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MA/PhD Theses Abstracts of Current Students & Alumni |
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Torp, Lyle Carlton, April 1985 - LITHIC REDUCTION, GROUP MOBILITY, AND SETTLEMENT ALONG COWHOUSE CREEK, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, FLORIDA
Abstract: This thesis expands on the results of archaeological investigations conducted at the Cowhouse East Head (8-Hi-495) and Cowhouse West Head (8-Hi-496) sites, in Hillsborough County, Florida. Excavations were conducted by a University of South Florida summer field school in archaeology during the summer of 1990, and were funded by a grant from the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD). Initial recording of the site indicated both Paleo-Indian and Archaic period components. Analysis of recovered material supported this hypothesis, and although no diagnostic Paleo-Indian points were recovered, evidence has been slowly developing indicating that the immediate area was important for Paleo-Indian as well as Archaic period groups. It is suggested here that resources available in this area, particularly the abundant chert sources along Cowhouse Creek, allowed for the repeated visitation of the area by prehistoric populations. Results of excavation at the two sites support the original designation of site functions as a base camp (8-Hi-495) and a quarry site (8-Hi-496). It is suggested here that base camps along Cowhouse Creek during these time periods were particularly oriented toward the procurement of stone for tool production. Other critical resources such as wood, water, and faunal and floral materials would have been available from the Paleo-Indian through Archaic periods, and would have allowed for relatively long-term habitation of sites in this area. The use of quarry sites as the basis for settlement studies is emphasized, as lithic scatters are the dominant class of site in the area. Lithic industries therefore, when viewed in their totality, should be the most productive manner of assessing several of the larger and more complex regional problems.
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