History Commons^™

Preliminary Cultural Resources Investigations For The Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge, Hidalgo County, Texas, Karl W. Kibler, Martha Doty Freeman, Amy C. Earls

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Archeological, archival, and geomorphologic investigations were conducted for the proposed Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge Project in Hidalgo County, Texas, by Prewitt and Associates, Inc. from October 12-27, 1992. The purposes of these investigations were to locate and record any cultural resources within the project area, determine their eligibility for listing on the National Register of Historic Places and designation as State Archeological Landmarks, and to provide an overview of the Holocene geomorphic history of the project area.

The geomorphic history of the project area suggests that the Rio Grande has experienced continuous channel aggradation from the end of the Pleistocene to …

Data Recovery At Justiceburg Reservior (Lake Alan Henry), Garza And Kent Counties, Texas: Phase Iii, Season 2, Douglas K. Boyd, Jay Peck, Steve A. Tomka, Karl W. Kibler

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The second of three seasons of Phase III data recovery at Justiceburg Reservoir (Lake Alan Henry), located on the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos River in Garza and Kent counties, Texas, was conducted during the summer of 1991. 11le work included survey of dam borrow areas and site recording in and near these construction zones, limited work at selected rock art sites, geological investigation of an upland playa, and intensive investigations at two primarily Protohistoric period archeological sites. Pedestrian survey of active borrow areas resulted in the discovery and emergency recording and evaluation of site 41GR606 at the mouth …

Archaeology, The Caddo Indian Tribe, And The Native American Graves Protection And Repatriation Act, Mary C. Carter

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Caddo leadership has a long history of working cooperatively with foreign governments. In the seventeenth century, they cooperated with Spanish officials and missionaries who wanted to establish themselves among the southern branch of Caddo tribes--the Hasinai in Northeast Texas. In the eighteenth century, they cooperated with the French who wanted to establish trading posts on the Red River among the Natchitoches and Kadohadacho. In the nineteenth century they cooperated with Americans to establish peaceful relationships with unfriendly tribe. For Caddos, the result of these cooperative efforts was disillusion, decimation, displacement, and finally dispossession. Now, with new hope in the twentieth …

Dental Paleopathologies In The Sanders Site (41lr2) Population From Lamar County, Texas, Diane E. Wilson

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Dental health, like skeletal health, reflects the natural and social environment, as well as genetics. This paper focuses on the results of stress on the teeth once they have erupted; stresses include chemical, mechanical, and pathogenic forces. These forces are primarily the result of dietary factors. The specific aspects of dental health examined in this paper are cariogenesis, dental attrition, antemortem tooth loss, and abscessing. These dental paleopathologies primarily reflect diet and food processing strategies.

Throughout the Americas, dental disorders have increased with the adoption of maize agriculture. Reliance on maize provides a sticky, carbohydraterich dietary staple that is favorable …

A Summary Of The History Of The Caddo People, Frank F. Schambach

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

I am pleased and very honored that you have invited me here today to tell you something about the past of the Caddo people as it is known to archaeologists. This is a subject that has been both my occupation and my major preoccupation for more than 25 years. The story that I and other archaeologists have been piecing together over many years is long, complex, and endlessly fascinating. It is a heritage that anyone could be proud of. Let me give you some of the highlights.

The story began over 11,500 years ago--or about 9,500 B.C.--when the first people …

The Z.V. Davis-Mcpeek Site, An Early Caddoan Mound Site In The Little Cypress Creek Valley, Upshur County, Texas, Bo Nelson, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Z.V. Davis-McPeek site (41UR4/99) is an Early Caddoan period mound and habitation area located in northwest Upshur County. The mound is on a broad terrace along Little Cypress Creek, in the western portion of the Cypress Basin. Since the initial recording of the site some 60 years ago, there have been several different but limited investigations there, but none have been published. These limited investigations, coupled with the uncertainty of the site's exact location (see below), prompted the authors (with the able assistance of Mike Turner) to relocate the site, assemble known information about it, evaluate the current condition …

A Two-Phase Or Tiered Caddo Mound At The Camp Joy Site (41ur144), Lake 0' The Pines, Mike Turner

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

As the United States expanded in the late eighteenth century and through most of the nineteenth century, much interest and question was raised over the increasing numbers of earthen mounds and earthen constructions encountered by the settlers moving westward across the southeastern woodlands. Mounds? Mound builders? Enough questions were raised about their origins that in 1881, the Division of Mound Exploration of the Bureau of Ethnology, Smithsonian Institution, was established to address and resolve these issues. The work of the Division of Mound Exploration can be considered the first "modern archeology" done in the United States. Their mound research covered …

Chipped Glass, Ceramics, And Axe Handles, Claude Mccrocklin

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This is a brief paper on chipped glass and Euro-American ceramics found on Historic Indian sites in the ARK-LA-TEX region. These tools have long puzzled archaeologists as to their use, and still do to some extent today; hopefully this paper will clarify matters. Chipped and pressure-flaked glass was probably used differently from chipped ceramic tools, since the latter were softer and not as sharp as the bottle glass. As most of the chipped tools found were made of glass, this paper will deal primarily with them.

The Problem Of Site Looting In East Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

It is likely that looting by treasure hunters and grave robbers has destroyed thousands of sites in East Texas. In the last 5 to 10 years, the vandalism and looting of archeological sites by commercial looters on private, state, and federal property has reached epidemic proportions. Undisturbed Caddoan Indian habitation sites and cemeteries, thought to date from about 1200 to 200 years B.P., are very vulnerable to disturbance and destruction by commercial collectors and looters. These folks are. destroying forever irreplaceable evidence about Texas' cultural heritage.

The looting and vandalism of Caddoan sites has been a persistent Texas problem since …

Archaeological Investigations At The Tobert Potter And Harriet Ames Cabin (41mr51) On Potter's Point, Caddo Lake, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This paper discusses recent archaeological investigations at the Robert Potter and Harriet Ames cabin site (41MR51) on Caddo Lake at Potter's Point. The cabin site represents a relatively intact mid-nineteenth century archaeological deposit from a Northeast Texas cultural resource of considerable historical significance.

The site was located by Mr. Claude McCrocklin and members of the Louisiana Archaeological Society in the summer of 1992. The artifacts collected from these limited investigations were then turned over to the author for study as the first step in assessing the site's archaeological character and preservation potential.

Data Recovery Efforts At The Millville Mill Site (41rk223), Rusk County, Texas, Eugene R. Foster Jr., Wayne Glander

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In September 1993, data recovery efforts were undertaken by Espey, Huston & Associates, Inc. (EH&A) of Austin, Texas, to mitigate the effects of lignite mining on site 41RK223 in Texas Utilities Mining Company's Oak Hill/2280 Acre Mine permit area of north-central Rusk County, Texas. The data recovery efforts were planned and conducted in coordination with the Department of Antiquities Protection at the Texas Historical Commission (THC) and Mr. Matthew Tanner of TU Services. The site was originally recorded by EH&A during a 1989 survey of the Oak Hill/2280 Acre Mine permit area based on information received from local informants, Orville …

Four Clovis Points From San Augustine County, Texas, Kenneth M. Brown

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Four surface-collected Clovis points (two complete, two fragmentary) from the northeastern valley margin of the Angelina River in San Augustine County are described. One specimen is made from Manning fused glass and is the oldest artifact known to have been made of that rock type. The others appear to be made of chert from the Edwards Plateau.

Artifact Repatriation And Collection Documentation, Dan E. Mcgregor

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) became law in November 1990, giving Native Americans control over the disposition of human remains and certain artifacts with which they have "cultural affiliation". For East Texas, most Native American burials are unquestionably affiliated with the Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma. Implementation of NAGPRA will affect the archaeological data base for East Texas. Repatriation of human remains and associated artifacts to the Caddo Tribe will be required of most curation facilities with collections from this region. Under NAGPRA, future excavation and analysis of human remains and associated artifacts will become increasingly difficult …

Problems In The Preservation And Study Of Archaeological Metals In East Texas, Jay C. Blaine

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Dee Ann Story recently pointed out how little really is known about the archaeology of Texas Caddoan sites. Specifically, she notes how very few Caddoan sites have been systematically excavated and analyzed in Texas.

There has been some substantial effort in this direction recently as witnessed by the renewed investigations at the Sam Kaufman (Roitsch) site by the Texas Archeological Society and the Texas Historical Commission. However, it seems evident to some of us that while investigations of the prehistoric Caddoan archaeological data base has been less than adequate, our understanding of historic Caddoan groups remains even less satisfactory. In …

Vulnerability Of Archeological Sites In East Texas, James E. Corbin

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

A discussion concerning the vulnerable archeological sites in East Texas, or anywhere for that matter, is a serious and complex one, primarily because all archaeological sites are vulnerable. Of course, it must be understood that it is the very nature of archaeological sites to be threatened with destruction.

Means Of Site Preservation In East Texas, Timothy K. Perttula

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Although thousands of archeological sites are destroyed annually in Texas, there are effective ways to preserve them using existing State and Federal laws and regulations. These are not simply paperwork exercised, since the tangible results help to insure that prehistoric and historic sites are preservedas a special trust for the benefit of Texas' future generations. I encourage all persons interested in protecting and preserving the heritage of Texas to be an advocate to public and private landowners about site preservation.

Rather than review in detail applicable State and Federal laws about site preservation, a summary paper has been distributed here …

Possible Archaeological Sites Within The City Limits Of Jefferson, Texas, Thomas E. Speir

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In 1992, the author accompanied a longtime resident of Jefferson on a tour of the city to examine historic and prehistoric sites within the city limits that might be of archaeological interest. He became aware of many of these sites over 20 years ago while growing up in the area. The condition of the sites has, of course, changed radically since that time. Enough information about the sites was revealed to indicate where it might be worthwhile in the future to do more extensive archaeological and historical research.

We began our tour at 12:00 noon on July 24, 1992. My …

The West Island Site (41mxi65), Kevin King, Mike Turner

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This paper describes a set of artifacts collected from the West Island site, a poorly known Titus phase cemetery in Ellison Creek Reservoir. The site is on a small knoll adjacent to a small spring branch that flows into the now-inundated Ellison Creek, a tributary of Big Cypress Creek.

The site knoll is now no more than one foot (30 em) above the normal pool elevation of Ellison Creek Reservoir, and it is usually totally submerged. Up to five feet (1.52 meters) of white sand caps the knoll, and overlies the clay subsoil. Due to continued submergence, the knoll is …

Alley's Mills: A 19th Century Mill Town, Mary C. Jones

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Alley's Mills town site was discovered' while examining a timber tract on Alley's Creek for a harvest cut by International Paper. A deep, rock-lined well, and a profusion of handmade bricks was discovered on a small knoll overlooking Alley's Creek, a tributary of Big Cypress Creek. Also found on the knoll were pieces of whiteware pottery, English blue transfer china, square nails, and glass fragments.

I contacted a local historian, Mr. Fred McKenzie, about the site. We walked over the site, which he had discovered several years ago. In the creek bottom, he pointed out an earthen structure that …

The Carlisle Site (41wd46), A Middle Caddoan Occupation On The Sabine River, Wood County, Texas, Timothy K. Perttula, Bob D. Skiles, Bonnie C. Yates

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Carlisle site (41WD46) is located on the Sabine River near its confluence with Lake Fork Creek in the Upper Sabine River Basin. As defined by Perttula, the Upper Sabine River Basin includes the area from the headwaters of the Sabine River to the mouths of Cherokee Bayou and Hatley Creek at the western edge of the Sabine Uplift. Lake Fork Creek is one of several large south-southeastward flowing streams within the Upper Sabine River Basin. The town of Mineola is approximately 13 kilometers (km) west of the Carlisle site.

The site is situated at the tip of an upland …

Assessment Of Archeological Site 41cp221, Found During Construction Of Fm 1520 In Camp County, Texas, G. R. Dennis Price, Stephanie Stoermer Strickland

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

On January 7, 1993, the Texas Department of Transportation (Tx DoT) learned that prehistoric archeological materials had been reportedly unearthed during improvements to highway FM 1520 in Camp County. As the project was being undertaken with State funds, Tx DoT, in compliance with the Texas Antiquities Code, ordered a cessation of work in the immediate area until the archeological significance of the area could be evaluated. Evaluation included surface examination, shovel testing and gradall scraping.

This report briefly describes the site area, work conducted, and artifacts recovered. It also discusses the results of the fieldwork and makes recommendations concerning resumption …

Significance Testing At Sites 41fy170 And 41fy509, Fayette County, Texas, Sterling H. Hays

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Site 4.1FY509 was originally tested by Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) archaeologists in April 1991. Based on the findings of the initial testing, the site was determined ineligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. Because cultural deposits were discovered during construction, additional archaeological investigations were conducted by TxDOT archaeologists on the eastern portions of 41FY509, Plum, Fayette County, Texas. The recent investigations were conducted in the right-of-way of Highway 71 between centerline stations 395+00 and 390+00 of the Plum Bypass. These investigations were conducted between June 3 and July 5, 1993, and consisted of mechanical trenching, removal …

Archaeological Test Excavations At Site 41bz89, Brazos County, Texas

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Archaeological test excavations were performed by a crew from the Bryan District under the direction of John W. Clark, Jr., assisted by William Weaver, at the historical archaeological site 41 BZ89 on the 12th of October 1992 and on the 10th of March, 1993. The excavations revealed a highly predictable horizontal distribution of artifacts over the site conforming to the Brunswick artifact pattern (South 1977: 47-80). They indicate an occupation apparently beginning in the late 1880s and extending into the 1950s (the 1950s occupation may represent reuse by hunters or a campsite for stock handlers). There could be a mid …

Archeological Significance Testing At Site 41te452, Terrell County, Texas, G. R. Dennis Price

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Texas Department of Transportation conducted archeological significance testing at site 41TE452 which is within the right-of-way of RM 2886 in Terrell County, Texas. The testing was undertaken in compliance with the Texas Antiquities Code as highway construction which will impact the site will be undertaken with state funds.

Testing involved the excavation of 27 shovel tests (each about 50 x 50 cm in plan), 3 backhoe trenches (each approximately 1 meter in width, and between 14 and 23 meters in length), and 3 test units (each 1 x 1 meter in plan). All of the excavations extended in depth …

Test Excavations At Sites 41lk284 And 41lk294, Fm 1042 At The Nueces River, Live Oak County, Texas, Paul Maslyk

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The planned extension of FM 1042 in Live Oak County includes a crossing at the Nueces River. Phase II archaeological testing of two sites (41LK284 and 41LK294) on the north and south terraces of the Nueces River was undertaken by TxDOT archaeologists, prior to construction, to determine eligibility for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places(in accordance with 36 CFR Part 800) and State Landmark status. Portions of both sites are located within the right-of-way. Surveys conducted in 1988 and 1992 recorded a light scatter of mussel shell and chert flakes on the surface of both sites. Cultural debris …

Archaeological Investigations At Site 41wd468/41wd469 Along Sh182 At Lake Fork Creek, Wood County, Texas, Alan J. Wormser, Stephanie S. Strickland

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) will replace two bridges on SH182; one at Lake Fork Creek and another at an unnamed tributary just west of Lake Fork Creek. Archaeological Site 4 1 WD468 occurs between the two streams. Previous researchers designated two site numbers (41WD468 and 41 WD469) for different portions of the site. The TxDOT investigations revealed no separation between the two areas, so the entire site is now designated under a single site number. The northeast part of the site (Area A) has shallow, disturbed deposits dating to the Late Archaic period. The southwest portion of the …

Excavation Of A Portion Of The San Pedro Acequia (41bx337) Via Metropolitan Transit System Parking Lot, San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas, I. Waynne Cox

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In October of 1986, representatives of the VIA Metropolitan Transit System contacted the Center for Archaeological Research prior to construction on their bus parking lot that occupies the area above a section of the historic San Pedro Acequia. It was decided at that time that limited testing to define and locate the extent of the acequia remaining and determine if monitoring of further operations should be conducted. The excavations were accomplished in December of 1986 and a profile of the acequia recorded. At that time monitoring was delayed until the anticipated relocation of a fuel storage tank was to be …

Archaeological Monitoring At Espada Road Acequia Crossing, South San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas, I. Waynne Cox

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

In July of 1992, the Center for Archaeological Research at the University of Texas at San Antonio was contracted to monitor the installation of a water line crossing the Espada acequia at the intersection of Espada Road and Camino Coahuilteca in south San Antonio. Upon notification in May of 1993 that the project was to be accomplished, an archaeologist from the center met with representatives from the Engineering and Installation section of the San Antonio City Water System and arranged for an archaeologist to be in attendance during critical phases of the installation. The project fieldwork was initiated on June …

Archaeological Testing And Monitoring In Connection With A Drainage Project At Mission San Juan Capistrano San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas, Anne A. Fox

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The purpose of this project was to obtain information to guide planning to alleviate drainage problems within the compound of the mission. Four separate areas were tested. Of these, only one uncovered structural remains that might be impacted by the drainage swales planned to carry rain water through the east and south walls and away from the standing structures. At that location, careful measurement of comparative elevations of ground and top of wall revealed that the planned drainage would be possible without damage to the wall. Subsequent drainage work was monitored by the archaeologists to be sure that no other …

San Saba Mill Pond Park Survey, San Saba County, Texas, I. Waynne Cox

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Center for Archaeological Research, The University of Texas at San Antonio, was contracted by L. K. Travis & Associates, Inc., to perform an archival research and field survey of 60 acres under consideration for the expansion of the Mill Pond Park within the City of San Saba. The research and survey were conducted by Research Associate Waynne Cox on April 21, 22 and 23. No evidence of either prehistoric or historic occupation was located within the survey area; however, archival research revealed further information concerning the nature and age of the mill for which the park was named. No …