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MA/PhD Theses Abstracts of Current Students & Alumni |
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Piper, Harry M., June 1977 - PREHISTORIC SETTLEMENT-SUBSISTENCE PATTERN IN THE MOUNT ROGERS NATIONAL RECREATION AREA, VIRGINIA
Abstract: During the summer of 1976, a surface survey for archaeological sites in the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area (MRNRA) was conducted by the author and two others, under terms of a contract between Emory & Henry College and the U S, Forest Service. The MRNRA lies in the mountainous region of southwest Virginia, encompasses approximately 156,000 acres and contains portions of five counties. Based upon data from the 123 prehistoric sites which were located, the pertinent artifactual, environmental and topographical variables were recorded and interpreted with the aim of reconstructing the settlement-subsistence pattern of the prehistoric occupants of the survey area. Relevant variables included consideration of functional uniformities of lithic artifacts and sites, and the distribution of these uniformities in the environments of the MRNRA The determination having been made to consider both artifacts and sites from a functional perspective, specific lithic tool assemblages were formulated and utilized in functionally designating each site where possible Although the inferred functional classification of sites was based solely upon the surface collection, the procedure was felt to be reliable due to the area's history of continuing erosion and the relative shallowness of surface soils, which cause the material remains of previous occupations to remain on or close to the surface. Attention was given to correspondence between topographical features and site location, and any correlations between site function and topographical location of sites were also examined The inferred site functions, together with their environmental and topographic correlates, were considered as partial explanations for reconstructed behavioral systems. Variables recorded for each site included the topographic location, distance to nearest extant water source, elevation and predominant artifactual material, and these data were reduced to comprehensive tabular form Any apparently significant correlations between each site type and each variable were noted, and significant correlations between combinations of variables and each site type were considered From these data, hypotheses were formulated and tested statistically. The inferred site functions showed that the area surveyed was used primarily as a hunting and processing territory by the prehistoric peoples who exploited its resources, The statistical analysis of variables demonstrated that in areas where level land was in limited supply, the desirability of level land in campsite selection outweighed the desirability of being close to water It further demonstrated that where level land was plentiful, campsites were selected on level land which was also close to water. In addition, it was also demonstrated that game was most frequently ambushed either when passing through a constricted topographical feature or when the game was going to or from water Comparative analysis indicated the likelihood that the hunting-- gathering activities at the higher elevations took place seasonally and that the prehistoric peoples who exploited the resources of the region were those who inhabited the river valley floodplains which surround the mountainous region of the MRNRA. Additionally, comparative analysis and actual site locations indicated that ridgetop trails, saddles and gaps were used by both men and animals to travel through the mountains, and streambeds were followed to arrive at or descend from these elevated locations Several suggestions for future work were made and it was noted that this study purposely does not deal with cultural chronology in the MRNRA, since the culture history of the region is being fully developed elsewhere.
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