St. Charles

Description: St. Charles points are also commonly refered to as “Dovetail” points due to their distinctive fan shaped basal shape. St. Charles tend to be large, with parallel blade edges that are slightly excurvate and often resharpened by alternate beveling of the left lateral edges. The notches are angled in from the corners, are long and narrow and end with a distinctive “cone” notching scar.

Distribution: St. Charles points have been found across all of Illinois including Cook County and large portions of the Midwest. They are a fairly common and distinctive form of Early Archaic point. Frequently made on cherts from far distant sources, this reflects the large social systems and mobility that these people were engaged in.

Age: Dating to the Early Archaic period circa 10,500-10,100 BP, St. Charles points have not been directly dated in the Chicago region. The Twin Ditch site in the lower Illinois River Valley contained a well-dated layer containing St. Charles points that was radiocarbon dated to 10,500-10,100 years ago.