French, Shawn and Julie A. Morgan (Glenn A. Black Laboratory ofArchaeology,
Indiana University)
AN EARLY WOODLAND CERAMIC CHRONOLOGY FOR THE LOWER OHIO VALLEY
Spurred by the discovery of two deeply buried, stratified Early Woodland sites
(12 Vg 338 and 12 Vg 339) in southwestern Indiana, research was undertaken to
compare the ceramic sequence represented at these sites with previously identified
sequences from the immediate region and those from the lower Ohio Valley in general.
In an attempt to compile a rather complete ceramic chronology for the Early Woodland
in southwestern Indiana and the adjacent areas of southeastern Illinois and northern
Kentucky, materials previously collected from similar sites in these areas were
examined. Once the regional sequence had been constructed, comparisons could be
made with more far-flung collections and sequences to assess its validity as well
as to provide relative dates and a temporal framework for the occurrence of the
various ceramic types. Specific areas examined outside of the lower Ohio Valley
included the central Ohio Valley, the Wabash Valley, the lower and central portions
of the Tennessee and Cumberland River Valleys, the lower and central Mississippi
Valley, and the lower Illinois River Valley. Ceramics from the lower Ohio Valley
tend to reflect both stylistic and technological similarities with ceramic traditions
from these surrounding regions.
Results of this research may indicate a fairly early presence of pottery in portions
of the lower Ohio Valley, namely southwestern Indiana and the extreme portions
of southeastern Illinois. These early ceramics, with their very thick vessel walls
and coarse temper, closely resemble the Marion and Fayette Thick varieties. These
ceramics probably can be dated within the temporal range of from 1000 to 600 B.C.
and have an expected date range of from 900 to 700 B.C. It also is probable that
this pottery represents the initial spread of ceramics into the lower Ohio Valley
from the east and is a variant of early Fayette Thick types. Thus far no large
collection of these ceramics has been made in southwest Indiana. In fact, from
the data available, it seems that ceramics of this type are rare and have a very
sparse and discontinuous distribution. Consequently, any understanding of this
material is greatly limited.
The second stage of ceramic development in the immediate region of southwest Indiana
is marked by refined grit-tempered(?) cord-marked ceramics; these ceramics are
morphologically similar to the earlier types and varieties and include flat-bottom
conoidal jars and some "flower pot" type vessels. Some researchers have pointed
out that the tempering agent may in fact be grog with grit inclusions, which would
make it difficult to differentiate the primary temper type within these ceramics.
In the lower Ohio Valley these ceramics have been referred to as Sugar Hill Cord-Marked,
and from various published descriptions it can be argued that this type may include
both the Marion variant as well as the later refined type. Surface decorations
have been reported for and do occur on sherds from the lower Ohio Valley, but
these features have been ignored in most analyses and publications. Zoned punctated
and pinched decorations occur as the main decorative elements on these vessels,
and their occurrence is limited to narrow bands beneath the rim. Similar decorations
can be seen on contemporary ceramics in adjacent areas to the east, south, west,
and northwest of the lower Ohio Valley. Radiocarbon dates for these ceramics are
few, ranging between 700 and 500 B.C., with most dates clustering around 600 B.C.
These ceramics may persist longer in southern Indiana due to the seemingly late
introduction of fabric-marked pottery into this area.
At approximately 600 B.C., fabric-marked pottery was introduced into the lower
Ohio Valley via the Tennessee and Cumberland River Valleys. These ceramics seem
to be contemporaneous with the Sugar Hill series for a short period of time, at
least until the development of what has been referred to as Crab Orchard Cord-Marked.
Informally it has been argued that this type represents a refinement in temper
particle size, wall thickness, and vessel shape of the Sugar Hill type, but the
existence of this later Crab Orchard Cord-Marked variety is hard to establish
because of tremendous overlap and confusion between both types. The question remains
whether or not these two ceramic types represent distinct types or if they represent
an arbitrary division of a temporal continuum that does not comprise a major technological
change. It is more than likely that these "types" represent stages in a continuum
of technological refinement of the one ceramic type.
These ceramic types, however, become less common in the archaeological record
after 500 B.C. due to the increased production of fabric-marked pottery. This
broad ceramic type parallels the cord-marked varieties in temper as well as in
its continuing refinement, but seems to replace the cord-marked varieties in increasing
numbers through time. The exact nature of this replacement is not completely understood,
but probably represents an advance in the method of producing the fabricmarked
variety. Whatever the reason for this sudden "popularity," it is apparent that
fabric-marked vessels become more common throughout the latter end of this period.
Fabric-marked ceramics do not appear in southern Indiana until very late in their
development. An examination of collections from Early Woodland sites in southwestern
Indiana revealed that the majority, if not all, of the fabric-marked ceramics
are grog-tempered. Grog- tempering of these ceramics appears somewhat late in
its sequence of development in southern Illinois, which may account for its late
appearance in southwestern Indiana. It may also be the case that grogtempering
was prevalent in this area, and spread to the lower portions of the Ohio Valley
from here. Dates for the occurrence of the grogtempered, fabric-marked ceramics
are virtually absent, leaving only an educated guess of about 350 to 250 B.C.
for its occurrence in southwestern Indiana.
At about 200 B.C., Havana and Hopewellian decorative elements appear on the ceramics
and serve to mark the beginning of the Middle Woodland period in parts of the
lower Ohio Valley, including southwestern Indiana and adjacent regions. Sites
within the northern periphery of the lower Ohio Valley region, including southwestern
Indiana, tend to show Havana influence much earlier than sites located in the
extreme portions of southern Illinois and adjacent areas in the southern periphery.
After the incorporation of these groups into the Hopewellian sphere, many technological,
social, and economic changes occur which serve to separate them from their Early
Woodland ancestors.
The most important conclusion reached from this research is the fact that the
lower Ohio Valley has a very lengthy and complex history of ceramic development.
The previously accepted Crab Orchard tradition, which has incorporated both the
Early and Middle Woodland periods, when examined closely, can be subdivided both
temporally and spatially. Not only are various stages of the ceramic development
in the lower Ohio Valley recognizable throughout time, but various regional differences
are also apparent. These differences emphasized here represent only differences
in ceramic assemblages and do not attempt to address the problem of regional and
temporal variation in social, economic, and subsistence trends of the lower Ohio
Valley Early Woodland peoples. [return to 1987 abstracts menu][continue to next]