Document Type
Presentation
Publication Date
4-30-2026
Abstract
This poster explores environmental risk and adaptation among Spanish colonial communities in eighteenth-century New Mexico through a paleoenvironmental study at Las Golondrinas Living History Museum. Using wetland coring, plant surveys, radiocarbon dating, and phytolith and pollen analysis, the project investigates local microclimates and environmental conditions that shaped agricultural decision-making during the Little Ice Age. Preliminary results identified multiple wetland environments, diverse plant communities, and sediment deposits capable of preserving environmental records extending before and through the colonial period. These data provide a foundation for reconstructing past landscapes and evaluating how colonists responded to climatic variability, drought, and resource uncertainty. By integrating archaeological and paleoenvironmental evidence, the study contributes to broader understandings of vulnerability, resilience, and human-environment interactions on the Spanish colonial frontier
Recommended Citation
Dawson, Emily. 2026. Understanding Environmental Risk in Eighteenth-Century New Mexico: A Case Study from the Las Golondrinas Living History Museum. Poster presented at the 91st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, April 29- May 3, 2026. San Francisco, CA. https://scholarworks.umb.edu/fiskecenter_pubs/1005
Creative Commons License
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Comments
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