Hell Gap archaeological site

Hell Gap (Smithsonian trinomial: 48GO305) is a deeply stratified archaeological site located in the Great Plains of eastern Wyoming, approximately thirteen miles north of Guernsey, where an abundant amount of Paleoindian and Archaic artifacts have been found and excavated since 1959. This site has had an important impact on North American archaeology because of the large quantity and breadth of prehistoric Paleoindian and Archaic period (ca. 13,500 to 7,600 B.P.) artifacts and cultures it encompasses. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2016.

Hell Gap is host to five different localities, or independent areas of study, each with its own unique archaeological remains. It is located about 4,921 feet above sea level in a valley with a small stream nearby which was undoubtedly attractive to its prehistoric inhabitants. James Duguid and Malcolm McKnight, two archaeologists who lived in the region and went to school at the University of Wyoming, discovered the site in 1959. Since very little erosion had occurred over the last several thousand years, the site deposits were in pristine condition and the assemblages could be excavated and dated in all five localities. Excavations from 1961 to 1966, and again in 1995 and after, by archaeologists from the University of Wyoming and the George Frison Institute, have recovered vast amounts of information on Paleoindian lifeways locally, such as the preparation of bison kills and previously unknown projectile points complexes like Hell Gap and Goshen.

Hell Gap contains projectile points from Llano tradition, Clovis and Folsom, and the Plano tradition, Agate Basin, Alberta, Frederick, Goshen (Plainview), Lusk, Hell Gap, Midland and Cody complexes. Three new archaeological complexes were defined at this site, Hell Gap, Goshen (Plainview), and Frederick. Folsom complex is believed to be derived from Clovis but there has not been much radiocarbon dated evidence in stratified context between the two assemblages to determine this for certain. The Goshen complex found in Hell Gap is a possible assemblage dating to this intermediate period. The Hell Gap and Agate Basin point forms, which were also found in stratified context at Hell Gap, are the first types of the Plano tradition. The earliest calibrated dates for Hell Gap and Agate Basin complexes are from 10,200 to 9,600 B.P. The Plano tradition consists of lanceolate points that show parallel flaking and Agate Basin is the first complex exhibiting this characteristic. The term Plano was derived from the Great Plains of North America, and refers to Paleoindian cultures with a growing dependency on bison hunting. Both Agate Basin and Hell Gap points are similar in appearance but Agate Basin came before Hell Gap points by about 500 years. Agate Basin, Goshen, and Folsom complexes are found together in most Localities at the site. In Locality II however, archaeologists have found evidence of at least four different Paleoindian complexes, including the Midland, Hell Gap, Agate Basin, and Lusk cultures.