Northeastern Texas is one of the most intensely studied archaeological regions of the state, principally for the two reasons that (1) archaeologically-rich Caddoan manifestations have long attracted interest and (2) many large land-modifying projects, such as reservoirs and strip mines, have occasioned environmental studies which include investigations of cultural resources. This greater amount of activity relative to other regions in the state has generally prevailed for more than a century (Guy 1990) and prospects are good that archaeologists will continue to intensely research the area in the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, however, they will be hard-pressed to keep pace with the destruction of archaeological sites. The region is growing in population and developing economically which inevitably results in land modifications destructive of archaeological evidence. Also, many sites are being willfully destroyed by commercial dealers in antiquities and by relic collectors.
This contribution to historic preservation planning is concerned with gaining a better understanding of the past environmental factors that stimulated responses by past inhabitants of Northeastern Texas, and the natural environmental context of the archaeological record in Northeastern Texas. The area has some overall environmental similarities--such as being in a single physiographic section, and falling within a single climatic region--that might be misconstrued to imply a uniformity of conditions critical in pre-industrial human adaptations. In fact, the conditions important in human ecology vary significantly across space and have varied equally significantly over time
