List of archaeological periods (North America)

North American archaeological periods divide the history of pre-Columbian North America into successive named eras or periods, from the earliest known human habitation through to the early Colonial period which followed the European colonization of the Americas.

Stage classification One of the most enduring classifications of archaeological periods and cultures was established in Gordon Willey and Philip Phillips' 1958 book, Method and Theory in American Archaeology. They divided the archaeological record in the Americas into five phases, only three of which applied to North America. The use of these divisions has diminished in most of North America due to the development of local classifications with more elaborate breakdowns of times.

1. The Paleo-Indian stage and/or Lithic stage 2. The Archaic stage 3. The Formative stage – at this point, the North American classifications system differs from the rest of the Americas.

For more details on the five major stages, still used in Mesoamerican archaeology, see Mesoamerican chronology and Archaeology of the Americas.

Table of archaeological periods North America

Paleo Indians (Lithic stage) (18,000 – 8000 BCE) Clovis culture c. 11,500 – 10,800 BCE Western Stemmed Tradition c. 11,200 – 9000 BCE, California Post Pattern c. 11,000 – 7000 BCE, NW California Folsom tradition Dalton tradition c. 8500 – 7900 BCEArchaic period (Archaic stage) (8000 – 1000 BCE)by Time Period Early Archaic8000 – 6000 BCE Plano cultures 9,000 – 5,000 BCE Paleo-Arctic tradition 8000 – 5000 BCE Maritime Archaic Red Paint People 3000 – 1000 BCE Middle Archaic6000 – 3000 BCE Chihuahua tradition c. 6000 BCE – c. 250 CE Watson Brake and Lower Mississippi Valley sites c. 3500 – 2800 BCE Late Archaic3000 – 1000 BCE Arctic Small Tool tradition 2500 – 800 BCE Aleutian tradition 2500 – 1800 BCE Poverty Point culture 2200 – 700 BCEby Location Great Basin Desert Archaic Middle Archaic Late Archaic Great Lakes Old Copper complex c. 4000 – c. 1000 BCE Red Ochre people c. 1000 – 100 BCE Glacial Kame culture c. 8000 – 1000 BCE Great Plains Plains Archaic c. 9500 – 5500 BCE Mesoamerica Mexican Archaic Southwest: Southwestern Archaic Traditions Archaic–Early Basketmaker period c. 7000 – c. 1500 BCE San Dieguito–Pinto tradition c. 6500 BCE – c. 200 CE Chihuahua (Southeastern) tradition c. 6000 BCE – c. 250 CE Oshara (Northern) tradition c. 5500 BCE – c. 600 CE Cochise tradition 5000 – 200 BCE California Millingstone Horizon (or Encinitas tradition) c. 5500 – 1500 BCE Intermediate Horizon (or Campbell tradition) c. 1500 BCE – 1000 CE Southeast Mount Taylor period 5000 – 2000 BCEEva culture6000 - 1000 BCE Stallings Island (St. Simons) culture 2500 – 1000 BCE Thoms Creek culture 2500 – 1000 BCE Poverty Point culture 2200 – 700 BCE Elliott's Point complex 2000 – 700 BCE Norwood culture 2000 – 500 BCE Orange culture 2000 – 500 BCEPost-archaic period, (incorporating Formative, Classic and post-Classic stages) (1000 BCE – present)in North Norton tradition Choris Stage c. 1000 – 500 BCE Norton 500 BCE – 800 CE Ipiutak Stage 1 CE – 800 CE Dorset culture 500 BCE – 1500 CE Thule people 200 BCE – 1600 CEon Great Plains Plains Woodland c. 500 BCE – 1000 CE Plains Village c. 1000 – 1780 CEin Southwestand by Pecos Classification Early Basketmaker II period 1500 BCE – 50 CE Late Basketmaker II period 50 CE – 500 CE Basketmaker III period 500 CE – 750 CE Pueblo I period 750 CE – 900 CE Pueblo II period 900 CE – 1150 CE Pueblo III period 1150 CE – 1350 CE Pueblo IV period 1350 CE – 1600 CE Pueblo V period 1600 CE – presentin Southwestand by peoples Ancestral Puebloans (formerly Anasazi) 1 CE – 1300 CE Hohokam 200 CE – 1450 CE Fremont 400 CE – 1350 CE Patayan 700 CE – 1550 CE Mogollon 700 CE – 1400 CEin Eastand by peoples Early Woodland Period1000 BCE – 1 CE Adena culture 1000 – 100 BCE Deptford culture – Atlantic region 800 BCE – 700 CE Deptford culture – Gulf region 500 BCE – 200 CE Middle Woodland Period1 – 500 Point Peninsula complex (a Hopewellian culture) 600 BCE – 700 CE Laurel complex (a Hopewellian culture) 300 BCE – 1100 CE Hopewell culture 200 BCE – 500 CE Havana Hopewell culture (a Hopewellian culture) 200 BCE to 400 CE Goodall focus (a Hopewellian culture) 200 BCE to 500 CE Saugeen complex (a Hopewellian culture) 200 BCE to 500 CE Kansas City Hopewell (a Hopewellian culture) 100 BCE – 700 CE Armstrong culture (a Hopewellian culture) 1 – 500 CE Swift Creek culture (a Hopewellian culture) 100 – 800 CE Santa Rosa-Swift Creek culture (a Hopewellian culture) 100 – 300 CE Marksville culture (a Hopewellian culture) 100 BCE – 400 CE Fourche Maline culture 300 BCE to 800 CE Copena culture (a Hopewellian culture) 1 – 500 CE Late Woodland Period500–1000 Baytown culture 300–700 CE Plum Bayou culture 400–900 CE Troyville culture 300–700 CE Coles Creek culture 700 – 1100 CE Mississippian culture900–1500(ending with European contact) Early Mississippian culture 1000 – 1200 CE Middle Mississippian culture 1200 – 1400 CE Late Mississippian culture 1400 – 1500 CE(or European contact) Fort Ancient (a non-Mississippian culture) 1000 – 1550 CE OneotaWilley and Phillips, Op. cit., p. 167 900 – 1650 CE Lamar culture 1350 – 1600 CE in Florida and adjacent parts of Alabama and Georgia, by cultureBelle Glade culture 1050 BCE – European contactGlades culture 550 BCE – European contactManasota culture 550 BCE – 800 CESt. Johns culture 550 BCE – European contactCaloosahatchee culture 500 BCE – European contact Malabar culture or Indian River culture 500 BCE–763 CE Weeden Island culture100–1000 CE Weeden Island I, including 100–750 CE – Cades Pond culture 100–600 CE – Kolomaki culture 350–750 CE – McKeithen Weeden Island culture 200–750 CEWeeden Island II, including 750–1000 CE – Wakulla culture 750–1000 CE Alachua culture 600 – European contact Suwannee Valley culture 750 – European contact Safety Harbor culture 800 – European contactFort Walton culture a Mississippian culture 1000 – European contactPensacola culture 1250 – European contact

Culture, phase, and chronological table for the Mississippi Valley

Lower Mississippi periodsLower Yazoo phasesLower YazoodatesTensas/Natchez phasesCahokia PhasesCahokia datesOhio/Miss. River Confluence phasesOhio/Miss. dates Historic Russell (Tunica) 1650–1750 CE Tensas / Natchez VacantQuarter 1350 CE -European Contact Jackson 1500-1650 CE Plaquemine Mississippian cultureLate Plaquemine/MississippianMiddle Plaquemine/MississippianEarly Plaquemine/Mississippian Wasp Lake 1400-1650 CE Transylvania / Emerald Lake George 1300-1400 CE Fitzhugh / Foster Sand Prairie 1275-1350 CE Medley Phase 1300-1500 CE Winterville 1200-1300 CE Routh / Anna Moorehead 1200-1275 CEDorena1100-1300 CE Transitional Coles Creek Crippen Point 1050-1200 CE Preston / Gordon Lohmann Sterling 1050-1200 CE Coles Creek cultureLate Coles CreekMiddle Coles CreekEarly Coles Creek Kings Crossing 950-1050 CE BalmoralTerminal LateWoodland900–1050 CEJames Bayou900-1100 CE Aden 800-950 CE Ballina Bayland 600-800 CE SundownLateWoodland400–900 CECane HillsBerkley600–900 CE400–600 CE Baytown/Troyville Baytown 2 Baytown 1 Deasonville 500-600 CE Marsden Little Sunflower 400-500 CE Indian Bayou Marksville culture Late Marksville Early Marksville Issaquena 200-400 CE IssaquenaMiddleWoodland200 BCE - 400 CELa PlantBurkett100 BCE-400 CE550-100 BCE Anderson Landing 1-200 CE Point Lake/Grand Gulf Tchefuncte culture Tuscola 400 BCE-1 CE Panther Lake Jaketown Poverty Point 700- 400 BCE Frasier Early Woodland 700-200 BCEO'Bryan Ridge700-550 BCE - 1000-700 BCE - Late Archaic 1000 - 200 BCE

See also Historiography List of archaeological periods (Mesoamerica) List of archaeological periods (Belize) List of archaeological periods (Peru) List of archaeological periods – worldwide

Other Archaeogenetics Archaeological culture Archaeology of the Americas Genetic history of indigenous peoples of the Americas

Notes

References

Bibliography

Milanich, Jerald T. (1998) Florida's Indians from Ancient Times to the Present. University Press of Florida. Milanich, Jerald T. (1994) Archaeology of Precolumbian Florida. University Press of Florida.

Philip Phillips (1970). Archaeological Survey In The Lower Yazoo Basin, Mississippi, 1949-1955(Part One). Published by the Peabody Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 77-80028.