In 1986, researchers from Oregon State University, led by Dr. David Brauner, came to the small Catholic community of St. Paul, Oregon as part of ongoing research on the French-Canadian inhabitants of the Willamette Valley between 1829 and the mid-1860s. They were searching for the remains of the first Catholic...
The cultural influence of volcanic eruptions has been emphasized in the archaeological literature. However, the larger effects that Mount St. Helens volcanic eruptions had upon prehistoric populations in the Pacific
Northwest is not understood. This thesis asks questions of the archaeological and paleoenvironmental record of the Pacific Northwest to assess...
The portion of the Oregon coast extending from Cape Blanco south into California has long been recognized as a distinct physiographic region, with probable ramifications for prehistoric subsistence and settlement patterns. Several researchers have proposed models outlining a greater reliance upon marine/littoral resources among groups within this region, while more...
Ranching and lumbering were two of the primary economic practices in a
small rural study area south of Philomath Oregon (in Benton County), from
first Euro-American settlement through 1930. Ranching was common but
lumbering was restricted by geographical and market transportation
problems until after 1900. Catalysts for change came in...
Approximately 5,500 years ago a discreet period of
wetter and cooler environmental conditions prevailed
across the southern Columbia Plateau. This period was
marked by the first prominent episodes of erosion to occur
along the lower Snake River following the height of the
Altithermal and eruption of Mt. Mazama during the...
Archaeological investigations can reveal persistent traditions of ethnic
groups. Hawaiians were employed in the fur trade of the Columbia River from
1810 through 1850. The Hudson's Bay Company employed them at Ft.
Vancouver, Washington from 1825 through the end of this period. Data from
the excavations of the servant's village...
This research focuses on events surrounding the activities of Battery
Freeman, a coastal defense facility constructed within the earthworks of "old" Fort
Stevens near Astoria, OR, in 1900 and destroyed in 1939. Archival data are used
in conjunction with nearly 5,000 artifacts that were recovered from archaeological
excavations in 1989...
This thesis was to develop a bone artifact typology for the Oregon coast. This typology was used to test the hypothesis that different geographical regions of the Oregon coast would have different artifact assemblages associated with them. These regions, identified by geologist from landform changes, have been defined as: region...
The rugged Cascade Range of central Oregon has been long regarded as an enigmatic, archaeological puzzle in the study of the Pacific Northwest's ancient past. While ethnographic and archaeological research in the adjacent northern Great Basin, Columbia Plateau and Willamette Valley have revealed a rich and ancient tapestry of Native...
Bone Cave is located in the High Lava Plains of Central Oregon, just east of Bend. Excavations were conducted at the site to examine the extent of looter disturbance, and to address research questions focused on prehistoric settlement and subsistence. In the excavation of more than 10 m3 of sediment...
The Battle of Big Bend was the last significant battle of the Rogue River Indian
Wars. The battle occurred 27-28 May 1856 in the Oregon Territory. The location of
the battle was along the Rogue River at a place known as the Big Bend, approximately
eight miles up river from...
The Quartz Mountain Obsidian Quarry is located in the Southeast corner of the
Bend Fort Rock Ranger District in central Oregon, approximately forty-five miles
southeast of Bend, Oregon.
The research of the Quartz Mountain Obsidian Quarry began with a literature
search of other quarry sites in the area and the...
The archaeological resources contained in Corvallis Riverfront
Commemorative Park (RCP) have a great potential to add to the historical
record of the warehouse district of the original town of Marysville (Corvallis).
The City of Corvallis' proposed Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) project and
proposed changes to Riverfront Commemorative Park threaten to...
Hair is an important piece of evidence in forensic and archaeological investigations. Analysis of the morphological features of hair has been reported since at least the early 1800's. However, many questions still remain unanswered such as, how can human groups (or local populations) be analyzed and possibly distinguished from each...