Current Research: Preliminary Survey of the Eastern Half of the Boxed Spring Site (41UR30)

The Boxed Springs site (41UR30) is an Early Caddo site located in East Texas near the Sabine River. This site covers roughly 15.6 acres and contained at least four mounds, middens, and an extended cemetery. The site's location has been known since the late 1950s, with a series of unconnected avocational and professional archaeological investigations as well as unfortunate looting. As one of the few Early Caddo sites in Texas that contain multiple mounds, the Boxed Springs site is poised to provide great insight into Early Caddo mound construction technologies, settlement patterns, subsistence strategies, and trade and exchange.

Titus Phase Ceramic Vessel and Elbow Pipe from the Gus Bogan Farm Site (41WD25), Wood County, Texas

The Gus Bogan Farm site, located 1 mile north of the city of Mineola, Texas, in the upper Sabine River basin, was recorded by University of Texas at Austin (UT) archaeologists in 1935 based on the photographic documentation of ancestral Caddo ceramic vessels and elbow pipe in the Gus T. Bogan, Sr. and Gus T. Bogan, Jr. collections from the site. The Bogan’s were digging a Caddo cemetery there, and loaned a portion of their recovered collections to the University Centennial Exposition for the duration of the exhibit. Analyses of the vessels and pipe in this article are based on the examination of Xerox copies of the photographs in the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory site files. Information on temper, surface treatment, firing conditions, etc., of the vessels and pipe was not obtained during the 1935 photographic documentation, however, or any description of decorative methods, motifs, or elements.

The Oliver Bolton Collection of Dart and Spear Points from Camp County, Texas, and Other Remarks

This article analyzes the Bolton Collection of 1384 lithic artifacts, including dart and spear points from the Paleoindian through the Woodland periods. The analysis places the points in the sequence used by Perttula. The points are compared with those from the middle Sabine River basin counties as well as the analysis of the Archaic points of the Cypress Creek drainage basin. In addition, the Archaic and Woodland population density of Camp County based on the proportional frequency of projectile points of known age is compared with that of the middle Sabine River basin counties and the Cypress Basin. Additional comparisons are made with archaeological sites in the Post Oak Savanna to the north and west and in the Blackland Prairie to the west.

A Phase I Cultural Resource Survey for the Proposed Six Mile Boat Ramp Expansion Project (Texas Antiquities Permit #9155)

Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc., personnel completed a records review and cultural resource survey for the proposed expansion of the existing Six Mile Boat Ramp in Sabine County, Texas. This work was performed to assist the Sabine River Authority of Texas in complying with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665, 16 U.S.C. 470h-2) as an applicant for a Section 404 Clean Water Act Permit from the US Army Corps of Engineers, and the provisions of the Texas Administrative Code regarding archaeological resources on public lands. The Texas Administrative Code requires review of projects on state-owned lands by the Texas Antiquities Commission. The Sabine River Authority of Texas is considered a political subdivision of the State of Texas, and therefore it has a responsibility to provide the Texas Antiquities Commission an opportunity to review projects that may affect potential or designated archaeological sites. This project was performed under Texas Antiquities Permit (No. 9155). All work was performed pursuant to the guidelines published by the Council of Texas Archeologists and adopted by the Texas Historical Commission, and this report was prepared following the short report format in the Guidelines for Cultural Resource Management Reports published by the Council of Texas Archeologists. The current proposed project includes the expansion of the Six Mile Boat Ramp on the Toledo Bend Reservoir in Sabine County, Texas. The proposed development includes the addition of a handicap-accessible floating boat ramp, the clearing of approximately 0.4 ha (1.0 acre) of trees, the construction of a parking area, the addition of a vault toilet, the addition of two tables on concrete platforms, and the clearing of trees along the shoreline to provide an enhanced scenic view. In order to provide some flexibility in siting these facilities, the direct and visual areas of potential effect for this project were within a polygon adhering on its southern and western boundaries to the property line, and roughly buffered to the north and east by the existing shoreline of the Toledo Bend Reservoir. It is estimated that the area of potential effect for this project measures 1.2 ha (3.0 acres), of which approximately 0.9 ha (2.2 acres) could be surveyed, excluding paved surfaces. The records review for this project was conducted on October 18, 2019, prior to the commencement of the field survey, to identify cultural resources or cultural resource investigations previously documented within the area. This file search utilized online files maintained by the Texas Archaeological Research Laboratory at the University of Texas. Additionally, historic maps were examined to identify the locations of any potential historic archaeological sites. The records review indicated that one previously documented site, 41SB58, was located within approximately 50 m (164 ft) to the north of the proposed project area. Additionally, one historic structure was depicted within the project area on historic mapping. Fieldwork was conducted on November 19, 2019, and was completed in 11.5 person hours. The project area was systematically investigated by pedestrian survey and screened shovel tests spaced at a 30 m (98 ft) interval on pedestrian transects spaced at 30 m. The fieldwork for this project resulted in one newly recorded isolated find that is not eligible for designation as a Texas State Archeological Landmark or for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. Based on the findings of this work, it is recommended that the project area be considered cleared from a cultural resource perspective.

Impacts of Storm Surges on Hydrodynamics and Salinity of Sabine Lake and Sabine River Diversion Canal

In this study, a hydrodynamic and salinity transport model was developed for simulations of Sabine Lake water system located on the Texas-Louisiana border. The target simulation area ranges from Sabine River near Deweyville, TX as the north boundary to the Gulf of Mexico as the south boundary, and from Neches River near Beaumont, TX as the west boundary to part of Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) and Sabine River Diversion Canal (SRDC) as the east boundary. The entire area includes several major water bodies, such as Sabine Lake, Sabine River, Sabine Pass, Sabine Neches Canal (Ship Channel), and part of GIWW and SRDC. The SRDC supplies fresh water to the area industry, mainly petrochemical. High salinity in SRDC could significantly affect the daily production of the industry. The major purposes of this study is to use the validated hydrodynamic and salinity transport model to assess and predict the salinity in SRDC under severe weather conditions such as hurricane storm surges. Measurement data from NOAA and USGS were used to calibrate the boundary conditions as well as to validate the model. Two different levels of storm surges each lasting for 24 hours were simulated, 0.5 and 1 meter, respectively, and the salinity in SRDC was monitored and compared to analyze the storm surge threats on SDRC water quality. The result shows that it took about 2 days for the salinity reaching SRDC under the 1m storm surge condition and about 3 days under 0.5m surge condition and the salinity value could reach as high as 5 to 10 ppt.

Calibration and Validation of Hydrodynamics and Salinity Transport Model for Sabine Lake Water System

In this study, a hydrodynamic and a salinity transport models were developed for simulations of Sabine Lake water system located on the Texas-Louisiana border. The target simulation area includes several major water bodies, such as Sabine Lake, Sabine River, Sabine Pass, Sabine Neches Canal (Ship Channel), and part of Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) and Sabine River Diversion Canal (SRDC). The SRDC supplies fresh water to the area industry, mainly petrochemical. High salinity in SRDC could significantly affect the daily production of the industry. Two-dimensional (2D) depth-averaged shallow water equation set and 2D depth-averaged salinity transport equation were used for developing the hydrodynamic and salinity transport numerical models in order to carry out the simulation. The major purposes of this study are to calibrate and validate hydrodynamic and salinity transport models in order to assess and predict the salinity in SRDC under severe weather conditions such as hurricane storm surges in future study. Measurement data from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and United States Geological Survey (USGS) were used to calibrate the boundary conditions as well as to validate the model. Boundary conditions were calibrated at locations in Sabine Pass and in the north edge of the lake by using water–surface elevation data. Hydrodynamic model was validated at the USGS location using water–surface elevation data. Then, the simulation estimations of water surface level and salinity were compared at three locations, and the results show the accuracy of the validated model. Parallel computing was conducted in this study as well, and computational efficiency was compared.

Current Research: Organic Residues on Engraved Vessels from Ancestral Caddo Sites in East Texas

In the course of recently documenting ancestral Caddo ceramic vessels from sites dating to Late Caddo period Titus phase contexts (ca. A.D. 1430-1680) in East Texas, specifically on sites in the Big Cypress Creek and Sabine River basins, I have encountered a significant number (ca. 9.6 percent) of more than 1790 engraved fine ware vessels that have an exterior organic residue (Table 1), including carinated bowls, compound bowls, jars, bowls, and even bottles. In some cases, the exterior residue on certain carinated bowls and compound bowls is so thick that the engraved design is obscured and almost completely covered with the organic residue (Figure 1a- c). If engraved fine wares from ancestral Caddo sites were used in daily life for the serving of foods and liquids, how did they accumulate an exterior carbonized residue by the time they were placed in burials as funerary offerings?

An Engraved Bulbous-Necked Caddo Bottle from 41OR33 at the mouth of the Sabine River, Orange County, Texas

41OR33 is a large prehistoric shell midden deposit in Orange County, Texas, about 8.5 miles southwest of the city of Orange, at the mouth of the Sabine River and just north of Sabine Lake in Southeast Texas. Before the site was destroyed for road fill in October 1956, limited archaeological investigations had been done there by avocational archaeologists and then by E. Mott Davis of The University of Texas at Austin. During that work, a number of Native American burials were exposed and excavated, including one burial with an engraved bulbous-necked ancestral Caddo ceramic bottle. The bottle was donated by Edgar W. Brown, Jr. to UT in October 1956. I recently documented this vessel, which is a far-flung companion to bulbous-necked and spool-necked Caddo bottles from post-A.D. 1600 sites in the Red River and Ouachita River basins in East Texas and Southwest Arkansas as well as several post-A.D. 1600 sites in East Texas such as the Taylor site (41HS3) in the Big Cypress Creek basin.

The Taylor Site (41RK36) and 41RK31 on Martin Creek in Rusk County, Texas

In the early 1970s, the Texas Archeological Survey at The University of Texas (UT) at Austin completed archaeological investigations in advance of the construction of Martin Lake by Texas Utilities Services, Inc. on Martin Creek in the Sabine River basin (Figure 1). Martin Creek is a northward-flowing tributary of the Sabine River. These investigations included an archaeological survey with limited test excavations (McDonald 1972), and then more extensive excavations at five ancestral Caddo sites (Clark and Ivey 1974), most particularly the Musgano site (41RK19) (Figure 2) (Clark and Ivey 1974; Perttula 2014), a Middle Caddo period (ca. A.D. 1200-1400) settlement.