Investigations at Milagro, A Late Preceramic Site in the Eastern Tucson Basin
Author(s): Bruce B. Huckell; Lisa W. Huckell; Suzanne K. Fish
Year: 1995
Summary
This report presents the results of archaeological excavations undertaken as part of a land exchange between Pima County and Magna Investment and Development, Ltd. A portion of this right-of-way included a prehistoric archaeological site known as Milagro (AZ BB:10:46), parts of which had been investigated previously. Pima County indicated that prior to completion of the land exchange, archaeological investigations must be performed along the route of a proposed sewer line, and the cutting of a trench for a noise barrier wall must be monitored. The results of investigations along the sewer line are reported herein.
Previous investigations at Milagro are reviewed, and it is shown that the site was an important late preceramic residential locality. The 18 features discovered and excavated in 1993 are described—this total includes 10 found along an exploratory backhoe trench and an additional eight that were exposed when the larger, bevel topped sewer trench was cut. These features included 12 bell-shaped pits; two straight-sided, flat-bottomed pits; a rock-filled pit; and three small, basin-shaped pits. The flaked stone, ground stone, and ceramic artifacts recovered from the features are described and compared to those found at the site previously.
Also presented are the results of an analysis of soil flotation samples taken from the features. In addition to a wide range of wild plant remains, carbonized maize cob fragments occurred in all of the analyzed samples. Radiocarbon dates obtained from small samples of this maize place it among the oldest yet found in the southwestern United States.
Analysis of pollen samples is also reported; the results suggest that pollen preservation is poor and probably biased. Issues of site organization, storage, the appearance of agriculture, and the importance of agriculture as reflected by Milagro and other sites in the Southwest are considered in a concluding discussion. In addition, an appendix describing the results of a one-week volunteer excavation at the site in March of 1994 is included.
Cite this Record
Investigations at Milagro, A Late Preceramic Site in the Eastern Tucson Basin, 5. Bruce B. Huckell, Lisa W. Huckell, Suzanne K. Fish. 1995 ( tDAR id: 448428) ; doi:10.48512/XCV8448428
This Resource is Part of the Following Collections
Keywords
Material
Ceramic
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Charcoal
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Chipped Stone
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Dating Sample
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Fauna
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Fire Cracked Rock
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Ground Stone
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Macrobotanical
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Mano
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metate
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Pollen
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Shell
Site Name
AZ BB:10:46
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Milagro Site
Site Type
Pit
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Pit House / Earth Lodge
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Storage Pit
Investigation Types
Data Recovery / Excavation
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Historic Background Research
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Records Search / Inventory Checking
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Site Evaluation / Testing
General
Paleoethnobotanical Analysis
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Radiocarbon Dating
Geographic Keywords
Arizona (State / Territory)
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Tanque Verde
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Tucson, AZ
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Tucson Basin
Temporal Keywords
Preceramic period
Spatial Coverage
min long: -110.76; min lat: 32.226 ; max long: -110.738; max lat: 32.274 ;
Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): Desert Archaeology, Inc.
Lab Director(s): Lisa Wintringham
Project Director(s): Lisa Huckell; James Holmlund
Prepared By(s): Desert Archaeology, Inc.
Submitted To(s): Magna Investment and Development
File Information
| Name | Size | Creation Date | Date Uploaded | Access | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| tr94-5_final_OCR_PDFA_Redacted.pdf | 64.28mb | Nov 20, 2020 3:54:19 PM | Public | ||
| This file is the redacted version of the resource. | |||||
| tr94-5_final_OCR_PDFA.pdf | 53.98mb | Feb 1, 1995 | Apr 9, 2019 11:51:45 AM | Confidential | |
| This file is the unredacted version of the resource. | |||||
Accessing Restricted Files
At least one of the files for this resource is restricted from public view. For more information regarding access to these files, please reference the contact information below
Contact(s): Desert Archaeology, Inc.