Measuring Differences in Occupation Length at Short Term Habitation Sites along the base of the Colorado Front Range

Summary

Two stone circle sites, T-W-Diamond (5LR200) and Killdeer Canyon (5LR289), offer insight into occupation length and structure use intensity. The two are located in northern Colorado, in the hogback zone along the Front Range of the Southern Rocky Mountains. Elizabeth Ann Morris and the Colorado State University field school excavated the sites in 1971 and 1982. This paper summarizes my thesis research, examining how temporary stone circle habitation sites actually are. Stone circle sites can indicate differences in seasonal mobility strategies based on how intensive and how long each structure is occupied. This analysis examines use intensity and occupation length through ratios of local and non-local chipped stone, faunal procurement and processing strategies, and petrographic and radiocarbon analyses. Results from these analyses are used as a proxy to situate T-W-Diamond and Killdeer Canyon on an occupation length continuum. The findings are then compared to other regional residential sites in similar ecological settings.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage