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INVESTIGATION OF THE PARADISE RANCH KNOLL EARTH OVEN SITE, CA-LAN-2464,
IN RESPONSE TO SITE DAMAGE RESULTING FROM THE 2006 “DAY” WILDFIRE INCIDENT

DARRELL W. VANCE
USDA FOREST SERVICE, ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST
701 N. SANTA ANITA AVE, ARCADIA, CA 91006 (DVANCE@FS.FED.US)

In the Fall of 2006, the “Day Fire” burned within the Angeles and Los Padres National Forests, in
eastern Ventura and western Los Angeles counties. During the incident, Forest Service archaeologists
discovered inadvertent effects from bulldozer suppression activities to the Paradise Ranch Knoll Earth
Oven site (CA-LAN-2464). Archaeological investigations were subsequently undertaken in order to
determine the extent of the damage to the site and salvage displaced archaeological materials. This paper
reviews the results of those investigations, and demonstrates the efficacy of recovering meaningful
scientific data from damaged archaeological contexts.

BACKGROUND

The Day Fire Incident
Between September 4 and October 2, 2006, the “Day Fire” burned approximately 162,702 acres
of chaparral and mixed conifer vegetation within the Angeles and Los Padres National Forests, in eastern
Ventura and western Los Angeles counties, California. At the time of the Day Fire, a Resource Advisor
had been ordered by the Incident Commander, and due caution was exercised in attempting to avoid
archaeological sites. However, in the midst of fire suppression activities, the fire progressed too rapidly
towards nearby private residences along the Interstate 5 corridor, and containment and contingency
firelines were created before coordination could be made to safely permit an archaeologist into the area to
manage protection of archaeological sites. When conditions improved during the incident, CA-LAN-2464
was visited by Forest Service archaeologists to check and update the site condition.
Wildfire incidents have potential to damage or destroy irreplaceable cultural resources through
effects of the fire, such as direct burning and smoke damage, and secondary effects subsequent to
burning, including soil and debris movement caused by storm precipitation. However, fire suppression
measures, such as the mass movement of earth during the creation of firelines, often are the primary cause
of adverse effects to cultural resources. These processes may alter the context of archaeological remains
vital to analysis and interpretation and have potential to completely destroy the resource.

Site Information
The Paradise Ranch Knoll Earth Oven site is located in a narrow saddle at the terminus of a
northwest-southeast ridgeline, running off the larger Whitaker Peak landform, situated above the junction
of Canton Canyon and Big Oak Flat, at an altitude of 3,070 ft. above mean sea level (Figure 1). The area
sits within the administrative boundaries of the Santa Clara-Mojave Rivers Ranger District of the Angeles
National Forest, in northwestern Los Angeles County.
LAN-2464 was originally recorded in 1996 as an area of dark carbonized soil with fire-affected
rock (FAR) on the surface, indicating the presence of an earth oven, a subsurface feature generally
associated with the cooking of yucca. The site was recorded during investigations following a similar
wildfire incident, the 1996 “Marple Fire.” In that event, a bulldozer reopened a mechanical fireline along
the ridgeline, striking the deposits. During that investigation, it was noted that the dark carbonized soil
and FAR were widely scattered on the surface, and that some of the rock had been crushed by bulldozer

SCA Proceedings, Volume 22 (2009) Vance, p. 1