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4.9 CULTURAL RESOURCES ornaments and large bifaces (Schenck and Dawson, 1929;Moratto, 1984). The dates for each of these horizons are still being refined and, therefore, are subject to interpretation. The project site contains eight recorded prehistoric archaeological sites listed with the California Archaeological Inventory Central Information Center (Lawrence, 1990). The National Register of Historic Places, the California Inventory of Historic Landmarks, the Point of Historic Interest Log, and the California Inventory of Historic Resources list no cultural resources within the area of proposed development(National Park Service, 1990;State of California Department of Parks and Recreation, 1976, 1982;State of California Office of Historic Preservation, 1986, 1990). Other prehistoric archaeological sites have also been identified in the project vicinity. Ethnohistory The village of Seuamne existed at the project location and was one of three principal tribelet villages remaining on the Mokelumne River in the 1840s (Bennyhoff, 1977) (Figure 4.9-1). The Tracy Lakes village sites are of uncertain antiquity,probably supporting a population of up to several hundred Miwok at one time. Smaller secondary villages were usually associated with the principal villages. In addition, seasonal camps were located along nearby, intermittent drainages for hunting and gathering purposes. Ethnographic data of this population is sparse because of relocation and destruction due to missionization, disease and western settlement in their area after historic contact. A plague of malaria, introduced by western trappers in 1833, is estimated to have killed as many as 75 percent of the Plains Miwok population(Maloney, 1945;Cook, 1955). Members of the Miwok community have expressed concern that this area may contain sites important to their traditional history and religion. Brovelli Woods was within the Sanjon de los Moquelumnes Mexican land grant of more than 20,000 acres before it became the McCauly Ranch in 1861. Research Design Of the eight sites recorded previously in the project area, three are grouped in the southeast section,with the remaining five in the northwest section. Most of these sites were recorded over a 50-year period by individuals who examined only a very limited area. As indicated by the site records, none of these previously recorded sites could have held a population of several hundred people. This premise conflicts with the assertion of Dr. J.A. Bennyhoff, who postulated local populations of 300 to 400 people for Miwok primary tribelets (Bennyhoff, 1977). It was hypothesized,therefore, that these two clusters of sites are actually two sites. If a survey could show a continual deposition between the sites in each cluster, then two sites, instead of eight, could be proposed. 4.9-2