CENTRAL WASHINGTON ANTHROPOLOGICAL SURVEY DATA RECOVERY & ANALYSIS AT THE POWERHOUSE BRIDGE LITHIC SCATTER (45SA00444), SKAMANIA COUNTY, WASHINGTON

Excavation of the previously established Powerhouse Bridge Lithic Scatter site (45SA00444) was undertaken near Northwestern Lake in May 2011. The purpose of this excavation, which was carried out by Central Washington University Anthropological Survey (CWAS), was to recover data prior to potential damage of the site by outwash from Northwestern Lake after breach of the Condit dam. In order to recover the archaeological data, CWAS archaeologists excavated 0.8325 m3 of sediment in 10 cm arbitrary levels, from two test units. The excavated sediment was screened through 1/8-inch hardware cloth. Through screening, 840 pieces of lithic debitage and bifacial tools were recovered as well as fire modified rock, and 383 fragmented faunal remains. Three features were also identified, and were excavated and screened separately. The lithic assemblage was analyzed using the CWAS paradigmatic classification system. The results of this analysis indicate that the assemblage represents core-reduction activities from small pieces of parent material, as well as the use and maintenance of bifacial tools at the site. Seven pieces of obsidian from the assemblage were sourced through being submitted for x-ray fluorescence, and were identified as originating from sources in central Oregon. Faunal analysis revealed that salmon bones from the genus Oncorhynchus exhibited signs of having been cooked. Two samples of charcoal from a hearth or hearth cleanout pile were submitted for radiocarbon dating and returned ages of approximately 120 years before present. Through this investigation the site has also been dated ranging from about 2,500 BP to 120BP