The Archaeology of the Caddo

14. The Belcher Phase: Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-CenturyCaddo Occupation of the Red River Valley in NorthwestLouisiana and Southwest Arkansas

411 14. The Belcher Phase Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century Caddo Occupation of the Red River Valley in Northwest Louisiana and Southwest Arkansas david b. kelley Introduction The Belcher phase represents the peak of Caddo cultural development in the Red River valley of Northwest Louisiana. The phase, or focus as it was originally termed in the McKern system, was first proposed by Alex D. Krieger (1946) based on data from Clarence Webb’s excavations at a mound site near the small town of that name in Caddo Parish, Louisiana (Webb 1959). Webb’s work at the Belcher site (16CD13) remains the basis for much of what we know about this phase, but research conducted over the past 50 years has significantly increased our understanding of a number of its aspects. Chronology Chronometric dating of the Belcher phase has proven difficult in part because of variability in the radiocarbon calibration curve after 1650 (Goslar et al. 2005). At present, dating of the phase rests largely on seven radiocarbon dates and six thermoluminescence dates. Five of the radiocarbon dates are from the Belcher site (Thurmond 1990:table 59; Webb 1959:207). One of these dates is anomalously early, but the other dates cluster in the 1500s and 1600s when calibrated to the dendrochronology scale. The two remaining radiocarbon dates are from the McLelland site (16BO236) in southern Bossier Parish, Louisiana (Kelley 1997:table 45). When calibrated, both have multiple intercepts with the calibration curve, and the highest probabilities for the actual dates of the samples are in the late 1600s or very early 1700s. Another date from the McLelland site on mussel shell and two dates from the nearby Joe 412 Kelley Clark site (16BO237) are anomalously early. Twelve radiocarbon dates were obtained on charred plant remain samples from the Cedar Grove site (3LA97) in Lafayette County, Arkansas, but all of them have standard deviations of over 300 years and are therefore useless with respect to their chronological precision (Wolfman 1984:table 17-1). The thermoluminescence dates mentioned above are also from the Cedar Grove site, but these are more accurate (Wolfman 1984:table 17-3). They come from shell-tempered pottery from two features at the site, and yielded average dates in the late 1500s and mid-1600s. Taken as a whole the chronometric dates on the Belcher phase suggest a range from about 1500 to 1700. Settlement Patterns The distribution of Belcher phase sites is primarily along the Red River valley between Texarkana, Arkansas, and Shreveport, Louisiana (fig. 141 ). Most of the known sites are located in the floodplain, in contrast to sites of the preceding Bossier phase when occupations in the uplands are also common. The Belcher phase settlement pattern appears to have consisted of small mound groups and farmsteads located along the natural levees of active and abandoned river channels. Webb’s (1959) Belcher site report remains the only published report on a Belcher phase mound excavation. The mounds there were constructed in stages as platforms for structures. During the Belcher phase occupation, there were two conjoined mounds, labeled A and B, and a third mound located north of them that Webb referred to as a “built-up plateau.” Throughout much of the site’s history two structures appear to have stood simultaneously on the conjoined mounds, suggesting that one may have served as a specialized religious structure, while the other was the residence of the caddi. After a period of use, each structure on the two mounds was ritually burned and immediately covered by a layer of earth. A series of burials, including single and multiple interments with a wide range of grave goods, were then dug through the fill within the wall lines of the buried structure. One of the multiple burials in each group contained an individual who was accompanied by a number of high status items, including marine shell cups, shell beads, and large quantities of pottery vessels , as well as the bodies of family members or other persons selected for sacrifice. After the burials were in place, the fill overlying the burned 413 The Belcher Phase structure was leveled, and a new structure was built on the resulting platform . Webb (1959:110) suggested that the death of the high status individual initiated the cycle of burning of the old temple or residence, burial of it and this individual, and construction of the new building. Other Belcher phase sites with...