PAP.Nalsf' ^^^'^ PIERRE n — SMITH 111 



elevation of this site. Site 39ST16, known as the Breeden earth-lodge 

 village, a prehistoric site investigated during the season of 1955 by the 

 Missouri Basin Project, is located on this first terrace, somewhat to 

 the north of west from site 39ST217, and well above flood levels. On 

 this first terrace also is located the present access road leading to the 

 Oahe Dam; this is a hard-surface highway connecting with U.S. 

 Highway 14, west of Fort Pierre. 



Located on the level flood plain, site 39ST217 had been under culti- 

 vation for many years when it was investigated during the season 

 of 1956. The geologic character of the deposits at this point have 

 been described by Crandell as "floodplain alluvium," consisting of 

 "stream deposits of reworked glacial drift, Pierre shale detritus, and 

 sand and gravel of nonglacial source" (Crandell, 1954). The surface 

 cf the plot in question was found to be supporting a thin cover of 

 volunteer oats and weeds in 1956, and while not presenting clear evi- 

 dence of structural features such as partially-filled stockade trenches, 

 showed one slight depression some 20 feet in diameter (later found 

 to be the site of a cellar), together with object materials that ante- 

 dated modern agricultural use, such as fragments of common fired 

 brick, bits of fired adobe-clay chinking, metal, glass, glazed earthen- 

 ware fragments, and small glass beads (pi. 19, a). 



It was known that river flooding, especially during the late winter 

 and early summer seasons, had periodically affected the site in the 

 past, and layers of silts from such sources were encountered upon 

 excavation. At the Breeden-Wagner buildings mentioned (believed 

 to have been the original homestead site of Brignoli) Carl "Wagner 

 pointed out accidental traces and one intentional record mark show- 

 ing that in 1952 the area had been covered by flood waters to a depth 

 of some 3 feet. The flood of that year, on the Missouri proper at this 

 place, converging with another, on the lower Bad River, upon the city 

 of Fort Pierre, forced its complete evacuation. Flooding at the 

 present site was, of course, that of the Missouri proper. 



Seasonal flooding of the vicinity of site 39ST217 had, without ques- 

 tion, previously affected it on numerous occasions, but such natural 

 events appear to have no visible effect upon the archeological remains 

 to be described. Aggradation of the flood plain had certainly occurred, 

 on the evidence of layers of sterile water-borne materials, but no 

 evidence was seen in excavation of complimentary processes such as 

 cutting into structural features. Long cultivation of the area, on 

 the other hand, had had only relatively slight effect upon the structural 

 remains, cultivation having penetrated to only a shallow depth — 

 seldom exceeding 4 to 6 inches. 



Reference has been made to the fact that the site is now screened 

 from the Missouri. This timber and underbrush is, in large part, 

 clearly of recent origin, possibly by extension of smaller areas referred 



