Deep Creek Site (CA-SBr-176): A Late Prehistoric Base Camp in the Mojave River Forks Region, San Bernardino County, California

The Deep Creek site (CA-SBr-176) lies at a confluence. Even a cursory analysis suggests the strategic importance of this location. Environmentally, the area is an ecotone between the mountains and desert. Although lying on the edge of the desert, obtaining water would have been of little concern, for both Deep Creek and the Mojave River generally flow above ground at this juncture year-round. Culturally, the area is located on a point which must be passed by all who use the Mojave River as a travel route. This is not restricted to local travel between the mountains and desert, but also includes trade and travel for people using the Cajon Pass to the west as a means of movement between the Pacific Coast and the Colorado River Valley.

Given these intuitive considerations, it is little wonder that a large archaeological site is situated at the Mojave River Forks. The Deep Creek site formally entered the archaeological record in 1939 (Smith 1963). A limited amount of work was conducted at the site in the early 1950s (Smith 1955), upon which virtually all subsequent interpretations are based (e.g., Warren 1984). The construction of the dam for the Mojave River Forks Reservoir spurred little interest in the site, although it was dear that the project would potentially destroy it (Singer 1966). Indeed, a survey conducted after the completion of the dam concluded that the site had been destroyed (Wells 1977). This conclusion, however, was in error (Altschul et al. 1985). The site, although having suffered some damage, is still largely intact.

When notified that the agency was responsible for the management of the Deep Creek site, the Los Angeles District, Corps of Engineers (COE) decided to evaluate the site's potential for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. This decision was based on the agency's obligations under Executive Order 11593 and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. To this end, the COE contracted with Statistical Research to perform a test and evaluation program. The purpose of this report is to present the results of this program.

This report is organized into four parts. The first part consists of background information on the environment, previous archaeological work on the site and in the general region, and culture history (Chapter 2). With this information as a backdrop, the research orientation, including research questions, and the general methodology is presented (Chapter 3). Part II, contained wholly in Chapter 4, describes the site and the result of the fieldwork. Part III presents the results of the analysis stage of the project. Included in this part are chapters on the geomorphic history of the site (Chapter 5), site chronology (Chapter 6), lithic artifacts (Chapter 7), faunal remains (Chapter 8) and paleobotanical studies (Chapter 9). The report closes in Part IV (Chapter 10) with an evaluation of the Deep Creek site's place in regional settlement and an assessment of its National Register status.

深溪遗址（CA-SBr-176）坐落于一处汇流地带。即便仅开展粗略分析，亦可窥见该区位的战略价值。从环境维度来看，这片区域是山地与荒漠间的生态交错带（ecotone）。尽管地处荒漠边缘，但获取水源几乎不成顾虑：深溪与莫哈韦河在此交汇处全年基本均为地表径流。从文化维度而言，该遗址位于所有以莫哈韦河为通行路线的人员必经之地；这不仅涵盖山地与荒漠之间的短途通行，还包括利用西侧卡洪隘口往来太平洋沿岸与科罗拉多河谷的商贸与迁徙人群。

基于上述直观研判，莫哈韦河汇流处存在大型考古遗址便不足为奇。深溪遗址于1939年正式被纳入考古记录（Smith 1963）。1950年代初期，该遗址曾开展有限考古工作（Smith 1955），后续几乎所有相关解读均以此为基础（例如Warren 1984）。尽管莫哈韦河汇流水库大坝的修建显然可能损毁该遗址（Singer 1966），但当时并未引发学界对该遗址的足够关注。大坝完工后开展的调查曾断言遗址已遭完全损毁（Wells 1977），然而这一结论并不正确（Altschul et al. 1985）。该遗址虽遭受一定破坏，但整体仍保存完好。

在获悉美国陆军工程兵团（Corps of Engineers, COE）负责管理深溪遗址后，其洛杉矶分局决定对该遗址纳入国家历史遗迹名录（National Register of Historic Places）的潜力开展评估。此项决策依据该机构需遵守的第11593号行政命令（Executive Order 11593）及《国家历史保护法》（National Historic Preservation Act）第106条。为此，工程兵团委托统计研究机构开展测试与评估项目。本报告即旨在呈现该项目的研究成果。

本报告共分为四个部分。第一部分包含环境背景、该遗址及周边区域既往考古工作，以及文化史相关内容（第2章）。以此为背景，本文将阐述研究方向，包括研究问题与整体研究方法（第3章）。第二部分仅包含第4章，介绍该遗址概况与野外工作成果。第三部分呈现本项目分析阶段的研究结果，涵盖遗址地貌历史（geomorphic history）、遗址年代序列（site chronology）、石质文物（lithic artifacts）、动物遗存（faunal remains）及古植物学研究（paleobotanical studies）。报告第四部分（第10章）为结语，对深溪遗址在区域聚落格局中的地位进行评估，并对其国家历史遗迹名录申报资格作出判定。