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Native American Heritage Sites

Ever since I was a kid and saw the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark, I have had an interest in archeology. Then during my senior year in high school, I was able to participate in an archeological dig with the Arkansas Archeological Survey. This again peaked my interest in the subject. We studied Native American culture and I learned to respect other cultures as well as the need to preserve their heritage.

This is the reasoning behind the map that I have produced for this weeks assignment. It maps out Native American mounds throughout Arkansas. Our state has numerous Native American Heritage sites. By plotting them on this map we can see concentrated areas of habitation. It further shows that most sites occur along rivers and river valleys. Examining each one of these sites gives us a better understanding of the Indigenous Peoples of our state. However, as in the Cavanaugh Mound Site, some of these sites are in need of preservation so that future generations may also have an appreciation of our state and Native Peoples heritage.

The timeline above gives a visualization of the chronology of when the Native Peoples populated each site. This can further
help us to understand any interaction between these Native Peoples and the importance of each heritage site.

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The Battle Mound Site (3LA1) is an archaeological site in Lafayette County, Arkansas in the Great Bend region of the Red River basin. The majority of the mound was built from 1200-1400 AD. The site has the largest mound of the Caddoan Mississippian culture (a regional variation of the Mississippian culture). It measures approximately 670 feet (200 m) in length, 320 feet (98 m) wide, and 34 feet (10 m) in height.
The Bay Mounds are an archaeological site near Bay, Arkansas. This collection of temple mounds are the only ones still surviving in Craighead County. There are only 2 remaining mounds of society who inhabited the area between 1200 and 1400AD. The Bay group itself culturally belongs to the Lawhorn Phase, a society which existed along both sides of the St. Francis River north of Marked Tree, Arkansas.
The Baytown Site (3 MO 1) is a Pre-Columbian Native American archaeological site located on the White River at Indian Bay, in Monroe County, Arkansas. It was first inhabited by peoples of the Baytown culture (300 to 700 CE) and later briefly by peoples of the Plum Bayou culture (650 to 1050 CE), in a time known as the Late Woodland period. It is considered the type site of the Baytown culture. The site consisted of nine platform mounds arranged around an open plaza. The two tallest mounds were 20 feet (6.1 m) and 10 feet (3.0 m) in height, with others standing at 5 feet (1.5 m) in height or less.
Boone's Mounds are a ceremonial site of the Coles Creek culture located in Calhoun County, Arkansas. The site is one of the largest mound sites in the Ouachita River valley. Archeological excavation at the site has yielded dates of occupation as early as 600 AD, and it may still have been in use during the early contact period, c. 1700. The site was located on private property at the time of its listing on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Near Fort Smith, AR a platform mound commonly called the Cavanaugh Mound exists in isolation and may have provided a vantage point from which to view the Spiro Mounds in present-day Oklahoma. Cavanaugh Mound is a large Mississippian/Caddo mound that was damaged many years ago by previous owners who, for reasons unknown, removed about a third of the mound and then later, dug a cellar in its side. Preservation work has been done at that site in recent years by the Arkansas Archaeological Survey and The Archaeological Conservancy, a nonprofit group that purchased the mound in 2012.
The Crenshaw site (3MI6) is a multiple-mound Caddo ceremonial center located in the Great Bend Region of the Red River in Miller County, Arkansas. It is known for the presence of both "pre-Caddo" or Fourche Maline materials and later Caddo materials. It also has some characteristics that separate it from many other sites including a causeway between two of the mounds, a pile with over 2,000 deer antler, and deposits of human skulls and detached mandibles representing over 300 individuals.
The Coy Site (3 LN 20) is an archaeological site located next to Indian-Bakers Bayou in Lonoke County, Arkansas. It was inhabited by peoples of the Plum Bayou culture (650—1050 CE), in a time known as the Late Woodland period. The site was occupied between 700 and 1000 CE. The site once consisted of four mounds, several flat-topped platform mounds and at least one burial mounds and extensive midden areas. The site was excavated by Edward Palmer in 1883. He described the largest two platform mounds as being 4 metres (13 ft) in height and 3 metres (9.8 ft). He also noted a 2.4 metres (7.9 ft) burial mound and a low mound of undetermined function. The largest platform mound survives to the present day. This mound was tested in 1988 and 1994, and returned dates between 730 and 1010 CE.
The Eaker Site (3MS105) is an archaeological site on Eaker Air Force Base near Blytheville, Arkansas that was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1996. The site is the largest and most intact Late Mississippian Nodena Phase village site within the Central Mississippi Valley, with archaeological evidence indicating a palisaded village some 50 acres (20 ha) in size, with hundreds of structures. The site's major period of occupation was 1350–1450 CE, although evidence of occupation dates back to 600 CE. The site is also hypothesized to have been occupied by the Quapaw prior to a migration further south, after which they made contact with Europeans in the late 17th century.
The Hughes Mound Site (3SA11), is an archeological site in Saline County, Arkansas three miles southwest of Benton. The Hughes mound, is 100 yards from the Saline River, stands 80 feet high and 110 feet long. The 4.5-acre (1.8 ha) site is an important Caddoan Mississippian culture village center, at the northeastern frontier of that civilization. It is the only known platform mound site south of Benton on the Saline River. The site has not been dated, but artifacts found there are consistent with the Caddoan period; no contact-period artifacts have been found.
The Menard-Hodges Site (3AR4) (also known as Menard-Hodges Mounds and Osotouy), is an archaeological site in Arkansas County, near Lake Dumond, and part of the Arkansas Post National Memorial. It has been widely considered to be the first location of Arkansas Post and also a location of the Quapaw village of Osotouy. It includes two large platform mounds as well as several house mounds. It is the type site for the Menard phase, a protohistoric Mississippian culture group.
The Nodena Site (3MS4) is an archeological site east of Wilson, Arkansas in Mississippi County. Around 1400–1650 CE an aboriginal palisaded village existed in the Nodena area on a meander bend of the Mississippi River. The Nodena site was discovered and first documented by Dr. James K. Hampson, archaeologist and owner of the plantation on which the Nodena site is located. Artifacts from this site are on display in the Hampson Museum State Park in Wilson, Arkansas. The Nodena Site is the type site for the Nodena Phase, believed by many archaeologists to be the province of Pacaha visited by Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto in 1542.
Parkin Archeological State Park, also known as Parkin Indian Mound, is an archeological site and state park in Parkin, Cross County, Arkansas. Around 1350–1650 CE an aboriginal palisaded village existed at the site, at the confluence of the St. Francis and Tyronza rivers. Artifacts from this site are on display at the site museum. The Parkin Site is the type site for the Parkin phase, an expression of the Mississippian culture from the Late Mississippian period. Many archeologists believe it to be part of the province of Casqui, documented as visited by Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto in 1542. Archeological artifacts from the village of the Parkin people are dated to 1400–1650 CE.

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