Revising the Community Plan of the Bell Site (47WN9): Processes and Outcomes of GIS Spatial Analysis

A recent reanalysis of the spatial distribution of artifacts from the Bell site (47WN9) near Oshkosh, Wisconsin, provides an updated interpretation of seventeenth and early eighteenth century activities associated with the Grand Village of the Meskwaki in that locale. Although archaeologists now routinely conduct analyses of artifact distributions at the intrasite level, using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and other mapping technologies to record and visualize spatial data, sometimes even in real-time during excavations, application of GIS methods to older collections are rarer. This case study (1) documents methods used to map feature-associated artifacts and identify spatial patterning, (2) presents new visualizations of artifact distributions at the Bell site, and (3) revises earlier interpretations of the community plan of the site (Behm 1998, 2008). The results demonstrate the importance of continuing to update curation and research strategies for previously collected artifacts and archaeological data, using a method that is widely applicable to other archaeological sites and that makes effective use of existing cultural resources.