The economic life of the people of culture Complex B probably revolved
around hunting, limited agriculture, and gathering of specific foods,
mainly plums and acorns. Foods were ground on milling slabs with
handstones and perhaps, as with the Pawnee, were cooked in pots, or
made into cakes fried on a hot slab. Agriculture is indicated by
remains of corn at LoDaisKa and at nearby sites of the same culture.
In the more classic manifestations of Plains Woodland Culture evidence
is slim. Squash remains occurred at Sterns Creek (Strong, 1935)
and popcorn at the Lawson Site (Kivett, 1952a). Wedel (1934) felt
corn could not grow west of the 99th meridian in prehistoric times.
For the Upper Republican Culture an example of corn was found in
northern Colorado by the authors, (1957). In the Morrison area several
occurrences were noted (see above) in connection with the Woodland
Culture.
Animals hunted were mainly deer and bison, with smaller animals such
as prairie dogs, gophers and birds also represented. Perhaps the
importance of bison at the site is misrepresented because in dealing
with such large animals it is possible that only the meat was brought
into camp (for an example of this see Clark, 1952).
Clothing was probably of skin. Numerous scrapers attest to the
importance of hide dressing. Tubular beads and a tooth pendant provide
evidence of interest in self-ornamentation. Paint stones may have
served for pigment. Mixed with grease this could have been used for
bodily decoration, though ethnologic parallels suggest other objects
were also painted (see above).
A considerable amount of skill in stone working must have been
necessary to produce the small delicate projectile points, presumably
used with arrows. Some much larger points suggest a continued
dependence on the spear or spear-thrower. Drills may have been used to
manufacture ornaments or perform more utilitarian functions. Pottery
was durable and primarily utilitarian. Variation in pattern was
practically non-existent, but the fineness of cord-marking shows some
noticeable difference. Bone awls were mostly of the splinter type and
rather poorly made. Perhaps baskets were made, but these may not have
been too important. Awls could have been used in their manufacture or
for sewing.
Concerning the socio-political organization, some inferences can be
made. A possible sketch of the “way of life” can be found by examining
Pawnee culture as outlined above. Cultivation may have been in small
patches worked by women. Hoeing and weeding were probably spasmodic.
In view of the absence of bell-shaped storage pits or other such
facilities, we can probably infer that crop supplies were consumed in
a few seasonal feasts in the characteristic Basin style rather than
stored in the Plains manner to conserve for future needs. Despite
this, corn plots must have anchored the population to some extent. The
presence of pottery suggests a more or less settled way of life. Plains
social structure tended to be patrilocal, though there were exceptions.
A greater emphasis on hunting, such as was apparently present at
LoDaisKa, would increase the chance of such a development.
Despite the fact that the site was fairly small, there is a good deal
of evidence of Plains Woodland Culture in the area, and we can assume
some kind of inter-component interaction.