Chapter 3

An ice age created a land bridge connecting Asia w/ North America. The first humans came to North America by crossing that bridge. When the ice age ended, the land bridge flooded, becoming the Bering Strait.

1961: scientists discover evidence of Paleo Indian hunters in Oklahoma. Thousands of years ago, six-foot tall bison, camels, horses, and sloths the size of elephants lived in the area that is Oklahoma. Columbian mammoth bones were found at the Cooperton site in Kiowa County. Cooperton site Soil deposits date to about 30,000 years ago at Burnham site. 3

The Clovis people, named after the New Mexico site where first artifacts were reported, were known for their spears (spear point usually 3-4 inches long) There is an important Clovis site near Stecker in Caddo County. The Clovis people first hunted mammoths and then switched to bison as the mammoth population declined. 4 Click for information on Jake Bluff.

Reached Oklahoma 11,000 years ago Domebo: archaeologists find skeleton of a mammoth w/ Clovis points still within it’s bones. Caddo County Ate seeds, hunted, told stories, and slept beside open fire.

The Clovis people, named after the New Mexico site where first artifacts were reported, were known for their spears (spear point usually 3-4 inches long) There is an important Clovis site near Stecker in Caddo County. The Clovis people first hunted mammoths and then switched to bison as the mammoth population declined. 6 Click for information on Jake Bluff.

Descendants of the Big- Game hunters More complex society, based on foraging. Hunted modern species of buffalo and deer. More skilled than BGH. Atlatl: wooden throwing stick. Made baskets, nets, string, canoes. Petroglyphs

As climate changed, the people adapted and their culture changed. They become hunters and harvesters and made flour and stored it in baskets. Pieces of bone and antler became spear points, needles, awls, punches, and atlatl hooks. They ate a variety of wild animals and knew how to start a fire with a wood drill. 8

Planted corn, beans, pumpkins, and squash. Built houses using poles w/ thatch roofs. Still hunted and gathered on prairie close to farms. First pottery in area. Made by women Coil Method Helped w/ food preparation and storage Water gathering

Bow and arrow were developed about this time and made hunting easier. Because farming meant growing crops, people moved less and villages began to develop.

A.D. 900 People become social Plains Village Farmers Archeologists have found more than 200 sites w/ at least 12 dwellings along Washita River. Houses square w/ clay and grass plaster and thatch roofs. Traded w/ people in distant communities.

Archeologists have found more than 200 sites w/ at least 12 dwellings along Washita River. Houses square w/ clay and grass plaster and thatch roofs. Traded w/ people in distant communities. Planted greater variety of crops Tobacco tools More effective hunters Bow and Arrow Pottery Early religion? No elaborate ceremonies No social classes No mounds

AD

Advanced, sedentary society Unprecedented horticultural activity and population growth. Complex social and political hierarchies, ceremonialism, long distance trade Spiro is one of the best examples of North American Caddoan culture.

Located on the Arkansas River, where it is constricted by Ozark and Ouachita Mountains. Excellent spot to monitor and control the flow of people, commerce, and information between the bison hunting plains people and farming centers in the southeast Evidence suggests that by 850 the “Spiro” mound builders were in complete control of the area.

There is no evidence of defensive works/structures or strife with neighbors.

The Spiro site was a ceremonial- burial center surrounded by small hamlets. Mounds are full of burials including STATUS GOODS. Status Goods: items denoting wealth, power or prestige that are interred with an individual.

The largest of the Spiro Mounds it is 33 feet tall, 400 feet long and 115 feet wide. It holds approximately 700 burials.

We know that Spiro mastered a great network of trading partners. How do we know this???

Galena from SE Missouri and Iowa Quartz from central Arkansas Flint from Kansas Copper from eastern Tennessee and the Carolinas Conch shell from Florida Which of these status goods was considered most valuable??

Copper and conch shell because they were from the farthest areas There was more copper and marine shell at Spiro than at any other North American site. Exotic goods arrived finished, suggesting they were sent as TRIBUTE to seal political alliances or as payment for religious rituals.

An extended period of drought probably moved the villages south to the Red River Valley and the mounds were generally abandoned over many decades. Over many, many, many generations, these people re- organized themselves into what is today known as the Wichita Indian Tribe.