Vicksburg before the Siege: Paleoenvironment, Population Expansion, and a Delayed Woodland to Mississippian Transition in the Lower Mississippi Valley

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Vicksburg Is the Key: Recent Archaeological Investigations and New Perspectives from the Gibraltar of the South" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Based on recent archaeological work at Vicksburg National Military Park, the Late Woodland to Mississippian transition in the Lower Mississippi Valley extended beyond the traditionally defined end of the Woodland period, with evidence suggesting the Coles Creek-Kings Crossing phase (1000–1100CE) persisted as late as 1200 CE. This work also suggests stable, mesic climate and pressure from a growing population contributed to the expansion of Kings Crossing phase people into the less agriculturally productive loess hills ca. 1050–1200CE. Population grew significantly 600–700CE and 950–1050CE, reaching a stable peak ca. 1050–1200CE. This correlates to more than a century of greater precipitation and climate stability 1017–1139CE. Sustained occupation of the loess hills during this period is indicated by the presence of Kings Crossing phase ceramics throughout the Vicksburg project area, a burn feature containing cultigens dated 1050–1210CE, and fired clay suggestive of a wattle and daub habitation structure. Stable, mesic conditions and population growth contributed to an expanding and more socially complex and agriculturally productive periphery. Sustained occupation of the loess hills ended during a period of significant drought and increased climate volatility 1140–1250CE accompanied by rapidly decreasing population, and withdrawal to more fertile floodplain environments during the subsequent Plaquemine (1200–1450CE) period.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Vicksburg Is the Key: Recent Archaeological Investigations and New Perspectives from the Gibraltar of the South   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 39222.0