The Goat Island Campsite, Tivoli North Bay, Hudson River:
Potential for Environmental Information
From A Heavily Looted Archaeological Site
ABSTRACT
A cultural resource management study will be conducted at Goat Island
(Magdalen Island on U.S.G.S. maps) in the Hudson River at Tivoli North Bay, northern
Dutchess County. The island, owned by the Department of Environmental
Conservation (DEC), contains three important archaeological sites, professionally
excavated by Dr. Mary Butler in 1939. One of the sites, which Butler called the
"campsite," was riddled with looters' holes when her excavation took place and looting
activities continue there today. I plan to map the campsite to document the amount of
disturbance to date. To aid in evaluation of disturbance at the site, I will also assess
the soil and the flora. Then I will perform archaeological testing to look for areas left
undisturbed. Ecofacts, or non-artifactual by-products of occupation, will be gathered:
fish scales, fish bones, mollusk shells, and charred seeds and nuts. These items can
tell us much about the condition of the river and peoples' relationship to it in prehistoric
times. I will augment my findings with Dr. Butler's unpublished materials (housed at
the New York State Museum, in Albany, N.Y.) and report on our contribution to current
sparse ecological knowledge of the prehistoric Hudson. A notable inventory, recently
derived from the adjacent Goat Island rockshelter that Butler completely dug, lists four
species of fish, one of turtle, one of shellfish, eight of mammal, and six of bird
(including four aquatic) (Chilton 1994). In the management part of my research, I will
examine methods to deter looters and to protect the island campsite from further
damage. Strategies include the formulation of stronger anti-looting laws and
compelling public education programs on archaeological preservation. A
management plan for the campsite will be presented to the DEC/HRNERR for
consideration. This plan could provide the framework for conservation of other looted
sites, particularly those in riverine settings.
Reference Cited:
Chilton, E. S. 1994. The Goat Island Rockshelter: New Light from Old Legacies. Research
Report #29. Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts,
Amherst.
