DOCSLIB.ORG

Architectural Variability in the Caddo Area of Eastern Texas T

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Architectural Variability in the Caddo Area of Eastern Texas T Stephen F. Austin State University SFA ScholarWorks CRHR: Archaeology Center for Regional Heritage Research 2010 Architectural Variability in the Caddo Area of Eastern Texas T. Clay Schultz Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/crhr Part of the Archaeological Anthropology Commons Tell us how this article helped you. Recommended Citation Schultz, T. Clay, "Architectural Variability in the Caddo Area of Eastern Texas" (2010). CRHR: Archaeology. Paper 78. http://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/crhr/78 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Center for Regional Heritage Research at SFA ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in CRHR: Archaeology by an authorized administrator of SFA ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Architectural Variability in the Caddo Area of Eastern Texas T. Clay Schultz Special Publication No. 16 Friends of Northeast Texas Archaeology 2010 Abstract This dissertation focuses on the nature of architectural space in the Caddo area of eastern Texas, in the southwestern portion of the Caddo archaeological area. The early European accounts and the archaeological record indicate there was a wide range in size, shape, form, and use of architectural space in the Caddo area. Buildings have a variety of structural attributes and may be found isolated or associated with plazas or earthen mounds. This dissertation is a detailed examination of this architectural diversity. The sites included in this study range from large multi-mound centers that have seen large- scale and long-term research, such as the George C. Davis site, to smaller hamlets and farmsteads. This study includes 265 structures from 31 sites located throughout the Pineywoods, Post Oak Savanna and Blackland Prairie of eastern Texas. This dissertation provides an examination of the structuring of architectural space by Caddo groups living in eastern Texas. Through a detailed examination of documentary, archaeological, and geophysical data, this research examines the nature of the Caddo built environment; how Caddo cultural space was created, maintained, and altered, and how this relates to broader Caddo society. The purpose of this dissertation is to provide descriptions and comparisons of Caddo architecture from eastern Texas to address three interrelated themes: cultural significance of architectural space to the Caddo, physical form of structures and construction attributes, and variation and change. i Acknowledgements I would like to express my gratitude to my dissertation committee, Maria Wade, Darrell Creel, James Denbow, F. Kent Reilly, and committee chair Samuel Wilson, for their guidance and patience throughout this process. In addition, many folks provided guidance, data, reports, or suggestions along the way including Tim Perttula, Mark Parsons, Mark Walters, Dale Hudler, Jim Bruseth, David Kelly, Ross Fields, Bo Nelson, and many others. I would especially like to thank Timothy K. Perttula for his feedback and thoughts over the years and his review of the draft. Many thanks to my good friends Chester P. Walker and Paul Shawn Marceaux, who, along with Tim, I have joined at occasional Caddo lunches in Austin to discuss Caddo archaeology and research. My thanks goes out to my other good friends, family, and co-workers with whom I have discussed thoughts, ideas, problems and concerns related to this research, academia, professional archaeology, and life in general over the years. To anyone that I have not mentioned specifically but who provided feedback, thoughts, suggestions, data, criticisms, etc., please know that you have by gratitude and appreciation. My wife Eleanore Whitworth has been invaluable as a partner and has shown incredible patience while I pursued this goal. I wish to express to her my sincerest and heartfelt gratitude. ii Table of Contents Abstract .................................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. ii Table of Contents .................................................................................................................................... iii List of Figures .......................................................................................................................................... vi List of Tables .......................................................................................................................................... xii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 1 Layout of the Dissertation ......................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 2 CADDO ARCHITECTURE ......................................................................................................... 9 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 9 Previous Architectural Studies in the Caddoan Area ............................................................................... 11 Summary .................................................................................................................................................. 22 CHAPTER 3 HISTORIC ACCOUNTS OF CADDO ARCHITECTURE ................................................................ 24 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 24 Structured spaces .................................................................................................................................... 25 Daily use, communal, and family Spaces ................................................................................................. 26 Houses ................................................................................................................................................. 27 Spaces Reserved for Specific Activities and/or People ............................................................................ 39 Religious, Ceremonial, and Symbolic Structures/Spaces ......................................................................... 41 Summary .................................................................................................................................................. 49 CHAPTER 4 ARCHITECTURE FROM THE GEORGE C. DAVIS SITE .............................................................. 51 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 51 Previously Excavated Structures from The George C. Davis Site ............................................................. 54 Magnetometer Survey Methods ............................................................................................................. 66 Results of the UT-TARL Magnetometer Survey ....................................................................................... 71 Circular Structures .............................................................................................................................. 72 Sub-Square Structures ........................................................................................................................ 83 2003 Excavations Results ......................................................................................................................... 85 Feature 237 – Unit 113 ....................................................................................................................... 87 Feature 242 – Unit 116 ....................................................................................................................... 95 Feature 241 – Unit 117 ....................................................................................................................... 97 Summary of 2003 Excavations .......................................................................................................... 101 Dates from George C. Davis Structures ................................................................................................. 102 Summary and Conclusions ..................................................................................................................... 106 CHAPTER 5 STRUCTURES ASSOCIATED WITH CADDO MOUNDS .......................................................... 108 iii Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 108 Caddo Area Mounds ......................................................................................................................... 110 Mound-Related Structures .................................................................................................................... 111 George C. Davis (41CE19) .................................................................................................................. 113 Hatchel (41BW3) ..............................................................................................................................
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Cherokee Ethnogenesis in Southwestern North Carolina
    The following chapter is from: The Archaeology of North Carolina: Three Archaeological Symposia Charles R. Ewen – Co-Editor Thomas R. Whyte – Co-Editor R. P. Stephen Davis, Jr. – Co-Editor North Carolina Archaeological Council Publication Number 30 2011 Available online at: http://www.rla.unc.edu/NCAC/Publications/NCAC30/index.html CHEROKEE ETHNOGENESIS IN SOUTHWESTERN NORTH CAROLINA Christopher B. Rodning Dozens of Cherokee towns dotted the river valleys of the Appalachian Summit province in southwestern North Carolina during the eighteenth century (Figure 16-1; Dickens 1967, 1978, 1979; Perdue 1998; Persico 1979; Shumate et al. 2005; Smith 1979). What developments led to the formation of these Cherokee towns? Of course, native people had been living in the Appalachian Summit for thousands of years, through the Paleoindian, Archaic, Woodland, and Mississippi periods (Dickens 1976; Keel 1976; Purrington 1983; Ward and Davis 1999). What are the archaeological correlates of Cherokee culture, when are they visible archaeologically, and what can archaeology contribute to knowledge of the origins and development of Cherokee culture in southwestern North Carolina? Archaeologists, myself included, have often focused on the characteristics of pottery and other artifacts as clues about the development of Cherokee culture, which is a valid approach, but not the only approach (Dickens 1978, 1979, 1986; Hally 1986; Riggs and Rodning 2002; Rodning 2008; Schroedl 1986a; Wilson and Rodning 2002). In this paper (see also Rodning 2009a, 2010a, 2011b), I focus on the development of Cherokee towns and townhouses. Given the significance of towns and town affiliations to Cherokee identity and landscape during the 1700s (Boulware 2011; Chambers 2010; Smith 1979), I suggest that tracing the development of towns and townhouses helps us understand Cherokee ethnogenesis, more generally.
    [Show full text]
  • A Many-Storied Place
    A Many-storied Place Historic Resource Study Arkansas Post National Memorial, Arkansas Theodore Catton Principal Investigator Midwest Region National Park Service Omaha, Nebraska 2017 A Many-Storied Place Historic Resource Study Arkansas Post National Memorial, Arkansas Theodore Catton Principal Investigator 2017 Recommended: {){ Superintendent, Arkansas Post AihV'j Concurred: Associate Regional Director, Cultural Resources, Midwest Region Date Approved: Date Remove not the ancient landmark which thy fathers have set. Proverbs 22:28 Words spoken by Regional Director Elbert Cox Arkansas Post National Memorial dedication June 23, 1964 Table of Contents List of Figures vii Introduction 1 1 – Geography and the River 4 2 – The Site in Antiquity and Quapaw Ethnogenesis 38 3 – A French and Spanish Outpost in Colonial America 72 4 – Osotouy and the Changing Native World 115 5 – Arkansas Post from the Louisiana Purchase to the Trail of Tears 141 6 – The River Port from Arkansas Statehood to the Civil War 179 7 – The Village and Environs from Reconstruction to Recent Times 209 Conclusion 237 Appendices 241 1 – Cultural Resource Base Map: Eight exhibits from the Memorial Unit CLR (a) Pre-1673 / Pre-Contact Period Contributing Features (b) 1673-1803 / Colonial and Revolutionary Period Contributing Features (c) 1804-1855 / Settlement and Early Statehood Period Contributing Features (d) 1856-1865 / Civil War Period Contributing Features (e) 1866-1928 / Late 19th and Early 20th Century Period Contributing Features (f) 1929-1963 / Early 20th Century Period
    [Show full text]
  • Late Mississippian Ceramic Production on St
    LATE MISSISSIPPIAN CERAMIC PRODUCTION ON ST. CATHERINES ISLAND, GEORGIA Anna M. Semon A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Anthropology. Chapel Hill 2019 Approved by: Vincas P. Steponaitis C. Margaret Scarry R. P. Stephen Davis Anna Agbe-Davis John Scarry © 2019 Anna M. Semon ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Anna M. Semon: Late Mississippian Ceramic Production on St. Catherines Island, Georgia (Under the direction of Vincas P. Steponaitis) This dissertation examines Late Mississippian pottery manufacturing on St. Catherines Island, Georgia. Data collected from five ceramic assemblages, three village and two mortuary sites, were used to characterize each ceramic assemblage and examine small-scale ceramic variations associated with learning and making pottery, which reflect pottery communities of practice. In addition, I examined pottery decorations to investigate social interactions at community and household levels. This dissertation is organized in six chapters. Chapter 1 provides the background, theoretical framework, and objectives of this research. Chapter 2 describes coastal Georgia’s culture history, with focus on the Mississippian period. Chapters 3 and 4 present the methods and results of this study. I use both ceramic typology and attribute analyses to explore ceramic variation. Chapter 3 provides details about the ceramic typology for each site. In addition, I examine the Mississippian surface treatments for each assemblage and identified ceramic changes between middle Irene (A.D. 1350–1450), late Irene (A.D. 1450–1580), and early Mission (A.D. 1580–1600) period.
    [Show full text]
  • A History of Tennessee
    SECTION VI State of Tennessee A History of Tennessee The Land and Native People Tennessee’s great diversity in land, climate, rivers, and plant and animal life is mirrored by a rich and colorful past. Until the last 200 years of the approximately 12,000 years that this country has been inhabited, the story of Tennessee is the story of its native peoples. The fact that Tennessee and many of the places in it still carry Indian names serves as a lasting reminder of the significance of its native inhabitants. Since much of Tennessee’s appeal for settlers lay with the richness and beauty of the land, it seems fitting to begin by considering some of the state’s generous natural gifts. Tennessee divides naturally into three “grand divisions”—upland, often mountainous, East Tennessee; Middle Tennessee, with its foothills and basin; and the low plain of West Tennessee. Travelers coming to the state from the east encounter first the lofty Unaka and Smoky Mountains, flanked on their western slope by the Great Valley of East Tennessee. Moving across the Valley floor, they next face the Cumberland Plateau, which historically attracted little settlement and presented a barrier to westward migration. West of the Plateau, one descends into the Central Basin of Middle Tennessee—a rolling, fertile countryside that drew hunters and settlers alike. The Central Basin is surrounded on all sides by the Highland Rim, the western ridge of which drops into the Tennessee River Valley. Across the river begin the low hills and alluvial plain of West Tennessee. These geographical “grand divisions” correspond to the distinctive political and economic cultures of the state’s three regions.
    [Show full text]
  • Further Investigations Into the King George
    Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Master's Theses Graduate School 2010 Further investigations into the King George Island Mounds site (16LV22) Harry Gene Brignac Jr Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Brignac Jr, Harry Gene, "Further investigations into the King George Island Mounds site (16LV22)" (2010). LSU Master's Theses. 2720. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses/2720 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Master's Theses by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FURTHER INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE KING GEORGE ISLAND MOUNDS SITE (16LV22) A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in The Department of Geography and Anthropology By Harry Gene Brignac Jr. B.A. Louisiana State University, 2003 May, 2010 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost, I would like to give thanks to God for surrounding me with the people in my life who have guided and supported me in this and all of my endeavors. I have to express my greatest appreciation to Dr. Rebecca Saunders for her professional guidance during this entire process, and for her inspiration and constant motivation for me to become the best archaeologist I can be.
    [Show full text]
  • Caddo Archeology Journal, Volume 19. 2009
    CCaddoaddo AArcheologyrcheology JJournalournal Volume 19 2009 CADDO ARCHEOLOGY JOURNAL Department of Sociology P.O. Box 13047, SFA Station Stephen F. Austin State University Nacogdoches, Texas 75962-3047 EDITORIAL BOARD TIMOTHY K. PERTTULA 10101 Woodhaven Dr. Austin, Texas 78753 e-mail: [email protected] GEORGE AVERY P.O. Box 13047, SFA Station Stephen F. Austin State University Nacogdoches, Texas 75962-3047 e-mail: [email protected] LIAISON WITH THE CADDO NATION OF OKLAHOMA ROBERT CAST Tribal Historic Preservation Offi cer Caddo Nation of Oklahoma P.O. Box 487 Binger, OK 73009 e-mail: [email protected] ISSN 1522-0427 Printed in the United States of America at Morgan Printing in Austin, Texas 2009 Table of Contents The Caddo and the Caddo Conference 1 Pete Gregory An Account of the Birth and Growth of Caddo Archeology, as Seen by Review of 50 Caddo Conferences, 1946-2008 3 Hester A. Davis and E. Mott Davis CADDO ARCHEOLOGY JOURNAL ◆ iii The Caddo and the Caddo Conference* Pete Gregory There was one lone Caddo at the early Caddo Conference held at the University of Oklahoma campus—Mrs. Vynola Beaver Newkumet—then there was a long gap. In 1973, the Chairman of the Caddo Nation, Melford Wil- liams, was the banquet speaker for the Conference, which was held in Natchitoches, Louisiana. A panel, consisting of Thompson Williams, Vynola Newkumet, Phil Newkumet, and Pete Gregory, was also part of that conference. Subsequent to 1973, Caddo representatives have not only been invited, but have attended the majority of the conferences. Caddo Nation chairpeople who have attended include Melford Williams, Mary Pat Francis, Hank Shemayme, Hubert Halfmoon, Elmo Clark, Vernon Hunter, and La Rue Martin Parker.
    [Show full text]
  • Cultural Affiliation Statement for Buffalo National River
    CULTURAL AFFILIATION STATEMENT BUFFALO NATIONAL RIVER, ARKANSAS Final Report Prepared by María Nieves Zedeño Nicholas Laluk Prepared for National Park Service Midwest Region Under Contract Agreement CA 1248-00-02 Task Agreement J6068050087 UAZ-176 Bureau of Applied Research In Anthropology The University of Arizona, Tucson AZ 85711 June 1, 2008 Table of Contents and Figures Summary of Findings...........................................................................................................2 Chapter One: Study Overview.............................................................................................5 Chapter Two: Cultural History of Buffalo National River ................................................15 Chapter Three: Protohistoric Ethnic Groups......................................................................41 Chapter Four: The Aboriginal Group ................................................................................64 Chapter Five: Emigrant Tribes...........................................................................................93 References Cited ..............................................................................................................109 Selected Annotations .......................................................................................................137 Figure 1. Buffalo National River, Arkansas ........................................................................6 Figure 2. Sixteenth Century Polities and Ethnic Groups (after Sabo 2001) ......................47
    [Show full text]
  • Traditional Caddo Stories—7Th Grade
    Caddo Traditional Stories Personal Thoughts: My experience this past summer at the workshop and camping down the road at Mission Tejas State Park reinvigorated a personal connection to history. Most authors of history have been men. So, the word history, is simply restated as his story. The collection of oral stories was a tremendous task for early scholars. Winners of conflicts were often the ones to write down the tales of soldiers and politicians alike. Tales of everyday life were equally complex as the tales of battle. With Caddo stories, the main characters were often based on animals. So, a Caddo story can be a historical narrative featuring the environment, culture, and time period. The sounds of nighttime crawlers of the 21st century are the same sounds heard by the Caddo of Caddo Mounds State Historic Site. The nighttime sky above the forests of pine, pecan, and oak is the same as back then. The past is all around us, we just have to take it in. About This Lesson General Citation This lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration files for Caddo Mounds State Historic Site (also known as the George C. Davis site) and materials prepared by the Texas Historical Commission. It was written by Kathy Lathen, a Texas educator with over a decade of classroom instructional experience. This lesson is one in a series that brings the important stories of historic places into classrooms across the country. Where is fits into Curriculum Topics and Time Period: This lesson could be incorporated with the Texas history unit on the historical era, Natural Texas and Its People (Prehistory to 1528).
    [Show full text]
  • La Harpe's 1719 Poston Red Riverand Nearby Caddo
    La Harpe's 1719 Post on Red River and Nearby Caddo Settlements Mildred Mott Wedel BULLETIN 30 THE TEXAS MEMORIAL MUSEUM The University of Texas at Austin LA HARPE'S 1719 POST ON RED RIVER AND NEARBY CADDO SETTLEMENTS 1 Mildred Mott Wedel 2 In 1719 Jean-Baptiste Benard de La Harpe termine their kind and degree of validity. set up a post on Red River, a western tribu- Then they must be viewed with the insights tary of the Mississippi, to establish trade of anthropology. The bridge between the relations with the Spaniards then in Texas "known" and "unknown" is made possible and New Mexico. This study proposes a lo- by identification of the village location of cation for the site of this structure built in a historically recognized people with an ar- an Upper Nasoni village above the Great Bend cheological site component that gives evi- of the Red. Neighboring Caddo settlements dence of Euro-American contact. The sound- were described by the Frenchman in terms ness of the construct depends upon the skill that related to his post, so having postulated and care with which it is put together and where it was erected, this paper also suggests the amount of historic data and archeological the location of settlements of the Kadoha- material available (M. Wedel, 1976: 7-11). dacho, Upper Natchitoches, and the Nadsoo When this gap has been bridged, a relative or Natsoo ("Nanatsoho" in Hodge, 1907- chronology displaying cultural continuity of 1910, 2: 23). The basic source for data has great time depth, anchored to historic times, been La Harpe's 1718-1720 journal.
    [Show full text]
  • 2016 Athens, Georgia
    SOUTHEASTERN ARCHAEOLOGICAL CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS & ABSTRACTS OF THE 73RD ANNUAL MEETING OCTOBER 26-29, 2016 ATHENS, GEORGIA BULLETIN 59 2016 BULLETIN 59 2016 PROCEEDINGS & ABSTRACTS OF THE 73RD ANNUAL MEETING OCTOBER 26-29, 2016 THE CLASSIC CENTER ATHENS, GEORGIA Meeting Organizer: Edited by: Hosted by: Cover: © Southeastern Archaeological Conference 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS THE CLASSIC CENTER FLOOR PLAN……………………………………………………...……………………..…... PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………………….…..……. LIST OF DONORS……………………………………………………………………………………………….…..……. SPECIAL THANKS………………………………………………………………………………………….….....……….. SEAC AT A GLANCE……………………………………………………………………………………….……….....…. GENERAL INFORMATION & SPECIAL EVENTS SCHEDULE…………………….……………………..…………... PROGRAM WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 26…………………………………………………………………………..……. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 27……………………………………………………………………………...…...13 FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28TH……………………………………………………………….……………....…..21 SATURDAY, OCTOBER 29TH…………………………………………………………….…………....…...28 STUDENT PAPER COMPETITION ENTRIES…………………………………………………………………..………. ABSTRACTS OF SYMPOSIA AND PANELS……………………………………………………………..…………….. ABSTRACTS OF WORKSHOPS…………………………………………………………………………...…………….. ABSTRACTS OF SEAC STUDENT AFFAIRS LUNCHEON……………………………………………..…..……….. SEAC LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS FOR 2016…………………….……………….…….…………………. Southeastern Archaeological Conference Bulletin 59, 2016 ConferenceRooms CLASSIC CENTERFLOOR PLAN 6 73rd Annual Meeting, Athens, Georgia EVENT LOCATIONS Baldwin Hall Baldwin Hall 7 Southeastern Archaeological Conference Bulletin
    [Show full text]
  • The Caddo After Europeans
    Volume 2016 Article 91 2016 Reaping the Whirlwind: The Caddo after Europeans Timothy K. Perttula Heritage Research Center, Stephen F. Austin State University, [email protected] Robert Cast Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/ita Part of the American Material Culture Commons, Archaeological Anthropology Commons, Environmental Studies Commons, Other American Studies Commons, Other Arts and Humanities Commons, Other History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons, and the United States History Commons Tell us how this article helped you. Cite this Record Perttula, Timothy K. and Cast, Robert (2016) "Reaping the Whirlwind: The Caddo after Europeans," Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State: Vol. 2016, Article 91. https://doi.org/10.21112/.ita.2016.1.91 ISSN: 2475-9333 Available at: https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/ita/vol2016/iss1/91 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Center for Regional Heritage Research at SFA ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State by an authorized editor of SFA ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Reaping the Whirlwind: The Caddo after Europeans Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. This article is available in Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State: https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/ita/vol2016/iss1/91
    [Show full text]
  • Hasinai-European Interaction, 1694-1715
    East Texas Historical Journal Volume 34 Issue 2 Article 6 10-1996 Hasinai-European Interaction, 1694-1715 Daniel A. Hickerson Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/ethj Part of the United States History Commons Tell us how this article helped you. Recommended Citation Hickerson, Daniel A. (1996) "Hasinai-European Interaction, 1694-1715," East Texas Historical Journal: Vol. 34 : Iss. 2 , Article 6. Available at: https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/ethj/vol34/iss2/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the History at SFA ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in East Texas Historical Journal by an authorized editor of SFA ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. EAST TEXAS HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION 3 HASINAI-EUROPEAN INTERACTION, 1694-17151 by Daniel A. Hickerson Spanish withdrawal and retrenchment, 1694-1709 The first Spanish missionary effort in East Texa~ began in 1690 with the arrival of a small party that left among the Hasinai Indians three Franciscan priests, accompanied by three soldiers. L The missioniz.ation of the Hasinai was undertaken as a reaction to the occupation of the Texas Gulf coast by the French explorer Rene Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle during the 16ROs. Despite an optimistic beginning, the Spaniards were forced to abandon their mission only three years later when the hostility of the Hasinai compelled them to flee. The Hasinai, who initially welcomed the Europeans, had suffered a series of severe epidemics for which they correctly blamed the Spaniards. They were further angered by the priests' persistent attempts to convert them to Catholicism, as well as the failure of the Spanish soldiers to aid them in battles against the Apaches and other enemies.-' After the retreat from the East Texas mission in 1693, the Spanish had little direct documented contact with the Hasinai for more than two decades.
    [Show full text]