Archeological Survey of the Sulphur Spring Valley, Southeast Arizona

Author(s): Anne I. Woosley; Tim Price; D. Carol Kriebel

Year: 1987

Summary

The Willcox Playa Study grew from the realization that though surveys had been initiated in the Sulphur Spring Valley during the early days of Southwestern archeology, scarcely any subsequent work was undertaken, with the result that southeastern Arizona remains one of the least known regions of the prehistoric Southwest. We felt that a project would fill a gap in our knowledge of the area and would also contribute generally to Southwest archeology. The fact that the playa area is in the backyard, so to speak, of the Amerind Foundation made it doubly desirable since its proximity enables us to sustain a long range study much more easily than if we were faced with the logistics of a distant project area.

The greater playa region is ideal for archeological investigation because it contains the remains of a Pleistocene lake and known artifacts of Paleo-lndian origin plus materials belonging to all later prehistoric stages. This ensures that the long prehistoric sequence is, indeed, represented by archeological remains. The recoverable data base provides excellent opportunities to document the earliest occupations of the Southwest, to reconstruct a prehistoric framework of many thousands of years, and to understand cultural changes over the long term. There exist few localized areas that potentially encompass such chronological depth, a situation which makes for exciting research prospects. These were some of our thoughts when we embarked on the 1984 reconnaissance survey. Our preliminary five-week effort established in our minds the need for much more intensive survey. Hence, application for a grant-in-aid from the State Historic Preservation Office to support a more extensive survey in 1985.

A report incorporating results from both 1984 and 1985 was presented to the State Historic Preservation Office (Woosley and Kriebel, 1985). Though these two season produced a wealth of information, it was apparent that further work was required if the entire temporal range of prehistoric site remains was to be documented. As physical conditions deteriorated and the land became increasingly more arid, settlements shifted from one locality to another across the northern Sulphur Spring Valley. This displacement of prehistoric populations within the valley meant that a great deal of ground, much more than was first anticipated, had to be surveyed in order to record sites representing the whole of the prehistoric chronological sequence. Consequently, another proposal was submitted to the State Historic Preservation Officer in 1985 for an additional phase of archeological survey. This funding supported the 1986 field work which is summarized in the following chapters.

The immediate objective of the 1986 season was to continue our inventory of prehistoric and historic archeological resources in the Sulphur Spring Valley. We added to the previously initiated site inventory (1984 and 1985) by extending the study area to include additional significant environmental/topographic zones, including the Pat Hills, the foothills of the Dragoon Mountains, and the Turkey Creek drainage, thereby providing a more complete picture of the general prehistoric settlement pattern. Such survey will assist us in ultimately estimating site density and site locational selection processes in broad chronological terms of Archaic peoples, early ceramics communities, and later farm villages.

Cite this Record

Archeological Survey of the Sulphur Spring Valley, Southeast Arizona. Anne I. Woosley, Tim Price, D. Carol Kriebel. 1987 ( tDAR id: 448863) ; doi:10.48512/XCV8448863

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Keywords

Culture
Archaic Historic Hohokam PaleoIndian

Material
Automobile Ceramic Chipped Stone Fauna Fossilized Animal Bone Glass Ground Stone Human Remains Macrobotanical Metal Mineral Shell Stone Tools

Site Name
AZ CC:13:100 AZ CC:13:102 AZ CC:13:103 AZ CC:13:104 AZ CC:13:105 AZ CC:13:106 AZ CC:13:107 AZ CC:13:108 AZ CC:13:109 AZ CC:13:110 AZ CC:13:111 AZ CC:13:112 AZ CC:13:113 AZ CC:13:114 AZ CC:13:115 AZ CC:13:116 AZ CC:13:117 AZ CC:13:118 AZ CC:13:119 AZ CC:13:120 AZ CC:13:121 AZ CC:13:122 AZ CC:13:123 AZ CC:13:124 AZ CC:13:125 AZ CC:13:126 AZ CC : 13 :128 AZ CC : 13 :129 AZ CC:13:177 AZ CC:13:98 AZ CC:13:99 AZ CC:14:56 AZ CC:14:57 AZ CC:14:58 AZ CC:14:59 AZ CC:14:60 AZ CC:14:61 AZ CC:14:62 AZ CC:14:63 AZ CC:14:64 AZ CC:14:65 AZ CC:14:66 AZ CC:14:67 AZ CC:14:68 AZ CC:14:69 AZ CC:14:70 AZ CC:14:71 AZ CC:14:72 AZ CC:14:73 AZ CC:14:74 AZ CC:14:75 AZ CC:14:76 AZ FF:1:10 AZ FF:1:11 AZ FF:1:12 AZ FF:1:13 AZ FF:1:14 AZ FF:1:15 AZ FF:1:16 AZ FF:1:9 AZ FF:2:5 AZ FF:2:6 AZ FF:2:7 AZ FF:2:8 AZ FF:3:3 AZ FF:3:4 Double Adobe Site Ringo site Show More

Site Type
Archaeological Feature Bedrock Mortar Cistern Domestic Structure or Architectural Complex Domestic Structures Encampment Fence Hamlet / Village House Mound Mine Mine-Related Structures Non-Domestic Structures Pictograph Plaza Quarry Quicklime Smelter Resource Extraction / Production / Transportation Structure or Features Road Road, Trail, and Related Structures or Features Rock Alignment Rock Art Settlements

Spatial Coverage

min long: -110.209; min lat: 31.92 ; max long: -109.523; max lat: 32.69 ;

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Amerind Museum

Contributor(s): Michael R. Waters

Prepared By(s): The Amerind Foundation, Inc.

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Contact(s): Amerind Museum

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