Evidence of prehistoric people on Rich and Winding
Stair Mountains were discovered at campsites. The slopes were too
steep for full time residents. At the end of the Ice Age, prehistoric
people turned from the plains to these mountains for game and edible
plant products. Chert, a rock common on these slopes, was valued
by prehistoric people for tools and weapons.
Ten thousand years ago, the Caddoan people inhabited the river valleys
below the mountains. Research by archeologists indicates the Caddoan
people adapted over time from a nomadic hunting, gathering culture
to a pottery making, horticultural society and, eventually, a settled
farming community.
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