Comment on the Paleoindian Occurrence of Spurred End Scrapers as Reported by Rogers

The potential chronological placement of sites on the basis of lithic tools other than projectile points has long been one of our research goals in northeastern Colorado (Morris 1981). Therefore, Richard Rogers's article on the Paleoindian affiliation of spurred end scrapers in Kansas was read with considerable interest (Rogers 1986). An initial reaction was that, in surveys conducted in the South Platte River drainage of northeasternColorado, Colorado State University teams have recovered considerably more spurred end scrapers than Paleoindian projectile points. A brief examination of the records indicated that this was, indeed, the case. However, in many cases not only were there no Paleoindian pints on the sites that produced spurred end scrapers, there were usually no other chronologically diagnostic artifacts either. With one notable exception, the Paleoindian sites that we have located have few points and no spurred end scrapers (Morris 1976). In an effort to shed more light on the situation, we turned to the literature and to our excavation data. In support of Rogers's hypothesis, the Lindenmeier site of predominantly Folsom period age included numerous spurred end scrapers (Roberts 1935, 1936). Also, this artifact occurs in Clovis, Folsom, and perhaps other context at Blackwater Draw in northeastern New Mexico (Hester 1972). Interestingly, this artifact also occurs in a Jay phase, Early Archaic context in northwestern New Mexico dating about 6000-5000 B.C. (Irwin-Williams 1973). It immediately became apparent that in northeastern Colorado there were many sites of all ages in which spurred end scrapers either did not occur, or were too scarce to describe as an intentionally manufactured sub-type. Some of these assemblages did include occasional specimens and some could be dated to certain portions of the Archaic and post-Archaic periods but they may well have been accidentally produced. Examples of these sites where larger numbers of nonspurred end scrapers do occur are Lo Dais Ka (Irwin and Irwin 1959), Magic Mountain (Irwin-Williams and Irwin 1966), and Kinney Spring (Morris in prep.). However, two well-dated occurrences of spurred end scrapers were found. One group is described as being similar to the Lindenmeier tools but is a common component of a Dismal River assemblage dating A.D. 1675-1725 (Gunnerson 1968:183). Specimens exhibiting this morphology have been recovered with other Dismal River phase diagnostic artifacts by our research program at the Lunch Cave site (5LR288) (Morris in prep.). The other dated occurrence is in the Middle Archaic (Hannah) site of Dipper Gap near Stoneham, Colorado (Metcalf 1974). These specimens are numerous, similar in shape, and clearly separable into an intentionally manufactured sub-type. Three radiocarbon dates in association range from 1230 B.C. (UGa-456) to 1570 B.C. (UGa-455). A relatively high proportion of spurred end scrapers also occurred on 5WL701, a butte top site like Dipper Gap, on