Historic Cherokee Settlements in the Arkansas River Valley

Summary

After the American Revolutionary War disrupted Native American groups were pushed westward, and among these were Cherokee who settled in the Arkansas River Valley beginning in the 1790s.  Their population peaked during 1818-1828, after which they resettled farther west in Indian Territory.  Archaeological evidence for the Arkansas Cherokee sites has been slow to come to light, because the sites were so briefly occupied and exhibit low artifact densities.  Additionally, because the Arkansas Cherokee were highly acculturated, their site assemblages are similar to ca. 1795–1835 Euro-American sites, and include high frequencies of British ceramics.  The presence of unique Native American artifacts such as Qualla pottery, glass beads, and copper scraps that reveals Cherokee occupations.  Cherokee fields were clustered along the Arkansas River, and a number of these components in the New Hope Bottoms were recently tested for NRHP significance.  These recent findings will be discussed in this paper. 

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Echoes: Indigenous Communities in the Americas   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2013

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 215