logistical use continues to be evident. The early
period is more clearly indicated by logistical use likely related to hunting and/or obsidian
procurement. The multi-component nature of most sites, however, points out that
117
Table 21. Chronological Data for Study Area Sites.
Site
CA-TUO-0124
CA-TUO-0128/
CA-TUO-0134
CA-TUO-0166
CA-TUO-0179/
CA-TUO-0187
CA-TUO-0500
CA-TUO-0751
CA-TUO-0754/H
CA-TUO-2833
CA-TUO-2834
CA-TUO-3765
CA-TUO-3783
CA-TUO-3811
CA-TUO-4635
CA-TUO-4639
CA-TUO-4665
CA-TUO-0046/H
CA-TUO-0113
CA-TUO-0120
CA-TUO-0131
CA-TUO-0159
CA-TUO-0172
CA-TUO-0245
CA-TUO-0494
CA-TUO-0755
CA-TUO-2811
CA-TUO-2825
CA-TUO-2828
CA-TUO-2830
CA-TUO-2831
CA-TUO-2841
CA-TUO-3561
CA-TUO-3769
CA-TUO-3777
CA-TUO-3789
CA-TUO-3803
CA-TUO-3805
CA-TUO-3841
CA-TUO-4230
CA-TUO-4436
CA-TUO-4490
CA-TUO-4509
CA-TUO-4637
Type
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
Desert
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
-
Post-1500 B.P.
OH BRM
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
-
RG
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
-
CB
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
-
Pre-1500 B.P.
Elko
OH
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Dart
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
-
118
Site
Type
Post-1500 B.P.
Pre-1500 B.P.
Desert OH BRM RG
CB
Elko
OH Dart
CA-TUO-4641
L
x
CA-TUO-4660
L
x
CA-TUO-4851
L
x
CA-TUO-4857
L
x
CA-TUO-4859
L
x
CA-TUO-4907
L
x
x
CA-TUO-4972
L
x
P-55-006561
L
x
x
P-55-006564
L
x
x
P-55-006775
L
x
x
x
P-55-006776
L
x
x
P-55-006782
L
x
Key: Bold site numbers = previously investigated sites; I = intensive use; L = limited use; BRM= bedrock
mortar; OH = obsidian hydration values converted to calendrical dates; RG = Rosegate points; CB =
concave base points; x = attribute present; - = attribute absent..
Table 22. Frequencies of Limited-and Intensive-Use Sites
for Pre- and Post-1500 B.P. Materials.
Intensive use
Limited use
Total
Post-1500 B.P.
17
18
35
Pre-1500 B.P.
17
38
55
Total
34
56
90
additional work—sorting function by site component—will be an important next step in
investigating this research issue.
An additional means of examining the relationship between function and time
involves comparing the relative frequency of temporally sensitive projectile points
against site type. If intensive-use sites were primarily a late-period phenomenon, then
arrow points should be relatively more abundant at those sites. The inverse should also
hold true; that is, dart points should be relatively more common at limited-use sites. This
analysis encompasses all projectile point data from sites within the study area, in contrast
to the sample represented above.
119
Focusing on the Desert, Rosegate, and Elko series as the most abundant time
markers in the study area, Table 23 tallies 220 specimens by site type, point type
frequency, and the number of sites at which the various types of points occur. Overall,
109 points have been documented at the 60 intensive-use sites and 111 points have been
recorded at the 313 limited-use sites. In general, points of these three series occur at
relatively few sites of either intensive or limited use, though proportionately they are far
more common at intensive-use sites. Desert series points are most abundant overall,
followed by Rosegate and Elko points, respectively. Sixty-one percent of the Desert
series specimens were documented at 19 of the intensive-use sites, suggesting a robust
late-period presence at intensive-use sites. Rosegate and Elko points display a similar
pattern to one another, where most points occur at limited-use sites. A chi-square value of
9.57 (df=2, p=0.008) demonstrates a statistically significant association between the two
variables. Desert and Elko series points meet the expected pattern, but the Rosegate series
is less similar to the Desert series and more similar to the Elko series than anticipated.
Table 23. Selected Temporally Sensitive Projectile Points at
Intensive- and Limited-Use Sites within the Study Area.
Point type
Desert
Rosegate
Elko
Total
Intensive-use Sites
# Points
# Sites
62 (61%) 19 (32%)
29 (40%) 16 (27%)
18 (40%) 12 (20%)
109
60
Limited-use Sites
# Points
# Sites
40 (39%)
27 (09%)
44 (60%)
31 (10%)
27 (60%)
23 (07%)
111
313
Total
# Points
102
73
45
220
The numbers of sites with later point types are also proportionately greater at intensiveuse sites, supporting the pattern of late-period use at those sites, but there may be too few
limited-use sites with points to provide a meaningful measure. Alternately, some limited-
120
use sites may have been occupied consistently across the entire occupational span, a
hypothesis supported by the combined chronological data in Table 21.
These data may suggest a shift in high country use from a hunting focus to a more
intensive-use pattern later in time, when Desert series points became prevalent, ca. postA.D. 1300. However, this type of analysis should be considered less robust for a few
reasons. First, late-period points should be more abundant on the surface than earlyperiod points given the principle of superpositioning. Second, Yosemite experiences very
high frequencies of visitor use, and some of those visitors (and employees) illegally
collect artifacts, in particular projectile points. Since large dart points tend to be more
visible than the diminutive Desert series points, it may be that the former are collected
more frequently. Finally, recycling of obsidian material may have been a common
occurrence on the western slope, in which case later inhabitants would have selected
material from early-period deposits. All of these actions would result in a biased surface
archaeological record, where late-period points are more abundant than early-period
points.
SPATIAL PATTERNS
Spatial patterns are considered in terms of overall site density, distribution of
intensive- vs. limited-use sites, and to a lesser degree, isolate form and distribution. If the
Yosemite pattern follows those described for the southern Sierra, intensive-use sites
should be more common in areas leading directly from trans-Sierra passes, reflecting a
more restricted land use pattern. In contrast, early-period sites and isolates indicating a
logistical hunting focus should occur in higher frequencies over a more spatially
extensive area.
121
Table 24 summarizes the study area survey acreage and the frequencies of sites
and isolates. The number of sites per 100 acres surveyed is provided as a rough measure
of site density for comparative purposes, although small-scale and nonrandom surveys, as
well as issues with sites not visited since the 1950s, tend to undermine this approach to
geographic comparisons. For example, the anomalous figures of 10 sites per 100 acres
reported for Dog Lake and Dana Meadows are likely due to the limited survey conducted
in those locations. In areas with numerous sites not re-inspected since the 1950s, such as
Rafferty and Parker Pass creeks, site frequencies are likely lower than portrayed.
Nevertheless, a few spatial patterns are evident in terms of site densities, the locations of
intensive- and limited-use sites, and isolate distributions.
A broad overview of site distribution shows the highest frequencies along
drainages leading to the trans-Sierra passes of Virginia/Summit, Tioga, Parker/Mono, and
Donohue (Figure 14). Most of the documented sites (n=293, 79%) are located within
these areas, along with virtually all of the intensive-use sites (n=56, 93%). There are,
however, some clear distinctions in the distributions of intensive-use sites. Along the
Tuolumne River and its two main forks, the Lyell and Dana, most intensive-use sites
occur in a relatively limited zone within the Dana and Tuolumne subalpine meadow
systems. The four intensive-use sites in Lyell Canyon are in the lower portion of the
canyon, in close proximity to these meadows, while only limited-use sites are present in
the middle and upper reaches of the canyon.
To the north, Virginia Canyon contains most of the intensive-use sites, although
two each occur in Cold Canyon and the lower portion of Spiller Canyon. Within Virginia
Canyon itself are two main clusters of intensive-use sites, the first in the lower portion of
122
Table 24. Survey, Site Density, and Isolate Data by Geographic Location.
Location
Acres
Surveyed
Total
Sites
Sites per
100 Acres
Intensive
Use Sites
Limited
Use Sites
TRANS-SIERRA CORRIDOR, HIGH SITE DENSITY
Virginia Canyon/Summit &Virginia
Tuolumne Meadows/lower river corridor
Dana Fork/Tioga
Parker Pass Creek/Mono & Parker
Lyell Canyon/Donohue
Total
1728
2635
456
500
1000
6319
65
85
47
29
67
293
3.76
3.23
10.31
5.80
6.70
4.64
17
16
17
2
4
56
48
69
30
27
63
237
29
26
22
7
37
121
18
15
17
2
24
76
11
11
5
5
13
45
TRANS-SIERRA CORRIDOR, LOW SITE DENSITY
Matterhorn Canyon
Spiller Canyon
Total
390
279
669
4
6
10
1.03
2.15
1.49
2
2
4
4
8
4
5
9
3
5
8
1
1
NON-CORRIDOR CONTEXT, HIGH SITE DENSITY
Rafferty Creek
Vogelsang area to Ireland Lake
Total
314
300
614
13
18
31
4.14
6.00
5.05
-
13
18
31
8
8
7
7
1
1
9
7
1
3
8
4
2
3
37
12
5
20
5
42
1
3
4
8
11
2
20
1
34
NON-CORRIDOR CONTEXT, LOW SITE DENSITY
Northern lakes*
379
9
2.37
Cold Canyon, Conness Creek
470
9
1.91
2
Tuolumne to Young Lakes trail corridors
200
1
0.50
Dog Lake
30
3
10.00
Delaney Creek
**
8
na
Gaylor Lake, Granite Lake, Gaylor Creek
400
4
1.00
Mt. Dana slope
613
2
0.33
Elizabeth Lake and trails
110
3
2.73
Total
2202
39
1.77
2
*Miller, Spiller, Soldier, Return, Onion, McCabe, and Young lakes. **not surveyed to current standards.
Total
Isolates
Isolate
Debitage
Isolate
Tools
123
Figure 14. Map showing distribution of intensive- and limited-use sites.
124
the canyon around the confluences of two tributary creeks, McCabe and Spiller, and a
contemporary trail junction. From this location, trails head northeasterly up Virginia
Canyon, south towards Cold Canyon and the Tuolumne River, and to the west. The
second cluster of intensive-use sites occurs at the base of the short approach to Summit
Pass, an easy ascent to the crest. These clusters occur at entrance/exit points in the
canyon, suggesting their locations are partly related to travel considerations.
In contrast to the high frequencies of sites at most trans-Sierra pass locations,
survey results for Matterhorn and Spiller canyons show relatively low site frequencies
(Table 24). Ease of access may have been a consideration for travelers in both of those
locations. To reach the head of Matterhorn Canyon from the eastern slope requires
traversing two passes, Mule Pass at about 10,500 ft and Burro Pass at 10,600 ft elevation,
perhaps involving significant extra effort that would be expended only occasionally. The
four sites documented to date in Matterhorn Canyon are small, sparse lithic scatters,
suggesting very light and infrequent use. Only one pass at the head of Spiller Canyon
breaches the crest, but this unnamed, north-facing pass at 10,700 ft elevation may have
been more difficult to access given the substantial snowfields and extensive talus on the
northern slope (K. Warner, personal communication 2009). It may be significant, too,
that there is not a formal trail constructed through Spiller Canyon, if today’s trail system
is patterned largely on Native American routes.
In locales that do not lead directly to trans-Sierra passes—lake basins or tributary
drainages—site densities are generally low and few intensive-use sites are apparent
(Table 24). The higher site densities at Rafferty Creek and the Vogelsang-Ireland area are
distinct, however, perhaps because they were also travel routes between the Tuolumne
125
and Merced River watersheds. Relatively easy routes up Rafferty Creek from Tuolumne
Meadows and across the Lyell-Rafferty divide from Lyell Canyon allowed for access into
the Merced River drainage.
Isolate distributions tend to track site distributions, where most have been
recorded in trans-Sierra contexts (Table 24). In addition, isolate debitage occurs more
frequently than isolate tools in these areas. Notable exceptions to the overall pattern
include the northern lakes and Gaylor basin, where tools are more abundant than
debitage. The prevalence of isolate tools and the presence of few limited-use sites suggest
hunting was an important activity in these areas.
Examining the distribution of sites by temporal component allows for an initial
assessment of spatial distinctions in land use through time. Table 25 presents a
comparison of site and isolate distributions based on pooled chronological data from the
thesis and previous studies within the study area, while Figure 15 depicts the site data
geographically. In total, 115 sites and 14 isolates indicate use prior to 1500 B.P., and 124
sites and 11 isolates show some evidence of use post-1500 B.P. Although many sites
within the study area retain chronological markers, it should be noted again that samples
per site are relatively small, limited for the most part to the minimal collections made for
the thesis and surface artifacts and features documented during previous surveys. It is
likely that early-period components are severely under-represented here given the
abundance of debitage pre-dating 1500 B.P. identified during the thesis analysis at
virtually all sites (see Table 18 above). As such, the primary objective of this analysis is
to compare the spatial extent of human activity through time and identify potential
patterns that might provide fruitful avenues of investigation in future studies.
126
Table 25. Site and Isolate Frequencies by Geographic Location and Time Period.
Location
# Sites with
Post-1500
B.P. Materials
# Sites with
Pre-1500 B.P.
Materials
# Isolates
Post-1500
B.P.
# Isolates
Pre-1500
B.P.
27
28
2
3
TRANS-SIERRA CORRIDOR,
HIGH SITE DENSITY
Virginia
Canyon/Summit&Virginia
Tuolumne Meadow/river
corridor
Dana Fork/Tioga
Parker Pass
Creek/Mono&Parker
Lyell Canyon/Donohue
Total
35
23
25
18
4
1
1
-
4
14
103
3
15
89
1
1
9
3
7
TRANS-SIERRA CORRIDOR,
LOW SITE DENSITY
Matterhorn Canyon
Spiller Canyon
Total
4
4
1
3
4
-
1
1
NON-CORRIDOR CONTEXT,
HIGH SITE DENSITY
Rafferty Creek
Vogelsang area to Ireland Lake
Total
3
6
9
5
8
13
-
-
1
-
4
-
1
2
2
6
NON-CORRIDOR CONTEXT,
LOW SITE DENSITY
Northern lakes*
2
3
Cold Canyon, Conness Creek
3
1
Tuolumne to Young Lakes trail
corridors
Dog Lake
Delaney Creek
1
2
Gaylor Lake, Granite Lake,
2
Gaylor Creek
Mt. Dana slope
Elizabeth Lake and trails
2
1
Total
8
9
*Miller, Spiller, Soldier, Return, Onion, McCabe, and Young lakes.
127
Figure 15. Distribution of sites with post-1500 B.P. (left) and pre-1500 B.P. (right) materials.
128
That said, two patterns are most apparent in the spatial data (Table 25, Figure 15).
First, the distribution of sites and the abundance of both early- and late-period materials
illustrate that the trans-Sierra travel corridors were the most densely used locations
through time, a pattern most clearly tied to the topography of the study area. Second, the
spatial extent of sites across the study area is roughly similar through time, calling into
question the hypothesis of a more spatially extensive, early-period land use pattern.
However, it may be notable that late-period materials are more apparent at Tuolumne and
Dana meadows in trans-Sierra corridors, while early-period sites are slightly more
widespread geographically. A closer examination of the sites and isolates in Matterhorn
Canyon, the northern lakes, Gaylor Lakes Basin, and the Ireland Lake area suggest this
might yet be the case.
Four limited-use sites and 20 isolates have been documented in the Gaylor Lakes
Basin. All of the isolates are bifaces, projectile points, or fragments thereof (Hanchett
2004), suggesting a hunting focus for that locale. The identifiable projectile points
include one Elko Corner-notched, one probable Elko Corner-notched, and one Rose
Spring Corner-notched specimen. The remaining specimens are large pieces, suggestive
of dart points, while one very large white chert biface is also present. In addition, an
Eared Concave Base projectile point was collected by a Park employee from the basin.
Chronological data for the sites are limited to CA-TUO-755 and P-55-6782, both
containing early-period debitage and the former a Sierra Concave Base point fragment.
All in all, these data suggest a hunting focus mainly prior to 1500 B.P.
The northern lakes (Onion, Spiller, Soldier, Miller, McCabe, and Return) and
Matterhorn Canyon show a similar distribution of few limited-use sites, isolates, and
129
projectile point types. Temporal data for the 10 sites in those locales are limited to two
Elko Corner-notched, one Sierra Concave Base, and one Rose Spring Corner-notched
point. Of the 16 documented isolates, 12 are tools, either biface or projectile point
fragments. The temporally diagnostic specimens include one Elko Corner-notched, two
Sierra Concave Base, one Rose Spring Corner-notched, and one Desert Side-notched
projectile point. The types of sites and artifacts suggest a hunting focus, while the time
sensitive artifacts indicate activity both before and after 1500 B.P., though with an
emphasis during the Late Prehistoric 1 and 2 periods (3200–600 B.P.).
At the time of the thesis work, the Ireland Lake area had been minimally surveyed
and the four documented limited-use sites indicated a hunting focus. A recent survey in
the Ireland Lake basin (Curtis 2007) has resulted in recordation of seven additional
archaeological sites since the thesis work was completed, all lithic scatters of varying
debitage density. The greater density of sites contrasts with the few sites in other lake
basins in the northern portion of the study area, perhaps because Ireland Lake is adjacent
to, or on, a travel route. The topography of the basin, an expansive, gently sloping terrain
which would have allowed for widespread settlement, also contrasts sharply with the
steeper-walled glacial cirques of other lake basins. Nonetheless, the current chronological
data, though minimal, suggest Late Prehistoric 1 and 2 period (3200–600 B.P.) use. The
chronological information for the Ireland Lake area include debitage from CA-TUO-245
dating to pre-1500 B.P, one Humboldt Concave Base, one Sierra Concave Base, two Elko
Eared, one Elko Corner-notched, one possible Elko, one large dart point, one Rose Spring
or Elko Corner-notched, and two Rose Spring Corner-notched points.
130
Although the data are scant, it seems possible that these outlying areas were used
primarily earlier in time. It may be, however, that such use continued into the Late
Prehistoric 2 period (1300–600 B.P.) when Rose Spring points were prevalent. The
dearth of Desert series points and the relative abundance of early-period artifacts suggest
that further research in non-corridor contexts would be worthwhile in addressing this
issue.
SUMMARY
The results of data analysis within the limited/intensive use model indicate spatial
and temporal variability within the study area, the first related to the differential
distribution of sites and site types and the second signified by a shift toward more
intensive use in the late period. More specifically, overall site densities are high in the
trans-Sierra pass locations of Virginia Canyon, the Mono Trail corridor (Tuolumne and
Dana meadows, Parker Pass Creek) and Lyell Canyon, and the non-corridor areas of
Rafferty Creek and the corridor between Vogelsang and Ireland Lake. Conversely, site
densities are relatively low in Matterhorn and Spiller canyons, and around most of the
lake basins. Intensive-use sites, more clearly associated with use during the past 1500
years, occur in highest frequencies in Virginia Canyon, along the Mono Trail corridor,
and in the lower Lyell Canyon.
131
Chapter 7
SITE VARIABILITY AND CRITICAL ASSESSMENT
Up to this point, sites have been considered within the limited/intensive use
construct, a simple classificatory system that may mask important variability in site
constituents and combinations of material. This chapter examines the data in greater
detail, focusing on the co-occurrences of site constituents and potential chronological
implications. Also addressed here is the issue of whether or not the limited/intensive use
construct is sufficient to conceptualize land use in Yosemite at the level of surface
studies. Finally, an important assumption in the thesis—the initial use and spread of
bedrock mortars after 1500 B.P.—is critically assessed, using chronological data derived
from the study area.
VARIABILITY AND MODEL ASSESSMENT
A land use model incorporating only two categories almost certainly obscures
variability in the archaeological record to some degree. To further examine the range of
variability in cultural constituents within the study area and identify combinations of
cultural materials with potential chronological implications, sites were classed within 12
types based on the presence of flaked-stone material, bedrock mortars, portable ground
stone, rock rings, and various other less abundant site constituents. Table 26 summarizes
the combinations of materials for each type and their frequencies, the number of sites
containing each constituent and pooled chronological data from temporally diagnostic
projectile points, obsidian hydration values, and radiocarbon dates for all sites.
Most notably, nearly 80 percent (n=298) of the sites are flaked-stone lithic
scatters. Portable ground stone, bedrock mortars, rock rings and other types of features
132
Table 26. Co-occurrence of Site Attributes and Chronological Data.
Type
Primary
Constituents
Secondary
Constituents
#
Sites
1
2
LS
LS
298
11
3
LS
3
4
5
6
Single feature
BRM+LS
BRM+LS
7
BRM+LS+GS
8
9
10
GS+LS
RR+BRM+LS
RR+BRM+GS
+LS
RR+GS+LS
RR+LS+RA
HB, RS, H,
or C
RA or
Mid+H or C
HB, Mid, H,
RA, or RS
H, Mid, or
RA
Mid or H
H, P, Mid, or
RA
Mid or H
-
% of
Total
Sites
79.9
2.9
LS
RS
HB
H
C
BRM/
PE
GS
RR
RA
Mid
P
298
11
5
4
2
2
-
-
-
-
-
-
Post1500
B.P.
57
5
Pre1500
B.P.
79
6
0.8
3
-
-
1
1
-
-
-
2
2
-
3
1
5
30
4
1.3
8.0
1.1
30
4
2
1?
1
-
1
-
3
30
4
-
-
1
1
-
1
13
2
0
13
2
9
2.4
9
-
-
1
-
9
9
-
1
1
-
6
4
4
3
2
1.1
0.8
0.5
4
3
2
-
1
-
1
-
-
3
2
4
2
3
2
1
1
1
1
3
3
2
4
2
2
11
3
0.8
3
1
3
3
1
2
2
12
1
0.3
1
1
1
1
1
Total
373
100 368
7
7
6
4
51
18
9
6
7
1
Key: - =attribute is absent; LS=lithic scatter; BRM/PE=bedrock mortar and/or pestle; GS=portable groundstone (handstone and/or millingstone);
RR=rock ring; HB=hunting blind; RS=rockshelter; RA=rock alignment; H=hearth; Mid=midden; C=cache; P=petroglyph.
133
are present at 75 sites (20%). Within this latter group of sites, bedrock mortars and/or
pestles are most abundant, recorded at 51 (14%) of all sites. Thirty of these sites are
composed solely of lithic scatters and bedrock mortars and three are isolated bedrock
mortars. Thus, lithic scatters and/or bedrock mortars account for 331 (89%) of the total
sites, suggesting low variability within the study area and general support for a simple
model in conceptualizing land use at this stage of analysis.
Although variability is low, numerous sites contain complex deposits worthy of
further consideration in regard to the co-occurrences of cultural materials and resulting
chronological implications. These kinds of associations are necessarily preliminary and
broad in scope, given the limited samples of many classes of material and the ubiquity
and abundance of early-period lithic materials across the study area. Portable ground
stone and midden deposits are of particular interest because such materials may signal
early-period residential use. Handstones and millingstones are relatively uncommon in
the study area, present at just 18 sites (5%) in limited quantities (generally one to two
specimens per site). Within this small sample, portable ground stone occurs with bedrock
mortars and/or rock rings at 14 (78%) of the sites, suggesting a strong affinity with
materials thought to be prevalent after 1500 B.P. Three handstones and one millingstone,
however, have been documented in early-period, subsurface contexts at three sites, CATUO-120, -166, and -2834 (Hull et al. 1995; Montague 1996a, 1996b). The combined
subsurface and surface data suggest that use of portable ground stone spans a wide range
of time in the high elevations, while the surface data alone support increasing late-period
use.
134
Midden deposits have been recorded at only seven sites in the study area, a
sample that is too small for assessing patterns. Similar to the portable ground stone
locations, however, patches of midden co-occur with either bedrock mortars and rock
rings at five of the seven sites, again suggesting a late-period emphasis. Midden dating to
an early-period context, however, is present at one site (CA-TUO-2834), and indicators
of early-period use occur at several of the sites. Clearly, further work and larger samples
are necessary to further identify any temporal trends in midden development.
Sites with rock rings tend to demonstrate the greatest diversity in site constituents,
with eight of the nine containing bedrock mortars or portable ground stone, three
exhibiting midden, and one including the study area’s only example of rock art (Table
26). Combinations of materials are distinctive even within this small sample, suggesting
some temporal and/or functional variability. As discussed in Chapter 5, most of the rock
rings with chronological data evince late period use, but they do not appear to be entirely
late-period phenomena. Functional variability may also be apparent among rock ring sites
that include bedrock mortars, compared to those with portable ground stone alone and the
single site with no evidence of milling equipment. Minimal or no milling equipment,
combined with the presence of moderate or abundant lithic materials, may indicate that
the function of some of these sites was geared primarily toward hunting rather than as
residential occupation by family groups. CA-TUO-749 in Virginia Canyon is an
exception in that it has three rock rings, a single millingstone in the center of one feature,
and limited surface debitage. The two-model construct clearly obscures variability in the
case of rock ring sites, but the focus on surface constituents and the inability to
135
distinguish components at this level of analysis also does not allow for the development
of clear chronologies and inventories of material by component.
Flaked stone debitage and tools are the predominant material within the study
area, occurring at all sites except for four composed of single features (Type 4 in Table
26). As indicated in Chapter 5, debitage density varies substantially among sites and there
are clear spatial distinctions in the distributions of the variable-density deposits. That is,
the majority of the high-density debitage scatters are located in the trans-Sierra corridors,
particularly in Dana Meadows, Tuolumne Meadows, and the lower portion of Lyell
Canyon. Moving beyond spatial distributions toward the examination of functional and
chronological variability in lithic materials, Table 27 presents debitage density, bifacial
tool frequencies, and chronological data for the site types described above. These surface
attributes have been collected reliably for most sites (n=333). Types 1-2 sites display low
variability in cultural materials and are thought to represent limited activities, while
Types 3/5-12 exhibit greater variability and cultural materials suggesting more substantial
use. These combined categories are essentially the same as the limited- and intensive-use
categories. In general, low-density debitage deposits and sites lacking bifacial tools are
taken as locations that reflect less intensive activity either temporally or functionally,
while higher-density concentrations signal an increased level of activity related to flaked
stone tool production.
Most sites in both categories are low-density debitage deposits, totaling 238 of
333 sites (72%). Comparison of site frequencies between the site type categories,
however, suggests some broad patterns in function and chronology. The proportion of
low-density deposits is greater among the Type 1-2 sites (69.8% vs. 51.7%), and
136
Table 27. Site Types by Debitage Density, Bifacial Tool Occurrence, and Chronology.
Debitage
Density
TYPE 1-2 SITES
Low Density
Mod. Density
High Density
Total
#
Sites
208
48
19
275
% of
Total
Sites
# Sites
with PP or
BF
69.8
16.1
6.4
94
30
13
137
% of
Total
Sites
45.2
62.5
68.4
49.8
Post1500
B.P.
% of
Total
Sites
Pre1500
B.P.
41
15
5
61
19.7
31.3
26.3
22.2
51
21
10
82
% of
Total
Sites
24.5
43.8
52.6
29.8
TYPE 3, 5-12 SITES*
Low Density
30
51.7
19
63.3
15
50.0
14
46.7
Mod. Density
12
20.7
10
83.3
10
83.3
7
58.3
High Density
16
27.6
11
68.8
10
62.5
10
62.5
Total
58
40
69.0
35
60.3
31
53.4
Key: PP=projectile point; BF=biface. *Type 4 sites do not contain debitage scatters and are therefore not
represented in this table.
conversely, high-density debitage deposits are more common among the Type 3/5-12
sites (27. 6% vs. 6.4%). Bifacial tools are also present at more complex sites compared to
the Type 1-2 sites (69% vs. 49.8%). Sites with bifacial tools (n=94, 45.2%) are
proportionately least common at low-density Type 1-2 sites. Among the Type 1-2 sites,
sites with pre-1500 B.P. temporal data are slightly more prevalent than those with post1500 B.P. data (29.8% vs. 22.2%), but most high density sites in that category exhibit
early- rather than late-period materials (52.6% vs. 26.3%). In contrast, a slightly higher
percentage of late-period materials are present at Type 3/5-12 sites (60.3% vs. 53.4%).
The combination of sites with higher-density debitage deposits, bifacial tools, and
features suggests these were preferred locations for a variety of activities and that such
activities were more prevalent after 1500 B.P., consistent with the intensive- and limiteduse analysis results in Chapter 6.
137
CHRONOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF BEDROCK MORTARS
Bedrock mortars have been considered as temporal markers of the post-1500 B.P.
period in the current study based on the results of archaeological research conducted in
the surrounding region. The data assembled for the thesis also allow for an independent,
albeit imperfect, assessment of the temporal framework for bedrock mortars. These
features were in widespread use in the contact era, but their initial use and florescence is
a more difficult issue to address. Ideally, a large sample of single-component sites with
reliable chronological data in clear association with bedrock mortars would demonstrate
the initial use and spread of this technology. Two factors militate against this outcome in
regard to the current study—multi-component sites predominate in the trans-Sierra
corridors where milling features are almost exclusively located, and early-period lithic
materials are ubiquitous across the landscape. Against this backdrop, only broad trends
are expected to emerge which may support early- or late-period inception of bedrock
mortar use.
If bedrock mortars are indeed late-period phenomena, then evidence of post-1500
B.P. use should be consistently detected at sites with these features except in a few cases
where bedrock mortars occur as isolated features. In addition, sites lacking bedrock
mortars and dating to pre-1500 B.P. should occur with greater frequency than those
dating to post-1500 B.P. Finally, bedrock mortars should not be present at early-period,
single-component deposits except in the few cases of isolated features.
Considering only sites which have either undergone excavations or sampling for
the current work provides the best possible chronological sample within the study area at
this time. Of the 11 sites with bedrock mortars (Table 21 above), nine contain evidence of
138
post-1500 B.P. activity and all 11 exhibit early-period dates. One of the two sites lacking
late-period dates, CA-TUO-124, has been largely destroyed by modern construction and
the area near the feature was not sampled (Vittands 1994); thus, it is not suitable for
inclusion within the sample. In the revised sample, late-period temporal data are present
at nine of 10 sites, or 90 percent of the total. In contrast, 24 (53%) of the 45 sites lacking
bedrock mortars show late-period use, while 44 (98%) evince early-period use. The only
clear single-component, late-period site is an isolated obsidian artifact cache (CA-TUO4509), suggesting it may be very difficult, even in high-elevation contexts, to identify
single components dating to that time period at the analytical unit of the site. In contrast,
22 sites appear to be early-period deposits alone, and only one of these, a large, very
dense lithic scatter (CA-TUO-128/), contains a bedrock mortar.
All in all, the presence of late-period temporal indicators at nearly all of the sites
in the sample with bedrock mortars combined with the absence of bedrock mortars at
early-period lithic scatters suggests a late-period trend in bedrock mortar use. It is
difficult, however, to determine whether the absence of bedrock mortars at many earlyperiod sites reflects functional versus temporal patterning. More convincing evidence
must be mounted through further analysis incorporating larger excavation samples. At
multi-component sites with relatively intact stratigraphy, pestles in secure association
with early-period materials would also indicate early-period inception of the
mortar/pestle technology.
The distribution of temporally diagnostic projectile points also supports a lateperiod trend in bedrock mortar use. Of the 25 sites with temporally diagnostic projectile
points and bedrock mortars, Desert and Rosegate series points are present at 14 sites and
139
13 sites, respectively. Taken together as post-1500 B.P. indicators, either Desert or
Rosegate points are evident at 22 (88%) of the 25 sites. Elko series points are present at
only eight sites, but Elkos combined with other dart points have been documented at 17
(68%) of the 25 sites.
SUMMARY
In this section, two important underlying assumptions of the thesis were critically
addressed: the characterization of high-elevation land use within the intensive/limited use
model and the post-1500 B.P. inception of bedrock mortar/pestle technology. The twopart model has allowed for a broad-brush examination of patterns in time and space, but
whether it adequately characterizes land use in Yosemite is an important issue. Given the
limited variability of surface constituents in the study area, where 80 percent (n=298) of
the sites are flaked-stone scatters and 89 percent (n=331) include only two classes of
material—flaked-stone and bedrock mortars—the simple land use model provides an
acceptable framework for interpreting surface remains. Nevertheless, the model surely
obscures variability in the range and co-occurrence of constituents.
The two variables further examined at flaked-stone scatters, debitage density and
presence of bifacial tools, suggested some broad, albeit tentative, trends in chronology
and function. While most sites with data (n=238, 72%) contain low-density deposits, the
proportion of low-density deposits is greater at sites without other features that suggest
residential use. Conversely, high-density scatters are more common at sites with
residential features in the trans-Sierra corridors. The presence of bifacial tools mirrors
this pattern. Although temporal patterns are weak, sites with pre-1500 B.P. temporal data
140
are slightly more prevalent among sites without residential features, while a slightly
higher percentage of late-period materials are present at sites with residential features.
Many of the less common cultural materials occur in such low quantities that
patterns are difficult to assess. It is of interest, however, to identify how materials such as
midden, portable ground stone, bedrock mortars, rock rings, and other features are
distributed across the landscape and any temporal and functional implications thereof.
For example, all sites with rock rings are treated within the intensive-use category of the
model, but the co-occurrence of rock rings with other materials varies substantially
between sites, suggesting functional distinctions. In summary, the intensive/limited use
model provides an acceptable model of land use at the most general level, but there may
be more to be gained from a detailed assessment of the co-occurrence, chronology, and
spatial distribution of specific site attributes.
Dating bedrock mortars in the Sierra Nevada has long posed a problem because of
the difficulty in associating temporally diagnostic materials with features and an inability
to date the mortars themselves. The widespread nature and abundance of early-period
materials hampers independent efforts to date bedrock mortars in the present study. The
presence of late-period materials at 90 percent of the sampled sites combined with the
dearth of bedrock mortars at lithic scatters and their near absence at single-component
early-period lithic scatters broadly supports a late prehistoric age for these features. In
addition, the prevalence of late-period temporally diagnostic projectile points at sites with
bedrock mortars supports this hypothesis. While some study area data were brought to
bear on this topic, defining the initial use and spread of bedrock mortars remains an
important research issue in the Sierra Nevada.
141
Chapter 8
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
This study explored high-elevation land use on the western slope of the central
Sierra Nevada by compiling existing data maintained by Yosemite National Park and
minimal surface collections conducted as part of the thesis. Building on previous research
in the White Mountains and the southern Sierra Nevada (Bettinger 1991; Roper
Wickstrom 1992; Stevens 2002), the study investigated whether an early, widespread
hunting pattern was followed by a later, spatially limited residential strategy in response
to regional resource intensification. This chapter summarizes the study results and
explores potential explanations for these patterns, in terms of the constraints and
opportunities created by environmental factors and how changing social, technological,
and economic systems in the lowlands may have influenced use of the higher elevations.
Finally, a few recommendations are offered in the interest of continuing research along
these lines.
PROJECT SUMMARY
Encompassing an area of roughly 105,000 acres of the upper Tuolumne River
watershed between approximately 8500 and 12,000 ft elevation, the study area included
373 previously recorded archaeological sites within approximately 9800 surveyed acres.
The existing Yosemite survey, site, isolate, and artifact data were supplemented by
surface collections from documented sites and obsidian hydration analysis undertaken as
part of the present study. This produced a 15 percent (n=56) sample of sites with at least a
minimal level of chronological data. Although the sample is small, and the survey area is
biased geographically and by elevation toward the trans-Sierra corridors and below
142
10,000 ft elevation, the thesis allows for a preliminary and necessarily broad assessment
of subalpine and alpine land use.
The primary goal of the thesis was to determine whether sites representing
particular activities, designated as limited- or intensive-use (following Stevens [2002]),
varied in time and space. Limited-use sites (n=313) were defined as lithic scatters,
representing short-term activities related to travel, hunting, and exchange. Intensive-use
sites (n=60) were indicated by the presence of bedrock mortars, residential structures,
ground stone artifacts, midden sediments, and/or a greater diversity of artifacts, and were
thought to represent longer-term residential use by family social groups. This simple
model allowed for a broad examination of patterns in time and space in an area where
surface constituents are limited in variability; sites composed solely of flaked-stone
scatters account for 80 percent (n=298) of the total sites, while 89 percent (n=331) of the
locations include only two classes of material, flaked-stone material and bedrock mortars.
Given this limited variability and the low frequencies of other classes of documented
cultural material, the model is believed to be an acceptable construct for conceptualizing
land use in Yosemite at this preliminary, surface level of study. However, a more detailed
examination of the combinations of materials occurring at specific locations in future
studies will allow for further assessment of variability in prehistoric use of the high
country.
Analysis of the spatial and chronological data within the intensive/limited-use
construct resulted in the identification of broad patterns that persisted through time, as
well as a shift in land use that provides some level of support for the thesis hypothesis.
Beginning with the most general of observations, the study area is characterized by an
143
uneven distribution of sites, with the highest site frequencies (n=293, 79%) present along
drainages leading to the trans-Sierra passes of Virginia, Summit, Tioga, Parker, Mono,
and Donohue. Chronological data for sites and isolates along the drainages leading from
these passes indicate that they functioned as destinations and travel thoroughfares
through time. Based on the preponderance of limited-use sites in all of these areas,
hunting, travel, and exchange were important activities conducted seasonally by Native
people in the high country, again, throughout prehistory.
Limited-use sites occurred throughout the study area and temporal sequence.
Materials pre-dating 1500 B.P., however, are more clearly associated with this type of
site. In addition, early-period hunting may have occurred more commonly in areas
outside of the trans-Sierra corridors, suggesting a more spatially extensive pattern of use,
though additional research is necessary to further address this issue. These patterns
suggest that short, logistical trips, likely combining activities of hunting and exchange,
constituted the primary mode of land use in the higher elevations.
Materials post-dating 1500 B.P. are more clearly associated with intensive-use
sites. However, all of the intensive-use sites also contain early-period materials,
indicating the presence of multiple components, a common occurrence at Yosemite
deposits and a complicating factor in dating features. A small sample of obsidian material
was collected from rock ring contexts in an attempt to more securely date the features,
while two features were previously investigated through test excavations. Thin obsidian
hydration values and arrow points (mainly Desert series) reflecting post-1500 B.P. use
are most prevalent, occurring at all of the features except one dating to 2200 B.P. Three
features contain several obsidian hydration values representing pre-1500 B.P. activity in
144
addition to the more recent dates, making it difficult to assess the initial occupation of
those features on surface evidence alone. All in all, rock ring constructs appear to be
more common post-1500 B.P., but they are not entirely a late-period phenomenon.
Intensive-use sites tend to be limited in spatial extent to the trans-Sierra corridors
of Virginia Canyon and along the Mono Trail, traversing Dana Meadows, Tuolumne
Meadows, and Parker Pass Creek. Lyell Canyon is the sole exception, where only a few
intensive-use sites have been recorded at the lower end of the canyon in close proximity
to the Mono Trail. It may be that this cluster of sites was situated on a spur of the Mono
Trail, a distinct possibility given the local geography (P. DePascale, personal
communication 2007), although an expansive mineral spring located nearby is also
currently an attraction for mule deer and may have been a settlement consideration in the
past. If intensive-use sites tend to contain late-period components, then the trans-Sierra
corridors (except Lyell Canyon) functioned as the primary locations of high-elevation,
seasonal residential camps. Desert series projectile points and other flaked stone material
at sites outside of base camps appear to represent logistical hunting and/or travel.
The simplest and most likely explanation for the spatial pattern in the study area is
ease of access in the mountainous terrain; that is, the passes provided the most
convenient, least-cost routes between the east and west. As noted by John Muir
(1879:645) over a century ago, “the trails of white men, Indians, bears, deer, wild sheep,
etc.” will converge on the best passes in rugged and inaccessible terrain. The drainages
leading from the Summit/Virginia, Tioga/Mono/Parker, and Donohue passes contain the
greatest site densities, suggesting these were the primary thoroughfares for trans-Sierra
travel. Of these routes, the Mono Trail, through Bloody Canyon, Mono Pass, and
145
Tuolumne Meadows, was known historically to Indian people as the shortest route
between Yosemite Valley and Mono Lake (Hulse 1935b). The low site densities in
Matterhorn and Spiller canyons indicate limited use of those areas, perhaps because
travel was difficult or less direct in comparison to other routes. The former required
travel over two passes from the east and the latter retains extensive snowfields and talus
slopes on its northern face.
Exchange or acquisition of a variety of nonlocal resources from the lower
elevations of the western slope and the eastern escarpment was an important reason for
trans-Sierra travel. Most relevant to the Sierra are the staple food items in the east and
west, pinyon nuts and acorn, respectively, while obsidian obtained from sources in the
eastern Sierra was the primary material utilized for flaked stone tool manufacture. Given
the absence of these materials in the high country, the costs incurred from transporting
items from the lower elevations should not have outweighed the caloric benefits of the
foods themselves. Bettinger et al. (1997:895) suggest that the one-way travel threshold
for foragers carrying a 36 kg load of unprocessed black oak acorn at 3 miles per hour is
77 miles, while Jones and Madsen (1989) calculate the round-trip, maximum transport
distance for the high-calorie pinyon nut at about 500 miles. Approximately 40 miles via
contemporary trails covers the distance between the base of the eastern escarpment and
important middle-elevation locations such as Yosemite Valley, indicating a clear benefit
for transporting both pinyon nuts and acorn. Based on the presence of bedrock mortars
and other indicators of intensive use in Virginia Canyon and along the Mono Trail, these
corridors appear to be the primary late-period trans-Sierra routes. The absence of a
similar pattern in Lyell Canyon—an area of high site density but lacking intensive-use
146
sites in its middle and upper reaches—may be due to increased access costs relative to the
other routes. Donohue Pass is higher in elevation than the passes to the north and the
distance from the pass to important locations such as Tuolumne Meadows and Yosemite
Valley is greater. It seems more likely that Mammoth Pass, the lowest elevation pass
(9200 ft) in the central Sierra and just south of Donohue Pass, would have functioned as
the main route from Long Valley to the western Sierra via the San Joaquin River. If that
is the case, then Donohue Pass, at 11,000 ft elevation, may have been used primarily for
hunting and possibly obsidian transport in the late period, as it was early in time. The
relatively high elevation of Donohue Pass may have made it a more suitable platform for
the pursuit of bighorn sheep. The locations of numerous archaeological sites in the upper
Lyell basin, noted by former long-time Yosemite employee Jack Knieriemen (1997) but
not yet formally investigated, suggest bighorn sheep were a target in the early period.
The high density of sites along the drainages leading to passes indicates the
importance of these areas for a range of activities over time, whether it was for reasons of
hunting, trade, or broader residential activities. Trade clearly conditions settlement in
these areas, but they also are good locations for hunting and more generalized resource
acquisition because access is relatively easy. This makes settlement strategies
intrinsically difficult to differentiate, which in turn, makes trends in the data presented
here more significant than they might otherwise seem.
CONCLUSIONS
This study viewed the high elevations of the Sierra Nevada in terms of
opportunities and constraints for people occupying distinctive biogeographic zones in the
lower elevations of the eastern and western slopes. Heavy snow cover functioned as a
147
primary constraint, limiting access to the warmer months between late spring and early
fall, depending on annual weather conditions. The summer months, however, allowed for
a range of opportunities, including access to resources in the high country, particularly
large mammals, social interactions, and exchange of, or direct access to, resources
present only in the core lowlands on either side of the range. The study examined the
spatial distribution of cultural material, implied functions, and available chronological
data to assess land use over time. The results of this analysis, viewed in the contexts of
environment and regional subsistence-settlement systems, indicate both persistence and
change in high-elevation land use, generally supporting regional models of cultural
development.
Prior to ca. 1500 B.P., groups from both sides of the Sierra Nevada made
logistical trips to the high country from lower elevations for hunting and transport of
nonlocal resources. The focus on hunting high-return resources combined with the
dart/atlatl technology prevalent in the region necessitated large quantities of obsidian in
both hunting and obsidian procurement contexts, resulting in the ubiquitous early-period
lithic scatter. However, the trans-Sierra passes funneled most human activity during that
time into the western-slope drainages leading from the passes. The presence of vast
amounts of obsidian on the western slope and the abundance of early-period deposits in
the trans-Sierra corridors points out the importance of obsidian transport and travel in the
study area. The specific mechanisms of obsidian acquisition are still unclear, with some
researchers hypothesizing direct access by western groups (e.g., Bouey and Basgall 1984)
and others proposing exchange as a value-added activity to the hunting of bighorn sheep
by eastern groups (Rosenthal 2008). The obsidian cache data from the Park, combined
148
with the highly mobile settlement system thought to be in place in the eastern Sierra
during the Newberry period, suggest that a formal exchange network was not in existence
at that time.
After 1500 B.P. the trans-Sierra corridors continued to be the focus of settlement,
although hunting occurred in non-corridor contexts as well. The presence of bedrock
mortars, rock rings, and other features dating to this period imply increased residential
use and longer stays by groups of people in comparison to the earlier occupations. The
confinement of intensive-use sites to only a few of the trans-Sierra corridors suggests a
more spatially constrained pattern of land use, consistent with developments in the
lowlands where increased population densities, subsistence intensification, and greater
territorial circumscription are thought to have transpired. Lacking intensive-use sites in
its middle and upper reaches, Lyell Canyon and Donohue Pass likely continued to be an
important location for hunting and travel, but most intensive use occurred in Virginia
Canyon and in Dana and Tuolumne meadows along the Mono Trail. The presence of
bedrock mortars, assumed to date to this period, implies an increased reliance on plant
resources relative to the preceding period, consistent with regional developments in the
lowlands. The limited quantities of features and mortars, as well as the shallow depths of
most mortars, however, indicates that plant resource processing was still a less important
activity in the high elevations than in the middle and lower elevations of the western
slope, where oak trees are abundant. Whether subsistence in the high country involved
the procurement of local resources and/or transported plant foods remains an issue for
further inquiry. Some seasonal distinctions in high country use may be suggested by the
availability of key mammal species in the high elevations and other food resources at
149
lower elevations such as acorns and pinyon nuts. Deer, bighorn sheep, and other mammal
species would have been available during the summer in the high country, while the
pinyon nut and acorn harvests would have taken place in September and October in the
middle and lower elevations. Exchange or direct acquisition of these resources may have
intensified in the fall, particularly if crops were unproductive in a given area.
The shift in weapon technology to the bow and arrow resulted in a decreased
demand for obsidian, yet trans-Sierra transport of obsidian continued, some to meet local,
seasonal needs and others for transport farther to the west. Late-period caches of bifaces
and smaller flake blanks are less technologically diverse than those dating to earlier
times, implying increased consistency in the manufacture of obsidian products. At the
same time, Mono Basin quarries may have become more important for obsidian
acquisition than they were in earlier times. These factors, in light of the subsistence
intensification in the lowlands and the spatial tethering in both low- and high-elevation
contexts, suggest that trade of commodities became more important after about 1500 B.P.
Based on previous studies and the current work, it is clear that the higher
elevations of the Sierra were important elements of regional subsistence-settlement
systems and key conduits for social interactions between people living in the lowlands of
the eastern and western slopes. The high density of sites in the canyon bottoms is
consistent with ease of access in a mountainous terrain and the predominance of lithic
scatters attests to the importance of hunting over time. However, the prevalence of
intensive-use sites in the late period along major travel routes signaled a shift in use of
the higher elevations from a pattern focused on logistical hunting and obsidian
procurement to a more residential pattern along a few key travel routes. This shift is
150
consistent with the regional pattern of increased population densities, increased trade, and
plant resource intensification, as well as findings in the subalpine and alpine zones of the
southern Sierra Nevada (Morgan 2006; Stevens 2002), where sites with bedrock mortars
and other indicators of intensive use clustered in travel corridors suggest greater
residential mobility and a focus on trans-Sierra travel in the late period.
DIRECTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH
The current project was initiated as a pilot study of high-elevation land use,
incorporating previously collected data for a segment of Yosemite’s high country and
relying on minimal surface collections to supplement the existing chronological data sets.
The analysis revealed several avenues for further research on high-elevation land use.
The principal recommendations are to increase survey coverage within the Park
boundaries, ensure that site and isolate data are collected consistently and to current
standards, and to continue a program of minimal surface sampling to supplement
temporally diagnostic projectile point findings. Additional survey and site documentation
in contexts outside of direct trans-Sierra corridors would aid in clarifying the spatial
distributions and combinations of cultural materials for the region. Within the study area,
this work could include a multitude of locations, including Delaney Creek, Dingley
Creek, Conness Creek, Alkali Creek, Kuna Crest, upper Lyell and McClure basins, and
the lake basins. Resurvey of Parker Pass Creek and re-documentation of sites not visited
since the 1980s would also help in securely identifying site constituents and densities in
that trans-Sierra corridor.
Outside of the study area, very little survey has been conducted in the northern
part of the Park, including Slide, Thompson, Stubblefield, and Jack Main canyons. In
151
addition to canyon bottom investigations, an objective of future research should be to
increase survey coverage above 10,000 ft so that prehistoric use of alpine environments
can be more fully explored. At the same time, further research regarding bedrock mortar
chronology, plant resource exploitation, and obsidian source distributions will be
important to understanding high-elevation land use. At a methodical level, developments
in projectile point taxonomy and the use of obsidian hydration dating for estimating
calendrical dates will greatly contribute to future studies in the area. Finally, as surveyed
areas are increased, taking a larger perspective that synthesizes site data from Yosemite’s
wide elevational range would be an important step in settlement research.
152
APPENDIX A
Data Sources
153
A-1. Major Archaeological Projects within the Study Area.
155
A-2. Summary of Site Attributes.
168
A-3. Summary of Chronological Data by Site.
182
A-4. Calibrated Dates for Obsidian Hydration Data.
191
A-5. Summary of Bedrock Mortar Data.
193
APPENDIX B
Obsidian Studies Report
220
APPENDIX C
Artifact Catalog
226
REFERENCES CITED