Theses and Dissertations Collection

The Grissom site (45KT301) is a multi-component archaeological site in the

northeast Kittitas Valley within central Washington State. It was originally excavated by

Central Washington State College from 1967-1971 as part of their efforts to find an annual

meeting ground that held a substantial food source that fed the first people within the Plateau

culture area. Accounts both historically and ethnographically name known people such as

the Kittitas, Taitnapam, Klickitat, Yakama, Moses – Columbia, Wanapum, and Wenatchi, the

majority of whom annually visited and engaged with this landscape. The location of the

meeting ground known as Chelohan (Che-lo-han) and the Grissom site rests between two

language families, the Salish and the Sahaptin, who annually shared and utilized this area

together. Recently rehabilitated in the 21st century, the Grissom assemblage has the potential

to address the role of women as lithic creators and users, through an analysis of the unifacial

tools. As such, the questions raised from this study can help identifty the role of women in

prehistory. Following a technological classification of these expedient tools, the intent is to

show the extent of use for these unifacial artifacts throughout the Grissom site. This thesis is

a summary of my analysis and a synthesis of my findings compared to other investigations

at the Grissom site