Seven Thousand Years of Occupation at the Ruskin Dam Site - Duncan McLaren and Brendan Gray
Excavations of the Ruskin Dam Site, located on the north side of the Fraser Valley, were conducted over four months in 2009 as part of a salvage project. Our talk will discuss the significance of the major discoveries at the site including: the house features, quartz crystal tools, biface styles, woodworking technology, objects of personal adornment, and faunal remains which contain a high proportion of sturgeon bones. Combined, the artifacts, radiocarbon dates, and site stratigraphy provide a unique opportunity for gaining a perspective on the long-term occupation of this strategically located archaeological site.
Duncan McLaren is the owner and operator of Cordillera Archaeology, an archaeological contracting firm based in Victoria, BC. He also is an adjunct professor in the Department of Anthropology and the University of Victoria.
Brendan Gray is a consulting archaeologist based in Victoria. He has a B.A. in archaeology from S.F.U and an M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Victoria. His research interests include northwest coast archaeology and household archaeology.