TEXAS ARCHEOLOGY ACADEMY REPORT ARCHAEOLOGICAL TESTING AT THE FIRECRACKER PUEBLO SITE, EL PASO, TEXAS

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1 TEXAS ARCHEOLOGY ACADEMY REPORT ARCHAEOLOGICAL TESTING AT THE FIRECRACKER PUEBLO SITE, EL PASO, TEXAS BY DAVID T. KIRKPATRICK, PH.D., RPA PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR PREPARED FOR TEXAS ARCHEOLOGICAL SOCIETY JULY 2004

2 TEXAS ARCHEOLOGY ACADEMY REPORT ARCHAEOLOGICAL TESTING AT THE FIRECRACKER PUEBLO SITE, EL PASO, TEXAS BY DAVID T. KIRKPATRICK, PH.D., RPA PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR PREPARED FOR TEXAS ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY CENTER FOR ARCHEOLOGICAL RESEARCH UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, SAN ANTONIO 6900 NORTH LOOP 1604 W SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS JULY 2004

3 ABSTRACT The Texas Archeological Society conducted the Texas Archeology 101 Academy on March 22, 23, and 27, 2004, at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology at Wilderness Park, El Paso, Texas. Classroom and demonstrations were held on March 22 and 23, 2004, with field exercises conducted on March 27, 2004, at Firecracker Pueblo (EPCM ). Field exercises consisted of selection of test excavation units, laying out a base line, excavation techniques, and recordation of excavation results. Four test excavation units were selected. Excavation was conducted in 10 cm levels to a depth of 20 cm. Excavations recovered two.22-caliber cartridges, six El Paso Brown ware sherds, one flake fragment, and three small bone fragments. After analysis, the artifacts were reburied in the respective excavation unit. The test excavations did not significantly impact intact cultural deposits. This program was made possible in part by a grant from the Texas Preservation Trust Fund of the Texas Historical Commission and Humanities Texas, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. 1

4 INTRODUCTION The Texas Archeological Society (TAS) conducted an Academy session of the Texas Archeology 101 on March 22, 23, and 27, 2004, at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology at Wilderness Park, El Paso, Texas. Classroom and demonstrations were held on March 22 and 23, 2004, with field exercises conducted on March 27, 2004, at Firecracker Pueblo (EPCM ). Twenty-six people attended the Academy. Some attend the classes only - Andi Agan, John Green, Marguerite Davis, Mary Russell, Phil Stranahan, and Pam Wheat. Dr. Harry Shafer provided the Academy lectures on March 22 and 23, Dr. David T. Kirkpatrick contributed a lecture on the prehistory of the region on March 23, 2004, and directed the field exercises at Firecracker Pueblo on March 27, 2004[Table 1]. Members of the El Paso Archaeological Society provided assistance as crew chiefs and support staff (Table 2). Table 1. Participants in the Texas Archaeology 101 Academy Name City State Grid Susan Barbee Charlotte NC 2 Jed Becker El Paso TX 2 Charles Berry El Paso TX 4 Diane Crabtree El Paso TX 2 Casey Jensen El Paso TX 3 Sherry Mendela El Paso TX 3 Roger Nacimento* El Paso TX 1 Olive Roen El Paso TX 4 Rami Scully El Paso TX 1 Tom Scully El Paso TX 1 Carmen Stearnes El Paso TX 4 Eddie Wiles El Paso TX 3 Ron Wood El Paso TX 4 * From Brazil 2

5 Table 2. Staff for Test Excavations at Firecracker Pueblo Name Position Responsibility David T. Kirkpatrick, Ph.D., Principal Investigator Supervise field work and RPA prepare report Ed Agan Crew Chief, Grid 1 Supervise field work Michael Hughes Crew Chief, Grid 3 Supervise field work Kay Luther Crew Chief, Grid 2 Supervise field work Alan Phelps Crew Chief, Grid 4 Supervise field work Bill Luther Crew Chief, Floating Supervise field work SITE DESCRIPTION Firecracker Pueblo (EPCM ) dates to the El Paso phase of the Jornada Mogollon culture. Excavation data show the site had a single room block that was one room wide. The room block probably had rooms in a linear pattern; however, the identification of rooms was complicated by erosion of the walls and floors. The rooms ranged in size from 7.8 to 20.2 sq m with the largest room measuring 28.1 sq m. This room was probably a communal or ceremonial room. Hearths were near the center of each room. The roof was supported by two vertical posts, cottonwood and juniper, with grasses, reeds, and yucca, agave, and sotol stalks separating the roof vigas and latillas from the dirt roof (O Laughlin 2001:117). Excavation in areas away from the room block exposed 17 identifiable pithouses and numerous pits. These pits could have been used as underground roasting ovens, storage pits, and pits for depositing trash. One of the pits also served as the only burial found during the entire excavation program, that of an year-old woman (O Laughlin 2001:118, 126). An excellent discussion of the previous work at Firecracker pueblo and an interpretation of the discoveries can be found at the web site of 3

6 Figure 1. USGS Map Figure 2. Firecracker Site Location 4

7 Figure 3. Site Map of Firecracker Pueblo 5

8 METHODS Firecracker Pueblo was selected for two reasons. First, the data from previous excavations could be incorporated into the academy class. Second, its close proximity to the academy site, El Paso Museum of Archaeology at Wilderness Park, minimized travel time in the morning and return for the laboratory session. Thomas O Laughlin conducted the previous excavations at Firecracker Pueblo between 1980 and 1990 (O Laughlin 2001). He provided a map of the site showing excavation units and features. On February 21, 2004, Kirkpatrick and the crew chiefs toured the site, familiarizing themselves with site features and the surface artifacts. An attempt was made to find the metal site datum stakes located near the corners of Rooms 1, 3, and 9. When the site datum could not be found by visual methods, a metal detector was used in the area where the datum stake was thought to be located. This effort was not successful. Consequently, it was not possible to tie in the current test excavation units with the previous excavation units. Locations for four test excavation units were selected north and west of the site datum in an area thought to be unexcavated. The excavation units were laid out along an arbitrary baseline that was oriented in an east-west direction. A metal rebar stake was used to mark the east and west ends of the baseline. A 50-m tape was extended between the stakes with the 0 N 0 E at the west end of the tape. A Garmin 12 GPS unit was used to obtain UTM coordinates for the base line. West base line or datum coordinate of 0 N 0 E is Zone E N. The rebar stakes were left in place at the conclusion of the fieldwork. The test grids were laid out using this base line. The south side of each unit was the base line. The test excavation units were 1-m-by-1-m in size. The southwest corner served as the unit datum point for horizontal and vertical measurements. Excavations were conducted in 10 cm levels. The surface of each unit was described, photographed, and mapped if artifacts were present. At the completion of each level, grid level forms and plan maps were completed by the academy students under the supervision of the crew chief. All the photographs were taken Kay Luther to maintain consistency in the photographic documentation and photograph logs. A general orientation of the site was given by Kirkpatrick prior to the beginning of the setting up of the grids. The students were shown the visual portions of the room block, notably Room 6 and the adjacent rooms. The discussion included what was previously found and what they might expect to find during their test excavations. 6

9 After the base line was laid and the grids set up, Kirkpatrick discussed and showed the basic procedures for mapping in artifacts and features. The crew chiefs supervised the mapping in of a surface artifact as part of the exercise. Then Kirkpatrick discussed the proper use of the trowel to remove fill in horizontal layers across the grid and keeping the bucket inside the grid while filling it up. As the students began to excavate, they were shown how to use the line level and tape measure to measure depth below datum for each level or any artifacts that might be found. The crew chiefs were especially helpful in this phase of the training of the students. The crew chiefs were responsible for teaching the students what to look for when the fill was being screened. They showed the students the difference between a rock and a flake and roots and bone fragments. RESULTS This section presents a description of the four excavation test units. Photographs are included to illustrate the test pits. Excavation Unit 1 Grid: N 0 E 2 Level: Surface Artifacts: One.22 cartridge case; fired. Soil: Aeolian sand with small elevated deposit in the northeast corner. Level: 1 Artifacts: One.22 cartridge case; fired; at 3 cm below surface. Soil: Compact aeolian sand with more moisture than surface, small rootlets present. Level: 2 Artifacts: One El Paso Brown ware sherd; at 12 cm below surface. Soil: Compact sand with a concentration of calcium carbonate in the center west half of the grid. Begins at 13 cm below surface and is 45-by-50-cm in diameter. Sherd found above it. Soil has more small pebbles and gravels present. Calcium carbonate extends into Level 3. 7

10 Excavation Unit 2 Grid: N 0 E 7 Level: Surface Artifacts: Soil: None Aeolian sand with small gravels. Level: 1 Artifacts: Soil: One rhyolite flake fragment, distal; one burned bone (1 cm) rodent size leg bone Compact aeolian sand with small rootlets present. Rodent burrow in northeast corner of the grid as evidenced by slightly different color and texture of sand. Level: 2 Artifacts: Soil: A very small fragment (2-by-5-mm) of burned bone was found Compact aeolian sand with decomposing organic matter, probably roots at the contact between Level 1 and Level 2. Few large roots present. Rodent burrow in northeast corner of the grid as evidenced by slightly different color and texture of sand. Excavation Unit 3 Grid: N 0 E 12 Level: Surface Artifacts: Soil: Four very small El Paso Brown ware sherds Aeolian sand with small gravels. Level: 1 Artifacts: Soil: One El Paso Brown ware sherd; small bone fragment (1.5cm) Compact aeolian sand with small pebbles and gravels. Level: 2 Artifacts: Soil: None Compact aeolian sand with small pebbles and gravels. 8

11 Excavation Unit 4 Grid: N 0 E 17 Level: Surface Artifacts: Soil: None Aeolian sand with small gravels. Level: 1 Artifacts: Features: Soil: None Recent hoof prints from a horse made while the sand was wet. First imprint found at depth of 5 cm below surface. It was made by compaction of the horse s weight. A second hoof print found at the same level, approximately 25 cm to the southeast. Rodent burrow present between the two hoof prints, evidenced by color and texture differences. Compact aeolian sand with small pebbles and gravels. Level: 2 Artifacts: Soil: None Compact sand with small pebbles and gravels. THE ARTIFACTS A total of 12 artifacts were recovered from the test excavations. These are two.22-caliber, fired cartridges, six El Paso Brown ware sherds, one flake fragment, and three small fragments of animal bone. Chipped stone tools and ground stone artifacts were not found on the surface or subsurface. Charcoal and sediments for pollen studies were not present in the text units. No special collections, such as pollen, were made. LABORATORY Because only 12 artifacts were found, a formal laboratory class was not conducted. Instead, Kirkpatrick provided a lecture on lithic artifacts and lithic technology using artifacts that were a part of the El Paso Archaeological Society s teaching collections. The lecture also included a discussion of ceramics and other artifacts commonly found on sites in the El Paso region. 9

12 Orientation by David T. Kirkpatrick Orientation in the area to be tested 10

13 Laying out the base line with west in the background (or upper center) 11

14 The base line and laying out Grids 3 and 4. 12

15 Demonstration of excavation methods Overview of excavations with Grid 1 in foreground 13

16 Laying out Grid 1 Grid 1, Level 1 with arrow to north 14

17 Grid 1, potsherd Grid 1, close-up of El Paso brown ware sherd 15

18 Grid 1, caliche deposit Grid 1 team, (left to right) Ed Agan, Roger Nacimento, Tom Scully, Rami Scully, and David Kirkpatrick 16

19 Surface Grid 2 looking north Grid 2, Level 2, base 17

20 Grid 2 team, (left to right) Diane Crabtree, Kay Luther, Jed Becker, and Susan Barbee Team 2, (left to right) Bill Luther, Susan Barbee, Kay Luther, Jed Becker, and Diane Crabtree 18

21 Laying out end of Grids 3 and 4, looking east 19

22 Surface Grid 3, north Team 3, (left to right) Mike Hughes, Casey Jensen, Sherry Mendela, and Eddie Wiles 20

23 Grid 4, surface Grid 4, hoof prints 21

24 Grid 4, 15 cm end Grid 4, shifting, (left to right) Ron Wood, Alan Phelps, and Charles Berry 22

25 Team 4, (left to right) Alan Phelps, Ron Wood, Carmen Stearnes, and Charles Berry Discussion of testing results, Grid 1 in foreground, looking east 23

26 CONCLUSIONS The purpose of the test excavations was to introduce to the students the need for spatial control of excavations, starting with the laying out of a grid. The exercise also provided the opportunity to show the proper procedures of excavation, such as removing fill in levels and keeping the bucket inside the grid while filling it up. The students assisted in the recordation of the excavation results, learning that paper work is as important, if not more so, than the artifacts being excavated. All of the students showed a willingness to learn the proper procedures of excavation. Although the test excavations lasted only a couple of hours, the students quickly picked up the proper procedures for excavations. More importantly, the students showed an understanding for why they were excavating and the need to document the work that they were doing at Firecracker Pueblo. REFERENCES O Laughlin, Thomas C Long Lessons and Big Surprises: Firecracker Pueblo. In FollowingThrough: Papers in Honor of Phyllis S. Davis, edited by Regge N. Wiseman, Thomas C. O Laughlin, and Cordelia T. Snow, pp Archaeological Society of New Mexico No. 27, Albuquerque. 24