A View from the Mountains: A Test of a Predictive Model in the Southern Wind River Range, Wyoming

Summary

This paper details the results of archaeological survey in the Wind River Range, Wyoming between elevations of 9,000 and 11,000 ft. The purpose of this survey was to test a predictive model of a specific site type (sites referred to as villages) created by Stirn (2014) and tested by Stirn in a different region of the same mountain range. Although the methods of creating the predictive model were not altered, the survey methods were significantly altered. Random survey blocks were created within the project area to better sample the landscape for archaeological sites. The use of GPS track logs allowed for quantification of survey intensity and highlighted areas that were not intensely surveyed. The distribution of sites and the quantified surveyed area were compared in order to rule out survey bias as a factor influencing the discovered distribution of sites. The model was not successful in discovering alpine village sites and the distribution of the newly discovered sites can be explained by survey bias. Comparison of lithic assemblages including tools and debitage indicate that the newly discovered sites and previously discovered village locations have differences in tool diversity and debitage:tool ratios, but contain similar attributes of debitage assemblages.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 18689