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THE MIDDLE HOLOCENE CULTURAL RECORD ON THEOREGON COAST

NEW PERSPECTIVES FROM RECENT WORK ALONG THE CENTRALOREGON COAST

THOMAS J. CONNOLLY AND GUY L. TASA

A host of environmental factors (sea level rise, erosion and sedimentation, and an active tectonichistory) has biased the Oregon coast archaeological record in favor of the late Holocene, making itdifficult to build a supportable picture of land use history for early and middle Holocene times. Wereview the slowly expanding middle Holocene evidence, and evaluate it with reference to residential andlogistical patterns known from neighboring regions with more well known archaeological records. Thisbroader context provides a framework for hypothesizing coastal patterns that are more robust than thedata would otherwise permit.

Researchers familiar with the archaeology of the Oregon coast have long been aware of the paucity ofdated cultural sites of early and middle Holocene age. Moss and Erlandson (1995b:14) remarked in 1986that “there is little evidence for human occupation earlier than about 4000 years ago” for the section of

Pacific coast lying between Monterey Bay and the Canadian border, including the Oregon coast. In the absence ofwell-dated early sites along Oregon’s coast, the earlier segments of initial cultural historical models wererepresented by sites assigned early ages based on the presence of stylistically “early” artifacts (cf. Minor 1984,1985b; Ross 1990), from sites that generally lacked dietary remains and other evidence bearing directly on humanadaptive behavior. Based on such evidence, the early and middle Holocene cultural record was characterized asrepresenting a “pre-marine” or “pre-littoral” cultural adaptation, characterized by generalist foraging relyinglargely on terrestrial flora and fauna and only opportunistically making intermittent use of marine and littoralresources (Lyman 1991; Ross 1990).

During consecutive years in the early 1990s, Erlandson and Moss (1993, 1999; Moss and Erlandson 1994,1995a) conducted surveys on State Parks lands along the Oregon coast in order to evaluate the condition ofpreviously recorded sites affected by erosion and other impacts, to document sites that had not been previouslyidentified and formally documented, and to systematically investigate eroding exposures for the purpose ofcollecting organic samples to radiocarbon date cultural deposits. Erlandson and Moss (1999:437) report thatduring the course of the four year project, “we obtained 205 14C dates for 109 archaeological sites, roughlyquadrupling the number of dated sites on the Oregon Coast.” Combining their new radiocarbon ages withpreviously reported dates, they found that over 95% of sampled Oregon coast sites date to the late Holocene, andthe vast majority of those date within the last millennium. They concluded that the late Holocene bias in thecultural record was not a reflection of human behavior, but a function of site preservation on Oregon’s dynamiccoastline that has been subject to marked Holocene sea level rise, erosion, slides, and other geologic forces.

A number of published articles have examined the very small number of early Holocene archaeological sitesknown on the Oregon coast (Erlandson and Moss 1996; Minor 1985a; Moss and Erlandson 1998); we brieflyreview these, and the greater number of middle Holocene Oregon coast sites (for present purposes, sites datingfrom ca. 7000 to 3500 cal. BP are considered), including previously unpublished evidence from our work along thecentral Oregon coast (Figure 1). We then revisit the concept of a “pre-marine” or “pre-littoral” coastal adaptation.

THE EARLY HOLOCENE RECORD (> 7000 BP)

Several years prior to the Moss and Erlandson survey, Minor and Toepel (1986) reported on cultural depositsat the Tahkenitch Landing site dating to 8000 or more years ago. The site’s earliest stratum, which dates from ca.8900-7600 years ago (7960±90 and 6880±80 rcybp), produced just a handful of stone tools, but was mostnotable for a diverse assemblage of marine fishes representing eleven different genera (sculpin, tomcod, hake,

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Figure 1. Location of middle Holocene sites on theOregon coast.

flounder, herring, surfperches, and others) andwaterfowl. Equally important was theenvironmental evidence derived from the site, whichindicated the modern freshwater lake was, at thetime of the occupations, an ocean estuary. Althoughthe association of the earliest radiocarbon dates withthe cultural deposits has been questioned (Moss andErlandson 1998), the site is generally regarded asone of the earliest Oregon coast sites providingevidence for focused early use of marine resources.

The Moss and Erlandson survey also identifiedevidence for early use of marine resources at theIndian Sands site. While the Indian Sands site islarge and complex, a small deflated midden ofburned and broken marine shell and lithic chippingdebris produced three radiocarbon dates with anaverage calibrated age of about 8600 years old(Erlandson and Moss 1999; Moss and Erlandson1995a, 1998). More recently, Davis et al. (2004)report an age of ca. 12,300 years ago (10430±150rcybp) from the site, apparently associated withcultural lithics and small fragments of fire-crackedrock. More recently, test excavations at anothersouth coast site, 35CS9, produced a calibratedradiocarbon age that is similarly ancient, ca. 12,700years ago (11,000±140 rcybp) from a stratumimmediately underlying cultural lithics (Hall et al.2005). However, direct association of the culturalmaterials with the early dates has not been verified(Moss et al. 2006).

The early Holocene cultural record for theOregon coast remains impoverished, and while wecan anticipate occasional new evidence of great age,the reality is that the early record will likely never berobust, given the geological history of Oregon’sPacific coast. Of immense importance, however, isthe fact that the two earliest Oregon coast sites withdirect dietary evidence indicates clear use ofmarine/littoral resources.

THE MIDDLE HOLOCENE RECORD(ca. 7000-3500 BP)

The number of Middle Holocene sites on theOregon coast increased dramatically since the early1990s, due in no small part to Erlandson and Moss’(1993) systematic dating of coastal sites, and theirencouragement of other researchers to increase theirdating efforts. Below is a brief summary of Oregoncoast sites with middle Holocene radiocarbon ages. This is followed by consideration of a small numberof sites that provide a sufficient body of evidence tosupport discussion of middle Holocene cultural/adaptive patterns.

THE MIDDLE HOLOCENE CULTURAL RECORD ON THE OREGON COAST 75

Figure 2. Profile photo and schematic of the middle Holocene hearth and 35LA3 Area A.

Lithic “Bluff Sites”

Ross’ (1990; cf. Lyman 1991) proposal that the Oregon coast’s earliest occupants were opportunistic hunter-gatherers who focused principally on terrestrial resources stems from the presence of stylistically “early” artifactsat coastal sites lacking shell midden deposits and other direct evidence for use of marine and littoral resources. Subsequent research at Cape Blanco (35CU2, 35CU82), Blacklock Point (35CU75), and Indian Sands (35CU64,35CU67) have led to the demonstration that many of these lithic sites were occupied throughout the Holocene;calibrated ages of ca. 8300 and 4970 years ago are reported from Blacklock Point (Minor 1993), dates of ca. 6100,4900, and 1200 cal. BP from Cape Blanco (Minor and Greenspan 1991, 1998a), and dates of 8600, 2400, 1700,and 1100 cal. BP have been reported from Indian Sands (Minor and Greenspan 1991; Moss and Erlandson 1994). Further, Minor (1993) notes that the bluffs occupied by these sites overlook cobble beaches or buried cobble lenseswhere high quality tool stone is available. The presence of bifaces, hammerstones, and abundant debitage indicatethat these sites may have served primarily as tool stone quarries—rather than food procurement and processingsites—throughout their long use, including during the late Holocene when there is no question that coastalresidents relied heavily on marine/littoral resources.

Palmrose Site (35CLT47)

A suite of 23 radiocarbon dates indicate that the principal occupation of the Palmrose site in the moderncommunity of Seaside occurred between ca. 2700 and 1600 years ago, but two of the dates indicate an initialoccupation of the gravel storm ridge underlying the site’s main shell midden at about 4000 years ago. Similarpatterns are seen at the nearby Avenue Q and Par-Tee sites; the intensive “village” components date within the last2000 years, but at least intermittent occupations are documented at both sites between 3500 and 3000 years ago(Connolly 1992; Connolly and Tasa 2004; Losey and Power 2005). Connolly (1992:39) notes that the initialoccupation at Palmrose may have been “intermittent and opportunistic;” association of the early date with whalebone suggest that the initial occupation “may have been to take advantage of a beached whale.”

Neptune Site (35LNC3)

Collins (1953) first recorded the site south of Gwynn Creek as 35LNC3; this area was subsequently designatedArea A, while a discrete shell midden about 100 m south of Gwynn Creek was later designated Area B (Ross 1976). Excavations conducted in Area B in 1977 (Barner 1982; Zontek 1983) produced an early radiocarbon age of ca.9300 cal. BP (8310 rcybp) from an organic stratum below a shell midden deposit firmly dating to the lateHolocene (Lyman and Ross 1988:79), but this early date has generally been dismissed as non-cultural (Minor1985a; Moss and Erlandson 1998). Limited work was conducted in Area A in 2000 (Tasa and Connolly 2001). Asurvey monument was inadvertently placed within the site area, and the Oregon Parks and Transportationdepartments agreed to the removal of the monument by hand-excavation of a 1x1 m test pit, and additionalinvestigation of an apparent hearth eroding from an adjacent sea cliff. The test pit produced a low density ofcultural material (flakes and fire-cracked rock) at depths from 40 to 80 cm in a fine eolian sand deposit. Thehearth, about 10 m from the test pit, appeared to be eroding from a depth of ca. 130 cm below the modern ground

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Exposed Rocky Shore

Sea Cliff Edge

Rocky CreekWayside

Otter Crest Rd

Site 35LNC68

Pacific Ocean

Site 35LNC68

Negative ProbesSite BoundariesShrub/Forest Vegetation

Positive Probes

0 100meters

1 2 3 4 516

17

6 7 89

10 11 12 13 14 15

Figure 3. Site 35LNC68; the ca. 600 BP date came from the sea cliff face; the ca. 4100 BP datefrom Probe 5.

surface (Figure 2). Charcoal and fill samples were taken from the hearth. The fill sample was processed byflotation, producing charcoal and charred wood, a single obsidian microflake, and a fragment of starchy plantresidue classified as “processed edible tissue.” Charcoal from the hearth returned a date of ca. 5550 cal. BP(4780±40 rcybp; Tasa and Connolly 2001).

Rocky Creek Wayside (35LNC68)

Site 35LNC68 was initially recorded by Erlandson and Moss (1993), who identified the site in an eroding seacliff exposure. The midden reportedly contained rocky shore shellfish (mussel and barnacle), fire-cracked rock,and chipped stone tools. A mussel shell from the cultural midden returned an age of ca. 600 years ago (Erlandsonand Moss 1993). Proposed work along the Oregon Coast Highway, some 40-50 m east of the eroding sea cliff,prompted work in 2000 (Tasa and Connolly 2005) to investigate the site’s eastern limits. A series of 50x50 cmprobes placed at ten meter intervals along the base of the highway fill confirmed the presence of cultural depositsfor ca. 60 m along the highway’s western margin (Figure 3). A series of perpendicular probes extending westerly(toward the sea cliff) confirmed that cultural deposits were continuous with the originally identified site. Recovered artifacts from the site included one CCS core, four pieces of debitage, and ten pieces of vertebrate faunalremains (whale, harbor seal, bird, and large mammal). Shell midden constituents included high frequencies ofCalifornia mussel with smaller amounts of barnacle, black katy chiton, goose barnacle, piddock, dogwinkle, limpet,gastropods, turbans, giant Pacific chiton, and crab. Mussel shell from Probe 5 produced a calibrated age of ca.4100 years BP (4310±60 rcybp).

Twin Dunes Site (35CS120)

This site was recorded by Erlandson & Moss (1993:65) in the area of a pair of conical dunes on the sand spitnorth of the mouth of the Coquille River. The site is described as scatters of shell midden and artifacts that havebeen partially exposed by deflation. Marine shell (primarily California mussel and barnacle, but also includingchiton, butter clam, horse clam, razor clam, and dogwinkle), fire-cracked rock, mammal bone, and chipped stoneartifacts (chert and quartzite) were noted. A fragment of horse clam shell returned a calibrated radiocarbon age ofca. 5900 years ago. Erlandson and Moss (1993:65) note that “additional dates should be run to test the antiquityof this site.”

Tseriadun Site (35CU7)

This site, the location of an Athapaskan town occupied until after the Rogue River War, is located on thesouthern margin of Garrison Lake (a former estuary) and at the foot of the Port Orford headland. Shell midden

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W V U T S R Q P O

C

D

E

F

G

H

Manhole

Manhole

Excavated StormSewer Line

U.S. Hwy 101

Toilets

Site Boundary

10 m

KEYNegative ProbePostive ProbeFAR ConcentrationShell Midden

Boiler Bay Site35LNC45

Figure 4. The Boiler Bay site, showing probing pattern and configuration of cultural features.

deposits and housepit features relating to this historic community are present (Byram 2005). The modern soil hasformed in dune sand that contains a buried cultural paleosol, on which the apparent floor of a house and anadjacent shell midden were exposed in an eroding bank profile. Two radiocarbon ages date the occupation toapproximately 5100 years ago. The probable house floor is a charcoal-rich organic lens at least three metersacross. The adjacent thin shell midden contains mussel shell, sea urchin spines, sea lion bones, and a variety ofmarine fish. Artifacts from this lower component include large side-notched and Coquille Series projectile points. Although documented in profile, no systematic excavation of this feature was conducted due to instability of thebank. A sub-dune paleosol of undetermined age (>5100 years old) also contains chert flakes (Byram 2005).

Boiler Bay Site (35LNC45)

The Boiler Bay site (35LNC45), along with another site (35LNC44) located farther north at the end of theGovernment Point headland, is located within Boiler Bay State Park immediately north of the small coastal townof Depoe Bay. The site was originally recorded in 1975 as part of a survey of sites on State Park lands (Ross 1976). Subsequent surveys (Connolly 1993; Erlandson and Moss 1993; Minor 1986) identified scattered shell andanthropic soils throughout much of the park, suggesting that the two sites were much larger than initially noted. Formal testing of 35LNC45 was conducted in 1993, in anticipation of access modifications from U.S. Highway 101(Tasa and Connolly 1995). The testing procedure employed the excavation of 50x50 cm test holes on a 10-metergrid, which provided information on site boundaries, depth, and internal structure (Figure 4). The site includes ashell midden, bordered on the west by a ca. 25 m diameter area containing an abundance of fire-altered rock(FAR). The distribution of particularly high concentrations of FAR occurred (based on the limited exposures) in ahorseshoe shape that appears to define the perimeter of a living space that was excavated slightly below thecontemporary ground surface. Four radiocarbon ages from top to bottom of the ca. 50 cm thick midden werestatistically identical, at ca. 4400 years old (4380±80, 4390±80, 4430±90, 4440±90 rcybp on marine shell). Thebase of the shell midden included bay clams (butter clams and Pacific gapers) and rock-dwelling species (giantacorn barnacles, California mussels, and black katy chitons), but the clams nearly disappeared in the upper levels.The majority of recovered vertebrate remains were identifiable as marine fish, followed closely in frequency bybirds. Mammal remains include harbor seal, elk, and unidentified cetaceans. Lithic debitage and formed artifactswere recovered from within the midden and probable house, and from an area extending for ca. 15 meters beyondthese features. The cultural assemblage included projectile points (one made of obsidian traced to ObsidianCliffs), a cobble tool used as both an abrader and a hammer, two spire-lopped Olivella shell beads, and an incised

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point that has the appearance of ivory. Pacific walrus, which occupies primarily arctic water in the Bering Sea area,is a possible source, but sperm whales or orca teeth are also a possible source.

Yaquina Head Site (35LNC62)

The Yaquina Head occupation history is fixed by 22 radiocarbon ages (Minor 1991; Minor et al. 1987). Theearliest set (ca. 7300-5800 calibrated years ago) came from a charcoal-rich stratum below the cultural layers thatare not clearly associated with cultural materials (Minor 1985a). The remaining dates suggest a more-or-lesscontinuous occupation between ca. 4800 and 2800 years ago. Botanical evidence suggest that the setting at thetime of occupation was likely a conifer forest that would have provided protection from coastal winds. Fieldworkconducted in 1986 and 1989 focused mainly on two discrete shell middens; the Area A midden was exposed alongthe headland’s north face, while Area B is a small midden farther from the sea cliff edge south of Area A. The AreaB shell midden appears to date between ca. 4600 and 4000 years ago. Exposed features included concentrationsof fire-cracked rock, bone, and artifacts. No clear structural remains were noted, but Feature 12 was described asan apparent fire pit (ca. 50 cm diameter, 25 cm deep) that produced a calibrated age of ca. 4000 years ago, and anassociated scatter of worked bone, sandstone abraders, a bird bone whistle fragment, and other artifacts. Fishbone (representing at least seven taxa) and terrestrial and marine mammals were also found with the feature(Minor 1991). Excavations in Area A opened 42 square meters, of which 20 contiguous units exposed an extensiveliving surface (originally thought to be a house floor), possibly contemporary with or below the Area A middendeposits. This surface has associated dates of ca. 4650 and 3700 cal. BP. Most of the radiocarbon dates from Area A suggest that a period of intensive occupation occurred between ca.4000 and 3000 years ago. Minor (1991:176) suggests, based on current radiocarbon evidence, that intensiveshellfish harvesting appears to have begun about 4000 years ago. A housepit floor was exposed in the profile ofthe eroding sea cliff, and two burials were apparently associated. One burial was that of an adult male (ca. 25-30years of age at death); the other was that of an infant (possibly newborn), covered by a carved whalebone artifactwith “scalloped edges and eight triangles cut into its flat face” (Minor et al. 1987:32). A portion of the artifact wasdated to ca. 3670 cal. BP, and is thought to also apply to the complex of features associated with the house. Following this, at least intermittent occupation continued at the site; a date of ca. 2300 years ago may representthe latter phases of occupation. It appears from the reports (Minor et al. 1987; Minor 1991) that the “discrete”Area B midden may be slightly older than the more intensive Area A occupation. Throughout the occupations,molluscan remains are dominated by mussels; barnacles, cockles, and piddock clams are also well represented. The vertebrate faunal assemblages include terrestrial mammals, marine mammals, and waterfowl, but aredominated by fish reflecting both nearshore and offshore environments; the relatively large quantities of hake, inparticular, may indicate offshore fishing.

Tahkenitch Landing (35CU130)

As noted above, the earliest radiocarbon determination from the Tahkenitch Landing site suggests that its usemay have been initiated between ca. 9000 and 7500 years ago (Minor and Toepel 1986). However, dates from themost intensive occupations, associated with cultural shell midden deposits, range from ca. 5900 to ca. 3300 yearsago (Minor and Toepel 1986:40; Minor et al. 1987:145). Minor et al. (1987:143) note that the 5900 cal. BP daterepresents “the earliest evidence of the intensive exploitation of marine mollusks along this section of the Pacificcoast.” Six of the eight radiocarbon dates from this middle Holocene set cluster at ca. 3500-3000 years ago,suggesting that the sustained residential use of the site (i.e., the Tahkenitch “village”) dates from near the end ofthe middle Holocene. The site’s Stratum 2B is the unit associated with this occupation. Minor and Toepel(1986:105) note that in addition to being the thickest and most widespread shell midden deposit, containing amajority of the recovered artifacts, Stratum 2B also produced the bulk of the vertebrate faunal remains recovered,including all of the whale bone and most of the other sea mammal bones. The earlier dates (ca. 5900 and 4870cal. BP) may reflect short-term residential use or temporary camp episodes. The site’s molluscan remains(principally associated with the late middle Holocene village) are dominated by bay mussel, followed by a varietyof clams (bent-nose clam, butter clam, horse clam, and cockle) indicative of a quiet-water (estuarine)environment. The vertebrate faunal assemblage is dominated by fish (sculpins, tomcod, Pacific herring, surfperch,flounders, hake, and others). Waterfowl and shore birds are common; mammals, a minor constituent of theassemblage, are mostly sea mammal (whale, seals). It is clear from the variety of marine fish, shellfish, birds, andmammals recovered that the present freshwater lake was an estuary open to the ocean at the time of occupation. The site’s artifact assemblage includes cobble hammer and chopping tools, lanceolate-shaped chipped stone

THE MIDDLE HOLOCENE CULTURAL RECORD ON THE OREGON COAST 79

projectile points and knives, sandstone abraders, bone and antler wedges, a bird bone whistle, tubular bone beads,steatite and clay pipe fragments, clam shell disc beads, and Olivella spire-lopped beads. About 3000 years ago theestuary mouth appears to have been dammed by dunes, transforming the estuary to the freshwater lake it is today,and initiating the environmental changes that led to the site’s abandonment (Minor and Toepel 1986).

THE MIDDLE TO LATE HOLOCENE TRANSITION

Tahkenitch Landing and Yaquina Head represent sites with sustained residential occupations by the end of themiddle Holocene. By 3000 years ago, a plethora of other sites provide evidence that such sustained communities,the first apparent “permanent” villages, were populated along much of the Oregon coast. An early house feature,with a date of ca. 3200 years old (3000±90 rcybp) from a structural timber, comes from the Raymond’s Dune sitenear the mouth of the Pistol River (Cressman 1977; Minor et al. 2001). The Hauser site, a large, complex, and deepshell midden that probably represents a former village, dates between ca. 3600 and 2700 years old (Minor 1992;Minor and Greenspan 1998b). Occupation at the Umpqua-Eden site appears to have begun by ca. 3200 years ago(2960±45), although three partially excavated house features probably date within the last millennium (Lyman1991; Ross and Snyder 1986; Stenhouse 1974). At the Palmrose site, the remains of a large rectangular plankhouse—the earliest large plank house on the southern Northwest Coast—was occupied between 2700 and 1600years ago (Connolly 1992; Phebus and Drucker 1979). Minor (1983) reports that occupation at the Eddy Point site,a probable village near the upper limit of the Columbia River estuary, began as early as 3400 years ago.

At Whale Cove, a site on Oregon’s central coast, Bennett and Lyman (1991:244) identify the regular andrepeated accumulation of shell midden deposits between 3200 and 3000 years ago, as evidenced by the earliestsite deposits (WCI) consisting of “many layers or facies of unburnt shell, each overlain by a layer of burnt shell.”The WCI faunal assemblage suggests year-round use and, although the site does not appear to have beencontinuously occupied through the following millennia, the excavators see evidence for a trend toward increasingsedentism through time, including a possible house feature from the later occupations (WCII-WCIII)(Bennett andLyman 1991:276).

In their review of Northwest Coast archaeology, Ames and Maschner (1999:95; cf. Ames 1994) suggest that byabout 3000 years ago Pacific coast cultures took on the form and structure that “differed little, if at all, from thoseobserved and recorded by the first European visitors to the coast,” at least in terms of a general settlement pattern. Matson and Coupland (1995) similarly see the middle-to-late Holocene transition, from about 4000 to 3000 yearsago, as the beginning of what they have termed the Developed Northwest Coast Pattern (DNCP); that is, reflectingthe presence of indicators in the archaeological record for key historically-documented Northwest Coast culturalpatterns (the establishment of permanent residential centers, economy sustained by storage, the institution-alization of social stratification, etc.). It is clear, however, that these important economic and social shifts were notevents, but long processes that spanned millennia. At one end, Cannon and Yang (2006) argue that Namu, a sitelocated on the central coast of British Columbia, was a residential center dependent on a storage-based economyfor at least the last 7000 years. On the other hand, Matson and Coupland (1995) observe that, for example,archaeological houses are generally smaller than expected from the ethnographic pattern, suggesting that fullemergence of the DNCP significantly post-dates 2000 BP.

DISCUSSION

It is currently impossible to derive a clear sense of the nature of settlement and land-use strategies on theOregon coast for the early Holocene, given the paucity of the archeological record. This situation is only modestlyimproved for the middle Holocene; at least a dozen sites are known from this period, and several—notably BoilerBay, Tahkenitch Landing, Yaquina Head, and Tseriadun—provide at least some hints at subsistence and land usepatterns. Nonetheless, because the sample remains limited, it is most useful to consider the evidence in thecontext of broader Pacific Northwest cultural patterns.

If we examine interior zones adjacent to the Oregon coast, the earliest pithouses appear on the southernColumbia Plateau of Oregon by about 7000 years ago (Ames et al. 1981; Brauner 1976; Campbell 1985; Schalk etal. 1995). Sites of this time also show a significant increase in milling stones (Schalk et al. 1995), and generallyprovide evidence for more intensive harvesting of abundant resources, particularly salmon and roots (Ames 1991;Brauner 1976; Chatters 1995). In the Northern Great Basin, residential bases with houses and storage pits arepresent after about 6000 years ago (Jenkins 2004; Jenkins et al. 2004). In the Willamette Valley, camas

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1While the basic outlines of Lyman’s model have much merit, it is unfortunate that names assigned to variousadaptive strategies (pre-littoral/riverine/interior, early littoral, late littoral, maritime) imply evolutionary trendsand behaviors that may not accurately reflect Oregon coastal history; the result being that other Oregonresearchers have not embraced his model. For example, Lyman (1991:76-77) contends that no Oregon coastalgroups could be considered “maritime,” in spite of the overwhelming importance of marine fishes and seamammals. Further, in postulating a “pre-littoral” stage, he assumes that sophisticated use of coastal resourceswould have required a millennia-long process of adaptation by people with an inland terrestrial hunting heritage,an assumption many coastal researchers are not prepared to make.

processing ovens become common after about 6000 years ago (O’Neill et al. 2004; although earlier occurrenceshave been reported [Cheatham 1988]), and the presence of midden sites after ca. 3000 BP is a likely marker to theestablishment of “permanent” settlements (Bowden 1997; Roulette 1993).

Nonetheless, even after the regular appearance of substantial houses and food processing/storage facilities,the character of residential stability changes in important ways. Chatters (1989, 1995) notes that pithouse sites onthe southern Plateau dating before ca. 3500 BP often occur in isolation and appear to be occupied for a limitedperiod (possibly for a season to a few years) before being abandoned as local resources became exhausted. Hesuggests that food preservation and storage were probably practiced, but presumably did not constitute a primarycomponent of the subsistence routine, instead involving a strategy that continued to “move consumers to the foodsources” (cf. Binford’s 1980 “forager” archetype). After ca. 3500 BP, residential sites appear to be occupied on amore continuous basis, marking the establishment of “permanent” villages, those occupied year after year,generation after generation. Chatters (1989, 1995) envisions this change as more fully embracing a logisticalcollector strategy, involving delayed-return (food storage) and larger scale harvesting of seasonally abundant foods(especially salmon and upland roots); in short, a strategy designed to “move food to the consumers” (cf. Binford1980). Such a change did not necessarily require any real advancement in terms of storage technology. As Ames(1994) points out, air drying, smoking, and freezing of foods impose no special technological barriers for storagehaving great antiquity. Rather, these changes are certainly fueled by need, including growing populations thatwould increasingly limit a group’s options, such as reducing mobility options by restricting range size.Demographic models suggest a significantly accelerated regional population growth along the Pacific coast ca.4000-3000 BP (Ames 1991; Croes and Hackenberger 1988).

Aspects of this regional model have been previously considered for the Oregon coast. Based onpresence/absence of specific traits, Draper (1988) developed a classification of coastal sites in Coos and Currycounties (residential, field camps, task locations, caches, etc.) and postulated that an adaptation characterized bylow residential mobility within highly circumscribed territories prevailed by ca. 3000-2000 years ago. Lyman(1991; cf. Lyman and Ross 1988) discusses a similar model, and points to an increasingly specialized/logisticallifeway during the last two millennia. He notes evidence for increasing sedentism and food storage, but alsoargues that an increasingly logistical approach to resource management should be reflected in the composition oftool and faunal assemblages. Generalized economies should have less diverse and simpler tool sets, less diversityof site types, and greater evenness in faunal assemblages. By contrast, specialized economies should have morecomplex tools and more assemblage diversity, exhibit more specialized site types, and reflect some level ofresource specialization. Examining tool and faunal assemblages from Oregon coast sites, he finds evidence for theappearance of increasingly specialized tools, an increasing frequency of non-portable artifacts, and decreasingevenness in faunal assemblages, attributes that suggest a shift from generalized to more specialized economiesthrough time.1

The coastal sites discussed here can be considered in light of the models outlined above. At Boiler Bay,evidence suggests the site served as a residence for a relatively short period (four statistically identical dates frombottom to top of the midden) about 4400 years ago; the midden profile chronicles the decrease in clam species andan increase in barnacle harvesting, possibly suggesting that harvesting pressure had begun to impact theavailability of preferred meatier species. The site was not returned to following its abandonment. At Tseriadun, aprobable 5200 year old house floor is associated with a thin midden deposit, suggesting a relatively brief period ofresidence. The Tahkenitch Landing site appears to have supported sustained residential use from ca. 3500-3000years ago, but earlier dates from shell midden deposits (ca. 5900 and 4870 years ago) may reflect moreintermittent and short-term residential stays. The Area B shell midden at Yaquina Head, where an apparent firepit and associated scatter of bone and stone tools, fire-cracked rock, and bone appears to date between ca. 4600and 4000 years ago, requires a bit more speculation. This area may represent a similar temporary residence, while

THE MIDDLE HOLOCENE CULTURAL RECORD ON THE OREGON COAST 81

evidence for more sustained residential occupation is more clearly present after ca. 4000 BP. This evidence isentirely consistent with the pattern documented for the early portion of the middle Holocene in adjacent interiorzones, where early residential sites were used for limited periods, and later residential sites were maintained moreor less indefinitely (e.g., Chatters 1995).

It may be noteworthy, too, that the earliest fish weirs dated on the Oregon coast are between 3500 and 3000years old (Byram 2002). Such structures are potentially maintainable over long periods, and were an importantaccompaniment to permanent settlements historically. Could such structures, like other food processing andstorage facilities, be a reliable correlate to the establishment of permanent settlements? This question may remaina matter of speculation, given the unreliable preservation of early Oregon coastal sites.

Finally, we note an observation regarding middle Holocene residential sites that we’re not sure how to assess. At Boiler Bay, Rocky Creek Wayside, and Yaquina Head, the early residential occupations appear to have been setback from the edge of the coast, and likely within sheltered forest environments. It is possible that this patternstands out only because coastal erosion would likely have destroyed sites closer to the coast. It is also possible thatthe construction of large and maintainable fishing structures is a correlate of the storage economy that emergedtoward the end of the middle Holocene (e.g., Moss and Erlandson 1995b), and that proximity to critical resourcefeatures became a greater priority over time than shelter from the winds.

In sum, the middle Holocene archaeological record for the Oregon coast remains poor, and it is difficult tobuild a supportable picture of land use history using evidence from available coastal sites alone. However, ourexamination of the available evidence in light of better documented patterns from a broader regional contextprovides a reasonable context for making sense of the limited record.

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DUNES, HEADLANDS, ESTUARIES,AND RIVERS

CURRENT ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCHON THE OREGON COAST

Edited byGuy L. Tasa

and Brian L. O’Neill

2008Association of Oregon Archaeologists

Occasional Papers No. 8