Archeology's New Look, Public Production

When the Congress of the United States authorized the Missouri River Basin Project, the foundation was laid for one of the largest archeological research programs in history. The authorization brought into being a plan to build some 105 dams and reservoirs on the main stem of the Missouri River and its tributaries in an area which had been the first, and is the present, home of the Plains Indians. The area abounds in village sites, tipi rings, campsites, slaughter pits, and other evidences of former human occupancy. Here and there, archeological surveys and excavations had been made prior to the time the project was authorized, but the major portion of the known sites had never been tapped. Experts felt that a careful search would reveal many sites that had hitherto been unknown.

This document presents an archaeological overview of the Missouri River Basin and the opportunities there are to study and learn about the use and occupation of these prehistoric sites.