Coats-Hines Site
Encyclopedia
The Coats-Hines Site is an archaeological site located in Williamson County, Tennessee
in the Southeastern United States. The site is significant in that it is one of only a very few sites in Eastern North America that contains direct evidence of Paleoindian hunting of late Pleistocene
proboscidea
ns. Excavations at the site have yielded three mastodon
skeletons, including one in direct association with Paleoindian stone tools. This site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
on July 12, 2011.
near CoolSprings Galleria in Williamson County, Tennessee
. The site was initially recorded in 1977 when several large bones were identified during landscaping at the Crockett Springs Golf Course (now the Nashville Golf & Athletic Club). Salvage work by staff from the Tennessee Division of Archaeology
recovered the partial skeleton of a single mature female mastodon
(“Mastodon A”) from along a small stream drainage. No description of this excavation or the skeletal material was ever published, and the area that contained the remains was subsequently destroyed by earthmoving along the 13th hole of the golf course.
In 1994 construction of a subdivision just west of the golf course by Hines Interest LP, resulted in identification of a well-preserved bone bed of Pleistocene-aged faunal material. The bone bed was situated west of the original mastodon find along a deeply-incised portion of the same stream channel, approximately below ground surface. Salvage excavations resulted in the identification of several late ice age species including horse, deer, muskrat, and the partial, disarticulated remains of a young male mastodon (“Mastodon B”) The remains of a third mastodon (“Mastodon C”) were identified eroding from the bank line approximately 50 m west of Mastodon B, but were not excavated.
The results of the 1994 excavations were published in both Tennessee Conservationist and the scholarly journal Current Research in the Pleistocene. The site was assigned state number 40WM31, and named “Coats-Hines” in honor of Tennessee Division of Archaeology
staff member Patricia Coats, who participated in the excavation of Mastodon A, and the Hines corporation, which facilitated the 1994 salvage work. Following excavations, the area that contained Mastodon B was backfilled and incorporated into the backyard of a single-family home.
Although Tennessee Division of Archaeology
staff continued to conduct occasional inspections of the stream drainage, no additional excavations took place at the Coats-Hines site until 2008. That year, limited excavations were performed in order to recover several heavily fragmented bones eroding from the bank line at the location of Mastodon C. Poor preservation of the material prevented conclusive identification of the animal’s species, sex, or age
Additional site inspections of the stream channel in 2008 resulted in the recovery of a bifacial stone tool
and a highly mineralized fragment of deer antler. Both these artifacts had been eroded from their original context and could not conclusively be associated with the Pleistocene bone bed. However, staff from the East Tennessee State University and General Shale Brick Natural History Museum
concluded that the antler fragment exhibited an extreme level of mineralization suggesting at least a late Pleistocene origin . This find is noteworthy in that Pleistocene deer have only been recorded at twelve other sites in Tennessee.
, and resharpening flakes
. Subsequent examination of the bones from Mastodon B revealed the presence of cut marks on a thoracic vertebra which was recovered in direct contact with several flakes. The distinctive linear v-shaped profile of the cuts and their location along the thoracic spinous process indicates they are the result of butchering, and specifically efforts to remove dorsal muscles along the backbone .
Geoarchaeological analysis of soils from the 1994 excavations indicate that at the end of the Pleistocene
epoch
, the area which includes Mastodons A, B, and C was situated along the margins of a shallow pond. In the initial site analysis, Breitburg et al. suggest this pond formed as a result of a beaver dam or other natural blockage along the stream channel. Numerous animals including mastodon would have congregated at this pond, thereby drawing the attention of Paleoindian hunters.
Williamson County, Tennessee
Williamson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010 US Census, the population was 183,182. The County's seat is Franklin, and it is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is named after Hugh Williamson, a...
in the Southeastern United States. The site is significant in that it is one of only a very few sites in Eastern North America that contains direct evidence of Paleoindian hunting of late Pleistocene
Late Pleistocene
The Late Pleistocene is a stage of the Pleistocene Epoch. The beginning of the stage is defined by the base of the Eemian interglacial phase before the final glacial episode of the Pleistocene 126,000 ± 5,000 years ago. The end of the stage is defined exactly at 10,000 Carbon-14 years BP...
proboscidea
Proboscidea
Proboscidea is a taxonomic order containing one living family, Elephantidae, and several extinct families. This order was first described by J. Illiger in 1881 and encompasses the trunked mammals...
ns. Excavations at the site have yielded three mastodon
Mastodon
Mastodons were large tusked mammal species of the extinct genus Mammut which inhabited Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Central America from the Oligocene through Pleistocene, 33.9 mya to 11,000 years ago. The American mastodon is the most recent and best known species of the group...
skeletons, including one in direct association with Paleoindian stone tools. This site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on July 12, 2011.
Site Summary
The Coats-Hines site is located east of I-65Interstate 65
Interstate 65 is a major Interstate Highway in the United States. The southern terminus is located at an intersection with Interstate 10 in Mobile, Alabama, and its northern terminus is at an interchange with Interstate 90 , U.S. Route 12, and U.S...
near CoolSprings Galleria in Williamson County, Tennessee
Williamson County, Tennessee
Williamson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010 US Census, the population was 183,182. The County's seat is Franklin, and it is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is named after Hugh Williamson, a...
. The site was initially recorded in 1977 when several large bones were identified during landscaping at the Crockett Springs Golf Course (now the Nashville Golf & Athletic Club). Salvage work by staff from the Tennessee Division of Archaeology
Tennessee Division of Archaeology
The Tennessee Division of Archaeology is a division of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation responsible for managing prehistoric archaeological sites on lands owned by the U.S...
recovered the partial skeleton of a single mature female mastodon
Mastodon
Mastodons were large tusked mammal species of the extinct genus Mammut which inhabited Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Central America from the Oligocene through Pleistocene, 33.9 mya to 11,000 years ago. The American mastodon is the most recent and best known species of the group...
(“Mastodon A”) from along a small stream drainage. No description of this excavation or the skeletal material was ever published, and the area that contained the remains was subsequently destroyed by earthmoving along the 13th hole of the golf course.
In 1994 construction of a subdivision just west of the golf course by Hines Interest LP, resulted in identification of a well-preserved bone bed of Pleistocene-aged faunal material. The bone bed was situated west of the original mastodon find along a deeply-incised portion of the same stream channel, approximately below ground surface. Salvage excavations resulted in the identification of several late ice age species including horse, deer, muskrat, and the partial, disarticulated remains of a young male mastodon (“Mastodon B”) The remains of a third mastodon (“Mastodon C”) were identified eroding from the bank line approximately 50 m west of Mastodon B, but were not excavated.
The results of the 1994 excavations were published in both Tennessee Conservationist and the scholarly journal Current Research in the Pleistocene. The site was assigned state number 40WM31, and named “Coats-Hines” in honor of Tennessee Division of Archaeology
Tennessee Division of Archaeology
The Tennessee Division of Archaeology is a division of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation responsible for managing prehistoric archaeological sites on lands owned by the U.S...
staff member Patricia Coats, who participated in the excavation of Mastodon A, and the Hines corporation, which facilitated the 1994 salvage work. Following excavations, the area that contained Mastodon B was backfilled and incorporated into the backyard of a single-family home.
Although Tennessee Division of Archaeology
Tennessee Division of Archaeology
The Tennessee Division of Archaeology is a division of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation responsible for managing prehistoric archaeological sites on lands owned by the U.S...
staff continued to conduct occasional inspections of the stream drainage, no additional excavations took place at the Coats-Hines site until 2008. That year, limited excavations were performed in order to recover several heavily fragmented bones eroding from the bank line at the location of Mastodon C. Poor preservation of the material prevented conclusive identification of the animal’s species, sex, or age
Additional site inspections of the stream channel in 2008 resulted in the recovery of a bifacial stone tool
Biface
In archaeology, a biface is a two-sided stone tool and is used as a multi purposes knife, manufactured through a process of lithic reduction, that displays flake scars on both sides. A profile view of the final product tends to exhibit a lenticular shape...
and a highly mineralized fragment of deer antler. Both these artifacts had been eroded from their original context and could not conclusively be associated with the Pleistocene bone bed. However, staff from the East Tennessee State University and General Shale Brick Natural History Museum
Gray Fossil Site
The Gray Fossil Site is a Late Miocene-epoch assemblage of fossils located near the unincorporated town of Gray in Washington County, Northeast Tennessee, and dates from 7 to 4.5 million years BCE). The Gray Fossil Site was discovered by geologists in May 2000...
concluded that the antler fragment exhibited an extreme level of mineralization suggesting at least a late Pleistocene origin . This find is noteworthy in that Pleistocene deer have only been recorded at twelve other sites in Tennessee.
Paleoindian-Mastodon Association
During the 1994 excavations of Mastodon B, archaeologists identified 34 stone tools in association with the disarticulated faunal remains. These tools included prismatic blades, scrapers, graversBurin
Burin from the French burin meaning "cold chisel" has two specialised meanings for types of tools in English, one meaning a steel cutting tool which is the essential tool of engraving, and the other, in archaeology, meaning a special type of lithic flake with a chisel-like edge which was probably...
, and resharpening flakes
Lithic flake
In archaeology, a lithic flake is a "portion of rock removed from an objective piece by percussion or pressure," and may also be referred to as a chip or spall, or collectively as debitage. The objective piece, or the rock being reduced by the removal of flakes, is known as a core. Once the proper...
. Subsequent examination of the bones from Mastodon B revealed the presence of cut marks on a thoracic vertebra which was recovered in direct contact with several flakes. The distinctive linear v-shaped profile of the cuts and their location along the thoracic spinous process indicates they are the result of butchering, and specifically efforts to remove dorsal muscles along the backbone .
Geoarchaeological analysis of soils from the 1994 excavations indicate that at the end of the Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
epoch
Epoch (geology)
An epoch is a subdivision of the geologic timescale based on rock layering. In order, the higher subdivisions are periods, eras and eons. We are currently living in the Holocene epoch...
, the area which includes Mastodons A, B, and C was situated along the margins of a shallow pond. In the initial site analysis, Breitburg et al. suggest this pond formed as a result of a beaver dam or other natural blockage along the stream channel. Numerous animals including mastodon would have congregated at this pond, thereby drawing the attention of Paleoindian hunters.
See also
- MastodonMastodonMastodons were large tusked mammal species of the extinct genus Mammut which inhabited Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Central America from the Oligocene through Pleistocene, 33.9 mya to 11,000 years ago. The American mastodon is the most recent and best known species of the group...
- Paleoindian
- List of archaeological sites in Tennessee
- History of TennesseeHistory of TennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state, one of the 50 states of the United States. It was admitted to the Union on June 1, 1796.-Prehistory:Paleo-Indians are believed to have hunted and camped in what is now Tennessee as early as 12,000 years ago...
- Tennessee Division of ArchaeologyTennessee Division of ArchaeologyThe Tennessee Division of Archaeology is a division of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation responsible for managing prehistoric archaeological sites on lands owned by the U.S...