The Herrick Hollow Prehistoric Archaeological District, located in the Town of Masonville, Delaware County, New York, consists of seven sites on an upland divide separating the Delaware and Susquehanna River Valleys. Archaeologists recovered thousands of prehistoric artifacts indicating a series of specialized upland camps and processing stations in this location. A full range of lithic reduction activity is represented across the site area, but there is a preponderance of later stage reduction and finishing. The assemblage demonstrates that bifacial tools were being produced, maintained, and used on the sites, while expedient tools were used for quick processing activities.

Together, the data from the seven sites suggest that this unique environmental setting—the drainage divide—was favored for specialized types of land use and seasonal settlement over an extended period of time from the Late Archaic through Woodland periods (4000 B.C. to A.D.1600). Sustained land use over 5,000 years of prehistory is rare in any physiographic context; therefore, the documentation of this series of sites in an upland context produces a unique archaeological case study. Some data suggest that there was more than hunting and gathering that drew Native Americans to these uplands. Symbolic significance may have surrounded this remote landscape.

The Public Archaeology Facility (PAF) invites you to browse the project website and learn about the rich archaeological history of this unique National Register eligible District.