Riv. Bas, Sur. oo! 
Riv. Bas. S08 SMALL SITES ABOUT FORT BERTHOLD—METCALF 45 
that “tipi rings” were, in all cases, what their name indicates. How- 
ever, the depth and richness of the midden deposit indicates a rather 
long period of occupation, one which should have left traces of other 
types of habitations had they existed. 
TEST EXCAVATIONS ON FORT BERTHOLD 
RESERVATION 
When Lewis and Clark passed through the area of the present Fort 
Berthold Reservation in the spring of 1805, they noticed the remains 
of several recently occupied Indian camps. On April 17, when some- 
what above the present reservation, Clark noted that they “saw the 
remains of Indian camps in every point of timbered land on the S. 8S.” 
(Reid, 1947-48, p. 246). 
During the course of the 1950 reconnaissance, it was found that 
most of the level, sheltered terrace spurs overlooking the flood plain 
of the Missouri River bore out Clark’s testimony by showing the 
evidence of former occupation. Evidence ranged from the presence 
of a few flint chips at some sites, to stone tools, bits of crumbling 
animal bones, and an occasional sherd at others. In some of these 
sites, tests disclosed little or nothing below the surface, while other 
sites showed one or more thin occupation levels, seldom more than a 
foot below the surface. 
During the summers of 1951 and 1952 field parties from the Uni- 
versity of Montana, headed by Dr. Carling Malouf, excavated in two 
of these sites on the reservation, as well as at others outside its 
boundaries, and a preliminary report has appeared on the 1951 work 
(Malouf, 1951). In September and October 1951 two sites were 
tested by G. Hubert Smith and myself for the Missouri Basin Project, 
and a report on the findings at these sites is presented in the following 
pages. 
These tests, in conjunction with the work of Malouf, indicate that 
small groups of hunters have utilized sheltered campsites along this 
stretch of the Missouri River over a period of time sufficiently long 
to allow changes in pottery styles to take place. 
I2ME53 (map 1 and pl. 9).—This site is located on a small terrace 
25 to 30 feet above the water level, on the right side of the Missouri 
River in the SESW), sec. 21, T. 147 N., R. 89 W. The site, which 
lies between the east-west road and the riverbank, was in virgin sod 
at the time of our visit and may cover as much as 2 acres. At this 
point the river, coming from the north, strikes the bank and turns 
sharply to the northeastward, and the consequent lateral erosion has 
destroyed an unknown extent of the site. To the northwest is the 
low, brush-covered flood plain which also occupies several square 
miles to the east and northeast of the site. The latter area is some- 
