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Site Preservation along an Active

Meandering and Avulsing River: The Red
River, Arkansas
M.J. Guccione
Department of Geology, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701

Michael C. Sierzchula and Robert H. Lafferty III

Mid-Continental Research Associates, RR 2, Box 270, Lowell, Arkansas 72745

David Kelley
Coastal Environments, Inc., 1260 Main Street, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802-
4657

The low-gradient Red River is a rapidly migrating, sinuous stream with easily erodible banks.
Avulsion is common at many scales, from individual meander bends that are cut off to major
sections of the river that form multiple, complex meander belts. The present meander belt
can be subdivided into mappable landforms— termed phases— that are associated with river
courses of different ages and thus associated with archeological sites of different ages. Within
the study area two phases are present. The younger Modern meander belt phase has formed
within the past 0.2– 0.3 ky, precluding preservation of prehistoric archaeological sites. Any
protohistoric artifacts that may have been preserved in this meander belt phase would be
deeply buried because as much as 2 m of the vertical accretion sediment has accumulated
between artificial levees in ⬍0.1 ky and 1– 2 m of sediment has accumulated beyond the
artificial levees in ⬍0.2 ky. Archeological site preservation in this highly mobile fluvial end
member can be used as a predictor for other, similar streams. A large prehistoric site is
preserved on an older (0.5– 1 kya) Late Prehistoric meander belt phase associated with an
abandoned river course. In the study area a Fourche Maline 7 period (A.D. 800– 900) through
Caddo IV period (ca. A.D. 1500– 1700) archeological site (3MI3/30) is preserved on this slightly
higher altitude portion of the flood plain. At locations proximal to the river, the site may be
buried by overbank sediment 0.4 m thick, but at more distant locations the site is at the
surface or only buried by thin overbank sediment because of low sedimentation rates
(0.04 cm yr⫺1) over the span of a millennium. Sites, such as 3MI3/30, that are occupied con-
temporaneous with overbank sedimentation may be stratified; however, localized erosion and
removal of some archeological material may occur where channelized flow crosses the natural
levee. 䉷 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

INTRODUCTION
Humans congregate along rivers, which provide them with a supply of water, a
route of transportation, plentiful flora and fauna for food and material supply, and short
a fertile, flat terrain suitable for agriculture. Hence, both archaeological sites and standard

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modern population centers are commonly concentrated in river valleys. Because

river valleys are sites of both deposition and erosion, they present a mixed blessing
for archaeologists. Where deposition dominates since human occupation, site pres-
ervation and stratification are possible, though burial of artifacts may be so deep
that location of the sites is difficult. Where erosion dominates since the time of
human occupation, the preservation of sites is unlikely. However, during erosion,
deeply buried sites, that would otherwise be unknown, are exposed and may be
excavated. An understanding of these fluvial processes and their spatial and tem-
poral variability aids archaeologists in cultural resources management. Over time
scales of potential human occupation, rivers may aggrade or degrade and they may
be mobile and stationary. All of these conditions impact the location of sites and
their preservation potential, as well as the likelihood of site identification. This
study examines one fluvial end member, a highly mobile river with minimal net
aggradation but extreme local aggradation during the time scales of human occu-
pation (hundreds of years).
The Red River in southwestern Arkansas (Figure 1) is a single-channel river with
a low gradient of 0.1 – 1.1 m/km (Guccione, 1984b) and easily erodible banks.
Though the channel migrates rapidly, it is unable to migrate across the entire valley
bottom forming a flood plain with both meander belt(s) and backswamp (Nanson
and Croke, 1992). The channel avulses, leaving abandoned channels of varying
lengths. Large-scale features, tens of kilometers long, are found within modern and
abandoned meander belts, and represent smaller scale divisions of meander belts.
These meander belt phases are extensive mappable areas within a meander belt
and have been named for the archeological materials associated with them. A me-
ander belt phase includes one or more abandoned courses (Smith and Russ, 1974;
Albertson et al., 1996), and is composed of multiple abandoned meanders, single
abandoned meanders, and the associated landforms. These phases may be at
slightly different altitudes, but are all part of the flood plain. Historic maps of the
Red River in Arkansas since the General Land Office (GLO) maps of 1839/42 show
the same meander belt phase as at present, although individual meanders have
been abandoned and channel positions have changed (Figures 2 and 3). Though
the channel position along some segments of the river has changed dramatically
since 1865, the mean sinuosity has remained remarkably stable in the last 130 years
(Guccione, 1984b). In contrast, along other courses of the river, both the channel
position and the sinuosity have changed greatly within a few decades. Due to this
extreme mobility, the area of the meander belt adjacent to the Red River in Arkan-
sas should be very young, perhaps less than 400 years old in the area south of the
Great Bend in southwestern Arkansas (Pearson, 1982).
Detailed mapping documents alluvial processes and migration rates of an ex-
tremely active meandering river, providing a chronological framework for deposits
and land surfaces associated with the Red River flood plain. Formation and evo-
lution of the flood plain were examined by detailing the type and style of overbank
sedimentation. Dating of the sediment and associated landforms utilized strati- short
graphic relationships, historic maps, radiocarbon ages, and prehistoric artifacts. As standard

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Figure 1. Location of study area, just upstream of the Great Bend in the Red River of southwestern
Arkansas.

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Figure 2. Channel position of the Red River and lakes (lined pattern) in Townships 13 and 14S and short
Ranges 27 and 28W from six historic maps. Maps are listed in references cited. Figure 3 shows a portion standard
of the same area in more detail.

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Figure 3. Map of study area along Red River. Locations of archaeological site 3MI3/30 and associated mounds, 20 described
trenches, and two undescribed trenches with radiocarbon dates are shown. Water bodies are from 1970 and 1975 photorevision
of the Homan U.S. Geological Survey 71⁄2-min topographic map and the 1839/1842 GLO maps. The Late Prehistoric meander belt
is present beyond the Modern meander belt.

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a result, the impact of fluvial processes on archaeological site location, preserva-

tion, and potential for discovery can be assessed. To accomplish these goals, we
conducted a detailed study of the deposits and a survey of archaeological sites
within a 1.5 km wide and 9 km long area between the channel margin and an aban-
doned Red River channel course. The study area is just upstream from the Great
Bend, and is fairly typical of this section of the Red River. Hence, a detailed study
from this area can serve as a model for alluvial processes and archaeological site
preservation along the Red River and along flood plains of similar active meander-
ing rivers, including those with artificial levees.

METHODS
Historical positions of the Red River and mapping of geomorphic features (Fig-
ures 2 and 3) were determined by examining (a) historic maps from 1839/42 to 1921
that range in scale from 1:1,451,000 to 1:633,000 (General Land Office, 1839 – 1842;
Venable, 1865; Langtree, 1866; G.W. & C.B. Colton & Co., 1882; General Land Office,
1901; Theo W. Ohman Map Co., 1921), (b) the 1951 USGS 7.5⬘ topographic map (1:
24,000), (c) the 1975 photorevision of the topographic map, and (d) 1969 aerial
photographs.
The geomorphic study was conducted using backhoe trenches and a natural
exposure along the bank of the river (Figure 3). Twenty trenches 1.4 – 4.4 m deep
and 3 – 19 m long and one bank exposure were examined in detail, and described
using standard USDA terminology (Soil Survey Staff, 1981), with all human artifacts
and features noted. Fourteen of these trenches were scattered throughout the study
area on both sides of the artificial levee. The remaining six trenches were outside
of the artificial levees, forming two transects oriented perpendicular to the meander
belt. The first transect of four backhoe trenches (BHT 1 – 4) extended from the
south portion of the modern phase of the meander belt to a slightly higher flood
plain surface associated with the older Late Prehistoric phase of the meander belt.
The second transect of two backhoe trenches (BHT 5 – 6) crossed a portion of the
older meander belt phase. Absolute altitudes of the ground surface at each location
were estimated using the 1:24,000 topographic map with a 10-ft contour interval.
Relative altitudes along the two trench transects were surveyed to be internally
consistent. An additional 28 trenches were only briefly examined, noting the pres-
ence of any human artifacts.
The archaeological survey was conducted using 148 shovel tests, averaging
79 cm deep, and 120 post hole tests, averaging 161 cm deep with the material
screened on known archaeological sites, and all artifacts were collected. Most of
these tested locations were south of the artificial levee to avoid very high post-
levee construction sedimentation rates that occur between the levee and the chan-
nel. Freshly plowed fields were systematically surveyed by pedestrian traverses for
cultural debris.
One hundred and thirty samples from 11 representative profiles were analyzed short
for grain size by dry sieving the gravel and five sand fractions and by pipette anal- standard

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Table I. Radiocarbon dates from Red River, Fulton, Arkansas.a Statistically most probable dates and
their probability distribution are in bold.
Calibrated Age
Conventional
Depth Radiocarbon Probability
Lab No. Material BHT (cm) Age (B.P.) 2 ␴ (AD) Distribution
Active Modern Meander Belt Phase between Artificial Levees
B-72959 Woodb 24 190 Modern ⬃1950 NAd
B-72962 Woodb 42 166 10 ⫾ 70 1680– 1760 0.27
1800– 1940 0.73
B-72961 Woodb 28 100– 140 70 ⫾ 50 1680– 1750 0.27
1800– 1940 0.73
Active Modern Meander Belt Phase beyond Artificial Levees
B-72963 Woodb 25 188 Modern Post 1950 NAd
B-72960 Woodb 29 166 140 ⫾ 70 1670– 1790 0.43
1790– 1950 0.57
Post 1950 0.01
B-83096 Charred 1 90 120 ⫾ 30c 1680– 1750 0.33
material 1800– 1940 0.67
Late Prehistoric Meander Belt Phase
B-73709 Charred 16 160– 183 310 ⫾ 80c 1440– 1690 0.87
material 1740– 1810 0.10
1930– 1950 0.04
B-83095 Charred 1 43– 68 540 ⫾ 30c 1400– 1440 1.0
material
a
Note: Calibrated ages calculated using CALIB rev 3.0 (Stuiver and Reimer, 1993) and rounded to the
nearest decade.
b Probably
a root, therefore interpreted as a minimum age for surrounding sediment.
c Accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) analysis.

d Not
applicable.

yses for one clay and three silt fractions (Day, 1965). Textural classification of Folk
(1968) was used for analyzed samples.
Total carbon content was analyzed for 44 samples, including profiles from four
backhoe trenches and a sample of the surface horizon from 11 additional trenches.
Total carbon weight was determined by dry combustion at 900⬚C in a Lindberg
Hevi-duty Tube Furnace (Soil Survey Staff, 1972). Carbonates were not present in
the samples so that total carbon is indicative of total organic carbon and the terms
will be used synonymously in this article.
Eight radiocarbon ages were obtained from subsurface wood and charred ma-
terial in stratigraphic context using both standard and accelerator mass spectrom-
etry (AMS) techniques (Table I). Measured stable carbon isotope ratios were used
to calibrate the radiocarbon ages to calendar years (Vogel et al., 1993; Talma and
Vogel, 1993; Stuiver and Reimer, 1993; Stuiver et al., 1993). Age estimates for land-
forms and land surfaces were determined by using radiocarbon dates and historic short
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GEOMORPHOLOGY
The Red River flood plain is a mosaic of modern and abandoned meander belts
locally separated by backswamp. Pleistocene terraces or bedrock valley walls oc-
cur along the floodplain margins. Saucier and Snead (1989) have identified six Red
River meander belts, but only two have been mapped in southwest Arkansas, the
current belt and an earlier meander belt south of the study area (Smith and Russ,
1974).
In the study area, the Red River floodplain is 11.4 km wide and bounded on the
north by an 11-m-high terrace and on the south by remnants of a 16.5-m-high terrace
overlying an Eocene bedrock bench. Along this reach of the river the modern me-
ander belt is up to 5 km wide (Figure 3), or a little less than half of the total
floodplain width. Detailed mapping of the Great Bend region by Albertson et al.
(1996) subdivides the modern meander belt into four divisions, here termed me-
ander belt phases; the active or Modern (⬍ 200 B.P.), Late Prehistoric
(200 – 1200 B.P.), Intermediate (1200 – 4000 B.P., and Old (⬎ 4000 B.P.) abandoned
channels. Although the study area for this report is not included in the map area
of Albertson et al. (1996), the two areas are adjacent, and some channel courses
span both.
Historic maps of the area demonstrate the active nature of the Red River within
its present meander belt (Figures 2 and 3). Though the meander belt has been in
the same position since the GLO maps were made in 1839/42, the channel has
migrated and at least two meanders have been cut off, leaving oxbow lakes in the
vicinity of the study area. The unnamed oxbow lake east of the study area was
cutoff since the GLO maps were drawn and a second lake, Cut-off Lake, was formed
since the Miller county line was drawn in 1874 (Figure 3). Three other abandoned
channels and channel courses are prehistoric.
Despite its mobility, the Red River has formed a natural levee, 1 – 2 m high and
200 – 300 m wide, along much of the active channel. On the basis of historic maps,
some of these natural levees must have formed within the artificial levees in less
than 70 years, and in perhaps as little as 50 years. For instance, Lake Bear Pond is
present on the 1839/42 GLO (Figure 3), 1865, 1866, 1882, and probably 1901 maps,
but is absent on the 1921 map (Figure 2). By 1951 the eastern portion of the lake
had been filled, a natural levee had formed, and the Red River channel occupied
what was the western portion of the lake.
At some locations the natural levee of the Red River is a continuous unbroken
ridge, but elsewhere it consists of a series of knolls separated by low areas that
extend approximately perpendicular to the channel (1951 topographic map). Some
of these are closed depressions too small to hold permanent water (BHT 5 and 6),
whereas others are not closed, but rather converge and become small tributaries
to Cedar Creek and Homan Ditch, the abandoned channel course to the south.
These portions of the natural levee are transitional between the more typical nat-
ural levee formed by sheet flow and crevasses formed by channelized flow. short
South of the active meander belt is an older phase of the meander belt which standard

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includes two abandoned channel courses. One 10-km-long channel course is shown
as a lake (Lake Comfort on the GLO maps, Figure 3) and on all but the 1844 map
(Figure 2). However, inaccuracies in the position of both the Red River and Mc-
Kinneys Creek on the 1844 map compared to earlier GLO maps of 1839 – 1842,
suggest that the 1844 map may be unreliable in this area. Between 1921 and 1951
most of the lake was drained and only a channel known as Homan Ditch remains.
The second and older channel course is identified by Clear Creek to the west and
Gillespie Ditch to the east, with the central portion truncated by Lake Comfort.
The relatively well-preserved topography associated with the abandoned channels
and abandoned channel courses, also suggests that the avulsions responsible for
these features occurred during the late Holocene.
Though most of the Red River is a single channel today, it has not always been
so. During the early 19th century floating rafts of vegetation clogged the channel
to form the Great Raft in northern Louisiana (Veatch, 1906). Hence a single channel,
partly filled by vegetation, could not accommodate the entire flow and additional
distributaries formed through the forested flood pain. Driftwood accumulated in
the new outlet and formed another jam at the upstream end of the raft; at the same
time rotting vegetation was eventually washed away at the downstream end of the
raft, causing the jam to migrate upstream. In the rafted area, tributaries of the Red
River were dammed to form lakes and the Red River was multichanneled (Abing-
ton, 1973; Albertson and Dunbar, 1993). These distributaries have been abandoned
since the raft was finally removed in 1873.
Historic rafts did not occur in the study area, but the presence of the Great Raft
further downstream suggests that prehistoric rafts may have existed. Geomorphic
evidence to support this hypothesis is not evident. Drowned tributary valleys filled
with laminated clay deposits forming lake plains are in the area of the Great Raft,
but there are no tributary valleys present in the study area and hence no lake plains.
Lake Comfort, Clear Creek, and Gillespie Ditch are possible distributary channels
(Figure 3). These features appear to be larger in scale than raft distributary chan-
nels identified by Albertson and Dunbar (1993). Their width, meander wavelength,
and sinuosity are similar to that of the Red River and thus are interpreted as aban-
doned courses of the Red River, not caused by a raft. However, if a raft did exist
in the area, these abandoned channel courses may have been used as overflow
channels.

SEDIMENT
Deposits of the Red River are typical of many meandering streams, and can be
divided into channel or lateral accretion sediments and overbank or vertical accre-
tion deposits. Because shallow backhoe trenches were used for this study, exam-
ination of channel deposits was limited. Where exposed in BHT 1 (the south end
of trench 1 was extended to 4.4 m depth but not mapped for safety reasons) and
in a bank along the river, the channel facies is a reddish yellow (7.5YR6/6), medium short
to fine-grained unimodal sand with granules present along bedding planes. Channel standard

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Figure 4. Thickness of overbank sediment plotted against distance from the meander belt. At many
locations the entire thickness of the overbank deposit was not penetrated so only minimal thicknesses
are known.

deposits have an overall fining upwards trend and change in bedding from plane
bed to trough cross strata near the upper portion of the deposit. Grain size in the
study area is consistent with measurements of the modern bed load near Shreve-
port, Louisiana approximately 70 km down valley (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Staff, 1980). Just east of the study area Albertson et al. (1996) report 10 – 13 m of
sand and gravel overlain by 6 – 7 m of point bar and natural levee deposits for a
total of 15 – 18 m of Quaternary alluvium. Because the thickness of the alluvium is
nearly twice the 8 – 10 m depth of the abandoned and present Red River channels,
the Red River has probably aggraded, though an alternative interpretation is that
paleochannels were considerably deeper than the recent channels. Intact human
artifacts, other than those associated with intrusive features, are unlikely to be
found in the channel deposits.
Vertical accretion deposits are the dominant surficial deposits associated with
cultural material at all the localities examined in the study area. In general, the
fine-grained deposit is 2 – 3 m thick adjacent to the channel and thins to ⬍ 0.5 m at
a distance of 1 km from the channel (Figure 4). The greatest variability in thickness
is within 0.5 km of the Red River, ranging from 0.9 to more than 3.0 m thick. This
variability is due to differences in land surface age and the topography of both the short
buried point bar deposit and the land surface. For instance, the southern margin standard

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of BHT 1 intersected an older land surface and two vertical accretion deposits are
superimposed to form the relatively thick accumulation (Figure 5). In BHT 5 and
6 the vertical accretion deposit is thickest beneath a knoll and thinnest below a
interknoll depression.
The proximal overbank facies is highly variable, consisting of very fine sandy silt
and silty very fine sand interbedded with silt and minor amounts of silty clay and
clayey silt (Figure 5) (Zone I of Zwoliński, 1992). This silt dominance is consistent
with the suspended load of the modern river which is 90% silt and clay (U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers Staff, 1980). In natural levee environments, beds of silty sand
and sand vary from 0% to 77% of the exposure (Figure 6), but there is no consistent
trend across the area and textures may vary in trenches ⬍ 25 m apart (Figure 5).
Sand bodies ⬎ 0.7 m thick are two types: lens-shaped and blanket-shaped (Figure
7). Sand lenses are more abundant than blanket deposits and may be more than
9 m wide. These lenses have erosional lower contacts and trough cross stratifica-
tion with clay laminae separating some of the troughs. Clay balls may also be
present. Human artifacts beneath these lenses may have been eroded prior to sand
deposition. The less abundant blanket-shaped sand body has individual beds from
0.1 to 0.6 m thick with planar lower contacts. Cross bedding is absent but the beds
may be laminated. Sand beds present near the surface generally fine upward to silt,
the most common surficial material in the proximal area (Laurent, 1984). Artifacts
associated with these sand bodies may be preserved beneath the sand body or at
the top of the sand body and may be stratified where sand bodies are superimposed.
Sand bodies ⬍ 0.7 m thick are dominantly tabular-shaped and are interbedded
with beds of reddish brown coarse silt and much less abundant silty clay beds
(Figure 7). The fine-textured strata vary from ⬍ 0.1 m to 1.4 m thick and are present
in most exposures. At many locations these clay-rich beds have some soil structure,
probably due to desiccation and wetting cycles rather than translocation of clay.
Where sedimentation was rapid, the contacts are abrupt, and laminations or trough
cross stratification may be preserved. Where the sedimentation rate was slower,
bioturbation has nearly obliterated bedding planes, and no internal bedding is pre-
served. Stratified artifacts are possible at either type of locality.
No proximal overbank sand bodies are present in BHT 1 – 4 (Figure 6). All the
vertical accretion deposits are silty, though they may vary from sandy silt to clayey
silt. In contrast, a large tabular sand body is exposed in trenches 5 and 6 (Figure
5). The thickest portion of the sand body proximal to the channel is 1.4 m-thick
and can be subdivided into three depositional subunits 0.3 – 0.6 m thick. The con-
tact of the sand body with the underlying silt is sharp but not erosive. Each of the
overlying sandy subunits also has a relatively sharp but not erosive basal contact
that is slightly bioturbated. The subunits are bedded and inversely graded with a
maximum sand content 5 – 20 cm below the top of the subunit. Laterally the sand
body thins to 0.3 m, becomes massive, and the grain size decreases to sandy silt
within 25 m. Though no human artifacts are present at this locality, preservation
potential of stratified artifacts is good. short
Overbank facies thins to 0.4 m (Figure 4) and grain size generally decreases standard

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Figure 5. Trench profiles examined in this study showing textures (Folk, 1968) and interpreted environments of deposition.

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Figure 6. Percent of exposure thickness that is comprised of sand beds (⬎50% sand) plotted against
distance from the meander belt. Only trenches where grain-size analysis is available are plotted (BHT-
1,4,5,6,9,12,16,19,24, and 29).

(Figure 6) with distance from the channel. Sand bodies are absent at a distance of
1.2 km away from the channel and the sand content of the muddy deposit decreases
upward (BHT 19). Soils in the area typically have 0.5 – 1.0 m of clay that overlies
stratified sandy sediment (Laurent, 1984). Though stratified human artifacts are
possible at this distance from the channel, the stratification will be compressed
and may be difficult to delineate.

LANDFORMS AND LANDSURFACES

The flood plain in the study area can be subdivided into two easily distinguishable
landforms, the Modern phase and the Late Prehistoric phase of the present meander
belt (Figure 3). Identification of these landforms is critical for targeting archaeo-
logical investigations. The Modern meander belt phase is defined as the area along
the present river between the outside of meander bends. It encompasses the mod-
ern river meanders and some of the more recently abandoned meanders. Intact
prehistoric artifacts are not associated on or beneath this landform. The Late Pre-
historic meander belt phase also includes abandoned channels and channel courses
which are somewhat older than those of the Modern meander belt phase, but the
altitude is not significantly higher and the area may be inundated during floods. short
Prehistoric artifacts may be associated with this landform. Time scales of this com- standard

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Figure 7. Graphic cross section showing sand content and bedding of three types of proximal overbank
deposits (blanket-shaped and lens-shaped sand and interbedded sand and silt), and a distal overbank
deposit overlying Red River channel deposits.

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plex floodplain formation can be determined using radiocarbon and historic dating
methods.
Sediment associated with the younger landform, the Modern meander belt phase,
accumulated subsequent to European settlement in the region. The landform is
most probably younger than A.D. 1790 but could be as old as A.D. 1670 based on
historic maps (Figures 2 and 3), lack of prehistoric human artifacts, and radiocar-
bon dates at six localities clearly within the Modern meander belt phase (Table I).
Four of these localities (BHT 24, 25, 28, and 42) are associated with the present
Red River channel, and the sediment and landform are most likely ⬍ 200 years old.
The remaining two dated localities are associated with abandoned meanders in
the Modern meander belt phase. The GLO maps (1839/42) show that the active
channel was near BHT 29 in the early 19th century (Figure 3) and the area would
have flooded frequently. Sedimentation had probably diminished or ceased by A.D.
1874 because the meander bend was apparently cut off before the county line was
drawn in 1874, resulting in the present unnamed oxbow lake. Based on a radiocar-
bon date of buried wood, ⬎ 1 m of silt and sand overbank sediment has accumu-
lated since A.D. 1670 and was probably accumulating between A.D. 1790 and 1950,
consistent with historic data. Thus formation of a natural levee associated with
this unnamed meander is certainly less than 330 years old, is probably less than
210 years, and the landform has been relatively stable for 120 – 160 years since the
channel was abandoned.
The second dated abandoned channel in the Modern meander belt phase is Lake
Bear Pond on the 1839/1842 GLO land survey. Proximal overbank sediment ex-
posed in BHT 1 is ⬍ 0.1 km from Lake Bear Pond. A radiocarbon date on charcoal
from this sediment at 0.9 m depth could be as old as A.D. 1680 but is most likely
calibrated A.D. 1800 – 1940. Based on the historic map and the radiocarbon date,
sedimentation could have been occurring between 160 and 320 years ago and prob-
ably was occurring at this locality between 160 and 200 years ago. These ages are
statistically the same as that of the other abandoned meander and the Red River
channel within the Modern meander belt phase, but historic information suggests
that Lake Bear Pond is probably slightly older than the unnamed meander
cutoff.
Where no abandoned meander is easily identified, the exact margin of the active
meander belt is less certain. BHT 16 is not closely associated with an abandoned
channel (Figure 3), and it is uncertain if this location is within or beyond the Mod-
ern meander belt phase. Based on historic positions of the Red River, the channel
has not been closer than 0.2 km to this location since A.D. 1839. A radiocarbon
date on charcoal from fine-grained overbank sediment at a depth of 1.6 – 1.8 m
(Table I) is most probably A.D. 1440 – 1690 but could be as young as A.D. 1810.
Thus distal overbank sedimentation probably occurred at this location between
190 and 560 years ago, prior to sedimentation associated with the two dated aban-
doned meanders, both less than 2 km distant. The geomorphology and the stratig-
raphy of this locality are similar to that of BHT 5 and 6, suggesting that the sediment short
and landform may be of similar age. These trenches expose channel deposits over- standard

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lain by a lower distal overbank clayey silt that is probably equivalent to the dated
unit and an upper proximal overbank silty sand that forms a knoll and swale to-
pography (Figure 5). The channel and distal overbank sediment are interpreted to
be outside of the Modern meander belt phase and part of the Late Prehistoric
meander belt of Albertson et al. (1996), based on the most probable date. The upper
silty sand and the surface topography are probably related to the Modern meander
belt phase.
The older landform present in the study area, the Late Prehistoric meander belt
phase, is a portion of the flood plain beyond the Modern meander belt phase. Where
associated with a cutbank of an abandoned meander (BHT 1, Figure 5), the boundary
between these landforms is a 0.5 m high scarp. It is on this higher and older landform
that archaeological site 3MI3/30 is located. Human artifacts and a radiocarbon date
of A.D. 1400 – 1440 indicate Caddo occupation of the site 600 – 560 years ago.
The land surfaces within the study area are distinct from the landforms in both
age and boundaries. Surfaces of two distinct ages are present and the boundary
between these surfaces occurs along the artificial levee. The landsurface of the
Modern meander belt phase between the artificial levees has aggraded during the
20th century because of rapid sedimentation in this area of confined flooding. Based
on the modern radiocarbon age of buried wood, more than 1 m of very fine sandy
silt and silty sand has accumulated locally since 1950 (Table I), probably during
multiple floods, the three highest of which occurred in 1990, 1957, and 1972 (Pat-
terson, 1971; Porter et al., 1995). Each of these floods was more than an order of
magnitude greater than the mean flow of record and had stage heights greater than
the ground surface altitude at this locality.
Outside of the artificial levees sedimentation on the surface of both the Modern
and Late Prehistoric meander belt phases had generally ceased by the 20th century,
when continuous artificial levees prevented flooding of the area. Thus the surface
of the Modern meander belt phase is compatible with the age of the landform. In
contrast, the surface of the floodplain beyond the Modern meander belt phase is
considerably younger than the landform of the Late Prehistoric meander belt phase
which is more than half a millennium old. The midden of 3MS13/30 at BHT 1 is
buried by 0.4 m of sandy silt and silt that is laterally continuous with sediment that
underlies the adjacent younger landform (Figure 5) and has been most probably
dated A.D. 1800 – 1940 (Table I). Similar to fluvial terraces along the Duck River
(Brakenridge, 1984), sediment associated with one landform can lap onto an older
landform causing the landsurface of both to be the same age. This veneer of
younger sediment is not identified in BHT 19, the most distal locality examined and
thus does not extend as an identifiable unit more than 1 km from the Modern phase
of the meander belt.

ARCHAEOLOGY
Archaeological remains are restricted to a slightly higher topographic area of the short
Late Prehistoric meander belt phase, and are apparently absent on the lower land- standard

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Table II. Cultures present in the study area and their ap-
proximate age (Schambach, 1982a,b).
Culture Years A.D.
Caddo V 1700– 1835
Caddo IV 1500– 1700
Caddo IIIa 1400– 1500
Caddo II 1200– 1400
Caddo I 900– 1200
Fourche Maline 7 (Crenshaw phase) 800– 900
a Not present in the study area or in Arkansas.

scape position and between the artificial levees of the Modern meander belt phase.
A large prehistoric site (3MI3/30) has been documented in this area (Figure 3), and
at one time included at least three, and possibly as many as seven mounds (Kelley,
1991; Sierzchula, 1995; Kelley and Guccione, 1997). In 1912 Moore excavated “trial
holes” in most of these and recovered three burials from one of them (Moore, 1912:
635 – 636). Amateur excavations during the 1930s and 1940s yielded additional bur-
ials, and this activity has continued sporadically up to the present. Beginning in the
late 1980s, surveys conducted in relation to a proposed channel realignment (Kel-
ley, 1991) and levee enlargements (Sierzchula et al., 1995; Kelley and Guccione,
1997) by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have identified several midden areas
and indicated that at least two of the mounds are still present. The occupational
sequence at the site apparently begins during the Fourche Maline 7 period (ca. A.D.
800 – 900) and continues throughout the Caddo IV period (ca. A.D. 1500 – 1700) (Ta-
ble II). This sequence is consistent with the radiocarbon date of A.D. 1400 – 1440
from charcoal associated with a midden in the northwestern portion of the site. In
this portion of the site, which is near the active channel of the Red River, the
cultural deposits are buried beneath about 40 cm of recent alluvium (Figure 5). At
locations farther from the channel, the cultural material is at or near the surface
(Szierchula et al., 1995).

DISCUSSION
Overbank Sedimentation
Variable textured and laterally discontinuous natural-levee deposits are charac-
teristic of the Red River and result from its rapid channel migration, high sinuosity,
and crevassing through easily eroded bank sediment. Similar to other streams,
overbank facies generally become finer with distance from the channel or sediment
source (Guccione, 1993). Along the Red River however, the distance to the channel
from a location is highly variable because the channel migrates rapidly, has a high
sinuosity with wave amplitudes of 1 – 3 km (Guccione, 1984a), and cuts off mean-
ders frequently. In addition, natural levees in the study area are most commonly
undulating ridges with swales oriented perpendicular to the channel. These swales short
may form in two ways. They may be areas of little or no deposition between linear standard

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ridges of sand which are tens of meters long and composed of multiple lenses of
silty sand that grades to silt and clayey silt (BHT 5 and 6). Alternatively they may
form by scour along localized flow paths over the levee. These depressions are
sluiceways that siphon water and sediment away from the main channel during
floods and are similar to crevasse channels. Sand partially fills the scoured areas,
but silt and clay can subsequently infill the remaining depression. Sheet flow over
flat-topped levee surfaces that might result in a more uniform overbank deposit is
less common than channelized flow. As a result of all these factors, texture of
proximal overbank deposits is quite variable laterally and may also vary vertically.
Though natural-levee deposits tend to be variable along many rivers (Allen, 1965;
Zwoliński, 1992; Saucier, 1994), the Red River presents an extreme case of
variability. By contrast, distal overbank facies (zones II and III of Zwoliński
[1992]) are much more uniform because texture and thickness of overbank deposits
varies logarithmically with distance from the source (Allen, 1965; Guccione,
1993).
Age of Landforms and Landsurfaces
All lines of evidence — radiocarbon dating, human artifacts, geomorphology, and
soils — support the conclusion that the deposits, land forms, and land surfaces
within the adjacent to the active meander belt of the Red River are quite young
and encompass both historic and prehistoric time. The Modern meander belt phase
is probably less than 2 centuries old and certainly not more than 3 centuries. The
landforms are obvious and geomorphic relationships are more useful than radio-
carbon dates in dating features within this time span. The portion of the Late Pre-
historic meander belt phase examined in this study is more than 5 centuries old
based on radiocarbon analysis and much of it is probably more than a millennium
old based on human artifacts that are present.
These landforms are controlled by the meandering, migration, and avulsion of
the river, all of which affects its sinuosity. Guccione (1984b) has suggested that
sinuosity changes of the Red River appear to be cyclic and estimated the length of
the cycle to be 200 – 300 years. This study suggests that this span may be too short.
In the study area the channel pattern appears to be nearly as sinuous in 1840 as it
does at the present time (Figure 3). The abandoned channel course represented by
Lake Comfort and Lake Bear Pond indicates that the sinuosity was somewhat di-
minished prior to 1840, and that the pattern of an earlier channel represented by
Clear Creek and Gillespie Ditch is even less sinuous. The point bar of the oldest
channel course can be dated as ca. A.D. 800 – 900 by Fourche Maline 7, Crenshaw
phase artifacts in archaeological site 3MI3/30 (Sierzchula et al., 1995). This would
suggest that half the sinuosity cycle may last a millennium.
Land surfaces are commonly younger than the larger scale landforms with which
they are associated and should only be used as a minimum date for the landform.
Flooding of older floodplain areas may result in a veneer of younger overbank
sediment that extends from the adjacent landform. Where the veneer is relatively short
thin, it does not mask the boundary between the landforms. standard

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Table III. Mean sedimentation rates along the Red River.

Distance from
Meander Belt Thickness Interval Rate
BHT (km) (cm) (yr) (cm yr⫺1)
Active Modern Meander Belt Phase between Artificial Levees
24 0 190 ⬍50a 3.80⫹
42 0 166 55– 195a 0.85– 3.02
28 0 100– 140 55– 195a 0.51– 2.5
15 0 202⫹ 70– 110b 1.84– 2.88⫹
Active Modern Meander Belt Phase beyond Artificial Levees
25 0 188 ⬍50a 3.76⫹
29 0 166 100– 205a 0.81– 1.66
1-Profile E 0 90 100– 195a 0.46– 0.90
Late Prehistoric Meander Belt Phase
16 0.3 160– 183 305– 555a 0.29– 0.60
19 1.2 45 1,100c 0.04
1-Profile B ⬍0.1 43– 76 555– 595a 0.07– 0.14
a
Age based on most probable calibrated date (95% probability) and historic information.
b
Age based on historic maps.
c
Age based on prehistoric artifacts.

Sedimentation Rates
Sedimentation rates range over 2 orders of magnitude within the study area.
Proximal natural-levee deposits ⱕ 0.1 km from the channel have mean sedimen-
tation rates of approximately 3 cm yr⫺1 on a decade- to century-long scale (Table
III). Flood confinement between the artificial levees since their construction as a
private network by 1887 and a continuous Army Corps of Engineers levee system
in 1898 – 1913 (Richard V. Hall, personal communication, 1994) accounts for the
extremely high rates. During one of the largest floods in 1927, many of the levees
failed, and some of those that did not fail had to be dynamited to allow flood waters
to drain back into the river (Watkins, 1984). Where the levees failed, up to 1.2 m
of sediment was deposited locally (Trubowitz, 1984). Though the levees did not fail
in the study area (Richard V. Hall, personal communication, 1994), specific deposits
resulting from the 1927 flood have not been identified, possibly because nearly
2 m of sediment have accumulated locally between the artificial levees since 1955.
It is unknown how much land clearing and agricultural practices on the low-relief
coastal plain have contributed to this high sedimentation rate, but reports on dis-
sected landscapes of relatively high relief areas with easily erodible materials (Bet-
tis, 1990; Magilligan, 1992) suggest that it may be considerable.
Sedimentation rates at localities beyond the artificial levees, but within the Mod-
ern phase of the meander belt range from 0.5 – 3 cm yr⫺1 on the scale of several
centuries (Table III). During the 19th century, sedimentation rates may have been
slightly higher than earlier due to vegetation and land disturbance as the area was
cleared for agriculture beginning in the 1830s (Watkins, 1984). In contrast, 20th short
century rates are considerably slower than previous ones due to sediment starva- standard

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tion since levee construction. The highest rate is only present near the margin of
Comfort Lake (BHT 25), which may reflect infilling of the lake and not be typical
of this geomorphic area. Except for the Comfort Lake locality, the rates are an
order of magnitude less than those on the proximal side of the artificial levee.
The older meander belt phase has the lowest sedimentation rates in the study
area. At locations distal to the Modern meander belt phase, the Late Prehistoric
meander belt has a mean sedimentation rate of 0.04 – 0.14 cm yr⫺1 during the past
5 – 10 centuries. This accumulation rate is 2 orders of magnitude less than that
between the artificial levees and 1 order of magnitude less than that beyond the
artificial levees. This rate is probably relatively unaffected by the levee construction
because of the longer time scale. Proximal to the Modern meander belt phase, the
sedimentation rate is greater, 0.3 – 0.6 cm yr⫺1.

Site Preservation Potential

A model for site preservation in the fluvial environment, an environment that is
commonly favored for human occupation, is of considerable use to archaeologists.
However, a single model cannot be developed for all rivers because of their vari-
ability in channel mobility and rates of aggradation and degradation. For the Red
River case described here, preservation and large-scale destruction of archaeolog-
ical sites is clearly linked to channel mobility and is less impacted by vertical flood
plain changes. Within the Modern phase of the meander belt, the channel may
erode by bank sediment and any related archaeological material in less than a
few centuries. Any surviving prehistoric materials within the meander belt and
between the artificial levees would be buried by rapid sedimentation. The above
data suggest that careful examination of channel positions on historic maps should
allow reliable estimates of locations that might contain or be devoid of prehistoric
artifacts in shallow buried or surface contexts. For example, because the Red River
migrates so rapidly, it might be expected that most of the area within the Modern
phase of the meander belt is historic and would therefore be devoid of prehistoric
materials. Most of the backhoe trenches examined were located within or at the
edge of the Modern phase of the meander belt and exposed very little archaeolog-
ical material. In contrast, site 3MI3/30 is located on the flood plain just beyond the
Modern phase of the meander belt.
In a fluvial system such as the Red River, local, small-scale erosion of archaeo-
logical materials may occur along natural levees. Where localized scour has oc-
curred across the natural levee, any human artifacts present could be removed.
Though a large site such as 3MI3/30 on the Late Prehistoric meander belt phase
would not be totally destroyed by this process, there may be gaps in site preser-
vation.
Vertical changes in the flood plain of the Red River are not as significant as lateral
changes in channel position for archaeological site preservation. In the long term,
the channel has aggraded, and the Quaternary fluvial deposits are thicker than the short
depth of the modern channel. But more recently, during the late Quaternary, the standard

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flood plain is being degraded, leaving terraces. Over a half a millennial scale, the
Modern meander belt phase is locally 0.6 m lower than the adjacent Late Prehis-
toric meander belt phase. However, short-term local aggradation is significant
within a meander belt and prehistoric human artifacts may be buried as deep as
3 m, the maximum depth of overbank sediment. At this depth artifacts could be
excavated but would be very difficult to locate. The active portion of the meander
belt is not a likely location for prehistoric deposits because of its young age. The
more promising locations for potential stratified prehistoric deposits are outside
of the Modern phase of the meander belt where proximal natural levees are asso-
ciated with prehistoric channels. Such a condition is present at site 3MI3/30. The
site was probably occupied between A.D. 1400 and 1440 (Table I) and most likely
considerably longer (Table II). Subsequent historic channel positions and their as-
sociated natural levees occur 0.2 – 0.3 km north of the site, far enough that the
occupation horizon is only buried by 40 cm of overbank sediment.
Other likely areas in which to locate stratified prehistoric artifacts are along the
distal prehistoric natural levees. Sedimentation rates decrease rapidly away from
the channel (Table III) and cultural artifacts stratified within the upper 3 m of
sediment at the edge of the natural levee may be compressed into ⬍ 0.5 m of sed-
iment in locations distal to the channel.
Preservation of prehistoric sites in the study area is enhanced by avulsion of the
Red River. Because the channel is so active, site preservation is very limited within
the Modern phase of the meander belt. However, avulsion of a channel to a new
location several kilometers to the north slightly more than an millennia ago did
allow preservation of sites in the area between the channels. Fourche Maline (Cren-
shaw phase) and Caddo artifacts are preserved in a elongate area of land (including
site 3MI3/30) several km wide oriented parallel to the trend of the river. Overbank
sedimentation of the Red River has preserved and stratified the artifacts within
much of this area, but relatively high sediment rates have buried the site adjacent
to the Modern phase of the meander belt, making it more difficult to locate these
materials.
Prediction of Archaeological Sites along Slowly Aggrading Alluvial
Systems
Consideration of the fluvial architecture, genesis, and archaeological site loca-
tions along the Red River can provide a means of identifying similar fluvial systems
and application of a predictive model for archaeological site locations along these
rivers. Though the Red River is similar to the Mississippi River and other large
rivers that occupy wide alluvial valleys and include both lateral migration (meander
belts) and backswamp flood plains (Nanson and Croke, 1992), there are some im-
portant differences, such as avulsion frequency and meander migration rates. Avul-
sion is dependent on a gradient advantage across the floodplain compared to that
of the down-valley channel and relatively large flood magnitudes (Mackey and
Bridge, 1995). A river that aggrades appreciably may have a cross-valley slope that short
is considerably larger than the down-valley slope. Along the downstream section standard

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of large rivers that have responded to sea level rise, such as the Mississippi River
(Saucier, 1994) and the River Rhine (Törnqvist, 1994), the channel has avulsed
frequently (1 – 2 ky intervals) during the Holocene, forming 6 – 12 active and aban-
doned Holocene meander belts/distributaries with relatively few multiple genera-
tions of abandoned meanders. Meander belts shifted most frequently during the
early Holocene when sea level was rising and the rivers were rapidly aggrading
(Törnqvist, 1994: Bryant et al., 1995). Along these rivers there is potential for Late
Prehistoric archaeological sites to be preserved along the present channel because
the channel migration rates are not high, but there is no potential for middle and
early Holocene sites within the active mender belt because it did not exist at that
time.
In contrast, the Red River in the study area is a model for a slowly aggrading,
active, meandering river in a wide alluvial valley. The study area is far enough
upstream of the coast that rapid aggradation in response to sea-level rise did not
exist. In the study area the ratio of the cross-valley slope with the down-valley
slope is only 2.3, far less than the ratio of 4 to 5 thought to be needed for an avulsion
to occur (Slingerland and Smith, 1998). As a result of low, long-term aggradation
rates and a low potential for large-scale avulsion, only two meander belts separated
by a backswamp are present on the flood plain. There is little potential for any
prehistoric archaeological sites along the active channel meander belt phase be-
cause rapid channel migration across a restricted geographic area quickly reworks
the sediment and destroys any sites that are present. Meander cutoffs may form in
102 years and most of the sediment is reworked in 2 – 3 centuries. However, there
is potential for older sites to occur on other phases of the active Red River meander
belt. The meander belt is considerably older than a millennium. Though initiation
of the meander belt was not dated in this study, Albertson et al. (1996) consider
part of the meander belt to be as much as 4 ky. The older phases of the meander
belt are present along courses and meanders abandoned by small-scale avulsions.
Avulsion frequency of courses is also low and a river course may be active for a
millennium, the same life span as some entire meander belts in aggrading rivers
(Saucier, 1994; Törnqvist, 1994). As expected in this model, abandoned meanders
and abandoned courses are more abundant along this region of the Red River than
farther downstream, or along the downstream portions of the Mississippi and Ar-
kansas rivers (Saucier, 1967; Smith and Russ, 1974). In this model meander belts
of slowing aggrading meandering rivers may be relatively old and therefore ar-
chaeological sites along phases of them may be relatively old compared to the
active meander belts of more rapidly aggrading meandering systems.

CONCLUSIONS
The rapidly migrating Red River, typical of active meandering rivers, avulses at
all temporal and spatial scales, from individual meander bend cutoffs that might
develop in hundreds of years (this study) to meander belts of the river that are tens short
of kilometers long and might develop in thousands of years (Autin et al, 1991; standard

496 VOL. 13, NO. 5

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Törnqvist, 1994). The present meander belt of the Red River can be subdivided into
mappable phases, which correspond to various avulsions of short river courses.
Within each phase, the meander belt was frequently reworked while the course
was active because of rapid channel migration. For instance, along the present
channel, the sediment and surface of the Modern meander belt phase is no more
than 300 years old and probably less than 200 years old. Despite this rapid rework-
ing of the flood plain, thicknesses of 2 – 3 m of natural-levee sediment can accu-
mulate because the overbank sedimentation rates are relatively high adjacent to
the channel and especially between the artificial levees where flooding has been
confined during the 20th century.
Preservation of prehistoric archeological sites along the Red River is only pos-
sible beyond the Modern meander belt phase. Preservation of sites in the Late
Prehistoric and older meander belt phases is possible because avulsion has caused
the river course to be abandoned and protected from erosion. However, relatively
slow overbank sedimentation may continue to occur on the landform and bury
older landforms and archaeological sites, especially phases and sites adjacent to
the Modern meander belt phase. As a result of this style of floodplain evolution,
initial human occupation of a meander phase occurs over a short time interval of
several centuries. Artifacts from this interval may be stratified along some portions
of the natural levee but could also be locally eroded where scour occurs across
the levee. Human occupation may continue on the landform after the phase is
abandoned as the active channel course and human artifacts from this interval may
be stratified. However, any stratification present will be compressed due to slow
sedimentation rates (0.04 – 0.6 cm yr⫺1), which may be 1 – 2 orders of magnitude
less than that which occurred while the channel course was active.

Funding for this project was from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Vicksburg District under Contract
DACWO3-92-D-0013, Delivery Order 3 and Contract No. DACW38-91-D-0014, Delivery Order No. 17.
James Kendall, assisted with field work and Anna Chauvet assisted with laboratory analyses. Paul Al-
bertson, Michael Blum, Robert Brakenridge, Hester Davis, and Paul Goldberg provided useful reviews
of the manuscript. Lisa Larsen constructed Figure 2.

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Accepted for publication January 23, 1998

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