Geoarchaeology: Analyzing the Relationships Between Fluvial Environments, Fluvial Processes, and the Presence of Archaic/Woodland Occupation Sites in Southern Ontario

The Ausable, Saugeen, and Thames river floodplains are analyzed in terms of archaeological and geomorphic data to examine the relationships that might exist between fluvial environments, fluvial processes, and Archaic/Woodland archaeological occupation sites in southern Ontario. A large-scale spatial analysis is conducted using data from the Ontario Archaeological Sites Database (OASD) in order to create a matrix of variables that may illuminate how rivers and occupation sites relate to each other. The Davidson site on the lower Ausable River is used as a case study due to the wide scope of archaeological and geomorphic research that has been conducted there. The OASD is found to be a useful tool in terms of data volume, quality, and accessibility for research projects of this scale. Indications of relationships between the location and preservation of archaeological sites and variables such as distance from river, elevation, and stream power are present in the results.M.Sc