HomeMy WebLinkAbout740Duotang bound book, 5 photocopied pages, Kenyon, W. A. "A Late Woodland
Site Near Pickering". Ontario History . Vol. LI (Winter, 1959), pp. 58 - 59.
Kenyon, W. A. "A Late Woodland Site Near Pickering". Ontario History . Vol. LI
(Winter, 1959), pp. 58 - 59.\
"Ontario History. Vol. LI (Winter, 1959), pp. 58 - 59.
A LATE WOODLAND SITE NEAR PICKERING By W. A. Kenyan
In February 1957, the Museum was asked to investigate a site near Pickering,
just east of Toronto, where some human bones had been unearthed.
The following spring, as soon as the ground had thawed sufficiently,
a weekend was devoted to salvaging the undisturbed portions of the grave,
and searching the surrounding area for the village whose presence was indicated
by the burial.
The grave proved to be an eliptical pit with vertical sides, about 4 feet deep,
containing the bodies of at least eleven individuals. With the exception of one
new-born infant, all of the bodies had been extensively dismembered prior to
their final burial in the communal grave."
"NEW PAGES OF PREHISTORY, 1958 59
Both sexes and a wide range of ages were present. Grave offerings included a
number of rodent teeth, several catfish pectoral spines which had been modified,
probably for use as awls, one harpoon fashioned from a long bone of some large
mammal, and the bones of two common loons. Included in the grave fill
were several fragments of pottery which were subsequently identified as
belonging to the Glen Meyer focus. Our search of the surrounding area located a small,
shallow midden a few hundred feet to the east which produced the same Glen Meyer
pottery as in the grave fill.
When an opportunity presented itself this fall we returned to the site to excavate the
midden. As was suggested by our earlier testing, the midden was small and shallow,
but very rich in artifacts. Beneath the midden, however, we made a most exciting
discovery. Here was a line of post moulds marking the outline of some ancient
structure. Abandoning our earlier project—which by this time was virtually completed
anyway—we began following the line of post moulds to see where it would lead.
At first we thought that we were tracing the plan of a house, but it soon became
apparent that there was a slight curve to the line, and that we were following a palisade.
By the time the lateness of the season and other duties forced the abandonment of the
project we had followed the palisade for over 300 feet, and had plotted some 400
posts on our map of the site. Spaced roughly at 8-inch intervals, the posts had an
average diameter of 3 1/2 inches. Very few of the moulds have been sectioned up to
the present, but it appears that they were driven into the ground about 18 inches.
In the spring we will continue following the palisade till the total dimensions of the
village are known, and then begin the very formidable task of excavating the entire site."
"6235916c1
Pickering Public Library
Central Branch"