Lithic technology and subsistence change in the thirteenth through seventeenth centuries: An example from the Zimmerman/Grand Village of the Kaskaskia Site in the Upper Illinois River Valley

This dissertation is a comparative analysis of Lithic technology between the prehistoric to historic time periods represented at the Zimmerman site (11-Ls-13), a major late prehistoric and historic site in the Upper Illinois River Valley. Specifically, the study is a focus on how Lithic technology shifts are related to subsistence activities and changing economic environments as the occupants of the site began to hunt bison after A.D. 1450.; A technology is the balancing mechanism between economic benefits and energy expenditure. In other words, changes in technology are largely a reflection of changes in other aspects of culture, including population densities, mobility, and settlement systems. The technological change is an adaptive response to changes in energy demands in non-technological aspects of human adaptation to the environment.; Tool making behaviors are strongly influenced by many factors, such as the distribution of raw material, food sources, and settlement location. Therefore, specific styles and techniques of tools found at archaeological sites represent a specific solution to the problems of adapting to local environments. But factors other than gross environmental variables may also condition how and why particular technologies are used.; At the Zimmerman site floral and faunal data show change in subsistence and mobility from Heally phase agriculture, deer hunting and fishing to Danner bison hunting and agriculture. The Danner population brought a new ceramic tradition and way of life. However, lithic data show only subtle changes in raw material use. These changes are seen in both debitage and tools.