Geoarchaeological Analysis and Landform Characterization of the Melrose Air Force Range, New Mexico (Draft)

Summary

The application of a geoarchaeological perspective in conjunction with known culture history, archaeological survey, remote sensed data, and a geographic information system has produced a workable model for predicting the likelihood of encountering archaeological sites, and the degree of site visibility, on the Melrose Air Force Range, New Mexico. The results of this project, though no substitute for on-the-ground archaeological survey, provides the managers of Melrose Air Force Range a means for planning expected time and money expenditures for a specific undertaking in a specific area. Such planning activities fit well within the scope and directive of Section 110 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. Additional benefits of this project include an increased knowledge of the archaeology and prehistory of the Range in particular and the Llano Estacado in general. Insights into this aspect of the past support the initial assumptions of the model. These data indicate that the area currently occupied by the Melrose Air Force Range was used prehistorically primarily for logistical purposes. One implication of this finding is that it can be expected that a majority of the sites discovered on the Range should be relatively ephemeral and reflect repeated extractive activities rather than semipermanent occupation. This expectation is in keeping with a more general model of a "tethered" settlement and subsistence strategy for mobile hunters and gatherers proposed by Shelley (1994) for the Llano Estacado.

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Melrose Air Force Range CRM Manager

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