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Prehistoric and Early Historic Overview (to 1840s) <br />Specifics about the prehistoric period of Elk River remain almost completely unknown as <br />no archaeological sites in the township have been previously discovered or studied. We can <br />be certain, however, that the area has been home to multiple populations, perhaps beginning <br />with some of the oldest inhabitants of North America, to pre-Dakota, Dakota, and Ojibwa <br />peoples. There is no doubt that people clustered at the juncture of the Mississippi and Elk <br />Rivers to take advantage of the proximity to a variety of ecosystems and natural resources. <br />Furthermore, this river juncture was a crossroads of pre-motorized transportation in the <br />region; Elk River was the place where much regional north-south and east-west traffic woulds_ <br />meet as populations made their seasonal rounds. <br />Minnesota Prehistory and History is generally divided into six periods:' <br />Date i Period ~ Cultural Traits <br />10,000-6000 B.C. ~ Paleoindian Small semi-nomadic population, generally involved in <br /> large game hunting (bison and mammoths), as well as ~ <br /> utilization of smaller games and other natural <br />~ resources. The Paleoindians are characterized by <br /> their large projectile points, and they did not use <br />i I I ceramic technology. <br />6000-200 B.C. Archaic Large game hunting continued with an increasing <br /> emphasis on diverse strategies of hunting, trapping, <br /> I and resource exploitation. The Archaic peoples are ~ <br /> more closely adapted to the local environment and <br /> locally identifiable cultures and traditions appear. <br /> Chipped as well as ground stone tools are <br />i characteristic of this period, as well as the use of <br /> cold-hammered copper. The Archaic peoples did not <br /> use ceramic technology ~ <br /> <br />~ 200 B.C. - A.D. ! Initial i <br />Ceramic technology is first used, and new styles of <br />500 , Woodland stone tools are developed. The earliest examples of <br /> mound building date to this period. A hunting- I <br />~ gathering tradition continues, but people are more <br />j ( sedentary and increasingly distinctive local and i <br />~ regional cultures develop. Minnesota's Initial <br />~ ~ Woodland populations presumably included the <br />~ ancestors of the some of the Dakota. <br />A.D. 500-1680 ~ Terminal The patterns of the Initial Woodland continue, but <br />9 <br />