Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-vdxz6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T09:06:04.410Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Revisiting the Timing of the Northern Lobe of the White River Ash Volcanic Event in Eastern Alaska and Western Yukon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 September 2019

Joshua Reuther*
Affiliation:
University of Alaska Museum, Archaeology Department, Fairbanks, AK, USA University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department of Anthropology, Fairbanks, AK, USA
Ben Potter
Affiliation:
University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department of Anthropology, Fairbanks, AK, USA
Sam Coffman
Affiliation:
University of Alaska Museum, Archaeology Department, Fairbanks, AK, USA
Holly Smith
Affiliation:
University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department of Anthropology, Fairbanks, AK, USA Government of Yukon, Archaeology Program, Heritage Resources Unit, Cultural Services Branch, Department of Tourism & Culture, Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
Nancy Bigelow
Affiliation:
University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska Quaternary Center, Fairbanks, AK, USA
*
*Corresponding author. Email:[email protected]

Abstract

The northern lobe of the White River Ash (WRAn) is part of a bilobate distribution of tephras that originated from the Wrangell Volcanic Field near the border of Alaska, USA, and Yukon, Canada. It is distributed across northeastern Alaska and the northwestern portion of the Yukon. The timing of this eruption has seen little critical analysis relative to the younger and more extensive eastern lobe eruption of the White River Ash. We compiled 38 radiocarbon (14C) dates from above and below the WRAn, and employed several statistical approaches to identify and eliminate or down-weight outliers, combine dates, and different Bayesian models, to provide a revised age estimate for the timing of the WRAn tephra deposition. Our results indicate that the most accurate modeled age estimate for the northern lobe of the White River Ash deposition is between 1689 and 1560 cal BP, with a mean and median of 1625 and 1623 cal BP, respectively. This age range is 90 to 200 years younger than previous age estimates.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2019 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Abbott, PM, Davies, SM. 2012. Volcanism and the Greenland ice-cores: the tephra record. Earth-Science Reviews 115:173191.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beget, J, Mason, O, Anderson, P. 1992. Age, extent and climatic significance of the c. 3400 BP Aniakchak tephra, western Alaska, USA. The Holocene 2(1):5156.Google Scholar
Bigelow, NH. 2014. The history of three lakes in interior Alaska. Report prepared by the Alaska Quaternary Center, University of Alaska Fairbanks, AK, for the National Park Service, Anchorage, AK. Final report submitted to the National Park Service for CESU cooperative agreement H9811080028.Google Scholar
Bronk Ramsey, C. 2009a. Dealing with outliers and offsets in radiocarbon dating. Radiocarbon 51(3):10231045.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bronk Ramsey, C. 2009b. Bayesian analysis of radiocarbon dates. Radiocarbon 51(1):337360.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Buck, CE, Highham, TFG, Lowe, DJ. 2003. Bayesian tools for tephrochronology. The Holocene 13(5):639647.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bunbury, J, Gajewski, K. 2009. Variation in the depth and thickness of the White River Ash in lakes of the southwest Yukon. In: Weston, LH, Blackburn, LR, Lewis, LL, editors. Yukon exploration and geology 2008. Whitehorse (Yukon): Yukon Geological Survey. p. 7784.Google Scholar
Bunbury, J, Gajewski, K. 2013. Effects of the White River Ash event on aquatic environments, southwest Yukon, Canada. Arctic 66(1):1731.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Capps, SR. 1916. An ancient volcanic eruption in the upper Yukon Basin. In: White, D, editor. Short contributions to general geology, 1915. Professional Paper 95. Washington D.C.: United States Geological Survey, United States Government Printing Office. p. 5972.Google Scholar
Clague, JJ, Evans, SG, Rampton, VN, Woodsworth, GJ. 1995. Improved age estimates for the White River and Bridge River tephras, western Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 32:11721179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coffman, S, Mills, R, Shirar, S. 2018. Late Holocene land-use along the Middle Fork of the Fortymile River, Alaska. Alaska Journal of Anthropology 16(1):95106.Google Scholar
Coulter, SE, Pilcher, JR, Plunkett, G, Baillie, M, Hall, VA, Steffensen, JP, Vinther, BM, Clausen, HB, Johnsen, SJ. 2012. Holocene tephras highlight complexity of volcanic signals in Greenland ice cores. Journal of Geophysical Research 117(D21303):111.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davies, LJ, Jensen, BJL, Froese, DG, Wallace, KL. 2016. Late Pleistocene and Holocene tephrostratigraphy of interior Alaska and Yukon: key beds and chronologies over the past 30,000 years. Quaternary Science Reviews 146:2853.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Denton, GH, Karlen, W. 1977. Holocene glacial and tree-line variations in the White River Valley and Skolai Pass, Alaska and Yukon Territory. Quaternary Research 7:63111.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Derry, DE. 1975. Later Athapaskan prehistory: a migration hypothesis. Western Canadian Journal of Anthropology 5(3–4):134147.Google Scholar
Dixon, EJ. 1985. Cultural chronology of central interior Alaska. Arctic Anthropology 22(1):4766.Google Scholar
Fernald, AT. 1962. Radiocarbon dates relating to a widespread volcanic ash deposit, eastern Alaska. In: Short Papers in Geology, Hydrology, and Topography Articles 1-59, Geological Survey Research 1962. Geological Survey Professional Paper 450-B. Washington D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. p. B-29-B30.Google Scholar
Gautier, E, Savarino, J, Erbland, J, Lanciki, A, Possenti, P. 2016. Variability of sulfate signal in ice core records based on five replicate cores. Climate of the Past 12:103113.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gordon, BC. 2012. The White River Ash fall: migration trigger or localized event? Revista de Arqueología Americana 30:91102.Google Scholar
Heffner, TA. 2001. KaVn-2: An Eastern Beringian tradition archaeological site in west-central Yukon Territory, Canada. Occasional Papers in Archaeology No. 10. Whitehorse (Yukon): Heritage Branch, Government of the Yukon.Google Scholar
Ives, JW. 2008. Review of “Athapaskan migrations: the archaeology of Eagle Lake, British Columbia”. Canadian Journal of Archaeology 32:153159.Google Scholar
Jensen, BJL, Pyne-O’Donnell, S, Plunkett, G, Froese, DG, Hughes, PDM, Sigl, M, McConnell, JR, Amesbury, MJ, Blackwell, PG, van den Bogaard, C, Buck, CE, Charman, DJ, Clague, JJ, Hall, VA, Koch, J, Mackay, H, Mallon, G, McColl, Pilcher JR. 2014. Transatlantic distribution of the Alaskan White River Ash. Geology 42(10):875878.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kuhn, T, McFarlane, KA, Groves, P, Mooers, , Shapiro, B. 2010. Modern and ancient DNA reveal recent partial replacement of caribou in the southwest Yukon. Molecular Ecology 19:13121323.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lerbekmo, JF, Campbell, FA. 1969. Distribution, composition, and source of the White River Ash, Yukon Territory. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 6:109116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lerbekmo, JF, Westgate, JA, Smith, DGW, Denton, GH. 1975. New data on the character and history of the White River volcanic eruption, Alaska. In: Quaternary studies: selected papers from IX INQUA congress. Royal Society of New Zealand Bulletin 13:203209 Google Scholar
Letts, B, Fulton, TL, Stiller, M, Andrews, TD, MacKay, G, Popko, R, Shapiro, B. 2012. Ancient DNA reveals genetic continuity in mountain woodland caribou of the Mackenzie and Selwyn Mountains, Northwest Territories, Canada. Arctic 65:8094.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Livingston, JM, Smith, DG, Froese, DG, Hughenholtz, CH. 2009. Floodplain stratigraphy of the ice jam dominated middle Yukon River: a new approach to long-term flood frequency. Hydrological Processes 23:357371.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowdon, JA, Blake, W. 1968. Geological Survey of Canada radiocarbon dates VII. Radiocarbon 10(2):207245.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lowe, DJ, McFadgen, BG, Higham, TFG, Hoggs, AG, Froggat, PC, Nairn, IA. 1998. Radiocarbon age of the Kaharoa tephra, a key marker for late-Holocene stratigraphy and archaeology in New Zealand. The Holocene 8(4):487495.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lynch, JJ, Goebel, T, Graf, KE, Rasic, JT. 2018. Archaeology of the uppermost Tanana: results of a survey of the Nabesna and Chisana Rivers, east-central Alaska. Alaska Journal of Anthropology 16(1):2143.Google Scholar
McGeehin, J, Burr, GS, Jull, AJT, Reines, D, Gosse, J, Davis, PT, Muhs, D, Southon, JR. 2001. Stepped-combustion 14C dating of sediment: a comparison with established techniques. Radiocarbon 43(2):255261.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McGimsey, RG, Richter, DH, DuBois, GD, Miller, TP. 1992. A postulated new source for the White River Ash, Alaska. In: Bradley, DC, Ford, AB, editors. Geologic studies in Alaska by the U.S. Geological Survey, 1990. U.S. Geological Bulletin 1999. Washington D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. p. 212218.Google Scholar
MacIntosh, GD. n.d. The calendric dating and seasonality of the White River Ash. Unpublished manuscript on file at the University of Alaska Museum of the North, Fairbanks, Alaska USA.Google Scholar
Matson, RG, Magne, MPR. 2007. Athapaskan migrations: the archaeology of Eagle Lake, British Columbia. Tucson (AZ): University of Arizona Press.Google Scholar
Mullen, PO. 2012. An archaeological test of the effects of the White River Ash eruptions. Arctic Anthropology 49(1):3544.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mulliken, KM, Scheafer, JR, Cameron, CE. 2018. Geospatial distribution of tephra fall in Alaska: a geodatabase published tephra fall occurrences from the Pleistocene to the present. Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys Miscellaneous Publication 164. Fairbanks: Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys. p. 46. Available at https://doi.org/10.14509/29847 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nilsson, M, Klarqvist, M, Bohlin, E, Possnert, G. 2001. Variation in 14C age of macrofossils and different fractions of minute peat samples dated by AMS. The Holocene 11(5):579–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patterson, JJ. 2008. Late Holocene land use in the Nutzotin Mountains: lithic scatters, viewsheds, and resource distribution. Arctic Anthropology 45(2):114127.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patterson, RT, Crann, CA, Cutts, JA, Courtney Mustaphi, CJ, Nasser, NA, Macumber, AL, Galloway, JM, Swindles, GT, Falck, H. 2017. New occurrences of the White River Ash (east lobe) in Subarctic Canada and utility for estimating freshwater reservoir effect in lake sediment archives. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 477:19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Preece, SJ, McGimsey, RG, Westgate, JA, Pearce, NJG, Hart, WK, Perkins, WT. 2014. Chemical complexity and source of the White River Ash, Alaska and Yukon. Geosphere 10(5):10201042.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Potter, BA. 2008. Exploratory models of intersite variability in mid to late Holocene central Alaska. Arctic 61:407425.Google Scholar
Potter, BA, Reuther, JD, Hays, JM, Bowers, PM, Wooley, C, Price, K, Higgs, A. 2009. Results of the 2008 Phase I cultural resources survey of the proposed Denali Gas Pipeline Project area: Big Delta to the Canadian border. Report prepared by Northern Land Use Research, Inc., Fairbanks (AK), and Chumis Cultural Resources Services, Anchorage (AK), under contract to Denali – The Alaska Gas Pipeline, LLC., Anchorage (AK).Google Scholar
Reimer, PJ, Bard, E, Bayliss, A, Beck, JW, Blackwell, PG, Bronk Ramsey, C, Buck, CE, Cheng, H, Edwards, RL, Friedrich, M, Grootes, PM, Guilderson, TP, Haflidason, H, Hajdas, I, Hatté, C, Heaton, TJ, Hoffmann, DL, Hogg, AG, Hughen, KA, Kaiser, KF, Kromer, B, Manning, SW, Niu, M, Reimer, RW, Richards, DA, Scott, EM, Southon, JR, Staff, RA, Turney, CSM, van der Plicht, J. 2013. IntCal13 and Marine13 radiocarbon age calibration curves 0–50,000 years cal BP. Radiocarbon 55(4):18691887.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reuther, JD, Hays, JM, Rogers, JS, Gelvin-Reymiller, C, Potter, BA, Bowers, PM, Bowman, RC, Wooley, C. Tephra studies in large-scale cultural resources management project in Alaska. Paper presented at the 40th Annual Meeting of the Alaska Anthropological Association, Anchorage, AK, March 13th–16th, 2013.Google Scholar
Richter, DH, Preece, SJ, McGimsey, RG, Westgate, JA. 1995. Mount Churchill, Alaska: source of late Holocene White River Ash. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 32:741748.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, SD. 2001. Extending the late Holocene White River Ash distribution, northwestern Canada. Arctic 54(2):157161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheppard, WL, Steffian, AF, Staley, DP, Bigelow, NH. 1991. Late Holocene occupations at the Terrace site, Tok, Alaska. Report prepared by the Arctic Environmental Information and Data Center, University of Alaska Anchorage (AK) for the United States Air Force Over-the-Horizon Backscatter Radar Program, Hanscom Air Force Base (MA).Google Scholar
Smith, CAS, Ping, CL, Fox, CA, Kodama, H. 1999. Weathering characteristics of some soils formed in White River tephra, Yukon Territory, Canada. Canadian Journal of Soil Science 79(4):603613.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stuiver, M, Borns, HW, Denton, GH. 1964. Age of a widespread layer of volcanic ash in the southwestern Yukon Territory. Arctic 17(4):259261.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thomas, CD. 2003. Ta’tla Mun: an archaeological examination of technology, subsistence economy and trade at Tatlmain Lake, central Yukon. Occasional Papers in Archaeology 13. Whitehorse, Yukon Territory: Yukon Heritage Branch.Google Scholar
Väliranta, M, Oinonen, M, Seppä, H, Korkonenm, Juutinen S, Tuittila, E-S. 2014. Unexpected problems in AMS 14C dating of fen peat. Radiocarbon 56(1):95108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vandergoes, MJ, Hogg, AG, Lowe, DJ, Newnham, RM, Denton, GH, Southon, J, Barrell, DJA, Wilson, CJN, McGlone, MS, Allan, ASR, Almond, PC, Petchey, F, Dabell, K, Dieffenbacher-Krall, AC, Blaauw, M. 2013. A revised age for the Kawakawa/Oruanui tephra, a key marker for the Last Glacial Maximum in New Zealand. Quaternary Science Reviews 74:195201.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vanderhoek, R, Nelson, RE. 2007. Ecological roadblocks on a constrained landscape: The cultural effects of catastrophic volcanism on the Alaska Peninsula, southwest Alaska. In: Gero, J, Leone, M, Torrence, R, editors. Living under the shadow: cultural impacts of volcanic eruptions. California: Left Coast Press. p.133152.Google Scholar
Ward, GK, Wilson, SR. 1978. Procedures from comparing and combining radiocarbon age determinations: a critique. Archaeometry 20(1):1931.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Workman, WB. 1972. The cultural significance of a volcanic ash which fell in the Upper Yukon basin about 1400 years ago. Expanded version of a paper read at the International Conference on the Prehistory and Paleoecology of the Western American Arctic and Subarctic, Calgary. Paper on file at the Alaska Office of History and Archaeology, 550 West 7th Avenue, Suite 1310, Anchorage, Alaska.Google Scholar
Workman, WB. 1978. Prehistory of the Aishihik-Kluane area, southwest Yukon Territory. Mercury Series, Archaeological Survey of Canada Paper 74. Ottawa: National Museum of Man.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Reuther et al. supplementary material

Reuther et al. supplementary material 1

Download Reuther et al. supplementary material(File)
File 12.5 MB
Supplementary material: File

Reuther et al. supplementary material

Reuther et al. supplementary material 2

Download Reuther et al. supplementary material(File)
File 18.3 KB
Supplementary material: File

Reuther et al. supplementary material

Reuther et al. supplementary material 3

Download Reuther et al. supplementary material(File)
File 7.1 MB