The organization of early Paleoindian economies in the western Great Lakes (Illinois, Wisconsin)

This dissertation establishes a regional framework of lithic resource use, technological organization, and settlement and mobility systems to examine early Paleoindian adaptations within the upper Midwest. Located at the margins of several contrasting environmental zones and proposed fluted point traditions, the western Great Lakes is a critical region for evaluating existing models of early Paleoindian adaptation. Most of the Clovis technology documented within Illinois and Wisconsin shows affinity to the Gainey Complex, the initial expression of Clovis in the Great Lakes region. The Clovis/Gainey complex remains undated by radiocarbon assay in the region, but limited evidence suggests a range of 10-11,000 RCYBP, with occupations occurring in environmental conditions associated with rapid biotic reorganization. Examination of a dataset consisting of archival information, over 300 previously undocumented fluted projectile points, and the analysis of 5 Clovis-aged stone tool assemblages from across Illinois and Wisconsin, revealed strong patterning in the archaeological record related to early Paleoindian settlement and mobility adaptations. Several patterns in the regional record are noteworthy. First, lithic raw materials are routinely transported 200-400 km, reflecting seasonally repeated north-south movements. Second, regional geography and ecology strongly influenced settlement and mobility patterns. Third, environmental settings and lithic assemblage composition indicate an emphasis on the coordinated hunting of large mammals, including ambush of migratory herds (e.g., caribou) across deglaciated landscapes, and the targeting of isolated refugium patches of Late Pleistocene megafauna (e.g., mastodon and mammoth) particularly around the present day American Bottom region. Fourth, overlaps in lithic exploitation systems identify areas that have a high potential for social interaction (e.g., the upper Illinois River). Fifth, GIS based analysis revealed that the distribution of early Paleoindian artifacts is subject to multiple biases, particularly modern population density, a finding that has larger implications for fluted point distributional studies seeking to model early Paleoindian landuse and colonization models. While absence of a secure radiocarbon chronology and of sites containing preserved subsistence evidence remains a major deficiency, development of this regional synthesis allows for preliminary interpretations concerning questions about the economic, technological, and social organization of early Paleoindian foragers of Illinois and Wisconsin.