Caddo Mounds State Historic Site facts for kids
Entrance to Caddo Mound State Historic Site (prior to 2019 tornado)
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 Caddo Mounds State Historic Site
Location in Texas
Caddo Mounds State Historic Site
Location in the United States
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| Location | Weeping Mary, Texas |
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| Coordinates | 31°35′47″N 95°8′55″W / 31.59639°N 95.14861°W |
| Area | 353 acres (143 ha) |
| History | |
| Founded | 780 CE |
| Abandoned | 1260 CE |
| Cultures | Caddoan Mississippian culture |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1919, 1933, 1960s–1980s |
| Archaeologists | James Edwin Pearce, E. B. Sayles, H. Perry Newell |
| Management | Texas Historical Commission |
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George C. Davis Site
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| NRHP reference No. | 70000742 (original) 79003449 (increase) |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1970 |
| Boundary increase | November 15, 1979 |
The Caddo Mounds State Historic Site (also known as the George C. Davis Site) is an important archaeological site in Weeping Mary, Texas. It was once a village and special center for the Caddoan Mississippian culture. This site has two large earth mounds called platform mounds and one burial mound.
The settlement began hundreds of years before Europeans came to the area. It was built along an old Native American trail. This trail was later named El Camino Real de los Tejas by the Spanish. Experts believe the site was started around 800 CE. Most of the big buildings were constructed between 1100 and 1300 CE.
The Caddo Mounds site is in East Texas. It is about 6 miles (10 km) west of Alto, Texas. You can find it on Texas State Highway 21. The site is managed by the Texas Historical Commission. A new museum opened there in October 2015. Visitors can explore a copy of a Caddo village. All the exhibits are hands-on. You can also walk a 0.7-mile (1.1 km) trail. This trail shows the Caddo burial, low temple, and ceremonial mounds. There is also another trail along the El Camino Real.
Discovering the Caddo Mounds Site
The Caddo Mounds site started as a permanent village. The Hasinai people founded it around 850 to 900 CE. They moved to this area from the Red River region. This spot was perfect for a village. It had good soil and plenty of food. There was also a steady water source that flowed into the Neches River.
The largest mound, called Mound A, was started at this time. It is at the southern part of the site. About 40 houses surrounded it. In 1100, a new mound, Mound B, was begun. It was near the center of the site. Mound B grew to be about 175 feet (55 meters) long. It was also about 115 feet (35 meters) wide.
Mound C was the northernmost mound. It was used as a burial mound. The other two mounds were likely for important homes or temples. This site was the most southwestern ceremonial mound center. It was part of the great mound building cultures of North America.
The village was left empty in the 13th century. This happened when the ruling class lost power. Smaller communities nearby became more independent. They no longer needed the main site for religious or political reasons. The Caddo culture that remained was similar in many ways. However, it had less of a strict social order. It also had less valuable goods.
By the 1700s, when Europeans arrived, Caddo groups lived in small villages. They were spread out across the land. They had stopped building mounds a long time ago. Their old social and political system was less centralized.
The Hasinai groups lived in the Neches and Angelina River valleys until the 1830s. By the early 1840s, all Caddo groups moved to the Brazos River area. They wanted to avoid American settlers. In 1855, the U.S. government moved them again. This time, it was to the Brazos Indian Reservation. In 1859, they were forced to move to the Washita River. This area is now western Oklahoma. The Caddo people still live in western Oklahoma today. Binger is the capital of the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma.
Archaeological Discoveries
The first time the mounds were written about was in 1779. Athanase de Mézières mentioned them. He traveled from Louisiana to San Antonio. In 1919, James Edwin Pearce was the first archaeologist to officially record the site. He worked for the Bureau of Ethnology. In 1933, archaeologist E. B. Sayles studied artifacts found on the surface. He realized the site was a Caddo mound center.
The first scientific digs happened from 1939 to 1941. H. Perry Newell, an archaeologist from the University of Texas at Austin, led these. He worked with the federal Works Progress Administration. After Newell passed away, Alex D. Krieger continued the research. He confirmed it was a major Caddo site. More excavations in the 1960s and 1970s by Dee Ann Story helped figure out the site's timeline. They found it was used between 780 and 1260 CE.
In 1974, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department bought 70 acres of the site. They made it a historic park. They funded more digs in the 1970s and 1980s. These excavations were done by the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University. As a result, 23 more acres were added to the park in 1981. A visitors center was built there. In 2008, the Texas Historical Commission took over managing the site.
The museum and members of the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma work together. They help people learn about Caddo culture. In 2016, an elder named Phil Cross was interviewed. He talked about building a Caddo grass house at the site. Workers used traditional methods for this project.
2019 Tornado Impact
On April 13, 2019, a strong tornado hit the Mounds. This happened during Caddo Culture Day celebrations. One person sadly died, and many others were injured. Some people were seriously hurt. They were taken to the hospital by school bus or helicopter.
The visitor center and other buildings were badly damaged. The cost of the damage was estimated at $2.5 million. Many replica items in the museum were destroyed. However, the real artifacts had been moved to safety earlier. This was done by agreement between the Historical Commission and the Caddo Confederacy.
