A hunter using an atlatl. Baton Rouge, Louisiana...

Edwin W. Edwards Governor DEPARTMENT OF CULTURE, RECREATION AND TOURISM Noelle LeBlanc Secretary ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY AND ANTIQUITIES COMMISSION Ex-Officio Members Dr. Kathleen Byrd State Archaeologist Mr. Robert B. DeBlieux Assistant Secretary , Office of Cultural Development Mr. B. Jim Porter Secretary , Department of Natural Resources Ms. V. Elaine Boyle Secretary , Department of Urban and Community Affairs Appointed Members Dr. Charles E. Orser, Jr. Mr. Brian J. Duhe Mr. Marc Dupuy, Jr. Dr.

Louisiana’s cultural heritage dates back to approximately 10,000 B.C. when man first entered this region. Since that time, many other Indian groups have settled here. Each of these groups has left evidence of its presence in the archaeological record. The Anthropological Study series published by the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism provides a readable account of various activities of these cultural groups. Robert W. Neuman, Curator of Anthropology at the Museum of Geoscience, Louis

Although many individuals have contributed to the development of this volume, special appreciation goes to Dr. Clarence H. Webb of Shreveport for allowing us the use of artifacts from his private collection. Mr. George A. Foster, Chairman of the Board of Guaranty Corporation, assisted us greatly by providing photographs of drawings from the Corporation’s lobby Indian displays for use in this publication. We also thank Dr. Judith A. Schiebout, Director of the Museum of Geoscience, Louisiana State

Tens of thousands of years ago, when the world was in the midst of the Ice Age, the first humans made their way into North America. At that time, thick sheets of ice covering the polar regions had tied up so much of the earth’s water that the oceans were approximately 400 feet lower than they are today. All around the world sections of land that are now underwater were then above sea level. An extensive land bridge connected Siberia to Alaska across what is now the Bering Strait and people from

Twelve thousand years ago, the average temperature in the southeastern United States was five to 10 degrees cooler than it is now, and the climate was drier. The landscape was covered with oak and pine forests mixed with open grasslands. Some familiar animals such as rabbits and deer lived in the area, but many other animals that have become extinct in North America, were also common then. Included were the camel, giant armadillo, short-faced bear, long-horned bison, mastodon, tapir, ground slot

The gradual transition from the late Paleo-Indian to the early Meso-Indian Period had occurred by 5000 B.C. Meso-Indians, also called Archaic Indians, lived in small nomadic groups. Unlike their predecessors, however, they remained longer in each camp location and exploited smaller geographical areas. Whereas a Paleo-Indian might roam from Texas to Mississippi in his lifetime, returning rarely to the same place, a Meso-Indian might spend his whole life in a six-parish area, returning each season

The Poverty Point Culture flourished from approximately 2000 B.C. to 700 B.C. The culture is named for the famous Poverty Point Site where the largest earthworks of the period were built. During this time, Poverty Point people lived in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas, and they usually settled near major rivers, junctions of lakes and rivers, or in coastal marshes. These locations supported a wide variety of plants and animals that could be used for food. Poverty Point Site The Poverty Point

The simplified lifestyle that developed at the end of the Poverty Point Period continued throughout the next cultural period. During the time of the Tchefuncte (pronounced Che-funk′tuh) Culture, from 500 B.C. until A.D. 200, people lived in small scattered settlements. Long distance trade was much less important, yet people in Louisiana were in contact with people in western Mississippi, coastal Alabama, eastern Texas, Arkansas, and southeastern Missouri. In Louisiana, most Tchefuncte people see

Sometime after 200 B.C., Indians of the highly influential Hopewell Culture, centered in Ohio and Illinois, sent representatives throughout the eastern United States. By at least the first century A.D., groups of Louisiana Indians had met these travelers and had learned about their culture. Hopewell people had powerful leaders who supervised a cult centered around lavish burial rituals. Leaders organized construction of large mounds in which certain high-status people were buried along with exqu

The Troyville-Coles Creek Period lasted from approximately A.D. 400 to A.D. 1100. By the beginning of this period, influence from the Ohio-Illinois Hopewell people had ceased, and pottery styles, mound building, and ceremonial life had gradually changed. The Troyville-Coles Creek people continued building ceremonial centers with mounds, but these mounds differed from earlier ones. They were larger, shaped differently, and more numerous. They also served a new purpose. Instead of being primarily

By about A.D. 800, descendants of the Troyville-Coles Creek people living in northwestern Louisiana had developed close ties with people in southeastern Oklahoma, northeastern Texas and southern Arkansas. From this region emerged the Caddo Culture. These Indians developed a fine, new style of pottery, and used special ornaments and objects made from imported materials. They also performed elaborate burials of upper class people. There was little change in the daily life of the ordinary Indians.

While Caddo Indians flourished in northwestern Louisiana, those in the rest of the state by approximately A.D. 1000 had a slightly different way of life. Many of the latter were part of the Plaquemine Culture, who like the Caddo, were descendants of Troyville-Coles Creek Indians. In keeping with the patterns established by their ancestors, Plaquemine people built large ceremonial centers with two or more large mounds facing an open plaza. The flat-topped, pyramidal mounds were constructed in sev

Early European descriptions of the Natchez and Taensa Indians help us understand their life, and give an idea of the way many of the late prehistoric Indians throughout Louisiana lived. European travelers reported that some Indians lived near the ceremonial centers that had mounds surrounding a central plaza. The two most important buildings, the temple and the chief’s house, were at the center. The temple was on the summit of one of the mounds, or was in a prominent place facing the plaza. It h

Upon the arrival of Europeans in Louisiana and their written descriptions of the Indians, the prehistoric period came to an end. However, our understanding of this prehistory is still incomplete. Hundreds of major questions remain, including very basic ones: When did the first Indians reach Louisiana? What sparked the development of the Poverty Point Culture? Where and how were the Mexican plants of corn, beans and squash introduced to Louisiana? Which prehistoric groups were the ancestors of ea

No. 1 On the Tunica Trail by Jeffrey P. Brain No. 2 The Caddo Indians of Louisiana, second edition by Clarence H. Webb & Hiram F. Gregory No. 3 The Role of Salt in Eastern North American Prehistory by Ian Brown No. 4 El Nuevo Constante by Charles E. Pearson, et al. No. 5 Preserving Louisiana’s Legacy by Nancy W. Hawkins No. 6 Louisiana Prehistory by Robert W. Neuman & Nancy W. Hawkins No. 7 Poverty Point by Jon L. Gibson No. 8 Bailey’s Dam by Steven D. Smith and George J. Castill