Trade History

In the Post-Oak Savanna about 50 miles east of Dallas is an unusual archeological site, a place that played a little-known part in Texas history. Here, some 250 years ago, a Caddo-connected Native American group established a deer-hunting and hide-processing camp that produced thousands of deer hides for an international market. The hides were destined for Europe to create fine leather clothes for Parisians and other sophisticated folk, few of whom could have imagined the origin of their sleek and soft leather garments. Their tastes in fashion enriched the lives of an as-yet-unidentified group affiliated with the Caddo and Southern Wichita, possibly the little known Kichai. Whoever the Gilbert site occupants were, they possessed a wealth of European trade goods, particularly guns and other metal items, so many in fact that they abandoned perfectly good items including brand-new iron hoes.