Picture of Adena-Waubesa Point - 92mm - 160-125-V

Point Type: ADENA - WAUBESA
Also See:
Adena, Adena Narrow Stem, Adena - Notched Base, Adena - Robbins,  Adena - Wells, Cypress Stemmed, Dickson, GaryLittle Bear Creek, Turkeytail - Hebron

Location: Eastern United States

Associated Dates: 2700 - 1200 B.P. - Woodland
Morphology:
Stemmed

General Description: The Adena - Waubesa dart point and knife blade is a medium to large sized point with a contracting stem.  The blade is triangular has straight to convex edges and is widest at the shoulders which are seldom weakly barbed to angular.  The stem contracts convexly to a rounded end and is wider and longer than those on the Gary point type.

Chipping was performed by percussion with removal of broad, flat flakes followed by very careful retouch of the blade edges.  Cross section is uniformly lenticular.  Stem edges may have no edge treatment, may be smoothed occasionally, but are rarely ground. 

The distribution range of the Adena - Waubesa point type is Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and eastern Colorado.

The Waubesa points were made by the early Woodland Black Sand Culture in Illinois and the Middle Woodland Hopewell Culture.  The point appears to have continued to be made by the early Late Woodland people of Illinois, buth the major period of their manufacture was during the Hopewell era.  Almost identical points were made by the Adena people in Ohio and Kentucky.  A similar point was made by Late Archaic people in Illinois, Missouri and Indiana but can be separated in that they have ground stem edges and the shoulders contract with the stem.  The point is very difficult to separate from the Adean point type.  Waldorf reports that the Waubesa has been found with Snyders and Dickson points in Illinois and Missouri. 

Most Waubesa point from Illinois and eastern Missour were made from heat treated Crescent and Burlington cherts.  Those from the Ozark Hill region were made of white or light colored cherts most of which were heat treated.  Examples from Tennessee are typically made from Dover cherts and those from Indiana were made from Inidana hornstone.

Waubesa points have the largest distribution in the Hopewell period extending westward across Kansas into eastern Colorado and then eastward into Ohio.

The size range of the Waubesa is from 75 mm to 152 mm in length with the average being 101 mm. 

The Waubesa is a companion and alternate form of Winters' Dickson Broad-Blade point which he believes was often used as a knife.

The Waubesa point type was named by David Baerreis and was described by Robert Ritzenthaler in 1967 in his Guide to Wisconsin Indian Projectile Point Types.


About the Point Above: The average sized Adena - Waubesa blade with very long stem, pictured at the top of this page, was found in Smith County, Tennessee. The point is made from a dull tan and brown banded Dover chert and is heavily patinated. The blade is very thin and well made with fine retouch along the blade edges. Overall, the point measures 92 mm in length, is 33 mm wide across the shoulders, and is only 5 mm thick in mid blade. The stem is 29 mm long and is 14 mm wide in mid stem  The stem is mildly smooted at the edges and is 7.1 mm thick at mid stem. Catalog Number 160-125-V

References: Hranicky (1), Justice (1), Overstreet,  Perino (1, 4), Waldorf

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