Abstract
Cremation pits were discovered in the Yakima and Snake River valleys and on the Columbia at Wahluke and at The Dalles before 1927. Recently one has been described from the John Day region in Oregon by Cressman (1950). The cremation complex which the pits represent appears in the late prehistoric period and was undoubtedly widespread and important in the cultural development of the region. In the Dalles-Arlington area, at least, it lasted into historic times. Recent evidence associates the cremation complex with Sahaptin groups inhabiting the region above The Dalles until late historic times. This new evidence controverts an earlier theory, largely based on ethnological traditions, that the Salish were the early inhabitants of the area. The finding of burials below the cremation level at Sheep Island (i.e., a stratified burial site) has particular bearing on the problem.
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