The Ancient copper workers of the Great Lakes

 I sort of aware that some AmerIndian tribes used copper in South America, and also that there was an extensive trade in iron from meteorrites, but even though I lived in Northern Minnesota, I was not aware of the Ancient Copper Culture of the Great Lakes. And they have now redated when that was going on:

Archeology Magazine:

Pompeani said the study suggests that the Old Copper Culture emerged at least 9,500 years ago, and peaked between 7,000 and 5,000 years ago, when the evidence suggests copper use began to decline.

why it's in the news now? Because they have redated the artifacts and pushed back the dates. 

Science Magazine article Link 

so why did they stop mining copper? 

this article claims climate change.

 AncientOrigins article notes:

Why Did The Old Copper Culture And Copper Tools Decline? There is one thing about the North American Old Copper Culture that makes it unique. After copper tool-making activity among Great Lakes Native Americans peaked around 3,000 BC, the practice went into decline after that. The archaeological record shows that the region’s inhabitants had returned to using tools made from stone and bone almost exclusively by 1,000 BC...

Professor Pompeani has collected data from sediment cores and tree rings that suggest the Great Lakes region experienced drought-like conditions for an extended period of time starting around 5,000 BC. This would have placed great strain on Native Americans who lived there and relied on the land to provide them with all the essentials of life.

Under these circumstances, the associated social and ecological displacement may have caused a shift in survival-related practices . Societies struggling to survive may have been limited to the basics, giving them less time to devote to mining copper and processing it to make durable copper tools. Beyond a certain point, practical considerations may have motivated a return to bone and stone, with copper reserved primarily for luxury items like the beads, bracelets, and other decorative items that have been found at various Great Lakes archaeological sites..

more HERE:(Milwaukee Public Museum)

Timeline:

 

to put it into context: Here is an article on the use of copper in the neolithic world. They mention lots of places, including central and South America, but not the Great Lakes copper culture.

when I checked on youtube, there seems to be several lectures on the copper culture... here is one lecture.