First Tribe continues the on-site Mississippian Mound Tours touching down in East Texas at the Caddo Mounds. The Museum is set to re-open in October which will hold some important artifacts.
The Caddo Indians tribe who inhabited the southeastern part of present-day Oklahoma, northeastern Texas, western Arkansas, and northwestern Louisiana. They were part of the larger Mississippian culture, which was a pre-Columbian cultural and social complex that developed in the Mississippi River Valley and surrounding areas between approximately 800 and 1600 CE.
The Mississippian culture was characterized by a complex social structure, large agricultural settlements, and an emphasis on maize (corn) agriculture. It was named after the Mississippi River, where many of the most prominent sites of this culture were located. The Caddo Indians were part of this larger Mississippian cultural tradition, although they had unique characteristics that set them apart from other Mississippian groups.
The Caddo people were known for their advanced agricultural practices, particularly the cultivation of maize, beans, and squash. They lived in settled villages and built earthen mound complexes, which served as ceremonial and social centers. The Caddo mounds, such as the Caddo Mounds State Historic Site in Texas, are examples of these ceremonial centers that were part of the larger Mississippian cultural landscape.
The Caddo had a complex social and political structure, with a chiefdom system that involved both hereditary leadership and social stratification. They engaged in trade networks with neighboring tribes and European settlers, which contributed to their economic and cultural exchange.
While the Mississippian culture declined around the 16th century, the Caddo people continued to maintain their cultural identity and presence in their ancestral territories. Today, the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma is a federally recognized tribe that works to preserve and promote Caddo culture, history, and traditions.
The Caddo Indians' association with the Mississippian culture highlights their participation in a larger cultural and social complex that spanned across different regions and tribes in the southeastern and central United States. It also emphasizes their unique contributions and adaptations within the broader Mississippian framework.
Perttula, Timothy K. "Caddo Origins and Development: An Archaeological Perspective." Journal of Archaeological Research, vol. 23, no. 3, 2015, pp. 185-228.
Brown, Ian W. "The Caddo Indians: Tribes at the Convergence of Empires, 1542-1854." Texas A&M University Press, 1998.
Townsend, Richard F., editor. "Hero, Hawk, and Open Hand: American Indian Art of the Ancient Midwest and South." Yale University Press, 2004.
Knight, Vernon James, Jr. "The Caddo Indians of Texas: An Historical Ethnography." University of Texas Press, 1998.
Trigger, Bruce G. "Natives and Newcomers: Canada's "Heroic Age" Reconsidered." McGill-Queen's University Press, 1985.
Gibson, Arrell M., and Daniel J. Gelo, editors. "The Indigenous Peoples of Texas: From Prehistoric to Modern Times." University of Texas Press, 2010.
SAVE ANCIENT MOUNDVILLE ALABAMA
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