@article {9684,
	title = {Holocene Shoreline Occupations and Water-Level Changes at Lac M{\'e}gantic, Qu{\'e}bec},
	journal = {Canadian Journal of Archaeology/Journal canadien d{\textquoteright}arch{\'e}ologie},
	volume = {29},
	year = {2005},
	pages = {267-288},
	abstract = {<p>Archaeological questions concerning lake water levels are often related to the viability of past shoreline occupations. They become more complex when the lake\&rsquo;s present \&ldquo;natural\&rdquo; level is unknown, as is the case at Lac M{\'e}gantic, southeastern Qu{\'e}bec, which has a 12,000-year-long cultural sequence. One lakeside site, Plage-Duquette, was occupied during two periods, 8800\&ndash;7800 and 6800\&ndash;5800 cal BP, but its low elevation raises questions about its springtime viability. In 2003, an underwater survey identified the shoreline prior to damming in 1893. Related geological analysis of a submerged terrace indicated it was exposed for hundreds or thousands of years at an unknown time in the postglacial past. This is corroborated by lake studies in the Northeast that show a drop in water levels below today\&rsquo;s values between 8800 and 5100 cal BP. The 4-m difference between mid-Holocene and pre-1893 levels at Lac M{\'e}gantic gives rise to a re-evaluation of prehistoric shoreline occupations. We conclude that the level of Lac M{\'e}gantic was significantly lower during the mid-Holocene than today and that this level modifies our understanding of Plage-Duquette and other sites.</p>},
	author = {Brad Loewen and Claude Chapdelaine and Pierre J. H. Richard}
}
