Utah Statewide Archaeological Society Newsletter, Volume 6, Number 4, December 1960

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A Newsletter

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Vol. 6, No.4 :'1. . -:' ::.' ....

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: ::~Ar-l "STATE HISTQR1CA:l SO¢I'f:TY ''i .~ ,. ,' 603 EAST SOUTH TEMPLE . SALT LAKE CITYA JJJAbi

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AR6HiEOLOGI~AL ~~CIETY.

UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY is published quarterly by the ' UTAH ' STATE-«TiDE .' Subscription is included in membership. Membership in the 's ociety is available from the secretary-treasurer at $2.00 per year. Correspondence concerning uhe activities of the society should be directed to the president. All manuscripts and news items should be sent to the editor: Lloyd Pierson, Arches National Monument, Moab, Utwh.


UTAH STATEVJIDE ARCHPEOLOGICAL SOCIETY President: Merrill Peterson, 651 Canyon Road, Logan, Utah Vice President: John 1 Cross, 860 South lOth East, Orem, Utah Secretary-Treasurer: Marian Pierson, Box 98, Moab, Utah Advisor: Dr. Jesse D. Jennings, University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

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EDITORS NOTES Looking over the news items which will appear below, it would seem that the USAS has begun to fun'ction in many different ways and with increasing activity in all sections of the state. This is a healthy sign and one that I hope will continue to thrive. Some 25!' peoprt from the Ogden and Logan Chapters of the USAS participated in the excavations on the Bear River near Brigham City on the 22nd and 23d of October. The F.K. Hassells of Ogden, your USAS President Merrill Peterson, and David Pendergast of the University of Utah's Museum of Anthropology provided the leadership and guidance with Dave lending such professional advice and lessons in field techniques as he'was able. From all reports the Bear River dig was extremely interesting for it appeared to be an open Promontory culture site. Quite a bit of material culture was obtained and most of it appears to be very Plains-like in appear~nce. Closest and the most similar material appears in the Co1orado-Kansa~-Nebraska area of the plains. Further excavations are planned for the site has a great deal of importance to Utah archaeology and will undoubtedly aid greatly in understanding population movements in prehistoric Utah. The Moab Chapter has been busy too with archaeological field work of one s9rt or another. On the weekend of Oct. 15 - 17 members assiste,d Dave Pendergast in testing several caves on Mill Creek. The caves proved either to have been previously excavated of to have contained no material culture to any great extent. The caves will beflood~d in future years if the Plainfield Reservoir, part of the Upper Colorado Storage Project, is ever begun. Dave is preparing a short report on the survey for a future issue of UTAH ARCHAEOLOGY. In preparation for the anticipated PlaL~fi eld salvage excavations, an excavation was undertaken by Points and Pebbles members at Lymans Cave near Monticello, Utah the weekend of Sept. 17. Some 12 members of the club were given practical instruction in archaeological field techniques on this dig. Permission to excavate was given by the owner. of the¡ Cave to a membgrdfthe club and the recovered material 'will eventually rest in a county museum to be established in Monticello. Various interested members who participated in the dig will write up sections of the report dealing with the cave excavations. Preliminary study of the material is Page, 2.


now underw~ and indications are that more work in the cave m~ be desirable. At present it appears to have been a two occupation affair with a 'Fremont-like culture., in ,the lower layers ' and ' '.9. , post-1300 A.D. occupation of p:r.qp'~p~ e'Pueb10 affiliation in the Q, upper layers. Unfortunately; tire cave . haiff,b een wet at one time " so perishable material is lack~ng,):lUt stone material 'has been , plentiful as well .,a s bone materi-al; 1?o., some. interesting information should befhrthcom, ~rig aft,er.study r.'''' . . . . . :: · ~ ".. -,- . "

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Lastly the . Moab 'gro'up~e~ent1y 'has been"engaged in ,salv.aging a site 'tm'CoVer~d ;iri, ' b4;t~pzingh~:f,'.f ;th~ top'" of a 'sm'a ll .'hUl fd-r a residen ce,lil:Ow obcupIed by Mr. Ed Drake. Unfortunately we g~:t there after the . bull.d ozer work -was done but the grQ.up hopes ' 'to sal \ra·g~ ,en.o'~g'ti" iAf9riri~tion -V tsll what may have been, bulldozed off whil '~ memo r 'i a'i?, , are still fresh and, before, anything else happens : there'~ ?:::$Q ',f~;r "it:, ~eeins to be an early Fremont agricultural site w~~h'.J.. O~~ , ·Q{·~c.b~pp~d stone,,- one burial, corrugated pott~ry, 'but no pamtE!d :wares., ' Again ,the interested members hope td write "'lip ' :tfi'e:-ir ~l'indiilgs anCi the things found will be deposited":i:n the .Moab Museum study collections~

a.f(~int.erest to iJ~1th,~arch~~Old'gists ,is ;th~:, ~nnouncement of' -'the· : 'revival ' b£ _':the~, Pl"1iH.~ Ant~opo19gist,.i' a q.uartierly journai" ae~oted to any aspect I.of Pl·a ins antPtPRol,ogy'. Subscription is $2.00' ~er year and available from: James B. Shaeffer, Editor, Researcq I~s~i~~~~~ !!~iy~rsity ,,9 t Oktr.hoIjla; Norman~ ~klah~in~~ ',Th~s Jo~rnal iS l 0T , ~terest t6 Utah because of the p1a~ns affi1~at~ons ' of many o{!.dur'':' his~6r~~13 ~'nd proto!"h~storic peoples. I am cet-taw', th~~ . USAS members :-:wiii' findt. J muqb :,of interest in this pupi':j.cation :ror , ... .!.-,," .1 '. • - • .' ~~t~u,r~ " ~~~ , pr.~fess ~g:qAA~, that will repay .many tiine~ ' over ~~e. ',,' sma:I:l·"subSdrl...pt~on pr.l.ce.. " ' . .J~ !. ; . .. 'i" ~ . . &

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While we are on the subject of $2.00 bills we should like to , remind you that you,r:, 19(>1 dues need ~·tb 'be ·pa'1d. A"'blank iis ," ..; . , a-v ailaplEi-' at_ th~, !=lh~ .~f this ,issue for mailing in your' name a:nd addr ess aiia: the .$2.00. plus q.p.y gift subscript-i:ons or suggested tnem'ige!ts!,-~-:iIf -y6~" §,uggest', p'9$sible members we ~vill mail 111m~: : I safupiB" coi>i{'of' ~h-~, l1ew:~~,ett,e~~{ad, a, ,hit of pl"opa:ganda. We have alEjO left' a:'space for any suggestions that you may have cpncerllin~ either the ,~ewslette~!)!?r"ft.he . USAS. " . ' " ,~

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elect'l.~~ '~<?;~- , 9i~f..~c~r-..s r ;: , Mx:~~; :f; ~:K~.'. , Has Sell, 906 Ranc?;~' . Blv • .f. " ~g~~ti ,, w:as e~,~'~t;~·~, ?r:~~l8-e~t;(.M;rs f .. K.- Has's el, Vice Pr'es~dent; ' and , .!·~'MIr-s.' Vebn,e ' Gale;.' 1432" Sunse~,.D~.iV~,. Ogden, Secretary":'Treasurer .

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'::' 0'":'Hlst,oric_ """::'."~, ' :~" al Sites ',1,:,

'~'; New pubH:ca:t~ons ':

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in:'Gl'en Can on: Mouth of S~ ",j'uJ8n R1v~r{ 'to : i$~ ~ ..i : .lerrY, ,.~y C:.O. Crampton. n:i~ersi y 'of . t ,a h A nthi-opoi6'gl'cal~ Papers, No. 46, June 1960,130 pp., 39 ' figures. Historical archaeology and interesting. We don't pave the pric~ but whatever i t is USAS members can get a 10%' diScoUnt:. ,: :., '

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Of:'interest- to USAS members are two articles· ,by Dr. Jf?sse D., Jennings: in: the ,Utah Historical Quarterly..C) - In' the J.aniiary; ~ 1960 issue: iS i ~one 'enti tl:,e d, .. IlEarly: Man-;'iri: :1:Jtah11. ~-·.whi'Gh sums up Utah: ';, : pre~history , in a 'ite.!3t package!.. , The JUly ,. " l'~60 'issue •.contains, '):. in ,an: issue devoted to the , Col,orado River, ' IIThe -Abori.ginal' . Peoples!!, an ar:cheo~history of Southeastern- Utah as determined , ,:,from finds in the ·Glen Canyon. This ' publtcation is, available -,,, at $1.00 a single copy or1t3.00. per year from the :,Utah State ' Historical Society, 603 East South Temple, S~lt Lake City. The July issueiof' ,Amet.fucal?- Ant'iquitycohtains ,'an article by ".i' Alice P. Hunt and .Dallas Tanner with the · title, ,of "Early Man .. , Sites Near Moab~ Utahn~: , Several finds of' Folsom Points near Hoab and ,~ other assemblages : ,of points have led' Hunt and 'l'anner , ', ' to delipt;late :, three separate} ancient man' complexes in ' the Moab !-: ,:',:·yicj,.ni,ty.: Bot,h;'authors are 'members of the USASj I am ~ proud to ~/ r!3port. : ;t J', ' i)

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Th'i,s~' issues petroglyph is· from Dinosaur N,a tional' ~oilume'nt and ' i, ' , is tyPical of one variety of pictograph found frequently in-:tlie<' . Vernal region. The original is pecked into a sandstone cliff face ;,~Jld sta.n4s-· alIJlos,t 4 feet tall. ' .,:,,;.. ,: . ':- ',' -' " ', <

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T·h~· i 6g,it9i'ial appe~;ring in this :ts~iiti::e.ariie €iiio'iftr"as the result '! of s;eeing' ,a newspaper . clipping concerning :-the' possibility.oof a~" - : _ ~t;a:t~: natural hi~,;t9ry, ml,lse:um and some ~pribr wondering as to 'why (: th,ere was no such,thingi iJ:1l"tllis fair st~te. The lack was;;' ' ~ " ". : particularly puzZ:l,i~g to m~.: when. ' I thought .of the pride that .,Utfih tak~s in its .i' e.mphasi.~ ,~: on ' education. A museum is one of the finest educatio I1.a,l 'i:tPols in ex;tstence. ;;. ' ~", :

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Don Grey , writer of HThe Education of an Amateur Archaeologist ll , is editor of theJ J\Tyoming irrchf}sQJ;ogical S ocieties newsletter. ' We thought i t, a stimu1~t:i.ng ".paper ; and , worthy of a wider audienc;e.' Mr •. ;Qre,y l1as ,bE;lep ins.ti.um(?n:li:a,:j. in , estaplishing i an excellent' atate soci.ety ~,n : 1'Jyqmi~g anQ;,. isan ·,avid am?,t .eur :archae:olo.gist . ': '. r •

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One pt the ~~g.oIlJf)~pse.s: ~or ,·being i-an edit'Qr, .. that he can ' get', his,. ,9wl"l ,'l-rri t ~:ng s. tnto .,pr-:i:n't> ve.ryeas ¥-y ~:n the ' journal he edit ·s . ', ,: I ,h~iT~ ;taken advantage of my; ,'P,o~it:iDn ,;t.O publish ,an",}lr't;icle 'on , :' Ute tipi poles. It comes at a particularly oporthne time ... ,' there ,_~re :~9, oth,W ;.m.~nus.c-!,.ipt,12'-- in. th~ . offing awaiting publication. Th~~ < S,l~9ulA s~rv:.e, !. a,~: a none ~QP gentle hint to ..those of you 'who ,', h ave oft er-ed ,"to ~-rrite an article or· ,who have been: wanting to write or ,who should be wanting to. We have had' some well written papers from the membership of the USPS in the past three issues - let us qave more.. ,please1 ..,. .... ~. ; .; ~ ,. .J.- ~ , '. . -.l .

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'EDITORIAL ,

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MUSEUM

A UTAH STATE

OF NATURAL HISTORY

At" a -~ecent m~eti'ng of 'the board of regents of the University of Utah; President Olpin, of the University, requested the regents to .. Pflye 1;.he s:t.at~ le~islat~re authorize the extabl ishment of a state ~useum of natural history at the Unive~sity of Utah. The officers, ... ' 'advisor', and ed:l.,to]' 'ot the Utah Statewide Archaeological Society believe this' wo'uicf"'be ~ 'w orthwhile institution for the state of Utah and a project which ni~,mbers of the Utah statewide Archaeological ., Society should, ~e 'ihtere,s teq in seeing and helping come into reality. ~

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Utah is one of the few ~~tates- 'in the union without such a museum, in s'pite of its Jlong' ~nd colorful past; its great geological resources; its biological rep,~te; and its worldwide scientific interest. In fact, Utah is without a major modern museum of any type. Consequently, to see Dlany 'o f the milseum-type natural wonders of Utah one must travel f~t o,utsi~e the state. Primarily, a state natural history museum is a place to preserve a.nd a place to exhibit flthings'" which are of interest to people because they help to ~xp;L~iri l1'what happened" and the "why" of ma,n and nature~ "Thln'g sllare important be9ause of the knowledge they.' represent and with theminforl'(1atfon, which would involve thousands of words otherwise, is quickly ,imparted. Moreover, the objects form a kind of reference libr'a ry which never changes. The objects remain the same and can always be :reconsulted and restudied as 'ideas change' and knowledge advances. Tastefully and intelligently ~isplayed in 'a 'state museum they would generate ' pride in the state, satisfy 'certain quests for knowledge, ,a.nd pr,o vide a showplace for the state of Utah to the ' visitor from afar. '".

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Unqer the broadest c,onc~pts, which we beli~v~ si;cjuld.be~ followed he'r e, 'trie natural history' musElum sho'ulq cd-ifer all of the:' natural sciences, i'ncluding man's " p~'r'ticipation 'in'nature both as part of it and as a c'ontroller of it'- In other words, we believe a natural history museum should cover t ,h e full range' of human knowledge: biology, geology, art, physics, astronomy, anthropology, archaeology, history, etc. It should '1 :irst be concerned with the portions of these sttidiEi!s ' that'involve Utah and secondly involve itself with selected world' wide collections and exhibits sO that it could completly fulfUlits po's ition as an educational instituti6n~ '.' , . . The musewri' is a'n educatio'rikl instit.ution and a unique type, dealing as it does with obje:cts~ :' The museum could and would provide help for schools, ;indivt dualS" organizations, small museums, etc., over the . si.ateby: -providing for and bringing to Utah travel ing exhibits, pr:6fe.s·s ionaJ. ass istance, adult education opportunities'-'movies, publications, research, and other benefits.

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It could be of inestimable value to our youthful but vigorous state park system in much of its interpretive planning and development. Primarily, however, it would provide a safe place for the material things that make up our Utah heritage so '._that generations hence will know and better understand the past and.;lts. scientific accomplishments, and present generations will have a better appreciation of Utah's segment of this wonderful world. You may ask, IIv.Jhy Salt Lake City and the University of Utah?ll. Fair enough. The University already has':.a :good star~ statewide museum material in several fields 'but, it: 'all heeds 'to be .. ',' . b~ought together .in a mps~hm wi th,.~mode'l';h sto:ra:gE~ an(F~i~play .. :, .. ,:":'_C' t~chniques. >.The' Uriiv~!~i,.ty has . 51- gre9.t·.·.mah'y: · eXperts-~ 'i~ a wide oI" 'l~' : :lo,'Vatiety:~ of" f:i:e1.:? s .'. ~:4. t .}~ke City is ·dl~erta·i'nly·the ·' cul tural .. ' ','- .... . ... center of·:Utah and a~' _ the capita],. city tisually~ 'gets at least one ,v;i..sit: 0ut of "eacn of its citizens during their lifetime. Further, . ;,·,t, ~'.8. museum' of this type ' will lead to better understanding of the , " , ' . ," (0'" ' hinterlands by the people of Salt Lake ' City for it is the hinter"~V " " J .;inds that have and willpprovide most of the ,.)nuse\lm sp~Cimens and ; ""<O ''ffJ .\·< 'I:i ~.~h~bj:;t,;'.materia;t ·. ; I a~. ~erta~: that .th~e 'are many mel!lb~:rs of . the JJflAS' ,who can'''a nd wl;ll make worthwhile cohtri:butionS to. the p,ntlrropology anda.rchae~~bgy sectiol?-~: of~ · such a· '.miiseum~

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We sincerely believe ·that a natural history museum as outlined above is needed in Utah; that it v:.<?-u.fq. r,he ·. a -worthtoJ'hil'e ·e~end.i ture . '. of public money for 'the lasting benefit ,of ' all'-; arid 'i1hat ' tt is ,. worthy of,' the wholenearted' ,support of the membership:Of-the .Utah State,w ide Archaeo:togic~ SocietY,. .. . . . ' . ":"' ", ": ." . . ,.' I . ' ~ ;,. t ('(. If ~. . . . . If you aresi tting. there. 1}.od,d ingyour. ;head yes, 'and 'Y9U feel ·' .that-what we"ha:ve ' said is" true, then y.ou are! probablY': wondering '. ,:,aust what you, ca~ do to help •. The proposition of a s~~te museum ': .~i1l undoubtedly :;cbme up at the next - J1l~eting of the s'\}a;~g ,:l eg;is);ature, which will" be in ,January, . 1961. vTe 'S'u.gg~.s~),t W.oul9,· l:;leW'ell if interested Uq,AS members w.ould contact t).1eir Ipcal s-tate,;legielators, eith~':rpersonally or .by mail. Express your views to him; give him a copy of this editorial (an extra .-,is included for this purpose) . or 9uote from it .. •

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~ .. W~ ;,be:;Lieve that to begin a ~~~~~~ pr.ojeqt vlith the scope needed to fulfil statewide needs it ;~ould 'be ~ell ;if ·the legislature eouid provide· furtds~n the' n~),ghborh<?p.9- of $.25,000 per year for the next two years: 'so' that Ii pi.:annLng s..t?ff, CQuld be: ·hired • . \r.,~ Tpe planning staff S'ho\p.:d' · con~fi~t of, .~~, l .~ast , a direcftdr and one .two assistants p~~~s: SU9P~:,?le:r:jfa1 h~lp; ' as 'isi need'~~~' . 'It, '-\'IFfuld 'Pe' 'Gcmeerned 'l'l lt tJ. . ~he p;tan,n.ng: o.f:..the museum both physl.cally . . (the ac:tUal ·fplant, storage and exhibit ' spa'c e', offices, ':e-t8.) and , "conceptually (specific f;lelds ' \ )f interest, exhibit type and scope, regulations, standards, etc.). At the end of the two year period the planning staff could prese.n~. ,a ,G oncrete program of' development to the legislature ;forconstcleration and money 'doul'd be approp':' riated for the 'proposed' bu~qirig. 4n~' s:taffing •

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In closing, your editor would like it understood ,tha:t' his only motives in urging a state museum are his interest in museums and 1115 ·£~eling for UtaH., I know ,w hat rm-u seums can in:eah and do, and' I .. tt.lllP);<:, the t ime ' i s' rl.pe for <t he ~ tat e of Utah t -o show off her "tr:e.~,su~e s fp r; ,th~ appr eciat icm 'ahd eiilightenment of her 'citizens', 'b oth 'yo Ung and' old, and: f or her less fortLiria,t e friends who' must 'live out side of the s'11ate. ':;, -"

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," ')' 'THE EDUCATION OF AN AMATEuR ARC[TAEOLOGIST .

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by Don Grey ' ,r

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P~obably spring fever has something to do with the edi~ orial tone of this particular issue, but your editor is looking forward to the fo'r thcoming season:,. and at thEL same time is lookihg 'backw-ara to several ' y,ears' of varied as:sociation with "tb.e -fJ.'e l-a. of archaeolo¢( ", " .,:' ,' ,

It is doubtful that any young person who has rea'd of the , exploits ' of adventurers in far parts' of the globe h~sever: real~y i otten his feet on the ground again. A warm spring day is all t,~,at is needed to 's tart the wheels of imagination grinding out even more exciting I:!.dv~ntures tban , any that have been reaq in books. It i8 ;'a pitiful. imaginatiop. indeed that cannot in .the heyday of its , , ' :'youthful vigour conquer' several new lands, find countl'ess buried treasures' and dispatch to limbo a quantity of' blackhearted ', villains in the course of a spririg "afternoon. ,

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' ;" ~eachers, parents, and employer,s ail tell 'us that we must: curb ' any such flights of iniagiriatioriif we ~ at'e to grow to adu!Ltl1ood

come to any sort · of ' good end. Pei:hap.~, th,~Y are ri ~ hi? : Perhaps i 't :'wo llld be Detter to say that im~-gination shoulq ,oe ,brought to bear on more productive things, ai tho~ugh, as fl, think :/ otc it, it ~,'-se'em§' to me that SamClemens and J(~ber.t StevensoIf. ," seem to havEf done well with the ' more ,fanct'fw. ;variety . .,J think that what really happens"'in most" case's is t n'a t t he day'-dr,~ ?iner one day finds himself confronted with an adv~nture of a slightly different : s'ort,.a.~a ,bef ore ' het cah 0.0 anyt h~g' ·~b9-iit -i~i" hps his ;imagif'iation ' irretri ev-ablicaptured by' ''an aav'entut-e 0f:;, .t.~~ .intellect. ,>;' and

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. .. ~'·~ ,. \, .. Once captared by a ;:reaIty"'rw0rthwn1.l~ ' pr~blem'j , lthe ¥iili nJ ,~~,~ irnagin'atiori are "never ' again wnol+y ,_t l'le': p'r 'o;pe-rty f 6'f. ""!i'he' p'e rson inJ. ,whose

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, >btain theyr~'SidE(~ :p-art. 'o f t he 'II)l:nd : riow b ~1 6 ng s to the proqlem, and unl~ss the 'problem :i,s o!le of " ~ose trivial tl1~ngs that ,can · ,;be completely sol've'd in "p l,i.fetUiie ~ t ne' person '1,s doomed to go .. ,'i:' !through life with a patti~lil,Y' preoccupied mind. He may bump , into doors as he walks about with a "book before his face, and Page 7.


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;.' >l r 1' i.J, r r, •. ., fSt0me 0;bseT-ve-:r § J'ihay carr him absept ~mind.ed. ' : ',di~~ ~~ ,wV;f'lir. 'i)I~s mind isn' t ab;s~nt -, ,;i.~ is simply cbnc~~ile~ ,'!'ij.,th mor,e .. ' important things ,t han ', personal safety and rnund:~,J?,e pedestrian navigation. '-" •

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All sorts of questions ~ay capture the mind of a person who lets his mind stray unguarded ' into new fields. Even the simplest sort of curiosity can lead to a fatal ambush. Have you ever wondered why the sky is blue? Be carefull you are in danger of becoming fascinated with physical science if you pursue the question. Have you ever ,.,ondered about that arrow-head you picked up? Proceed with cautio'n if you t;Jould keep your peace of mind. Shoultf your curiosity ever lead :y!ou into a serious question, you will be lost. You will be fated to follow a will-o'-the-wisp through ever more complex turns of q~e~M.oning. You will find yourself st~dying paleontology, geolog1o , ~9mparative an,a t ,P!1lY, ,'~trang.eo; langua~e~",; art, mineral'o kV('!'lnthropoip,gy, rad,iology , dlnd'~ a '>lhole' 9att~:q of strange':s ou'n:d~pg d,isc ipl ines. You Will" in short, be :l.n '·serious danger of becomtng an amateur archaeologist. If you do some~serious studying then, you may find ,l ourself _<:ie,vel,9ping a ggree of snobbery. A certain 'amount Qf , snobbery entirely,' 'benefH:i'ii? l.f it doesnlt" l~ad' 'Cb cerebral edema. r S~l'!l1tiig of tR~ he lta'=,ilsually has the ';;effect of preventing the illgress of, ,furtner kfioV1ledge and this:"I 'e adJs , to mental stagnation " '~md "cpmplete los's ' of' iIl!agination, coupl'eB:;'wi th severe impairment .",. of t he ability" 't.o"' laugh ," . at one's self. '),'

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' A certain degree of snoQ~~r,y is essential in most things. A certain pride in ,achievement is probably justifiable in most cases. The serious stud~nt in the field feels a pitying contempt for the. collector who. buys' artifacts , ~r a collection to be l' " .'... 16oke~ ,.a t 'vi th ouncomprehen;ding eyes -- 'and unless he feels a 'S'Eia::r:irig hatred f.o.t'L thE(ps~J.ldo ':" amateur archaeologist who has read a picture : b<jok "on a rt¥act types and ',::expounds nonsensical theories tq 'lthe l ess-welt '" il1:formed, the<"st'udent has certainly l 'o st some.:Q:f the :tITIaginat":l.on~ Which led' 'hiin to slash pirates to r:i.Qppns o'p.! ~fl" 'spring " 1rt~r.h({b~ , : But .when the student begins to fear very i:3iisooura~tea Cl;99.l:it·' .Jli~ ,t 9Hndm.owledge of the subject, he is then on the 'lTe~ge ' ,~~ w.?k~ng spme 'real p rogress. When his vista ha~ expanded t tc)' the "ppint whe:r.e he can perceive his mm ignorance, he may be able t o move forward. ' ~

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do.es the educa ~ional pJ;'qgram Qt' 'an,.. altlateur arcP?eologist - '! p't,o~res's? U',:!qe lis ~~u)..Yr::~l'i ,,' ~mateuli'''~he ~:w~l ~,ay du~ a :: stu~ ,,' pr6gra~ ,for hl:l1lse1:.t:, .,~·, He, ,w1,J\)r,[;~s~ (.a pr.ofess,wnal for s,q,gg..est.l.ons as to p..ow an<i .:-what ;Cae sho UJ:d st\j~y:j~f t hiS: is possib1-l3i. : ,He '1;j . 'f" , , .. . will ask ques~io.n:s, \ 'a:!'td he~ ,}j'p.,l" ,b~ fbT. a "chance to spend .some L:' time on digs 1v.:lith a iPJrofes§'~oii§U,'\:t!l o.:tder to learn some ropes. Most of ~ll, he r will not 6rlly learn field techniques, but he 'rill develop some broad pictures of the many disciplines connected with the field, and try to lear~ 'l.,nat · the end product of archaeological research must be. The student may be surprised to learn Ho~

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that the recovery of cultural . materials, and their dating",is npt. the end of the ?-;rchaeological research. Not until a ' . 1; reconstruction of ~be \;Jays of life of the ancient peoples.:can be ,-made and :('i tted,:into broad geographical, temporal, and" ·t ·, e£hnological,p.~t}~rl).:3, C' is the j.o b nearing · compl et ion. _ <;, ~ Y f 'e' In the beginning of hts intellectual growth, the student may find himself in a position to ask a professional archaeologist some questions. If he is so lucky, he should utilize his opportunity well. Too often t,h~ >.student presumes too much. Rather than appear completely ignorant of the subject, which he is, the student may ask the Rro;f:~!3sAonal a specific question, such as, nCan you tell me of a good book on identifying artifacts?1f ,;! w.0W;.otl)~ s..I, qE-~s ;v..~onj, (may: be . slighFy: ' jbe_~tel:' , th.a n ncme at a11,~ut J.t .~s: F.~r~a:~~~ :::rh~;wropg op.e ..~f ·.he~nt~nds .tPi ,;\;.ea,rn someth1.ng ;:! .a??J:lit", a!~?:~a~.0lo(Wi t .'rhe student is'a~~ll!l1ing th:at .artifacts . . '?~~~'i ~?~nr-}~in&~ t~ .49: ,J:lith .. archa e9J,Pgy:1' j His · fir~t question Sh?;~~' i~~)/l~;\'1o¥d you; ,ple!3,se, tell me;.:hpN I cou1.~ learn. something , CiI!,9.t ~~9;h~eology:~?,j':.., : phanges~re ,:tl1a:t;~ the. professlonal will not . ' pomt hJ.m . tq Jl,, ~9Q.!<; on· ,artl;:t'apts,.)Qr :90nes, or pottery, or pictographs, ... but. : raJ,h~r.\ tR , an,- elep1!?:n;tBlry' textbook on .general . anthropology~! ,Thil?imay<bei folil..c;>weq· bY ·.some gen'13r:al · books on archaeology in ·O~d.eir; ~9.; give· · 1;.hE3, · '.student an overall -view of the subject ~ Once ..the proad 9~t~ines of the subject are known, the Q.E3tails of methods",fl.Y:ld,;palj1;icw,ar, subject matter can be . worked out. ' . ~,;:. !: " .~"" Cf ' , ; • . ' , ! . .;,,(:~ _° 0

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. 'Why shoUld anyone want to subject,·,h:4U1se4.f. , t·o all that , reading and study? Houldn1t it be much simpler just to collect the a~tifacts ~d leav~ '.fth~ study to sOlTJ.f30pe·el.,se? ;: 1rJho,'wants to" . ~,+bject hi~self to .'~~veral years of. rather· inteltlsive'!study, and ~q~n br.eak hi~ ~~c~ working . w;~~h a l:lrq,sh and trowel when he coWd just shov~ ~~~t . through a. "SPJ:)een. :and pickup the artifacts? 11-~Y; ~~;tl1e«: , mak,i.ng, ·:Y~t~ful .l)1ea,:j)ur~m~nts and notes ~. l", h"; ; '1

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Eacb ,oJ.:~s_ m"'is,t r.ec.ogni~.~ 1;the .: rights of others J· if. ··we :are ;t o ' tiave any ,rop~ ~!)~. l ,ivj,ng...like, r a:~l:<{nal beings ra:ther ·than·-aninials. ;: n arqna~o~pgiqal:. .p,i~Jr . do~s .not, . in the largesit:~ sense,:' ·be-long. -t'O : ~.rE3 . f.rns:ler, no:r:., ;;8.. th~~. p'wper ·.Qf the .).and"on iWhich;·tt i;S . loca1ted. It' b~f..8itg,s ti:? all: pf ..;t4,e .peopl.e. ~9f the world who may' now, or 'any tilTl~1 .:~:.: the futU:~p_., : 1?~~efi.t .frQ!1l ~he infor.rn.at:ion which it contains. j'_ M.?J p~e . W~s ~ ~,he r:~gJ1;t, ~n a:w ~~:t; th.e narrowest :sense, , to remove part ?~~ t~~. b~~~~~ 9f ~ sJ.te: pnd : ~~stroy. · the :test. The pot hunter who·· . collects . artifacts and destroys information is guilty ofdTopb:!Ln:g ·~~&opeigl:lpp.rs·;#fld_ ;:Iihe -fpr,-thcomilag generations bf his ovW- ,Off~,:pI?\~t,pg·.• :: Why , study1 ,Tg,-:-the :'curious individual, ' it''i;s;- ;a priyi~,~~.r ·L'!: T.o [.K!le person· :w.ho·.Mo'ui1d ,p~i·an archaeologist, it is ' a l?-eE ~,~ ,l?+t;Y;t!:; · {rp;!.~,one , who ·.,w~d - work · in an archaeological site, i t i~:~.~ : ~b~;i.~~ ~~m. .. " OJ:. ... :: ;.

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No one who has the necessary qualities of curiosity and ambition tQ~ be~~:Wl~E an, ~rchae qf o gist needs ~o a~~~~r.}h~ : q~~~~!0!l' . IIWhir study?H "He WJ.ll be an archaeol.og~st ~n ~g ?:te fof ev~tyth?-ng. " ­ Any~n~~ w.~o hasn't the intense ' drive to stuQYr £.pe fiet~ , seriously shoulG. ; be dis couraged from entering it, ev'en., ~p, the Sif,ai~Uf'>s'ense of an avocation. Those people who enter the'~ tl:~i d , mti~t' lo~e~~c archaeology above all else. They must be, litE:irallY'? ama t e uf s • ...:~ •.

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UTE TIPI POLES By

Lloy~ Pierso~

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The MQa.~; M;u~eum :was the recipfe~i<f~~'r'~~+j;:'R:(' tw~:'~ iro,up~ of ~l~at ha,ve ,b.e,e:nt 'ft.:.4,en~ i-f.ied as Ute tipLp,?~es'::;(~ ~n( '~,9 ~l(~~" ,eig~:t;. ";',~ (cat,aib'gue.J~UJllpers 1/22 through , 8l?,2) ii were f' oH31d.-; ,b,y Mr. Wil;+ l.~ ': .Bbill.·'denk le~j.pg against a: tree on Polar Mesa near Fisher Point. Po1ar Mesa is on the northern fl ank of the La Sal Mountains. These poles ' are on indefinite loan to the museum. Another group, consisting of t hree poles along with what appeared to be the remains of a skin tipi cover, were found by Mr. Lyn Ottinger under a low dry , Qverha:nging ledge in Little Valley, a small valley parallel to t he Salt Valley anticline on the southeast 's ide some 20 mile,S no r th of Moab, Utah. Nr. Otting-er donated one of the three poles (catalogue number 1/23) to the Moab Museum l'1here it is now dispi ayed. These nine poles are very ' i nteresting because of the inf ormation that t hey impart concerning Ute tipis and Ute customs. The poles are all of_ a cedar (juniper) or pine wood, probably the 'latter as they were cut from tall slender trees. The butt ends of the series of poles averages 1 3/4 inches in diameter. Some 'of the poles are rotted at the butt end as this was the end in contact with the ground and it accounts ·for some of -the length variation in table 1. The Polar Mesa poles are pqinted at the butt end, for the most part, and ha.-ve no signs of drag mal"ks there. The Little Valley example apparently -had served it-s usefulness as a tipi pole for it was relatively short. The butt end was worn 'to a f lat taper as though it had been d~agged over th~ ground for a long time. Chances are that a - short pole 1 ike this one would have started as a tipi pole and ended"its life as a travois pole. However, tipi poles were dragged too by either horse or dog i n trans~ orting them from place to place just as the travois was, so it would be 'difficult tq t~+J, frqm this ~vidence just what its specific use 'was. "

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, All _tOf , t!}.@ ~9f!i~ i, we:r~ :perforated at the small end by a i inch · . di§lJ.l1e'\ie~} , ; 8.toR ul~r",hR! e •.j ;rhe holes 'were all very smooth from -.; Yle~t. " ~.!1~9~): ~&e0P~q~fqra~,t8Jl ?}~:tq.~d was not readily apparent. Several of the Polar 'Mesa pol es' were very crooked and. bowedundoubtedly the result of their long storage leaning against a tree at an angle and out in the weather. The Little Valley

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example was perfectly straight due.-;to its ~etteI'qtorage conditions All of the poles had many knots showing and triesewere prominent, i.eo not comple~ely smoothed off or sanded down, although,. there seems to' have been ~ome attempt to do so.. There are 'signs of wear: up and down all of the ·.HJ· poles but the only consistent pattern is th~ wear at .the . small ends of all' of the' poles" This Wear Psrttern is at :the. very end of the poles between the perforation apd ·thetip'.: ., . 0

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Catalogue Number

1/22

2/22 3/22 · 4/22

5/22 6/22 7/22 ,8/22 ,. 1/23

Hole Distance From·E.nd

Pole Length

13! 10 1 121 121 111 13 1 ·1 .21 13 1

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.T,he two' sets of . i;,lpip~les have been assign~d the Utes. We . knQwthat.when the fi rst whites came into .Eastern Utah :' . there .were peQples identifled as utes living there. Moab . Valley and the La Sal Mountains were inhabited by utes, "doing some farming, when the Mormon settlement was attempted in 1855 (Tanner, 1937, p& 14). Stewart (1942, p. 239) identifies the La Sal Nountain band as the Wimonuntci, remnents of which B:]('e st ill 1 i ving on the'S outhern Ute .: Aeservatior:- at Towaoq, Coloradon It 1,~ believed that the Utes . received the ,tipi, ,horse, 'and other Plains Indian traits ata relatively late date q,nd frgmseve:r;al SQurces, . depending on th,eiqqaticin~ of the . ,particular Ute band. The. various traits _probably did not all -'come to the Utes ' at' the same time nor t,og,ether . The ass,imila,tion of the Plains Indian trait .items 'pr6babiy' took place mostly dUri~g theperiod -1750 ) ·1850 A.D., and there even were some Ute bands that never did obtain the full inventory of ~lains items that most of the bands absorbed before reservation days. Page 11.


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Judging from the length of the tipi poles in this group the ute tipi, in the Moab area, was rather small. The Laubins (1957, p. 19) write that 15 loot:. poles will make a 12 foot diameter tipi ~md this takes a cover made of eight to ten skins (probably ei~~~~ elk or buffaio though type not spe9tn.ed). So, "the 13 foot poles present in .the sample from the Moab area: would most likely only make a 10 to:ll foot in diameter tipi. Moreover, the Utes were known as · the "bad lodges" ,'b~r ' other Plains Indians, because of the s~all, squat, somewhat haphazardly pitched tipis that they., erected. Small tipis about 10 feet in diameter were used .by other q:roups forl hilnting camps because of the easy mobility and light weight. ', Also, prior to obtaining the horse :and canvas cloth, evert the Plains Indian tipis were small ' compared to the· his:toric aries. Skins for tipi covers.:we~e heavy and good skins were not too easy to obtain, especially in days. when the: hunting was done afoot. In moving, tipi poles were dr,agged by horses, or in prehorse times, by.dogs. The poles were made into two equal bundles, one for either side of the animal. The small ends were tied together util-iz i 'ng 'the ' small holes drilled in the poles there for that purpose • The bundles were then . tied to the animals midsection with the bundles parallel ' ·to "the cmimal and each pther;and with the butt . ends dragging on the gX::O.1illd. . .' '"

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/I hor~e c<S\lld , drag '10 or 12 poles ,each 2'0 f~e"t· long. ' - " 10 ~o.ot di4arn~ter lodge woJ1ld probably n~ed noiessthan' " 10 pol~s ~ , ,a lthough a sloppy , tipi might get by with: eight poles; 'a s 'seems to be the 'case here. Judging from Ewers (1955,p. '133) fi gures the Ute tipi type represented by the group of poles foun~ o,n Polar 1'fesa could probably have been transpor:ted by one , horse . The poles may have been left ' either as a cache' or because of the loss of a horse~ · :

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The observations derived ' from the tipi poles above are substantiated by ., Stewart I s ethnological data gathered in recent years .(Ste1"art , 19b2) • . In addition he points out that the Ute , tllpi has a foundation ,or basic support consist":" ing of fO'llr ' poles: lashed. tog'~ther as did most of, the riorth~ ; ern Pla' e s like the Crow, Blackfeet, Flathead etc. . f ris . trib\ : . Bibliography Elvers, John c. 1955 The Horse in Blackfoot lndian ,Cul ture, Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin 159. Washington. Laubin, Reginald and Gladys 1 957 The Indian Tipi. Univ. of Oklahoma Press, Norman. stewart, Orner C. . 1942 Culture Element Distributions: XVIII ute-S.Paiute. Anthro. Records 6:4, U. of Calif. Press, Berkley. Tanner, F.!Vi cC • 1937 A History of Moab, Utah. Times. Ipdependen~ Press Moab. ~ age

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Marian Pierson Box 98 Moab, Utah ~1rs.

Enclosed is

~2.00

.~ rchaeological

for my 1961 dues to the Utah Statewide Society:

Name street or Box Number Ci.ty and State

I would also like a gift subscription membership at #2.00 each, sent to the following in my name. Name street or Box. no.

Name Street or Box No.

City or Town

City or Town

Please send a complimentary copy to the following:

Suggestions an the newsletter or the

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