With a focus on Archaic and Woodland period archaeological components in New York State, this project reconstructs site formation processes and landscape histories along the Upper Susquehanna River and examines them as settlement contexts for prehistoric human populations. Two questions shape the research. First, where are the Middle and Late Holocene occupation surfaces of deeply stratified sites within the Upper Susquehanna valley? Second, what is the nature of prehistoric land use for the Late Archaic through Woodland periods in the study area?

One east-to-west transect of the Upper Susquehanna valley preserves a series of nine single and multi-component sites and serves as the research locus. Four of these sites are studied intensively using two complementary methodologies. First, a geoarchaeological approach is implemented to delineate landform development and the character of stable occupation surfaces from the Terminal Pleistocene through the present, with emphasis on the Middle to Late Holocene. Site formation data results from comprehensive field analysis of subsurface stratigraphies which document alluvial deposition sequences, landform development, and episodes of stream channel migration. Laboratory analyses of select soil and sediment samples, including granulometric and geochemical tests, provide additional information concerning sedimentary sources, pedogenesis, and geochronology.

Archaeological analysis of artifact assemblages is conducted in parallel with the geoarchaeological assessment. This investigation examines the spatial distributions of prehistoric cultural materials and translates these configurations into morphostratigraphic maps. These maps demonstrate the intersection of stable occupation surfaces with areas of artifact and feature density in order to link floodplain settlements to specific landforms.

The synthesized results of these methodologies contribute a valley-wide stratigraphic sequence highlighting the interactions of prehistoric populations with a dynamic alluvial environment. Results show that during the Mid to Late Holocene a series of stable and semi-stable landform surfaces developed within the valley, providing venues for primary encampments and logistical exploitation camps. Selected sites from downstream positions on Susquehanna and Delaware Rivers are examined for additional appraisals of site formation, landform development, and land use patterning. These case studies aid the assessment of broader patterns of human-landscape interaction and contribute a context for land use variability regionally, suggesting that prehistoric human groups implemented multiple adaptive strategies in response to differing landscape settings during the Mid to Late Holocene.