Archaeology of the Lower Muskogee Creek Indians, 1715-1836

List of Figures

1.1. Region of the Muskogee Creek Indians during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 3 1.2. Creek town layout, adapted from Ephraim G. Squier’s engraving of “Creek Towns and Dwellings” 23 2.1. Map of the region of the Lower Creek Indians (1715–1836) 35 2.2. Georgia rainfall between 1700 and 1836 as estimated from dendrochronology 36 3.1. Region of the Chattahoochee River showing the Walter F. George Reservoir, the Fort Benning Military Reservation, and the Oliver Basin archaeological surveys 38 3.2. Location of Cheauhoochee, Apalachicola, and the Spanish Fort (1689–1691) on the Chattahoochee River during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 47 3.3. Location of Auputaue on the Upatoi Creek during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 51 3.4. Location of Yuchi, Oosoochee, Captain Ellick’s town, Cheahau, Ocmulgee, and Hitchitee on the Chattahoochee River during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 53 3.5. Location of Cussetuh, Cussetuh Old Town, Cowetuh, and Cowetuh Talluahassee on the Chattahoochee River during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 55 3.6. Location of Sauwoogelo and Tamathli on the Chattahoochee River during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 61 Figures 3.7. Location of Eufaula on the Chattahoochee River during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 62 3.8. Portion of 1827 Lee County (currently Stewart County), Georgia, District 22, plat map showing the location of Hitchiti and Osucha 64 3.9. Location of Oconee on the Chattahoochee River during the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries 66 4.1. All archaeological sites situated along the Chattahoochee and Flint River Valleys that contain Lawson Field (circa 1715–1836) components 80 4.2. Relative frequencies of Lawson Field ceramic types by total sherd count at all known Lower Creek sites in the Chattahoochee and Flint River valleys 87 4.3. Two Chattahoochee Roughened var. Chattahoochee vessels from Cussetuh 88 4.4. Two Mission Red Filmed vessels from Cussetuh 89 4.5. Five Lamar Incised var. Ocmulgee Fields vessels from Cussetuh 90 4.6. Relative frequencies of ceramic types by total sherd count in single Lawson Field component features at all known Lower Creek sites in the Chattahoochee and Flint River Valleys 91 4.7. Relative frequencies of ceramic types segregated by linguistic af¤liation of the town in which the ceramics were found 93 4.8. Principal components analysis (PCA) of relative frequencies of total sherd counts in single Lawson Field component features at all known Lower Creek sites in the Chattahoochee and Flint River valleys 94 4.9. Vessel forms from a sample of Lower Creek Indian vessels from excavations at Cussetuh, Buzzard Roost, and the Victory Drive sites 96 5.1. The Creek Indian Square Ground buildings, from William Bartram’s drawing of “The Principal, or Council House” by Edwin Davis 105 5.2. Plan of the Cussetuh Square Ground according to Benjamin Hawkins 106 5.3. “Indian huts west of the Chattahoochee river, 7, April 1828,” by Basil Hall 111 5.4. Circular structure at 1BR35 113 x / Figures 5.5. Vertical post design architecture excavated at 9TR41 (Buzzard Roost, circa 1770–1788) 115 5.6. Block excavation of 9TR54, “Buzzard Roost,” showing rectangular features 116 5.7. Feature concentration of 9TR54, “Buzzard Roost,” showing rectangular feature and possible aboveground house 117 5.8. Ochille Creek site excavation showing features and archaeological distribution of a single rectangular household compound 118 5.9. Ochille Creek site excavation showing posthole features from a structure and clay extraction pits in close vicinity of a single rectangular household compound 119 5.10. Rectangular “house” structure identi¤ed by Gordon Willey (1938) 121 5.11. Structure areas A and B at the 2001 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1) at Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia 123 5.12. Structure areas C and D at the 2001 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1) at Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia 124 5.13. Structure area E at the 2001 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1) at Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia 125 5.14. Structure area F at the 2001 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1) at Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia 127 5.15. Structure area G at the 2001 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1) at Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia (Foster 2004e) 128 5.16. Structure area H at the 2005 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1) at Fort Benning Military Reservation, Georgia 130 5.17. Structure area I at the 2005 excavation of Cussetuh (9CE1...