The best laid plans: Assemblage formation and abandonment at two house sites in the Central Plains

Abstract

Systematic, fine-grained data recovery and spatial analysis facilitate interpretation of household assemblage formation and abandonment at two late prehistoric (AD 1000–1500) lodges in the Central Plains: the Scott and Phil sites in northeastern and north-central Kansas, respectively. This is based on patterns in lodge design, construction, storage, and domestic activities inferred from the distribution of burned wood, burned stone, daub, ceramics, chipped stone tools, and lithic debris. These reflect patterns of cultural material discard, displacement, clean-up, and gendered space utilization, as well as planned vs. unplanned abandonment that may compare to households of other sedentary, low level food producers in the Great Plains and other regions.

KEYWORDS:

• household activities
• formation processes
• house abandonment
• gendered space
• late prehistoric
• Great Plains

Acknowledgements

Investigation of the Phil site was funded by the Bureau of Reclamation, Nebraska-Kansas Area Office to mitigate its erosion by periodic reservoir inundation. Burns and McDonnell Engineers of Kansas City, Missouri was subcontracted for the field work. I am grateful to Dick Eckles, who informed us about the site, first noted by his father, Phil. Excavation of the Scott site was by many volunteers, most of whom were with the University of Kansas (KU), Kansas State University (KSU), Kansas Historical Society (KHS), Kansas Anthropological Association, Kansas City District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Archaeological Association of South Central Kansas. My thanks to Scott Demaranville, who found the site and informed me about it, and to the owners, John and David Evans, and the farmer, Henry Caenen, for permission to dig. My analysis of Scott site data was aided by students at KU and KSU, with partial support from a Historic Preservation Fund grant, National Park Service to KSU from KHS. Through these efforts, the Scott site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. Wood samples from both sites were identified by Regis Miller, ceramic analyses were by Lauren W. Ritterbush (Phil) and Sarah Trabert (Scott), and lithic analyses by Tobias Blake and Daniel Keating (Phil) and Mitchell Frye and Eric Skov (Scott). I am grateful for the comments and correctives of Rob Bozell and Steve Lensink for Plains Anthropologist, as well as those of Bill Billeck, its editor. Their input increased whatever value this contribution has; any shortcomings are mine. Finally, this article is dedicated to Al Johnson (1973), who recognized gender-based space in the Budenbender house, and to the memory of Ray Wood (1969), who long ago recognized the comparative value of two house sites in the central Plains.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Brad Logan

Brad Logan is Research Associate Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at Kansas State University. He received his PhD from the University of Kansas (1985) and his Master’s from the University of Nevada, Reno (1977). His field and research endeavors over a period of 45 years occurred in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, Colorado, Nevada, Wyoming, southern France, and lower Austria. He has been a member of the Plains Anthropological Society since 1979, and with his wife Lauren W. Ritterbush, a life member of the Plains Anthropological Society since 1999.