10 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY 



Woodland to relatively late Creek villages dating from the period 

 1675-1836. The latter present the possibility of a specific identi- 

 fication of sites from ethnohistorical evidence, as well as an unusual 

 opportunity to use the direct-historical approach in establishing a 

 regional chronology. 



The manifestations in the Columbia Dam and Lock and Oliver 

 Dam basins are an integral part of the entire picture in the Lower 

 Chattahoochee Valley and must be studied in conjunction with those 

 in the Walter F. George section. Complete coverage of those two 

 projects was not possible in the time devoted to the reconnaissance, 

 but it was determined that there are at least 14 sites in the inmiediate 

 area of the Columbia Dam which will be affected by construction 

 activities. One is a major mound site probably dating about A. D. 

 1200, already half destroyed by the river, which calls for immediate 

 investigation. Three others are major village sites attributable to the 

 Weeden Island cultural pattern. In the Oliver Dam district there are 

 at least 15 known sites including mounds, early village locations, and 

 caves giving evidence of Indian occupation. The series encompasses 

 a period of at least 3,000 years. 



The entire history of aboriginal development in that portion of the 

 Chattahoochee Valley is contained in the river bottoms and low ter- 

 races which will be flooded by the three reservoirs. Very little archeo- 

 logical work has been done there and an extensive program of excava- 

 tion is indicated. In addition, further surveys should be made in 

 districts not covered during the recent investigations. 



Arkansas. — In the Dardanelle Eeservoir Basin on the Arkansas 

 Kiver in west-central Arkansas, excavations were made in five sites, 

 and two new sites were located and recorded during the period from 

 March 18 to May 7. All seven of the sites involved were in the lower 

 portion of the reservoir area. One rock shelter was almost com- 

 pletely excavated and four open sites were extensively tested. Little 

 was found at the excavated sites to indicate the type of dwelling or 

 structures erected by the people. However, a considerable collection 

 of artifact material was recovered which shows that the sites pri- 

 marily represent the Archaic Period and that their ceramics were 

 related to the Lower Mississippi Valley sequences. Only slight in- 

 fluences were noted from the Caddoan area to the west and southwest. 

 The two new sites found by the field party represent a mound-village 

 complex and a historic Cherokee location. Because of adverse 

 weather and unusually heavy rains during the period the party was in 

 the Dardanelle area, not so much work was accomplished as had been 

 contemplated, and it was recommended that similar excavations be 

 made during the following fiscal year in upper portions of the reser- 

 voir basin. 



