honor this man of long ago, Bill Walton, long time ranger at Fort
Ross, hand made a beautiful reburial box of Apple wood, Cherry wood
and Redwood from the old historic orchard.
Stranger in a Strange Land
By Dr. Sandra E. Hollimon and Daniel F. Murley
February, 1999, a visitor at Fort Ross State Historic Park noticed a
skeletal remains eroding from the bank of Fort Ross Creek.
After consultation with a representative of the Sonoma County
Sheriff's Office, it was determined that this burial was an
archaeological feature rather than a crime scene. The burial was then
excavated and submitted for osteological analysis.
The presence of most skeletal elements,
and their generally good preservation, suggest that this individual
was buried fewer than two hundred years ago. In comparison with the
skeletons excavated from the Russian Orthodox cemetery at Ross, this
individual was preserved remarkably well. The difference in
preservation may be due, in part, to the presence of redwood coffins
in cemetery burials, which greatly increased an already acidic
depositional environment. One author (Hollimon) examined those burials
as part of the Smithsonian Institution research team, and can attest
to the fact that preservation of organic elements was virtually
non-existent. In contrast, the majority of this individual’s skeleton
was preserved, and in relatively good condition. Nevertheless, some
elements were missing, mostly from the left side of the skeleton,
because they had eroded prior to excavation and washed away in Fort
Ross Creek. Although the skeleton was sliding downhill, the position
of skeletal elements was roughly that of standard anatomical position,
with the skull uphill of the lower limbs, and in a face-up position.
Initial findings of this analysis indicate that the individual was
male, and older than 50 years at the time of death. The presence of
moderate degenerative joint disease throughout the postcranial
skeleton, and the degree of cranial suture closure support this age
identification. The majority of the skeleton is present, and
reasonably well-preserved. The skeletal elements are extremely robust,
and suggest that the individual was not a typical Native Californian.
The standard mortuary treatment of precontact local Native Pomo
peoples was to cremate the dead, therefore there are relatively few
comparative skeletal samples of local native populations. However,
comparisons with other native northern California skeletal populations
suggests that this individual was too tall and robust to have been a
typical male in these populations. In addition, this individual’s size
is not characteristic of native Arctic populations (see Appendix 2,
Osteometrics), suggesting a mixed ancestry.
The tooth wear on the burial is
indicative of a typical Native California diet. Extreme wear is
present on all teeth, resembling that found in skeletal populations
throughout California. The tooth wear is certainly an indicator of
diet, rather than pathological complications or poor preservation. The
wear is uniform on all teeth, and is limited to the occlusal, or
biting surface of the teeth. The preservation of the rest of the
skeleton is fairly good, and bone density is moderate, indicating that
the teeth were worn down by eating a grit-laden diet. Had the wear
been related to poor preservation, this would be seen throughout the
skeleton, and many elements would be missing.
Mitochondrial DNA Analysis
A molar was submitted to Dr.
Terry Melton, a specialist in mtDNA analysis, in order to ascertain
the likely populations affiliation of the Fort Ross burial isolate.
This analysis indicates that the greatest probability is that he had
Native Alaskan ancestry on the maternal side. Mitochondria are
organelles of cells and contain their own DNA. Unlike nuclear DNA,
mtDNA is only inherited through the female line, so an individual
inherits his or her mtDNA from the mother only.
By searching the FBI database and other
published reference samples, the mtDNA from this burial compares most
closely with Haplogroup D of Native Americans. In some Eskimo-Aleut
populations, this haplogroup is found at a frequency of 67%. This was
the highest percentage reported by Dr. Melton. In decreasing
probabilities, the burial could belong to Native South American
populations, to Native North American populations other than the
Na-Dene (i.e., Athapaskan [see Davis 1981:46; Dumond 1987:21-22;
Krauss and Golla 1981:67]) linguistic group, or to Central American
native groups. This haplogroup has also been noted among the Siberian
Eskimos and other Asian populations.
While the greatest
statistical probability is that this person had native Alaskan
ancestry on his mother’s side, paternal ancestry is an open question.
However, historical documentation, as well as osteological indicators,
suggest certain possibilities. Records from the Russian occupation of
the Fort Ross area indicate that many Native Alaskans married or
otherwise cohabited with Native California people, especially the
local Kashaya. However, in all documented cases, Native Alaskan men
had local native wives. While the possibility exists that there was a
Native Alaskan woman married to a California Native man, such an
instance has not been discovered in the existing documentary record.
These records suggest that a “mixed marriage” would have been between
a Native Alaskan man and a local native woman.
dental wear suggests a diet consistent with that of precontact
California natives. Large
amounts of grit, introduced during food processing in groundstone
implements, is found among skeletal populations throughout California.
A local native man would certainly display such wear on his teeth.
However, a man who ate foods prepared by a local native woman would
also show such wear on his teeth. The skeletal robusticity of this
male is not typical of northern California native populations,
suggesting that he was not from the area, but ate a diet typical of
the local native group.
fact that this individual was found buried outside the cemetery at
Fort Ross and did not wear an Orthodox pectoral cross, suggests
that he was not baptized in the Russian Orthodox faith, or that his
practice of it had lapsed, or that he died after the Russians had left
the area and there was no one left to carry out the Orthodox burial
program. Records indicate that Russian men would be buried in the
cemetery, and that Creoles (Russian/Native Alaskan descendants) would
have been baptized in Alaska, and also buried in the cemetery (Osborn
1997:261-264). Records show that six adult Creole men died at Ross
during the Russian occupation (Osborn 1997:261-262). If this were a
baptized Native Alaskan or Creole, he may have abandoned his
observations of the religion upon taking a local native wife, and
therefore may not have been buried according to the Orthodox program.
It is possible that this man was either never a member of the Russian
Orthodox faith, or that he “went (local) native” and abandoned its
practice once in California (see Mousalimas 1994 for examples of
long-standing syncretism of indigenous and Orthodox beliefs in
Alaska). Khlebnikov (1990) describes instances when Native Alaskan
laborers ran off with their local native wives, suggesting that this
was a fairly common occurrence in the Ross neighborhood.
possibility that this was a local native man who lived and died before
the time of European contact is contradicted by the presence of metal
staining on several skeletal elements. Local native groups would not
have had access to metal tools until after the time of European
contact. The location of the stains indicate that they were deposited
in situ and were not a result of accidental, post-depositional
contact. The left hip and right heel bones display green stains
derived from a metal object, suggesting that the legs were bent in
situ and that the tucked up position would have allowed a foot
bone to be in contact with the pelvic girdle. The piece has been
tentatively identified as a blade, perhaps from a knife or sword
(Glenn Farris, personal communication 2001), but does not show any
evidence of having caused any wound that impacted the bone. However,
it cannot be entirely ruled out that this person was buried before the
time of European contact, and the skeleton came in contact with the
metal sometime after burial. The traditional treatment of the dead
among local Kashaya people before contact argues against this
possibility that this individual has other Native North American
ancestry cannot be entirely ruled out. The individual may be of local
native descent on his father’s side, or may even have ancestry in
Siberian or other Asian populations. Ultimately, this is the source of
all native peoples in the Americas, but the time depth of this
ancestry cannot be determined in the present analysis. However,
osteological and mtDNA analysis, along with historical documentation,
suggests that the most parsimonious explanation is the following: the
male burial from Fort Ross was descended from a Native Alaskan woman,
was brought to California by the Russian America Company, and resided
with a local native woman in the vicinity of Fort Ross, where he died
and was buried outside the cemetery.
Davis, Nancy Yaw
1981 History of Research in Subarctic Alaska. In Handbook of
Indians, vol. 6, Subarctic,
June Helm, ed., pp. 43-48. SmithsonianInstitution, Washington, D.C.
Dumond, Don E.
1987 The Eskimos and Aleuts. Thames and Hudson,
Hollimon, Sandra E.
1995 Human Osteology. In Final Report on the Archaeological Analysis
CA-SAC-43, Cultural Resources Mitigation for the Sacramento Urban
Area Levee Reconstruction Project, Sacramento County, California,
PaulBouey, ed., pp. 301-326.
1944 The Anthropology of Kodiak Island. Wistar Institute,
1990 The Khlebnikov Archive. Unpublished Journal (1800-1837) and
Travel Notes (1820, 1822,
and 1824). Edited by Leonid
Shur. Translated by John Bisk. University of Alaska Press, Fairbanks.
Krauss, Michael E. and
Victor K. Golla
1981 Northern Athapaskan Languages. In Handbook of North American
Indians, vol. 6, Subarctic,
June Helm, ed., pp. 67-85. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Laughlin, William S.
1980 Aleuts: Survivors of the Bering Land Bridge. Holt,
Rinehart and Winston, New York.
1994 The Transition from Shamanism to Russian Orthodoxy in Alaska.
Bergahn Books, Providence R.I.
Osborn, Sannie K.
1997 Death in the Daily Life of the Ross Colony: Mortuary Behavior in
Frontier Russian America. Ph.D. dissertation, University of
Szathmary, Emoke J.E.
1984 Human Biology of the Arctic. In Handbook of North American
Indians, vol. 5, Arctic,
David Damas, ed., pp. 64-71. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Woodbury, Anthony C.
1984 Eskimo and Aleut Languages. In Handbook of North American
Indians, vol. 5, Arctic,
David Damas, ed., pp. 49-63. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Comparisons of the Fort Ross burial with osteological samples of males
from Northern California and Alaska demonstrate the physical affinity
of the isolate. While hardly exhaustive, representative samples from
CA-SAC-43 (Hollimon 1995:180), various northern California sites (Hrdlicka
1927:106 [crania only]), and Kodiak Island (Hrdlicka 1944:414, 416,
421, 424) were compared metrically to the Fort Ross burial. The
cranial measurements differ from the comparative samples, but not in a
consistent direction. Some measurements are larger, others smaller,
suggesting that the overall shape or dimension of the cranium is
each postcranial measurement, the Fort Ross burial was significantly
larger than either the California or Alaska samples, although the
robusticity of the mandible is typical of Aleut populations (Laughlin
1980:8-9). In addition, the stature estimate of males at SAC-43 was
171cm, while the stature estimate for the Fort Ross male is 177cm
(see Trotter 1970; Ubelaker 1989). This estimate can be compared to
anthropometric measures of living males from several arctic areas,
including Eskimos [sic], Subarctic Indians, and Northeastern Siberians
(Szathmary 1984:Table 1). Height ranged from 160.5cm among the West
Greenland Eskimo [sic] to 175.6cm among the Weagamow Lake Ojibwa.
Given the estimated height of the Fort Ross male, it is unlikely that
he was strictly Native Alaskan in his ancestry. However, the mtDNA
evidence argues against maternal ancestry of Subarctic Athapaskan
Indian (e.g. Ojibwa). This may indicate that the Fort Ross male had
European ancestry on the paternal side, as his size and cranial
dimensions were uncharacteristic of either precontact Californian or