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 State of Alaska > Natural Resources > Parks and Outdoor Recreation > History and Archaeology |
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The stratigraphy at the Broken Mammoth
and other sites in the Shaw Creek region consists of a series of aeolian
sediments (sand and loess) overlying a frost-shattered and weathered felsic
gneiss bedrock of the Yukon-Tanana crystalline terrane. The sediments and
soils at the sites contain a record of past environmental changes in east-central
Alaska. For example, the Broken Mammoth, Mead, and Swan Point stratigraphy
documents the change from a full glacial, deflational environment at the
close of the Pleistocene to one of alternating episodes of aeolian deposition
and soil formation during the Holocene.
Paleosol complexes associated with the two earliest human occupations (c.11,500 yr. BP and c. 10,400 yr. BP), are indicative of stable occupation surfaces. This interpretation correlates with the regional pollen record, specifically the latter part of the "Birch Period" (an open shrubland that included dwarf birch and willow) and the "Populus-Salix Zone" (described as open Populus woodland and birch-shrub tundra). After about 9,000 years ago, this shrubland changed to a woodland that included spruce and alder species. Faunal remains of Red squirrel and porcupine from the Broken Mammoth Site, suggest the process of forestation may have begun slightly prior to 9,500 years ago. Shortly thereafter, windier conditions may have become reestablished, as loess accumulation appears to have accelerated until about 7,000 years ago. After which, more modern conditions appear to have prevailed, with the modern forest soil established sometime after 5,000 years ago. |
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Office of History and Archaeology (OHA) Heritage Newsletter OHA and SHPO Staff Alaska Historical Commission Alaska Geographic Names Program Alaska Gold Rush Centennials Alaska Archaeological Survey Alaska State Historical Parks Alaska OHA Photo Galleries Cultural Resource Plan for the Denali Highway Lands Frequently Used Resources Alaska Heritage Resources Survey Report Submittal Checklist and Cover Sheet Permits for Investigations on State Lands Permits for Investigations on State Lands Report Submittal Checklist and Cover Sheet Request for SHPO Section 106 Review OHA Projects Castle Hill Archaeological Project Broken Mammoth Archaeological Project The Wreck of the Kad'yak Southeast Alaska Historic Shipwrecks Alaska State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) SHPO Main Page Alaska's Historic Preservation Plan National Register of Historic Places Section 106 Review Process Rehabilitation Tax Credit Certified Local Government Program Education (Project Archaeology) HPF Development Program Historic Preservation Links Historic Preservation Series National Historic Preservation Act Unalaska South Channel (Amaknak) Bridge Project Special Announcements New Hours Set for AHRS Research |
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Last updated on Tuesday, November 8, 2011.
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