North Eastern Quartz and Quartzite Use

[-=METACOM=-]

Where were the Natives of the North East sourcing their quartz? How many sources of quality quartz were there? Would any old quartz cobble from anywhere do? I have seen small quartz boulders near sites that look like they may have quarried a bit. Were they doing that?

I remember Charlie mentioning where the natives sourced their quartzite, but were they also making use of the cobbles that litter our area? Can I assume every quartzite core I find came from a particular favored source?

[Scorpion68]

Great questions METACOM - to which I have no answers but I'm quite sure someone do or can refer you to a site that does. I know here in Tennessee, like in my immediate area, I don't know of any NA quarries. However, there is a cave called Blowing Wind cave where NA's apparently went to get their chert. I'm sure if I checked the internet, I'd be able to find where the local chert deposits are. Gonna be watching to see what the answer is.

[OnewiththewilD]

Quartz occurs naturally all over the state, I’ve seen large veins of it run thru the exposed bedrock areas in numerous places, and it turns up all along the coast. We have some quartzite too but I think most of it came from the north of us. I’ve read that Boudreau thought the small stem cluster of artifacts comes from a pebble industry, I kinda disagree, it’s close to impossible to knap a point out of a pebble, especially quartz. I think it was more of a Cobble industry if that’s what you wanna call it. My best quartz points have been from finding a decent sized rock of it and smashing it against another bigger rock, then picking they the debris and finding the choicest pieces that busted off. Having said that I think the natives did whatever they wanted around here with quartz as there’s so much of it.

[-=METACOM=-]

Quick question Jay, have you ever knapped quartzite cobbles for kicks? If so how do you make your selection?

[OnewiththewilD]

I have, usually ones I find along the shore. But I’ve knapped a bunch of quartzite that I found as flakes too. I try and guess what pieces are “good” by how small and tight the grains in the stone are, if it looks like it doesn’t have natural fracture lines,or if I’m able to snap it with my fingers. Quartzite that seems to be the best is very fine grained yet strong.

[-=METACOM=-]

Thanks for the info Jay.

[CMD]

I believe it was Boudreau who talked of a "quartz pebble industry" where the small stem tradition was concerned, which would be Wading River, Lamoka, and I guess Squibnocket Stemmed. So that quartz would not be quarried. If you're seeing quartz cobbles at your site, the fact that they are cobbles, with intact skin, would preclude them having been quarried. Most likely glacial cobbles. I honestly don't know if they quarried from quartz seams, etc.

There is a fluted point site, known as the Sands of the Blackstone site, the Blackstone being the river by that name, located somewhere in Ma., near the RI border. A fluted point base, made of crystalline quartz, was found, that was believed to have been sourced at Diamond Hill, in Cumberland, RI. That is basically a hill of quartz, enjoying some fame among mineral hunters in the region. So it seems possible Paleo hunters may have quarried quartz there.

I'm afraid I can't help you otherwise, but it's safe to assume all those little stemmed quartz points we all find were the products of a pebble industry, and not quarried. Sometimes cortex is still present at the base of the stem.

Edit: "Quartz pebble industry" does not imply tiny pebbles. Even smaller cobbles can be termed pebbles. And many of our small stems show cortex at the base, betraying their origin.....

[CMD]

Looks like NY state archaeologist William Ritchie was describing a quartz pebble industry, long before Boudreau. It's discussed in this PDF file. Unfortunetly, PDF files don't permit word searches within the document, so you would have to read this until you find it:

http://www.plymoutharch.com/wp-conte...c-Analysis.pdf

It will not be easy getting information online on this subject, but if you know any area professionals who deal in prehistoric studies, they can be of immense help, and can easily field questions like this.

[Pointhead]

What’s a quartz cobble look like size wise? I’ve Seen quartz boulders over the years that were clearly used for their blanks.. just look at the old stone walls near sites..

[clambellies]

On a hill bordering a certain river valley, I've found a large vein of quartz in a rocky ledge. The hill's slope has a lot of broken tailing of quartz under the leaf mold. It was obviously mined by the N/A's. Down along the river on sites I've also found a lot of broken quartz debitage that still has the outer cortex or rind from cobbles that seemed to be about the size of a softball. Smaller pieces of debitage appear to have been from the small pebble tradition. So it appears that the N/A's were utilizing different sources of quartz during different times.

[sneakygroundbuzzard]

in my area,central Mn,the ancients did have a favorite spot to collect quartz.

the y would collect it from the Little Elk river near little falls when the water was low
this quartz is known as "fat rock quartz",it gots its name because it looks like fat that is in beef.you know that nice marbling you see in a good steak
its like that in the bedrock of the river bed.

its a high quality quartz,well high quality as far as quartz goes. knaps well and stays sharp,most all quartz artifacts in that area are made from fat rock quartz

[clambellies]

Years ago, along the Blackstone River in Mass, I found this slab of quartz in a field. I found no other artifacts in that field and assumed that there was not a campsite there. On the other side of a nearby hill, there was a known quartz quarry that the N/A's worked. That site was written up in a Mass Arch Society Bulletin back in the 1960's, I believe. I've always wondered if that slab of quartz was mined up on that hill and then carried back to the river and was dropped and lost by an N/A was using the river for transportation.

[-=METACOM=-]

Very interesting.

[Tam]

The stuff is littered on a campsite in S Georgia we hunt artifacts . Looks like diamonds glistening on the sand on a sunny day . It’s suppose to be associated with gold and Lumpkin Georgia was a bustling gold town before Cal .

[filmiracl]

Can't really answer your question, but I figured I'd add that around the Philly area, quartz points seem to be a bit rare... but quartzite is common. I can't imagine the indians around here traveled to or quarried their material from any one site (with the exception of jasper. I believe the argillite is just from cobbles too, though there are bands stretching across PA and NJ) ... Quartzite cobble fill the shores of the Delaware River. As for quartz itself, I occasionally find large chunks... softball size or so... along the creeks and rivers. I don't know where they originated.

[Hunting_Dad]

The geology of the area in which I live (eastern MA) is dominated by the glacial moraine(s) of our last ice age. The area is littered with all sorts of well rounded quartz cobbles that I could easily see being knapped much in the way Jay suggested....shatter the cobble and begin from there. I find a lot quartz points and tools with the outer cortex remaining that would support the cobble/pebble sourcing of materials. I do however also see larger (up to Volkswagen size) 'chunks' of quartz locally. These tend to be less rounded, indicating that they didnt travel as far with the glacier. Whether it be the original source of these larger pieces somewhere to the north, or the isolated boulders themselves, I have no doubt they were "quarried"for materiel as well. I would bet the latter was the source for the nicer/larger quartz arti's from New England.
As for quartzite, I only ever see it as rounded cobbles..... and I havent a clue how you could get a point out of that stuff!

[-=METACOM=-]

Lots of good information. Thanks guys.