The Alabama River Phase: A Biological Synthesis and Interpretation

Until recently, very little attention has been paid to the protohistoric time period in the state of Alabama. Perhaps this is because it is not as "artifactually'' interesting as the preceding Woodland and Mississippian periods. The only unusual artifacts found from this time period are mortuary vessels, burial urns, which are not found in preceding occupations.

This protohistoric time period, known as the Alabama River phase, is very important, however, in the reconstruction of the total prehistoric cultural development. It was during this time that one of the most elaborate, affluent social structures, the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex, declined and met its ultimate demise.

It is the purpose of this thesis to present data obtained from the analysis of several Alabama River phase sites in anticipation of elucidating some of the problems and hypotheses posed by archaeologists concerning the aftermath of the Mississippian decline.

A total of 88 burials was analyzed from four sites with known Alabama River phase components. Pertinent data was recorded for each individual concerning age at death, sex, and pathologies and anomalies. Site IWXl had a Mississippian component underlying the Alabama River phase component. The burials from both of these components were analyzed and compared for similarities and differences.

In addition to the data obtained from the four Alabama River phase sites, comparative data recently obtained from the skeletal material excavated for the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway has been added. This additional data is from two sites, 1PI33 and 1GR2, considered to belong to the middle to late Mississippian time period. A total of 56 individuals, 23 from site 1PI33 and 33 from site 1GR2, represents the comparative populations, with emphasis being placed on pathological diagnoses.

It was concluded that contrary to the popular concensus that the basic Mississippian subsistence pattern of riverine hoe agriculture heavily supplemented by hunting and gathering continued through the Protohistoric period to the Historic period, a change in subsistence may have occurred during the Protohistoric period which resulted in extreme nutritional stress for the indigenous groups occupying Alabama during that time period. Several hypotheses are offered as explanations for this nutritional stress.