Abstract

Situated in the most arid region of the Canadian prairies, water has always played an important role at the Fletcher Site (DjOw-1). Water, the digging of a dugout, was involved in the site's recognition, and water, in the form of a lake and its associated resources, probably attracted Paleoindians to the locale around 9000 years ago. Indeed, waterlogged conditions at depth have preserved a fine record of plant and other macroremains from the early Holocene. The record supports a view of early Holocene water availability on the plains that forms a strong contrast with today. Since Forbis and his team worked there almost forty years ago, Fletcher has remained one of the most important Paleoindian sites in western Canada and it continues to contribute to our understanding of human occupation on the prairies.