An offering of appeasement to the Lovecraftian god otherwise known as
@Talus I of Dixie ...
***
The importance of migrations in history is often underestimated. Undoubtedly, the movement of populations has defined humanity since the beginning of our species. Since our first steps out of Africa, every corner of the Earth has been shaped by the phenomenon. But arguably, no other region has been shaped by migrations than the Western Hemisphere.
Beginning with the crossing of the Bering Strait tens of thousands of years into the distant past, humans rapidly spread throughout the two continents. In our timeline, we call the people of this period the Paleo-Indians.
While they were spread out over millions of square miles, they all shared the same core characteristics. They were divided into highly mobile bands of hunter-gatherers, traversing the land for miles in search of food. These bands would have followed a similar substenance pattern, living off the abundant coastal food supply of plants, fish, and small animals in the warmer months, while retreating inland to hunt the large prehistoric animals that roamed the land in the winter months.
But all things must come to an end, and as the climate got warmer and the megafauna died out, the inhabitants of the land had to adjust. While most groups remained hunter-gatherers, they were less mobile, with groups more focused on the exploitation of local resources. This led to regionalization, with hundreds of distinct cultures emerging. This era is what we call the Archaic Period.
An important development of this time was the advent of agriculture. As people became heavily dependant on plants for food, they became more concerned with the welfare of plants. In this new world, one bad growing season would mean starvation. In order to survive, they needed to ensure that they would have a sufficient supply of food each harvest. As a result, they discovered new ways to manage and control plant growth.
Wild edibles were transplanted next to camps and settlements, where they could be protected from predators. To encourage growth, weeds were removed and unwanted foilage was burned. In times when rain was scarce, plants were irrigated by hand.
While not necessarily agriculture per se, these proto-agricultural practices would in time lead to more intensive cultivation. But for the time being, we'll leave the peoples of the Americas in this stage of agricultural development.
The peoples of the Columbia Plateau were no stranger to these developments. While the epoch began in earnest much later, it would steadily catch up with the rest of their neighbors in terms of advancement.
Here, salmon is credited as the harbinger of development, as the yearly salmon runs provided a stable source of nutrition.
During the fall months of the year, mature salmon from the seas migrate back into the rivers and streams they were born in to give birth in turn. After this, they complete their life cycle, dying shortly after.
The first evidence of salmon consumption is found around 9,500 years ago, during the Windust Phase (circa 10,000 to 8,000 years ago).
The earliest culture in the region, we know little about them, and we won't hover on them for long. We know they followed a similar living pattern to their Paleo-Indian predecessors as hunter-gatherers, as evidenced by the presence of large animals at their sites. But for our purposes, know that by 8,000 years ago this phase was succeeded by the Cascade Phase.
The Cascade Phase (circa 8,000 to 4000 years ago) was similar in many aspects to the previous cultures of the region. Like during the Windust Phase, the peoples of the period were hunter-gatherers. However, during this phase we see the beginnings of intensive salmon cultivation. Tools thought to have been used for processing salmon are one of the main characteristics of assemblages from this period, along with Cascade points, the leaf-shaped projectile blades primarily associated with this culture. This period also saw an increase in the importance of wild plants, and it's possible that proto-agricultural practices began to take root during this period.
We also see a more radical change begin to take place. By 5,200 years ago, some Cascade groups begin to live in pithouse villages. In our timeline, this transition marks the first iteration of the Plateau Pithouse Tradition (PPT).
The inhabitants of these pithouses were foragers, but instead of the broad pattern of previous periods, these groups focused on the exploitation of a small range of resources.
It's not entirely sure what caused this change. Climate change and migration pressures are two common explanations. The truth may lie in a combination of both of these factors. But regardless the cause, the new pattern would change the face of society in the region.
Although preceding phases had utilized salmon as a food source, the PPT marks the beginning of salmon as a staple food of the region. Pithouses were commonly located along rivers, which would be full of the migrating fish come fall.
We also see the emergence of intensive plant harvesting. During the period, the most utilized plant was camas (Camassia spp.). A distant relative of garden asparagus, the perennial was harvested in spring for its bulb. Once boiled, it resembles a sweet potato in appearance and texture. It could also be dried and grinded into flour for later storage. There's no evidence that it was cultivated, but growth was likely encouraged by the peoples of the PPT. It was an important food source during this period, in one case only behind salmon in terms of how frequently it was consumed.
The beginnings of something greater would emerge. Trade between the villages increased, and goods from far away lands reached their stores. Obsidian from the east, shells from the seas, and wool from the mountains would become increasingly common among the peoples of the plateau.
However, this modest civilization of pithouse villages wouldn't stand the test of time. Approximately 3,700 years ago, the peoples of the Columbia Plateau abandoned this pattern and returned to the hunter-gatherer lifestyle of their ancestors. The knowledge of this period was lost, and pithouses wouldn't make a comeback for centuries after.
So what happened to them?
Well, everything would change when
they attacked...
***
I was dying to put this out, so here it is. It's not threadmarked cause I'm not entirely finished, still need to edit and add footnotes. That'll be finished by tommorow or the day after.
Everything in this chapter happened in OTL. Had to split this into two parts since the beginning background info got too long. This is that part. Next update will have actual substance (and it'll actually be on time this time around). Might combine the two into one post, but haven't decided yet.
Thoughts? Comments?
