Drought Reveals Louisiana Archaeological Sites Long Under Water

Part of the reason can be blamed on the creation of Toledo Bend Reservoir. An idea borne out of a 1958 feasibility study, the 186,000-acre lake—the fifth largest in the nation—was once 150,000 acres of standing timber straddling the meandering Sabine River. Land acquisition began in 1963, with construction of the earthen dam, spillway and power plant following in 1964. Impoundment of water began in 1966.

During the construction phase, at least one Caddo Indian burial site was discovered and hundreds of remains were exhumed. "It was a site dated to the 16th century," Girard said.

The burial ground unknowingly was located behind Earline and Robert Bison's home, south of Converse, that once sat close to the Sabine River. The Bisons moved to higher ground before the lake swallowed up their family home, and Earline Bison recalls watching the University of Texas and Southern Methodist University college students painstakingly remove the Native Americans' remains. —The Shreveport Times