The presence of net-impressed and horizontally corded ware in southern Manitoba : the relationship between Rock Lake and Brainerd ware

Net-impressed and horizontally corded pottery was first documented in southern Manitoba in the 1950s by Chris Vickers and Richard S. MacNeish. At that time, the net-impressed pottery was labeled Rock Lake net-impressed, while the horizontally corded pottery was labeled as Avery Corded ware. These two wares assigned to certain foci belonging to the original Manitoba chronology. The net-impressed pottery found in southwestern Manitoba, was included with the Rock Lake focus, a cultural manifestation created by Vickers, and subsequently built upon by MacNeish. In the southeastern portion of the province, MacNeish encountered similar net-impressed pottery but assigned it to the cultural manifestation known as the Nutimik focus, a designation later deemed unfounded. Horizontally corded pottery, although labeled, was never assigned to a cultural entity.Alternatively, in Minnesota, net-impressed and horizontally corded pottery have been assigned to the Elk Lake culture and are known as Brainerd ware. This cultural manifestation has a long duration in the state, beginning ca. 3500 B.P. and lasting until approximately ca. A.D. 400, when the origins of the Avonlea horizon begin to appear.This thesis re-examines the work of Vickers and MacNeish, in particular the Avery, United Church, Lockport and Cemetery Point sites, where net-impressed and horizontally corded pottery have been recovered. It is illustrated that there are strong similarities between the two styles of pottery found in southern Manitoba and Minnesota. These similarities include both metric and non-metric traits. As well, four types of Brainerd ware are identified: (1) net-impressed; (2) horizontally corded; (3) parallel-grooved; and (4) plain. These kinds of pottery become important when examining ware from the Avonlea horizon, particularly in regards to the presence of net-impressed, parallel-grooved, and plain pottery. The work of Vickers and MacNeish was incredibly important to the development of a culture history for southern Manitoba, their work and that of subsequent researchers, such as Joyes (1969, 1970) needs to be re-examined