Abstract

Since the inception of the Late Side-notched projectile point system in the 1960's by R.S. MacNeish, R. Forbis, and T. Kehoe, researchers have applied this typology to projectile points recovered from sites on the Northern Plains. These types have been used as relative temporal markers for different cultures on the Northern Plains. J. Ives and T. Peck re-evaluated the Late Side-notched projectile point system in the mid 1990's using sites from the Northwestern Plains. The result of this research was the development of two distinct point classes called Cayley series and Mortlach group. These classes represent temporal and geographic distribution of cultures residing on the Northwestern Plains. The traditional model for the Late Side-notched points and this new classification does not encompass projectile points from Blackduck sites on the Northeastern Plains. This presentation offers an analysis of side notched projectile points from selected Northeastern Plains sites including Brockinton, Stott and Hokanson. This evaluation serves to support the notion offered by Peck and Ives that some side notched points do not correspond with the existing typology particularly regarding the stylistic differences of points from Blackduck sites. Late Side-notched projectile point classification needs to be re-evaluated as a temporal and geographic marker for Late Precontact cultures occupying the Northern Plains region.