Research

One of the most important debates in American archaeology centers around the first people to enter the Americas.

Some archaeologists believe that Clovis represents the founding population of the New World.  These researchers see a group of hunters migrating from Siberia sometime before 12,000 ¹⁴C yr B.P., crossing the Bering Land Bridge (the dry land connection between Siberia and Alaska), and entering the New World through an ice free corridor between the two large ice sheets that covered Canada at the very end of the Pleistocene.  These early people brought with them a sophisticated late Paleolithic tool kit and technology and somewhere along the migration the characteristic Clovis point developed.  Proponents of this "Clovis-First" model point out that there are no sites with indisputable artifacts that are firmly dated to before 11,500 ¹⁴C yr B.P., and that the sudden appearance of the Clovis complex across North America between 11,500 and 10,900 ¹⁴C yr B.P. signals the rapid spread of a colonizing population.

An equal number of archaeologists support the competing "Pre-Clovis" model arguing that humans colonized the Americas long before 11,500 ¹⁴C yr B.P., and claim that "Clovis-First" supporters have been overly critical of early sites in the Americas.   Further, they point out that by 10,500 ¹⁴C yr B.P., just several centuries after Clovis times, the Americas had become filled with numerous diverse cultures, too many to be explained by such a short chronology. 

The antiquity of the first Americans, where they came from, and how they got to the New World remains unresolved.

The North Star Archaeological Research Program

The North Star Archaeological Research Program is a research program focused on understanding the earliest inhabitants of the Americas.  The objective of the North Star Program is to investigate Clovis and potential pre-Clovis archaeological sites in the New World.  The emphasis of this program is on field research–archaeological and geoarchaeological investigations.  Projects are funded primarily from earnings from a permanent endowment created at Texas A&M University by Joe and Ruth Cramer in 2002.  Their vision and generosity has contributed substantially to our knowledge of the first Americans.  Additional funding for research projects is provided by private donations, grants, and contracts.  Michael Waters is the Executive Director of the North Star Archaeological Research Program.

Current Projects            (top)

Gault Clovis site, Texas

The Gault site, Texas contains the greatest density of buried Clovis artifacts in North America.  Geoarchaeological investigations at Gault defined a complex stratigraphy of channel, bar, and floodplain sediments and buried paleosols.  At the base of the sequence, Clovis artifacts occur in primary contexts within pond clays and in overlying floodplain deposits.  A weak soil caps the Clovis horizons.  Clovis artifacts include fluted projectile points, bifaces in all stages of reduction, blade cores, blades, core tablets, end scrapers, and other tools and debitage.  Clovis artifacts are separated from Folsom and later Paleoindian horizons by an erosional unconformity.  Archaic artifacts, including engraved stones, occur in overlying floodplain deposits. 

Excavations in 2000 and 2001 by Texas A&M University (Michael Waters, Harry Shafer, and David Carlson) recovered over 74,000 pieces of debitage and over 1300 artifacts, mostly from the Clovis horizons.  Analyses have focused on the Clovis material and include studies of the biface and blade technologies, debitage and expedient tools, and use-wear analysis of the end scrapers and blades.  In addition, the faunal material from the excavations have been analyzed, a micromorphological analysis of the sediments has been completed, and a site formation study is underway.  These analyses are nearing completion. 

Hueyatlaco, Mexico

Several potential pre-Clovis localities were found in the 1960s around the edge of the Valsequillo Reservoir, Mexico.  One of these localities is the site of Hueyatlaco.  This site was excavated by Cynthia Irwin-Williams in 1962, 1964, and 1966.  At this site, numerous unifacial flake tools were found with extinct fauna.  Questions about the stratigraphy, location of the artifacts, and dating have plague this site.  In 2003, a trip was made to the Smithsonian Archives in Maryland and the files of Cynthia Irwin-Williams were examined.  Numerous maps and files were photocopied and this material was used to reconstruct the excavations conducted at the site in 1962, 1964, and 1966.  Field investigations were undertaken during May and June of 2004 at Hueyatlaco.  Three trenches were excavated at the site in order to examine and evaluate the stratigraphy at Hueyatlaco.  We were able to confirm that the Hueyatlaco Ash did indeed overlie what was reported to be the unifacial artifact-bearing deposits (Bed I).  An unconformity separated the alluvium containing the bifacial material (Bed E and C).  Samples of the Hueyatlaco Ash and other units are being dated by the Ar-Ar and luminescence techniques.  These dates will resolve once and for all the age of this important site. This research is being done in collaboration with Joaquin Arroyo-Cabrales (INAH), Patricia Ochoa-Castillo (National Museum of Anthropology), and Mario Perez-Campa (INAH).  

Mud Lake, Wisconsin

Near Mud Lake, Wisconsin (Kenosha County), the fore limb and toe bones of a mammoth were recovered in the 1930s and these bones showed extensive evidence of butchering.  Later radiocarbon dating by Dan Joyce (Curator of Archaeology, Kenosha Public Museum) showed that the bones were 13,500 ¹⁴C yr B.P.  In partnership with Dan Joyce, we conducted an extensive hand coring operation in 2004 that resulted in the definition of the site stratigraphy and four target areas where the mammoth bones could have originally come from based on historical accounts.  In 2004 and 2005 we extensively tested all four areas.  These tests failed to find any additional traces of the mammoth.  Radiocarbon dates on wood obtained from the trenches confirms that we were in the correct location and examining sediments of the correct age in our search for the Mud Lake Mammoth.   The Mud Lake mammoth bones will be brought to Texas A&M University for more in-depth study in 2006.  This will result in a thorough documentation of the bones collected in 1935 and the evidence for human involvement at the site.

Clovis Dating Project

Examination of the radiocarbon dates associated with Clovis sites across North America shows that many of these sites are poorly dated or that the dates were run over 30 years ago using outdated techniques that yielded very large standard deviations.  With the use of new techniques and technologies, the poorly dated Clovis sites were re-dated.  New radiocarbon ages were obtained from the following sites:  Domebo (Oklahoma), Lange/Ferguson (North Dakota), Colby (Wyoming), Dent (Colorado), Sheaman (Wyoming), and Sloth Hole (Florida).  In addition, specimens from Charlie Lake Cave in Canada were also dated.  These ages will provide new insights into the age and movement of Clovis. 

Late Paleoindian Biface Cache, Texas

The discovery of over 20 large Paleoindian bifaces was brought to our attention by the owner of a ranch in northern Harris County, Texas.  These bifaces (some up to 16 inches in length) were found together and likely represent an intentional cache.  The flaking patterns on the bifaces do not resemble Clovis, but look more like late Paleoindian.  In 2005 a GPR survey of the area was undertaken and the area around the edge of the sand pit from where the bifaces originated was excavated.  No additional bifaces were found, but several other artifacts were recovered.  Based on this information and other lines of evidence we were able to determine the geological position of the bifaces.  Luminescence samples were collected to determine the age of the sediments containing the artifacts.  Analysis of the artifacts is underway.

Manis Mastodon, Washington

At this site, an antler point was embedded into a mastodon rib that was dated to about 12,000 ¹⁴C yr B.P.  Multiple samples were dated from the Manis Mastodon site in Washington.  These dates confirmed the previously reported age.  We have taken a CT scan of the antler point embedded in the rib.  This scan will be used in the spring semester of 2006 to create a complete three-dimensional model of the specimen and allow us to excavate the point with the aid of the computer, and print a replica of the projectile.  This research is being done in collaboration with Carl Gustafson (Washington State University).   

Topper site, South Carolina

The Topper site is a proposed Pre-Clovis locality that is being excavated under the direction of Dr. Al Goodyear (South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology).    Michael Waters in conjunction with Steve Forman (University of Illinois, Chicago), Tom Stafford (Stafford Research Laboratories), and John Foss (University of Tennessee) have been conducting geoarchaeological investigations of the site since 1999.  This geoarchaeological fieldwork was completed at the Topper site in 2004.  A final report on the geology of the site is nearing completion.  While the geological context and age of the sediments that contain the reported Pre-Clovis artifacts are secure, questions remain about the origin of the reported artifacts.  The Topper assemblage may be the result of human manufacture or may also be the result of natural thermal spalling.  To investigate this question, the Center’s Digital Imaging Lab conducted a preliminary microscopic use-wear study on several specimens provided by Goodyear in 2003 from the pre-Clovis sediments.  The results are equivocal.  Chert from this area weathers rather quickly and the surface of these pieces is badly degraded.  It appears as a thick white patina making such a study difficult at best.  For example, the true degree of edge rounding is difficult to ascertain because the surface degradation affects the appearance of edges.  In addition, linear indicators and polish that are visible lie on the weathered surface and one would suppose that ancient people would have used these pieces for tools before such weathering occurred.

Past Projects            (top)

Toloquilla Quarry (Footprint) Locality, Mexico

In 2005, a research team in England announced the discovery of hundreds of human footprints in a stone quarry south of Puebla, Mexico.  These human footprints were within a volcanic tuff known as the Xalnene.  The English team reported that the footprints were over 40,000 years old.  The Toloquilla Quarry is very close to the site of Hueyatlaco.  While working at Hueyatlaco, several visits were made to the Toloquilla Quarry to examine the reported footprints and obtain samples for dating.  Samples of the Xalnene Tuff were collected and taken to the Berkeley Geochronology Center for Argon-Argon and Paleomagnetic dating.  These results showed that the rock in which the reported footprints occurred was 1.3 million years old.  The marks on the floor of the quarry, that have been interpreted as human footprints by the English team, are likely marks made during the quarrying of the stone for building material.  This research was done in collaboration with Paul Renne, Joshua Feinberg, and Kim Knight (Berkeley Geochronology Center); and Joaquin Arroyo-Cabrales (INAH), Patricia Ochoa-Castillo (National Museum of Anthropology), and Mario Perez-Campa (INAH).  The results of our findings have been published in the journal Nature (link to Nature article).

Brazoria Woman, Texas

In Brazoria County, Texas a human skeleton was found at a site designated BZT-1.  Preliminary radiocarbon dates suggested that these remains were around 10,700 years old.  This would make the Brazoria skeleton one of the oldest skeletons found in North America.  Archaeological and geoarchaeological investigations were undertaken at BZT-1 in 2003.  The research team successfully removed the human skeleton and recorded the geology of the site.  In 2004, the skeleton was analyzed.  The remains are those of a young adult female that was intentionally buried face-down with hands crossed in the front in an extended position.  Cause of death was indeterminate.  Careful analysis of the previous radiocarbon dates obtained from the bone and teeth of this skeleton showed that they were on very small carbon samples from non-collagenous fractions.  Thus, the late Pleistocene radiocarbon ages  previously reported are not valid.  Additional bone samples yielded insufficient carbon for a radiocarbon age.  A sample of marine shell in close proximity to the skeleton yielded an age of 5600 ¹⁴C yr B.P.  A similar age was obtained from a shell midden in the same stratigraphic position, about 100 m from the skeleton.  Thus, the Brazoria Woman fossil is not late Pleistocene, but instead is middle Holocene in age.