Unraveling the Site Formation Process at Finch (47JE0902): A Multicomponent Habitation in Southeastern Wisconsin

Summary

The Finch site is a multicomponent open-air habitation located in southeastern Wisconsin. Archaeological excavations conducted at the site yielded numerous artifacts and cultural features indicating recurrent and/or continuous occupation (or use) spanning twelve thousand years, from the Early Paleoindian through Late Woodland periods. The site is situated on the rim and side slopes of a kettle basin formed in matrix-supported glacial till overlying outwash and glaciolacustrine deposits. The till was deposited about 16,000 years ago, yet the cultural deposits, including burned-rock features, typically occur 15-45 cm below the surface, and some are as deep as 70 cm below surface. Intra-site spatial analysis of temporally diagnostic artifacts has demonstrated significant horizontal patterning across the site as well as some stratification in certain areas of the site. The results of the geoarchaeological investigation, which included detailed sedimentological and micromorphological analyses, indicate that burial of artifacts and features on the rim of the kettle basin occurred through pedoturbation and biomantle formation (soil up-building), respectively. These site formation processes also account for the burial of cultural deposits on the side slopes of the basin, but it is likely that colluvial processes contributed to the temporally stratified trends in the archaeological record on the slopes.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Archaeology in Context: The Influence of the Geoarchaeological Career of Paul Goldberg   •
• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage