Twenty thousand years ago the North American landscape was vastly different than it is today. The northern third was covered by the Laurentide Ice Sheet, an unbroken expanse of ice about as large as Antarctica and, in some places, several kilometres thick. A result of the Wisconsin Glaciation, this massive ice sheet, covered temperate North America, including the Great Lakes Basin, and represented the latest in a series of prolonged continental glaciations to expand and recede. The Wisconsin Glaciation reached its final maximum about 18 000 years Before Present (BP) at which time the total volume of ice began to shrink when a warming trend initiated a retreat of the ice; the volume of the ice sheet decreased rapidly between 16 000 and 13 000 years BP.

By 10 000 years BP, ice lobes of the Laurentide Ice Sheet had receded sufficiently to expose the Great Lakes Basin. In fact, as early as 13 000 BP, meltwater channels and basins began defining present-day features such as the Grand River, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Glacial recession – the melting of massive amounts of ice – left deposits of sediments that determined the features of our landscape, e.g. moraines, eskers, kames and kettle lakes. Both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems gradually emerged and rapidly diversified as vegetation and subsequently populations of animals colonized the landscape.

steatite pipe fragment

Archaeological research shows that humans had established themselves in the Great Lakes basin by 11 500 BP. Archaeological resources include physical remains, referred to as artifacts, and cultural features such as settlement patterns, both of which provide contextual information and settings for our knowledge and understanding of ancient peoples. Because of the passage of time these resources, often fragile, lie on or below the surface of land and water. Where no written histories exist, archaeological resources provide a significant link to early inhabitants.

The confluence of the Grand and Speed Rivers has attracted humans as a place to live since at least 9500 BP. For millennia, the confluence has supported productive ecosystems including an expansive, fertile floodplain surrounded by upland and lowland forests from which many streams drain wetlands and numerous seeps discharge groundwater into the river system – all of which attracted hunters, gatherers, and, in time, agriculturists.

With the establishment of Cruickston Charitable Research Reserve in 2002, Chris Dalton, an avocational archaeologist and life-long resident of Waterloo Region, approached Cruickston CEO, Mark Fretwurst, with his collection of Cruickston artifacts. Chris's knowledge of Cruickston is extensive: growing up in West Galt (Cambridge), he roamed Cruickston Park Farm as a young outdoor enthusiast and for more than a dozen years prior to 2002, explored, came to know and appreciate the archaeological potential of the property. Local avocational archaeologist, Peter Brennan, had a similar interest and enthusiasm for Cruickston. In 1999, Chris and Peter sought professional opinion about Cruickston artifacts from archaeologist, John MacDonald, who is also a heritage planner with the Province of Ontario. Both MacDonald and his colleague, Neal Ferris, were surprised and excited by the number of artifacts and the timeline of human history these artifacts represented.

cache blade

Chris Dalton’s findings reveal that artifacts on the property date from as early as 9500 BP. Furthermore, these artifacts are representative of both Archaic and Woodland periods of Prehistory and each of three subdivisions (i.e. Early, Middle and Late) of these periods. Few locations in Southern Ontario contain artifacts from all these time periods together in one place. Presented with Chris Dalton’s findings and appreciating Cruickston’s archaeological potential, the Board of Directors authorized the undertaking of an Archaeological Management Plan.

In late autumn, 2003, as Friends of Cruickston members, Peter Brennan, Chris Dalton and John MacDonald, formed the Archaeological Research of Cruickston’s Heritage team (ARCH) to initiate and undertake this task. Other ARCH members include Friends of Cruickston members, Harvey Reid, George Bradford and Bill Wilson, CCRR Environmental Steward. Members of ARCH are also members of Ontario Archaeological Society (OAS). Providing consultation to ARCH are Dr. Gary Warrick, Assistant Professor, Contemporary Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University, Brantford Campus, and Ann Chafe, Curator, Heritage Collection, Heritage Resources, City of Waterloo.

Field work is planned for spring 2004 during which ARCH will survey the entire property and will undertake site mapping of CCRR. Over the years, CCRR has attracted amateur archaeologists; nevertheless, portions of the property remain unexplored. By undertaking a thorough survey, ARCH hopes not only to add to findings of Archaic and Woodland artifacts but also complete the entire story of human presence in this area by finding Paleo artifacts signifying human presence from as early as 11 500 BP, at the end of the Wisconsin glaciation.

Archaeology is uniquely important in making possible the documentation and understanding of the history of a place and its people. In Ontario, at present, only 10-15% of all potential archaeological sites have been identified. Much remains to be learned. As well, many archaeological sites that have been studied were done so during salvage archaeology – assessments often haphazard and incomplete, undertaken as precursors to construction or development that would render sites unavailable for future research. CCRR is very much aware of its archaeological resources and the contribution they can make to public education and research and to the appreciation and understanding of Ontario's archaeological heritage.

The vision for CCRR provides an opportunity for this 913-acre property to be available for education and research in archaeology in perpetuity.

REFERENCES

Eyles, Nick. 2002. Ontario Rocks: three billion years of environmental changes. Fitzhenry and Whiteside Ltd, Markham, ON.

Ferris Neal, Bill Ross and Winston Wong. 1997 (revised March 1998). An Educational Primer and Comprehensive Guide for Non-specialists. Published and distributed by the Ontario Archaeological Society Inc. in Partnership with the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship, Culture and Recreation.

Karrow, P. F., B. G. Warner, C. L. Ellis and J. D. MacDonald. 1990. What’s Beneath Our Feet In Waterloo Region. Quaternary Sciences Institute, University of Waterloo, Publication no. 1.

Karrow, Paul F. April 1991. The Grand River in Wat on Earth. Dept. of Earth Science, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.

Knight, Dean H. and L. R. Bud Parker. December 1991. Archaeological Assessment Cruickston Park Farm. On file, Cruickston Charitable Research Reserve.

Matsch, Charles L. 1976. North America and The Great Ice Age. McGraw-Hill Book Company, Toronto.

Pielou, E. C. 1991. After the Ice Age: The Return of Life to Glaciated North America. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

Wright, J. V. 1972. Ontario Prehistory: an eleven-thousand-year archaeological outline. National Museum of Canada, Ottawa, ON.

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