The Allcorn (34ML1) and Nagle (340K4) Sites in Central Oklahoma and Their Relationships to the Arkansas River Caddoan Area

Fronto-occipital cranial deformation on human remains and prestigious funerary objects at the Nagle (340K4) and Allcorn (34ML1) sites attest to the presence of Arkansas River basin Caddoans in central Oklahoma. Reexamination of the data from Nagle reaffirms that this was principally a cemetery from a currently unidentified village, whereas previously unanalyzed materials from the Allcorn site suggest that this was a Caddoan village with associated cemetery. Radiocarbon dates from the Nagle site and relative dating of diagnostic materials from Allcorn suggest an occupation around A.D. 1200, toward the end of the Harlan phase or perhaps the beginning of the Norman phase. More in-depth analysis of materials from the two sites as well as surrounding Plains Village settlements do not support a previous argument that Arkansas River basin Caddoans in central Oklahoma were traders. It is argued that the presence of these Caddoan people was probably more related to religious and political practices. Final comments address the complexity of their living on what represented the western periphery of the Caddoan area.