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<br />' 3.0 CULTURE HISTORY <br />i <br />3.1 Paleo-Indian Stage (10,000-5500 B.C.) <br /> The Paleo-Indian Stage is representative of a series of terminal Pleistocene <br /> lifeways, all of which possess as their most distinctive feature the seasonally oriented <br /> <br />~ pursuit and procurement of various large, now-extinct, mammals. Archaeologically, <br />' the stage is identified by a number of distinctive, diagnostic lanceolate projectile <br /> points and tool assemblages indicative of a big game hunting economy. Paleo-Indian <br /> sites are rare in the vicinity of the project area; Paleo-Indian evidence in the region <br />' mostly consists of isolated surface finds of diagnostic artifacts. <br />((~~ <br />I, 3.2 Archaic Stage (5500 B.C. - A.D. 500) <br />Climatic change resulting in radically altered environmental conditions <br /> , <br />including the extinction of late Pleistocene megafauna upon which the Paleo-Indian <br /> lifeway was based, was responsible for a major shift in the economy and lifestyle of <br /> prehistoric peoples throughout North America. The big game hunting focus was <br /> supplanted by a more diverse approach to subsistence, characterized by the hunting <br /> <br />I of modern faunal species and an increasing dependence upon floral resources. <br /> Archaic Stage archaeological remains include large stemmed or stemmed indented <br />' <br />`` base dart points, large side- and corner-notched projectile point forms, and a diverse <br /> tool assemblage including grinding slabs and handstones. As a whole, the material <br />(1 culture is reflective of an efficient adaptation that focused on the exploitation of a <br />(' wide variety of resources within a limited geographic area. Archaic stage remains <br /> are relatively well represented in northwestern Colorado (Grady 1984; Guthrie et al. <br />~ 1984; La Point 1987). <br />33 Late Prehistoric Period (A.D. 500-Late Eighteenth Century) <br />~ 33.1 Formative Stage (A.D. 500-1200 <br />~ The Formative Stage is characterized by the presence of horticulture and the <br />~ adoption of a sedentary or semi-sedentary lifestyle. In northwestern Colorado, the <br />t Formative stage is represented by the Fremont culture (Grady 1984). Maize cultiva- <br />tion, pithouses and masonry structures, ceramic gray wares, and a disttnctive rock art <br />style are some of the traits that are diagnostic of Fremont (Grady 1984). The east- <br />ern boundary of the Fremont cultural has yet to be satisfactorily defined. It seems <br />reasonable that cultural groups occupying the region east of those areas with firm <br />evidence of Fremont occupation retained an essentially Archaic lifestyle, as has <br />been suggested for adjacent regions (e.g., Buckles 1971; Reed 1984). <br />t 33.2 Protohistoric/Historic Stage (A.D.1200-18801 <br />The probable appearance of Numic speakers around A.D. 1200 initiates the <br />Protohistortc Stage (Grady 1984). The ancestors of the Ute, and possibly the <br />r, Shoshone, occupied the project area and continued to occupy a broad surrounding <br />region until histonc times. Before the introduction of the horse, firearms, and other <br />European trade goods during the late Protohistortc/early Historic, the lifeway and <br />matertal culture of these peoples is remarkable for its similarity to earlier cultural <br />1 patterns. This continuity is evidenced in lithic assemblages, settlement pattern, and <br />!_, subsistence practices. With the advent of European contact and the acquisition of <br />. horses and trearms, however, new cultural and social practices emerged. By the <br />time Euro-American explorers, traders, and trappers entered the region to the early <br />' nineteenth century, Utes and Shoshones were mounted societies, wealthier, capable <br /> <br />