Only Soil Deep: Geophysical Contributions to an Excavation at an Oneota Village in Northwest Iowa

Summary

Data recovery excavations were conducted during 2016-2017 at the Dixon site (13WD8) a large Oneota village located along the Little Sioux River in northwest Iowa. The University of Iowa Office of the State Archaeologist contracted Megan Stroh, archaeologist at the Sanford Museum and Planetarium, to conduct geophysical surveys before initiation of Phase III excavations. A Geoscan Research FM256 fluxgate gradiometer was employed at three different mitigation locations under both pre- and post-top soil stripped conditions. Maps created from the survey data revealed both historic and prehistoric anomalies, including numerous potential prehistoric features. Excavations showed that a high percent of anticipated prehistoric anomalies were positively identified prehistoric features. This research proved invaluable for the excavators in recognizing historic disturbance, anticipating potential prehistoric features, and estimating excavation time for those prehistoric features and the surrounding areas. This research provides an excellent example of the efficacy of gradiometer survey in the loess derived soils of northwestern Iowa.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

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

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 18724