Household archaeology at the Scowlitz site, Fraser Valley, B.C.

• Main Author: Morrison, Sandra Lynne
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: Stalo Indians > Material culture; Stalo Indians > Antiquitie; Stalo Indians > Social conditions; Fraser River Valley (B.C.) > Antiquities
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/7640

This thesis examines the role of the household in the social history of Sto:lo society, and specifically its role in the development of social complexity. Based on the archaeological house remains from the Scowlitz site, this research proposes a model for household archaeology in the Fraser Valley as an independent line of evidence to investigate the emergence of Sto:lo social complexity. The primary assumption of this research is that the physical structure of the house itself is an accurate representation of its social counterpart, the household. Ethnohistorical and ethnographic data demonstrate that Sto:lo house size and architectural design relate to the size, status, and socio-economic behaviour of households. This thesis applies the model of household archaeology to the Scowlitz data and specifically questions how house size and architectural design change through time, and what these changes may indicate about the evolution of Sto:lo society. Structural features from four superimposed houses at the site document a general increase in house size over the past 3000 years, concurrent with increasingly greater investment being placed in house construction. These changes appear to correspond to transformations in the social and economic organization of ancient Sto:lo society, however future research is necessary to build on the Scowlitz material, and further define the relationship between house form, the household, and social change.