The lanceolate projectile point in southwestern Oregon : a perspective from the Applegate River

Graduation date: 1981Presentation date: 1981-03-19Archaeological investigations of the Applegate Lake project area were conducted by the Department of Anthropology, Oregon State University Univerfrom 1977-1980. A cultural sequence believed to span over 8000 years was revealed from a series of six sites. Several of these sites contained lanceolate or leaf-shaped projectile points. A large serrated variety is similar in form and age to specimens referred to as "Cascade'' points in the southern Columbia Plateau, considered by some to be the hallmark artifact of an expansive Old Cordilleran Culture. Smaller\ud varieties of lanceolate projectile points are comparable to finds along the middle and upper Rogue River. Comparisons of projectile point morphology and technology demonstrates\ud considerable variation in southwestern Oregon for the large lanceolate projectile point type, while the smaller variety may exhibit\ud somewhat less variability. Assemblage and projectile point comparisons do not indicate that the Old Cordilleran Culture concept is applicable to this part of the state. The archaeological and linguistic evidence is also not supportive of a movement of Old Cordilleran/Penutian speaking people through this part of the state and into California. Instead, only the idea of the lanceolate projectile and the larger weapon system\ud it was a part of diffused throughout the Pacific Northwest at an early time level. In southwestern Oregon other aspects of culture were considerably diversified by as early as,6000 years ago