Evaluating consumer-grade sonar for documenting inundated archaeological sites in Northwestern Ontario

View/ Open
Date
2018Author
McEvoy, Christopher J.
Degree
Master of Environmental Studies
Discipline
Environmental Studies : Northern Environments & CulturesSubject
Cultural history of the Thunder Bay regionHydroelectric dams
Marine archaeology
Underwater archaeology in Ontario
Cost-effective marine archaeological investigations
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
This thesis assesses the application and effectiveness of consumer-grade sonar instruments for documenting inundated archaeological sites across Northwestern Ontario. Although the use of bathymetry and side scan sonar is commonly used by marine archaeologists, the acquisition of such data can be extremely costly, while also cumbersome in shallow water environments. Many Northwestern Ontario lakes and rivers have complicated histories involving both human-made and natural lake-level changes that have degraded and inundated shorelines containing archaeological resources. Four case studies throughout the Thunder Bay region were assessed using an inexpensive hull-mounted sonar system to test whether the instruments provide sufficient precision and resolution for further archaeological investigations.