Jeffers petroglyphs: examining socioeconomic and cultural differences between late archaic and late prehistoric periods introduction

Late Prehistoric Period

The development of horticultural communities marks the shift from the Middle Prehistoric to the Late Prehistoric in the Prairie Lake Region. These civilizations introduced a new manner of life and unprecedented cultural variety, cultural interactions, and population densities. Since the indigenous terminal, the early horticulture village cultures appear to be migrants into the region. Woodland culture differs considerably in important subsistence and artefact features, particularly pottery.

The emergence of Plains Village cultures in the eastern Plains has been linked to the initiation of favourable environmental conditions for maize cultivation, whereas their eventual abandonment of large areas of the eastern Plains has been linked to the onset of drought conditions unfavourable for maize horticulture.

However, this climate paradigm for understanding Late Prehistoric cultural shifts has been called into doubt. The blossoming of the Late Prehistoric village complexes occurs in the middle of the Neo-Atlantic Climatic Episode, and the collapse of the majority of them happens far into the Pacific Episode. The early Late Prehistoric cultural changes in the Prairie Lake Region are most likely best explained by migrations into the region induced by extensive population growth. It is uncertain whether the expansions were driven by the effective introduction of maize horticulture to the Midwest or by continuous population expansion that enhanced horticultural dependency. Whichever the explanation, the occurrence of a little more favourable climate for maize farming is most likely after the development of maize varieties better suited to northern conditions and maybe the complementary introduction of beans to meet nutritional demands not provided by maize (Anfinson 1997:124).

Regardless of any loss in the deer population or greater difficulty in practising horticulture, the increasing availability of bison during the Pacific Episode made the eastern Plains a more appealing area to reside in than during prior eras (Anfinson 1997:125). The region's Late Prehistoric economy was based on a dual pattern of maize production and large animal hunting (Harvey 1979:37).

The impact of the invasion of horticulture settlements on the indigenous Prairie Lake inhabitants is unanswered. For ages, the territory was most likely shared by Woodland, Plains village, and Oneota peoples. The horticultural villagers appear to have fragmented the Prairie Lake Region. Oneota ruled the eastern region, Cambria dominated the Minnesota River Valley, Great Oasis occupied the southwest, and Big Stone dominated the northwest. Incursions by eastern groups into the region's western areas are visible at modest campsites in southern Minnesota, where mixed upper layers contain terminal Woodland, Plains Village, and Oneota elements. The horticulture villages' large settlements and funerary sites, on the other hand, were restricted to the home regions.

The cultural change occurred in the Late Prehistoric Period not just due to climatic and environmental factors but also as a result of contact between different horticulture cultures. Thus, as the communities of Prairie and Cambria fell due to climate factors in the 1200s, a large growth of the Oneota people from the east was observed.