Abstract

What initially appeared to be anomalous 14C and TL dates from two sites in the Upper Hudson River drainage are re-evaluated. Both Waterford and Winney's Rift, located within the lands occupied by Algonquian-speakers at the time of contact, produced assemblages of late Middle Woodland to early Late Woodland ceramics in association with dates contemporaneous with Late Owasco developments elsewhere. Subsequent changes in material culture demonstrate that the Upper Hudson peoples slowly adopted later Owasco and Iroquoian ceramic style and technology. It is suggested that these changes were concomitant with the diffusion of corn horticulture from Iroquoian-speakers to the west and south.